Persona Zero: The First Journey

Chapter 7: Kendo Blues

*groaning sounds*

Fuyuki: *gasps* C-Could it be?! BlueDestiny's still alive!

BlueDestiny: Braaaaains….

Souji: …Well, he IS back from the dead now. L-Let's get to the disclaimers, shall we. Persona and all of its characters belong to Atlus. BlueDestiny owns only this fanfic and it's OC's.

Fuyuki: Ahh! Souji! He's attacking me!

Souji: L-Let's start the chapter! Persona!

Gymnasium, Reisen High School, 23rd April 1990

"I'm Souji Narukami, I'll do my best for the team." He said when he introduced himself at the Kendo Team's first meeting of the year. So far, the days have been normal for Souji after his first meeting with Yuki, minus the fact that Fuyuki has been barging in his house frequently for free omelets. Although Mr. Muramasa, advisor of the team, was very happy about receiving new intakes, the team members weren't so enthusiastic. Some were giving polite smiles and nods, but the rest were giving him looks of indifference, which puzzled him. "And that will be all the new members this year," Mr. Muramasa said after Souji finished his introductions. "…although I am a bit disappointed about the small number of them. BUT!" he suddenly yelled out, making everyone in the immediate vicinity to flinch. "A true warrior's heart would never be faltered by such mere problems like a shortage of men!" The man has no indoor voice at all, Souji thought. "Well, anyway," he continued, "I suppose the new boys could sit this one out for today. Instead, how about the veterans put on a show today, eh Yuki?"

…No response. He looked over to where the seniors are and realized he isn't there. Come to think of it, Souji thought, he hadn't seen the black haired boy at school today. Could it be he's absent? "Mitsuhide!" Mr. Muramasa called out to a long haired boy at the front of the seniors' row. "Where's Yuki?" "I dunno, sir," the boy replied. "He stormed out of class the moment the final bell rang." Stormed out? Souji thought to himself. Did something happen? "But it's alright, sir!" the boy replied brightly. "As team captain, it's my duty to handle the meeting today, right?" "Hmm, well, it is your job…" Mr. Muramasa pondered. "But it's strange. It's not always that Yuki isn't in a team meeting, even though all he does is sit in a corner and oversee any sparing matches." Maybe something came up and he has to leave, Souji thought. "Alright then," Mr. Muramasa said. "I have some business to attend with the Principal. Mitsuhide, carry on." "Yes sir!" he replied, and then addressed the other members. "Alright, new guys, welcome to Kendo. Any of you know how to use a sword?" A few nodded, Souji included. "Nice!" he said. "Don't worry for those who don't, we veterans can whip you up to an excellent swordsman in no time!" "Tch, yeah," a senior suddenly said. "But not good enough to tackle the Vice Captain." Some of the members sighed loudly. "That dude," a member said. "He's a monster, I tell you. One stroke and I was out." "Yeah," another member agreed with him. "Wonder why he didn't become Captain-

"ENOUGH!" Mitsuhide suddenly yelled out to the seniors while making a very angry glare. "E-Eh…Mitsuhide…" a member beckons his attention to the new members, and then realizes that they were staring at the whole commotion, looking confused by the sudden outburst. His glare quickly turned to shock, and then he quickly cleared his throat and regained his composure. "Sorry, guys. I was, err…umm…" he tried to think of something to explain his behavior. "W-Well, I think we can start now. Katsuragi, you and I will handle the rookies. The rest, go with your usual pairs. There's a lot to do before the tournament! Let's go, guys!"

