Chapter 27: The Chapter Who's Name I Can't Remember. Seriously, What The Hell Was It?
Heya guys! It occurred to me that I never told you what was funny about the thing I said in my last beginning notes. I said that I was debating about whether to tell you all what I had planned that didn't happen after the end of this story. The reason that's funny is that true love stories have no endings. That's right, I said it. Technically, this story will never end, after the main bit is written and my ideas run dry, it will merely run into a long Hiatus. And while I don't see my ideas failing me any time soon, considering how long it too to write one of them (tournament), should I happen to reach such a point, I won't mark the story complete just in case after, say, twenty years I come up with a new idea, I can write it in! Killa... Killa Killa Killa... You're either gonna love this or hate this. And why don't you like Final Fantasy X? It's my favorite Final Fantasy game! And as I told ya, my brain is hardwired to think of any and all references, especially song parodies, hence the completely irrelevant and pointless song added to the last chapter. HA Sqweebs, got one on you and Flygon! I have another one in the next chapter, you'll just have to wait and see it! And thank you for the compliment Kahalis, that made my day when I read it. By the way for everyone who's read to this point, there is an announcement about the continuity of this story. Time no longer has any meaning in it. It's set after the end of Lucky Star, which was years ago before a lot of the stuff I reference was created. But that's not all anymore. I've realized that if I keep up the pace I've set with chapter length and how long it takes to get them out, it may be well over a year and twenty chapters before I get to the Hiiragi birthday if I don't skip days. So I think I may just... screw with the time line a tad. I'm not saying I'll have a Christmas chapter for, say, chapter 50 and then a Halloween chapter for 51, but still. So, just wanted to get that out of the way now. Please enjoy the chapter!
About where we left off
"Then something did happen?" Tony asked.
"Yeah. It was back in Junior High..." Kagami started. "Tsukasa has always hated the thought of death. It's always made her sick, it was her nature. But..." Kagami recalled her tale. "It was something she could live with in the world. If someone died and it, say, helped a lot of people like Scar's, she could deal with it. But around five years ago, back in Junior High, Tsukasa and I had a friend, though he was more her's then mine. His name was Itsuwari, probably her very best friend. Those two were super close, probably on account of him having a crush on her. Whether she knew or not, I dunno, he wasn't really obvious about it like you are-" Tony's eyes widened as he blushed. Kagami smiled for a second as her suspicion about his feelings were confirmed. "-but they told each other everything. For several years, I thought they were going to be Sickeningly Sweethearts, where their only arguments would be who liked who more or who was cuter..." Kagami reminisced. "...It was the day of graduation from Junior High. Itsuwari came to us with super exciting news. He got admitted into Ryoo High, same as us. Him and Tsukasa hugged each other in excitement and started home, chattering about how they were going to have three more years together." Kagami sighed. "We got as far as we could walk together like we usually did, and went our separate ways." Kagami said. Tony gulped.
Why don't I like where this is going? Tony thought as a pang of fear ran through him. Kagami breathed deeply.
"We got a call from the hospital the next day. Itsuwari had been hit by a drunk driver. There was nothing they could do." Kagami's voice dropped as she relived the loss of their friend. "Tsukasa was devastated. She went into a depression for months... until she met Konata. I guess Konata's ever-cheerful attitude got to Tsukasa, because when she came home that day, she was happy for the first time since we lost Itsuwari. She told me she had met a new friend that day and she wanted to introduce me to her. I was so happy she was alright, you should have heard her talk about her. She probably still remembers what the first thing Konata said to her was." Kagami said.
"What was that?" Tony asked.
"She said "Don't worry Akira, I'll save you!". Tsukasa didn't even realize she was referencing To Heart until I told her later. I don't remember if I ever thanked Konata for saving her." Kagami smiled, thinking of her Otaku.
"What happened that Konata had to save her?" Tony asked.
"A foreigner was asking for directions, but Tsukasa didn't understand him. She was panicking a bit and Konata ran over to see what was happening. She saw a man speaking a language neither of them knew and Tsukasa panicking, so assumed he was causing trouble. She swiftly beat him up. But that's not what I was talking about. She saved her from her depression, I have no idea how different Tsukasa would have been if she had stayed like that. I only know that she would be a LOT different. She might have turned into a depressed empty shell of a girl. It was because of the loss of Itsuwari that her hatred of death escalated to such a magnitude. To her, everyone, no matter how evil, wicked, or mean, has someone who honestly and truly cares about them. She doesn't want them to feel the pain she did then. You're actually the first boy she's spoken more then two words to since he died. She been too afraid to get close to a boy in fear that something might happen to them." Kagami said. Tony was frozen for a moment.