After that sudden scene subsides, the Kendo team finally began its practice. Souji and the other rookies were being taught the basic rules and other things to know about before actually stepping in the ring while watching as the senior members spar with each other. It was not easy to grasp at first, but he thinks he has gotten the hang of it after awhile. But Souji was still confused over one thing. Where is Yuki? He doesn't seem to be the type that skips club meetings, from what he learned. And he doesn't think talking to the club members about it would be wise, especially the team captain after his outburst at the mere mention of his name, for some reason. He made a mental note to ask him later when he sees him again. Though he wondered if he could have the time because-

"Hiyyaaahh!" Oh shi-

*THWACK!*

Class 2-A, Reisen High School, A Few Hours Ago

"Ehh?!" Fuyuki exclaimed. "You're joining the Kendo Team?" "Yeah," Souji said, confused of his companion's response. It was lunch time and they were eating their boxed lunches in class. "Something wrong?" Fuyuki then looked around their surroundings in an overly dramatic fashion, then leaned closer to Souji and spoke in a more quiet tone. "It's a good thing you told me this now, but that is a seriously bad idea, dude." "Huh?" Souji replied. "Why's that?" "Well…" Fuyuki said, "I heard from my reliable sources that the training is so gruesome, there were people going in and out of the infirmary everyday!" Souji looked at him doubtfully. "It can't be that bad, can it?" "Oh, it doesn't stop there, my dear Souji," Fuyuki said, wiggling a finger at him. "You've heard of the school's infamous Ice Prince, right?" "Yuki-senpai?" Souji asked. "Yeah, the guy who's all the rage with the ladies here." Fuyuki said with a look of displeasure at the mention of the name. "Us normal dudes didn't even had a chance. Anyway, he's Vice Captain and instructor of the Kendo Team. But he's a scary and vicious instructor, so scary that one time…"

*THWACK!*

Souji flinched as a Fuyuki was hit with a textbook to the head. That has got to hurt, Souji thought to himself and sure enough, Tsugumi Hoshino was right behind them, apparently unamused. "Honestly," she said to Fuyuki, "Just because you don't want to join any clubs again this year doesn't mean you can spout lies to Narukami-kun so he could join you." "Hey!" said Fuyuki, who was still wincing from the sudden attack on his head. "I may be a slacker at heart, but I never lie!" He got onto his feet and pounded his chest proudly with his fist. "You may call me an idiot, but not a liar!" "Oh yeah?" she shot back. "Explain the time you tried to convince Ms. Tachibana why you didn't hand over your assignment last week." "Ehh…" Fuyuki stuttered, while looking at Souji with his eyes narrowed. That time, as Souji recalled, he found Fuyuki's assignment under his table when he said to Ms. Tachibana he forgot to bring it to school. Naturally, he pointed it out to her, thinking Fuyuki did not see it in there. He didn't talk to him at all until lunch break, as he had no one else to hang out with but Souji. "Speaking of which," he tried to change the subject. "You remember our deal, right, Souji?" "Huh?" Souji replied, not knowing what he is talking about. "Don't play dumb with me, dude!" he said, looking incredulous at his response. "You promised to treat me to arcades as an apology for selling me out to Ms. Tachibana!"

…Oh, he forgot that.

"You told him to treat you as a way of getting back at him for doing something that was clearly your fault?!" Hoshino snapped at Fuyuki. "Do you want me to bring out the dictionary again?" "Whoa there, girl," Fuyuki quickly said, while covering his head with his hands. "Ladies aren't supposed to crack someone's head open." He then smirked slightly. "Then again, you don't exactly have much of a…ladylike figure," he said while looking at her chest.

Those words are then met by a single, lightning fast punch straight at Fuyuki's stomach. "Oof!" he grunted. "C-Critical hit…" he said as he slumped into his chair, clutching his stomach while wincing and writhing at the pain he brought to himself. But still, Souji can't help but feel a little bit of sympathy for him. "Maybe that's a little too hard?" she glanced nervously at Souji, who merely shrugged. "He'll survive…probably." "Anyway," Hoshino reverted back to her normal, serious tone. "Sure, there's a few members going to the infirmary, but as far as I could tell, those were merely leg sprains and a few bruises. And Yuki-senpai isn't that bad," she frowned a bit. "A little creepy, if you ask me. I don't know why girls are throwing themselves at him. Probably because he has a motorbike, they think he's rich or something." "Then again," she added. "He never paid much attention to any of them." Souji could see that. During the rare glimpses of the boy he had these days, it was always followed by a squad of female students, whispering and giggling furiously among themselves. Yet Yuki will just ignore them and manage to slip away from the girls, much to their disappointment. "That's the Ice Prince, alright," said Fuyuki, who somehow recovered from the punch, albeit slightly, as he's still clutching his stomach. "He's probably doing it on purpose, so the guys would get jealous or something, but…" he stopped to think about something. "There seems to be one girl he's not ignoring." "Eh?" said Souji and Hoshino in unison. Now that Souji thought about it, there was this one girl-

"Anyway!" Fuyuki suddenly said, interrupting his train of thought. "You'll come tomorrow, right?" "Are you still thinking of dragging him along on your little gaming excursions?!" Hoshino snapped at him. "We got assignments to do…" "It's OK, Hoshino-san," Souji finally spoke up. He had to, or else hell would break lose. "It's my fault Fuyuki got into trouble, and I would like to make up for it. Besides, I already told him I'd agree," he ended with a smile. Hoshino looked at him in stunned disbelief. Fuyuki, however, was overcome with emotion. "Dude…you're a true bro…" Hoshino sighed, and decided she had enough with all of this. "Whatever floats your boat, Narukami-kun. And you…" she glared at Fuyuki, who yelped at the sudden aggression. "Make sure he gets home safely this time. If anything happens to him…" She pulls out the dictionary she used on him before. Fuyuki took one look at it and panicked. "Y-Yes, ma'am! I'll make sure nothing happens! Just put that away, please!"

Souji begins to wish he knew better to poke his nose into things he shouldn't.

Men's Locker Room, Reisen High School, Present Time

"Oww…" Souji rubbed the spot on the head he was hit at. Apparently, his opponent was so nervous, he flailed his shinai wildly, and he was too preoccupied with his thoughts to see the incoming strike. Had he not been wearing proper protection, he'd be having more than just being a little dizzy. Other than that, nothing eventful happened during the team meeting. By the time he recovered, it was already over and only a few seniors are still in gym cleaning up equipment. "Well, at least I know how to handle a sword better now," he said to himself as he changed back to his school uniform. But he had to admit, that was really careless of him. Had that been a demon, he would've been dead by now. But lately, there hasn't been any news about strange incidents, meaning there haven't been any demons around. Then a thought came to his mind. Could it be that he's out there hunting them down? That would certainly explain his absence, but Souji had a hard time believing Yuki slipped from Kendo for such an excuse. The teachers will probably think he's crazy or something. So then how-

"What do you mean it's not my business?!" a loud voice suddenly said, causing Souji to jump a little. "That sounds like the Captain…" he said to himself. He then slowly crept to where the voice was, which lead him near the gym storage room. Souji peeked from the corner he was hiding at and he saw it was indeed the team captain, with, to Souji's surprise, Yuki. What's he doing here? "I'm gonna ask you one last time, Yuki," the captain growled at him. "Where were you during today's practice?!" Yuki simply stared at him, putting on that unreadable poker face he usually wore. "You do realize you hold a very responsible position in the team, yet you didn't show up anyway!" the captain continued. "Must I tell Mr. Muramasa about this intolerable behavior of yours?!" His question is met with more silent from the black haired boy, who merely shuts his eyes and sighed.

"Answer me, goddamnit!" the captain yelled as he swung the shinai he was carrying at him. Souji wanted to interfere, but Yuki, without even opening his eyes, caught the blade with his left hand, surprising his attacker. "You sure you want to do this, Mitsuhide?" Yuki finally spoke, in his usual cold monotone voice. "What the hell do you mean?!" Mitsuhide growled back at him, as he tried to free the sword from Yuki's grasp, to no avail. "This isn't how a team captain should act in front of his new teammates," he then glanced to the corner where Souji was hiding. "Right, Narukami?"