"That's... No one ever told me about that..." Tony muttered.
"You never asked before. Please, just think about that before you threaten to kill someone around her. Even if she's 99% sure that you're not going to kill them, she'll still beg and plead with you not to based on that 1% chance you might." Kagami said.
"Kagami... Thank you so very much for sharing this with me..." Tony smiled a sad smile. It was only then that Tony fully realized the true depth of Tsukasa's hatred for death. Not only that, but his respect for Tsukasa deepened by magnitudes. Such pains she's gone through. And she holds mine as well. She's so strong...
"It's alright, you deserve to know. I can tell you care about Tsukasa a lot, and I wanted to thank you. I know if something happened to me and our family, you would step up in an instant to take care of her." Kagami said, causing Tony to blush. "So thanks for caring so much and for showing Tsukasa that it's okay to talk to boys again." Kagami smiled. Tony smiled back.
"I can assure you Kagami, it's my pleasure completely." Tony said. "And you're right... If anything happened, I would take care of Tsu-chan. I'll be there for you all for as long as you'll let me." Tony smiled. Kagami smiled.
"I'm gonna hold you to that." She commented before they were cut off.
"Hey if you two are done, let's go! The Final Ceremony is gonna go without us!" Konata shouted into the theater.
"On our way Konata!" Kagami called back. She turned back to Tony. "I hope I could answer your question." She said.
"You did. Thank you so much Kagami, you have no idea what it means to me to know that." Tony smiled. The two left the theater and saw Tsukasa halfway through a bar of chocolate with Miyuki sitting beside her. The younger twin had a look of pleasure on her face as the chocolate melted slowly in her mouth. She's so cute when she's-... Geez, she's just cute all the time, isn't she? Tony chuckled in his head, realizing he's thought that almost every time he's seen her over the course of the last couple hours. "You guys ready?" Tony asked the group.
"Yeah, let's go!" They all agreed. They all started to jog there, though Tony scooped up Tsukasa a quarter of the way there, just as Konata did Kagami half the way there, much to the embarrassment of the twins. They then decided to slow the pace to one Miyuki could keep up with without getting tired. In truth, at that speed Kagami and Tsukasa probably could have started running again and been fine for the rest of the way and both Konata and Tony knew it, but neither of them said a thing about it. Why should they? They were enjoying the closeness to the girls they loved. It was about twenty minutes before they reached tournament grounds, Masutā meeting them there miraculously. His shirt was soaked though.
"Miyuki, your sink is fixed." Masutā smiled.
"Thank you Masutā." Miyuki bowed as they came to a halt.
"No problem. Let's go see Otōto get some money now, shall we?" Masutā smiled to the group. Again, the unanimous answer was one of affirmation. They went in, conveniently at the same time Akira called all contestants to the ring.
"Well then guys, I guess I'd better go, huh?" Tony smiled as he went to the door to the pit.
"Yeah, we'll be watchin' ya!" Konata shouted as they all went up to the seats they had been occupying for the duration of the tournament in the front row. They sat down to see Tony and the rest of the fighters in the middle of the arena, save the runner-up.
"Where's Shin?" Akira asked. "He has to be here to accept the runner up's money..." Akira mumbled before someone who looked curiously like the manager at the Cosplay Cafe ran up to her.
"Akira, there's a message about Shin." He gave her a piece of paper, which she read quickly thereafter.
"Okay! Thanks Minoru!" Akira shouted. "Everyone, I've just been informed that Shin couldn't be here as he had to leave town!" Akira announced.
Hmmm... I wonder if it was just town, or the Earth? Tony chuckled.
"He did, however, leave some instructions for his money! Everything he won will hereby go to the winner, Ryū Tora no Kami!" Akira shouted and clapped, narrating the action as she performed it. Tony stood there frozen, mouth agape.
Whoa... That's pretty awesome, the runner-up's money is half of the winner's amount! Tony cheered in his head. Thanks Hachiman! Tony smiled.
"So, let's see how much Ryū is getting!" Akira shouted as she opened an envelope. She took out a check and handed it to Tony, who was surprised it wasn't massive and cardboard. "You get the fake version in a few days by singing telegram." Akira said, apparently reading his mind.
"Ah, thanks..." Tony said before looking at his check. His hand started to tremble.
"Is it a lot?" Akira asked.
"... Yeah..." Tony asked.
"And just think, you another half of that!" Akira shouted.
"Sweetness..." Tony muttered. With this, I have enough to cover the necklace and still have a good amount left. Not to mention the extra...Tony smiled.
"So Ryū, any words to anyone in particular?" Akira asked as she handed the mic to Tony. He took it, though unsure of what to do. Then he had a great idea. He threw an arm around Akira's back and looked directly into the camera.
"I most certainly do! To Mrs. Kogami! Stop taking my friend here's money, she works hard for it and she earns every yen of it!" Tony shouted. He turned to Akira. "Now, I'll see to it that you have a bit of extra money." Tony said out of the mic, meaning it. Soon as he had the money in hand, he definitely intended on giving at least 100K to Akira. He just hoped it helped.
"You don't have to do that!" Akira dismissed quickly.
"I know, but I want to!" Tony insisted.
"... Thanks Kan-chan." She muttered low enough that the camera didn't hear her.
"It's no problem." Tony responded. He raised his voice back to normal levels. "I'd also like to thank my best friends, the first ones I've had in... ever. For their privacy, I'm not going to say their names, but they know who they are. Especially because they're in the audience here." Tony laughed.
"Well there it is folks! The world tournament is now officially over! I hope you all had as much fun reading it as our viewers did watching it!" Akira shouted. "I'll see ya next time! Bye-nii~!" Akira winked a star from her eye.
"Cut!" The camera man shouted.
"Alrighty!" Akira shouted. "So, how much did you get Kan-chan?" Akira asked.
"Here, I'll tell you, but it's a secret..." Tony leaned over to Akira.
"Asante Sana,
Squash Banana,
We We Nuga,
Mi Mi Apana!" He chanted. Akira giggled.
"I guess you watched Lion King recently?" Akira giggled.
"Sure did! I just came from it." Tony said.
"Hey Ryū!" Tony heard from behind him. He turned just in time to see three of his previous opponents. You can guess which one was missing.
"Yo JC! Ingo! Naruto!" Tony waved.
"Congratulations on winning!" JC shouted.
"I'll admit, after your fight with Recoome, I was a little nervous about fighting you Ryū..." Naruto scratched the back of his head sheepishly.
"I probably would have lost. Have you ever taken pure energy to the hand?" Tony chuckled. "Speaking of which, where is that asshole?" Tony looked around. He saw Recoome. Every area Tony had remotely touched was completely wrapped in a thick cast. Tony chuckled. "Found him." He pointed to Recoome.
"What did the guy do to you? Sure he's a jerk, but you pretty much said you were going to kill him!" Naruto asked.
"He put the girl I love in the hospital. Reason enough?" Tony asked.
"Enough said." Naruto nodded. "We still need to fight though Ryū." Naruto turned to Tony. Tony laughed.
"Yeah, but I need to rest for a bit. That fight with Ha-... Shin really shook me up. Maybe another time?" Tony asked.
"Sure thing. Hey, by the wa-"
"What's taking so long Naruto?" Sakura shouted as she landed next to him.
"I was talking to a friend Sakura..." Naruto explained sheepishly. A white haired man landed next to the bickering two.
Konaha was only recently rebuilt and these two are already acting like Pain never attacked... "Well, while we're here, we might as well ask someone. It seems like you two have completely forgotten the mission. We're looking for Sasuke, remember?" Kakashi reminded.
"Who's he? Chances are that I've never met him, but you might as well describe him to me." Tony offered.
"Well, probably the most prominent thing about him is his robe. It's completely black with red clouds on it. That and his eyes." Kakashi said.
"What about them?" Tony asked.
"Both may have looked like this." Kakashi put his headband up. Tony looked at it to see it was red. A very familiar red.
"... How long have you been looking for him?" Tony asked.
"A few years. Have you seen him?" Kakashi asked, replacing his headband.
"I've seen those eyes. I can't forget them. Both eyes had it though." Tony muttered.
"When did you see him?" Naruto asked excitedly.
"It was years ago, I was a kid. Describe him more." Tony said.