"Eh?" Mitsuhide said, as Souji slowly left his hiding spot. How the heck did he know I was here? Surprised, Mitsuhide released his grip from the sword and backed a few steps away from Yuki. "N-Narukami-kun!" he said nervously. "Uh…we were…uh…" "…Just having a friendly chat," Yuki finished for him, as he twirled the sword in his hand before tossing it back at him. Mitsuhide glared at him for a moment before sighing. "I hope you understand and do not repeat such actions for the sake of the team," he spoke back in a forced tone of politeness. "Now, if you excuse me…" he said before leaving in the opposite direction. Both of them watched him go before Yuki finally sighed, breaking the silence. "Rough day, eh?" "Y-Yeah," Souji said. "D-Does this happen often?" "No," Yuki replied. "But the times when it does, it's really a pain to deal with." "So, where were you then?" Souji asked him. "Finding more demons?" Yuki shook his head. "Personal business," he simply replied, showing that he does not want to pursue to topic further. Souji merely nodded in understanding. "Although…" Yuki then said. "…You really need to concentrate a bit more." "Eh?" Souji said in confusion, when he realized what he was talking about. "Y-You were watching?!" Yuki didn't reply, and began to walk away. "W-Wait, Senpai! B-Before you go…" Souji called out to him. Yuki stopped and glanced at him. "C-Can I…ask you a favor?" The older boy's eyes narrowed, but did not respond further, prompting Souji to continue. "I…I want you to train me…to fight those demons." Yuki continued to stare at him for a bit before replying, "Isn't that why you joined the Kendo Team? So you could do just that?" "Y-Yeah," Souji answered nervously. "But that's only for fighting against other people. They don't tell us how to fight things that are not human, do they?" "Even so…" Yuki said. "Let me ask you, Narukami. Why do you want to fight? Why bother hunting them down when you can happily live your life not doing so?"

That question stumped Souji. He has a point. He hasn't sensed a single demon ever since their battle against the Obariyon. Yuki did told him they were hiding in plain sight, but why would he bother hunting them in the first place? He could simply just live his life as it is just like a normal high school student. But then…

…All I can say is something very terrible is about to occur in your world. And that's where you come in…

He remembered what Philemon had said to him before. Something was about to happen and it's not going to be pleasant. If it indeed happens, his life, his friends and his family would be in grave danger. And so…

"…to protect," Souji said. Yuki raised an eyebrow. "To protect?" he repeated. "I was given this power for a reason," Souji explained. "And those demons are harmful to us humans. Should anyone close to me get attacked; I want to be there to save them." Souji then remembered how worried his mother was when he awakened in the hospital after summoning his Persona for the first time. "And I need to know how to fend for myself, so I wouldn't end up getting killed by them." He lowered his head a bit. "…And someone would be really sad if I'm dead."

Yuki's eyes widened a bit, and then reverted to its narrow gaze. Someone important, huh? He sighed. "You're really serious about this, huh?" Souji looked back at Yuki with determination in his eyes. They continue to stare before Yuki finally gave in. "Fine…" Souji's face brightened. "R-Really?" Before Souji can say anything else however, Yuki raised up a hand to him. "But…you have to follow everything I tell you to. Deal?" "Yeah, I promise!" Souji said happily. Yuki nodded slightly, and then turned to leave. "Stay back awhile after the next Kendo practice. We'll start then." He said, as he left for the bike racks. "Don't do anything stupid."

Souji watched as Yuki disappeared from his sight and smiled weakly. He had a feeling he was about to do just that.

Urgh… My head. Anyway, hey folks. I'm back. Sorry this took so long. I'm just about to enter college, so yeah, I was busy prepping, plus a lot of IRL stuff. Even so, finishing this story was always a top priority for me. Then there's that Gundam SEED fanfic I'm planning… Sigh…

In any case, I will try to maintain a steady update rate, now that I have my own personal laptop now. Here's to hoping my slack doesn't get the better of me. Well, that's all for now. Seeya on the next chapter!