"He has long, spiky black hair, has-" Naruto started describing, but Sakura cut him off.
"Here's a picture." She handed Tony a picture of the person they were looking for. Tony recognized him instantly.
"That's him. He murdered my family in cold blood." Tony growled.
"Was it in the last four years?" Kakashi asked, alarmed.
"No, it was at least twice that, maybe around fifteen years ago." Tony said.
"Weird, it couldn't have been him then..." Kakashi began to think.
"That was undoubtedly him. I would remember that bastard anywhere." Tony said.
"But Sasuke didn't have the Sharingan back then, that was before the Uchiha massacre." Kakashi started musing over the details of what Tony had told him.
"Has he learned some kind of time travel jutsu?" Naruto asked.
"It's possible, but I've never heard of something like that. The closest thing I can think of is Madara's ability, but as far as I know, that can only send people across space, not time." Kakashi muttered in contemplation.
"Kan-kun~!" Tsukasa waved from the sidelines. Tony looked back and smiled.
"I'll be there in a minute!" Tony waved back. Tsukasa smiled warmly and left the seats with the three other girls and Masutā.
"I'm guessing she's the girl you like, isn't she?" Sakura asked in a tone that practically screamed that she already knew the answer.
"Yes it is. Nosy." Tony said. "I have to go, it was nice seeing all of you again. Naruto, if you find Sasuke, let me know. We have unfinished business. Ingo, good luck finding the man who killed your father. JC, good luck proving that you're not just another actor with great special effects." Tony said to each.
"If you see Sasuke, let us know!" Naruto said.
"Sorry Naruto. If I find Sasuke, all there will be to report is that you should come pick up his corpse." Tony warned. "You let him know that if he wants to live, he had best avoid me. I do hope he ignores that advice though. I really do." Tony said. "I'll see you all later! And Naruto, we really will have to fight soon!" Tony waved as he took off for the exit. He met up with his friends on the other side of the door. "Hey guys! You ready to go home?" He asked the group. They all agreed and started walking to the point where they would have to separate.
"Kan-kun, how much did you get from the tournament?" Tsukasa asked.
"Enough. Which reminds me, I'll be right back." Tony said before he sprinted back to the tournament.
"Hm.. I wonder what's up..." Konata mumbled.
POV Tony
Tony ran back into the tournament and found the jewelry vendor.
"Hey, I'm back! I have money!" Tony wrote a check for the money he owed. "Please don't cash that for a couple days, I don't know when I'll have this money in the bank." Tony bowed.
"Thank you Ryū!" The vendor waved. "Wait though!" He shouted as Tony turned around.
"What's up?" Tony asked.
"I have a present for you! Seeing as how you won, I'm willing to offer you a discount on two very special pieces of jewelry, one a ring and one a necklace, a large gemstone in the middle with writing under the gem of the ring if you so choose! The necklace, you describe it and I'll see what I can get it for!" The vendor offered.
"And how much would this run me?" Tony asked.
"The low low price of 75,000 Yen for the ring! I'll tell you the price of the necklace based on my estimate." The vendor shouted. It really was a low price considering it cost him 70,000 to make the ring and get it to him.
"I guess I can spare a bit of money. Sure thing." Tony confirmed.
"What would you like the ring to say?" The vendor got a piece of paper.
"I would like the ring to say "Sage" and have a smooth ruby. The necklace..." Tony began to think. He already had a necklace for Tsukasa, what need had he of another? He thought for a moment before finally coming up with something. Something he had thought of before, but now it wasn't coming customized. The thought made him happy. The thought made him VERY happy. "I think it should be a platinum necklace with a giant amethyst that's a light purple, almost lavenderish. Surrounding the large gemstone should be a multitude of diamonds. The amethyst should be in the shape of a heart. " Tony specified.
"Wow, that's... specific..." The man muttered. He began to think. "Hm... I think I MIGHT be able to get that for... 250,000 yen, but that's the very lowest I can go on it." He said. "Do we have a deal?" He asked, putting his hand out.
"Deal." Tony clasped his hand into the vendor's.
"I look forward to doing business with you!" The vendor smiled.
"Likewise. Now, I need to go, I'll be back for the jewelry." Tony jogged off back to his friends. He came up behind them to see them all halted, watching something on the ground. He snuck up behind them to see a black cat walking in front of them
"A black cat! Isn't that lucky Onee-chan?" Tsukasa asked.
"Yeah, it is!" Kagami said.
"Does the fact that it's crossing our path mean anything?" Konata asked dramatically.
"A black cat crossing your path signifies that the animal is going somewhere." Tony piped up. The group except for Masutā jumped.
"I was wondering when you were gonna say something Otōto." He chuckled.
"Man, I'll tell ya, after watching Lion King, I really want to see the second now." Tony scratched the back of his head. Tsukasa perked up.
"Kan-kun, I have Lion King 2!" She chimed in. She suddenly realized she was inviting the boy she loved into her home and got nervous. "I-if you want to come over, you can watch it..." She blushed and looked slightly away from Tony.
So freaking cute! The thought involuntarily crossed his mind. "I'd love to." Tony said without thinking. He blushed. "I-I mean..." Tony tried to say something he felt was more appropriate.
"Okay, whenever you want to come over..." Tsukasa said. Kagami decided to interrupt to save the two their embarrassment.
"Yeah, maybe dad will finally come out of his room to meet you!" Kagami said.
"Sure... Maybe..." Tony muttered.
"And you can prove your magic to mom!" Tsukasa perked up.
"Yeah!" Tony smiled.
"In that case, why not tomorrow after the exams?" Kagami asked.
"Sure!" Tony smiled.
"Am I invited?" Konata asked.
"Of course!" Kagami chimed. It almost scared Konata, Kagami wasn't generally that... exuberant about how happy she was. It might be because Kagami was subconsciously getting happier and happier to see Konata more. Tony and Tsukasa did not fail to pick up on this either, and they were both enjoying seeing their respective sister getting closer to the other.
"It's getting late, we should all get home." Tony looked at his phone for the time.
"Hey guys." Konata said.
"What's up?" Kagami asked.
"The exams are tomorrow." Konata said flatly. The entire group deadpanned for almost an entire minute.
"TSUKASA, WE NEED TO GO!" Kagami yelled, grabbing Tsukasa's hand and running towards the Hiiragi house.
"Wha-Onee-Bu- Bye Kan-kun!" Tsukasa finally decided to choose a statement and waved to Tony. Tony chuckled and waved back.
"Bye Tsu-chan!" Tony waved back. He turned to the three remaining people. "Alrighty, I'm guessing Masutā is going to see Miyuki home?" Tony asked.
"Yeah, why not?" Masutā smiled.
"And that means me and you are going home together Konata." Tony said. "Let's go!" He shouted as he and Konata started running home. Masutā looked over to Miyuki.
"Do we need to run?" He asked.
"No, I don't believe so. I'm confident I can currently pass the exam." Miyuki said.
"Alright, let's just walk and talk." Masutā smiled. They did just that.
POV Kagami
The twins got to their home, huffing and panting.
"O-Onee-chan..." Tsukasa panted, leaning on her knees.
"Sorry Tsukasa, I panicked a little bit... But we need to study!" Kagami huffed as she walked into the house, followed by Tsukasa.
"Onee-chan~." Tsukasa chimed in a sweet voice.
"Yes, we're studying together." Kagami grabbed Tsukasa and started to walk to her room.
"Are we pulling an all nighter?" Tsukasa asked.
"Probably, think you can make it?" Kagami asked.
"I dunno, maybe! But that sounds like something Kona-chan would do, right?" Tsukasa asked as they entered Kagami's room.
"We-well yeah, I guess..." Kagami mumbled.
"She's rubbing off on you~." Tsukasa chimed happily. Kagami blushed as her sister echoed her Otaku. She decided to try and get Tsukasa off the subject.
"Well we have to study hard, you've got to make it! Remember, Tony is super smart, he'll probably ace the exam no sweat. So if you want to end up in the same class as him, you've got to work at it!" Kagami said to motivate her sister. Tsukasa perked up instantly.
"Alright, let's get to work!" Tsukasa pumped her fist. Kagami giggled.
I wonder how long this is going to last... Kagami thought. Sure Tsukasa was motivated, but she had been motivated before. And the results were usually the same, Tsukasa would fall asleep shortly. "Then let's get started." Kagami smiled.
POV Konata
"This way, I know a shortcut home!" Konata shouted to Tony as they jogged.
"Gotcha!" Tony followed.
"Nice handling during the movie Tony!" Konata laughed.
"I went with my gut. I liked what it told me." Tony smiled. I'm glad I could comfort her. And I'm glad that she allowed me to get close to her. Tony smiled wider.
"By the way, what did you need to talk to Kagami about?" Konata asked.
"A personal matter of Tsu-chan." Tony said.
"And did you get the answer you were looking for?" Konata asked. She didn't know what the question was, but she knew Tony would tell her if he felt it was necessary for her to know.
"I did. While I won't tell you what it was about, I do want to thank you." Tony smiled.
"For what?" Konata asked.
"Just know that Kanpeki Otokonoko owes you one." Tony said. "If there's ANYTHING you ever need, just ask. It's yours if it's within my power."
"Wow, I really wanna know what I did now. It involves Tsukasa, eh? Hm... I gave her half a choco-coronet a year ago, does that count?" Konata laughed. Tony laughed as well.
"Don't worry about it Konata. Just... Thanks for helping Tsu-chan." Tony said appreciatively.
"By the way, Tsu-chan?" Konata asked.
"Yeah, it was suggested to me that I give Tsukasa a nickname. Personally, I think Tsukasa's name is much prettier then Tsu-chan, but you should have seen her when I called her Tsu-chan. She was so cute! I just wanted to scoop her up and hug the stuffing out of her!" Tony said excitedly.
"You should have!" Konata said.
"I was too caught up at the moment. I wish I had." Tony sighed at the happy memory. "Konata?"
"Yeah?" Konata asked.
"I love Tsukasa." Tony admitted. Konata jumped and almost fell down mid-run.
"Whoa, that's a strong word you're usin' there Tony!" Konata laughed.
"Can you say you don't love Kagami?" Tony retorted.
"I.. Yeah. I love her." Konata admitted sheepishly.
"So, we've fallen in love with the Hiiragi twins. May the gods help us." Tony laughed. Konata did as well.
"We'll need all the help we can get!" Konata said in the middle of her laugh. "Hey, at least Tsukasa is a girl and you're a guy! You don't have to turn your love!" Konata said.
"True, but I think you'll find your task much easier then you think it." Tony said.
"And what makes you think that? Kagami IS a miko!" Konata said. Tony laughed.
"That shouldn't have anything to do with it! Besides, how can anyone NOT fall for you sis? You're kind, funny, cute, and doggone it, people like you!" Tony laughed.
"Geez, if I didn't know better, I'd say YOU loved me!" Konata laughed.
"I do love ya, you ARE my sister!" Tony replied. Konata smiled warmly.
"Thanks. The feeling's mutual." Konata said affectionately. They jogged in silence for a moment, letting the fuzzy moment pass.
"Ready to study your butt off Konata?" Tony asked.
"Totally, all nighter for the win!" Konata gave a thumbs up.
"Hm... I have an idea, but it's gonna be rough." Tony said.
"What's up?" Konata asked.
"If I... took control of the energy around Kagami's pencil, I might be able to mimic her answers, which I could then pass onto you, Tsu-chan and Mooki-chan. If that worked, that would guarantee us all getting into the same class." Tony smiled as he finished excitedly.
"That's an amazing idea, do you think you could do it?" Konata asked with equal excitement.
"I hope so! If not, I'll give you the answers I come up with, hopefully it will be the same kind of answers that Kagami answers!" Tony said. They were silent for a moment.
"Mooki-chan?" Konata asked.
"Miyuki. Same reason as Tsu-chan, Tsu-chan was so happy, she made me give Miyuki a nickname." Tony smiled.
"You should give me a nickname." Konata laughed.
"Hmm..." Tony hummed. "How about... Kon-kon?" Tony laughed. Konata blinked a few times. She burst into laughter as well.
"Totally! That's hilarious Kan-kan!" Konata laughed.
"Kan-kan?" Tony laughed.
"YOUR new nickname!" Konata clarified.
"I'll take it!" Tony accepted. "It's better then "Kanpeki the orphan"!"
"Most definitely. Hey Kan-kan, does it seem like we've been running for a really long time?" Konata asked.
"Yeah, it does..." Tony slowed to a walk.
"Where are we?" Konata asked.
"I think we missed our houses..." Tony mumbled.
"I think we're lost." Konata said.
"L-lost? I thought you said this was a shortcut!" Tony shouted.
"It is! Look how fast we got lost!" Konata shouted back.
"Let's go back!" Tony said.
"To where?" Konata asked.
"To where we weren't lost!" Tony responded.
"Come on, this looks like a good way to go." Konata pointed.
"You don't have a thing in mind, do you?" Tony asked.
"Even less then that!" Konata stated. They walked off in the random direction.
POV Kagami – 4 hours later
Kagami and Tsukasa were still studying, looking over every bit of the notes they had between them, though Kagami's were a bit more coherent. Kagami took periodic glances at Tsukasa to see how she was holding up. She actually looked like she was still wide awake.
Wow, she's really determined... I didn't think it would have such an effect on her. Kagami thought as Tsukasa hadn't seemed to lose any steam over the course of the night.
"Onee-chan, how do I do this?" Tsukasa asked, pointing to a problem.
"Ah, you see, with that one you subtract the eight from both sides, then you raise it to the fifth power and take the square root of what you have left." Kagami explained.
"Oh... Okay!" Tsukasa said with determination. She hardly understood what Kagami had just said, math had never been her strong suit. She might not even be good enough for it to count as a weak suit.
"You're holding up a lot better then I thought you would Tsukasa." Kagami said.
"Thanks Onee-chan... I think..." Tsukasa mumbled. "But you made sense when you said I had to study to be in the same class as Kan-kun!" Tsukasa said.
"Yeah, I'm sure you'll do great with all the studying you're doing." Kagami smiled. Suddenly, her phone started to ring. "Hiiragi here."
"Kagamin~!" Konata chimed from the other end of the phone.
"Hey Konata, what's up?" Kagami smiled despite the fact that she was tired.
"Not much, just lost." Konata said. Kagami sighed.
"Konata, how did you get lost? I thought you knew the way back to your house from the arena!" Kagami said.
"I kinda missed my stop..." Konata muttered.
"Then just keep riding until you get back to your stop!" Kagami scolded.
"Well... I kinda mean that I ran past my house while I was running with Kan-kan and now we don't know where we are..." Konata mumbled.
"Kan-kan?" Kagami asked.
"Tony! It's his new nickname!" Konata said excitedly.
"Oh, so you got Tony lost with you too?" Kagami asked.
"Hi Kagami!" Tony shouted in the background. "Hi Tsu-chan!" Tony shouted despite not knowing if Tsukasa could hear or even if she was in the room.
"Hi Kan-kun!" Tsukasa shouted back. Kagami smiled to herself.
"Wow, Tsu-chan's still awake! I didn't expect that..." Kagami heard Tony say to Konata.
That's kinda mean... Correct, but mean. Kagami smiled to herself. "Well what do you expect me to do about it?" Kagami asked.
"Tell us where we are!" Konata said.
"I don't know!" Kagami shouted.
"Uh-oh Kan-kan, even Kagami doesn't know where we are. I guess we're doomed." Kagami could almost picture Konata shrugging nonchalantly.
"Well, been nice knowin' ya Kon-kon." Tony said. Kagami giggled.
"What's around you?" Kagami asked.
"Um~... A Mcdonalds... A Burger King... Um... A mall... A – Oh hey, they're showing Lion King in 3D!" Konata shouted. Kagami sweatdropped.
"Um... Konata..." Kagami said flatly.
"Yes~ Kagamin?" Konata chimed.
"Are you back at the same mall we were at today?" Kagami asked. Konata hummed.
"Yeah!" Konata said. Kagami sighed.
"You don't know the way home from the mall?" Kagami asked.
"'Course I do Kagamin~!" Konata cooed.
"Well then why the hell did you call?" Kagami shouted.
"Well geez Kagamin, I was gonna tell you a super awesome idea Kan-kan had so we could all be in the same class. But if you don't wanna hear it..." Konata bluffed. That caught Kagami's attention instantly.
"Wait, what? What do you mean, we can be in the same class?" Kagami asked excitedly.
"Probably, but you don't wa-" Konata started again. She was swiftly cut off.
"OF COURSE I DO!" Kagami yelled.
"Whoa! Down Kagami!" Konata laughed. I didn't expect a reaction like that! Konata laughed in her head. Kagami's face turned carmine as she realized how enthusiastically she had responded.
"S-sorry Konata, I just wanna be in your guys' class, ya know?" Kagami quieted down.
Cute! Rang out in Konata's head. "'Cause you get lonely~?" Konata chimed.
"I don't get lonely!" Kagami shouted.
"Sure you do!" Konata argued.
"Whatever... Let's just hear this plan of his." Kagami blushed.
"Um... Let him explain, something might get lost in translation..." Konata said flatly. There was a second where shuffling could be heard.
"Yo Kagami!" Tony greeted.
"Hey Tony. What's this plan of yours?" Kagami asked, trying to contain her excitement.
"Alright, I'll try and sense the energy around your pencil as you move. Then I'll use the disturbance I sense to guess which answer you chose. Then I'll pass it to Tsu-chan, Kon-kon, and Mooki-chan!" Tony explained.
"That sounds... complicated enough to work!" Kagami smiled. "I did just realize something though."
"What's that?" Tony asked.
"You now have a nickname for everyone in our little group except for me. I'll admit, I feel a little left out." Kagami said sarcastically.
"A nickname for you, huh?" Tony hummed.
"Kan-kan, say-" Konata started to whisper what she thought was out of reach of the phone.
"Hang on Kon-kon, I wanna think of this myself. More personal that way, ya know?" Tony said.
"Well alright then." Konata back up. Tony hummed.
"Kyo-chan!" Tony said enthusiastically. Kagami could hear Konata start laughing her cute behind off in the background.
Gah! I did it again! Kagami shouted. It wasn't so much that she had called Konata cute that it was she had specified her behind. Which Kagami had subconsciously looked at on more then one occasion. She caught herself once. She didn't exactly look away quickly. "You're kidding me." Kagami said.
"What's up?" Tony asked.
"Did Konata tell you to say that?" Kagami asked.
"No, why?" Tony asked.
"You two are getting more alike all the time..." Kagami sighed. "You've still got differences, but still..." Kagami added, thinking of Konata's cuteness.
"I have no idea what you're talking about." Tony said flatly.
"Konata gave me that same nickname about a year or two ago." Kagami sighed. Tony laughed.
"You're kidding!" Tony laughed.
"No, she isn't!" Konata laughed.
"Then how about Kagami-sama?" Tony asked.
"Okay, Konata told you that one." Kagami said.
"Yeah, that one she did. But it was funny, huh?" Tony asked.
"Yeah, I suppose..." Kagami smiled.
"I wanna talk to Kan-kun!" Tsukasa flailed her arms in a matter similar to Konata earlier when Kagami had pried the Otaku off of her.
"Tony, you wanna talk to Tsukasa?" Kagami asked, knowing full well that the answer was gonna be an enthusiastic yes.
"I most certainly do want to ta-" Tony started before he started suddenly, silence holding the line. There was a moment of silence.
"Tony?" Kagami asked. No response.
POV Konata – Same time
"Okay, we've been wandering for hours Kon-kon, what are we gonna do? This obviously isn't getting us anywhere." Tony said.
"Let's call Kagamin and see if she can help!" Konata suggested.
"How can she?" Tony asked.
"She probably can't, but we can also relay your strategy to her!" Konata said.
"Alrighty, that makes sense." Tony said.
"Got your phone?" Konata asked.
"Yeah, you forget yours?" Tony asked.
"Yeah..." Konata said, accepting Tony's phone. "By the way, is this a droid?"
"Yep yep!" Tony smiled. "I hacked around a bit and guess what I got on it!"
"What's that?" Konata asked. Tony held out his hand and Konata replaced his phone.
"Siri, talk dirty to me." Tony said.
"Humus. Compost. Pumice. Silt. Gravel." A female voice said.
"Whoa! Wait, isn't Siri something for the iPhone?" Konata asked.
"Yeah, but a few switched circuits, a couple fused phones and I had Siri! It was actually kinda difficult." Tony chuckled.
"Can I try?" Konata asked.
"Go ahead!" Tony handed her the phone.
"Siri, will you marry me?" Konata asked. There was silence for a moment.
"Who is this?" Siri asked.
"That's my sister, Konata." Tony clarified.
"We hardly know one another." Siri responded. Tony took the phone back.
"Will you marry ME Siri?" Tony asked.
"That's sweet master. Is there anything else you need help with?" Siri responded. Dots appeared by Konata's head as she stared at the device, thinking about what it had just called him. She looked up to Tony, a catgrin on her face.
"Is this your brother's phone?" Konata asked.
"... No." Tony blushed a bit.
"Why is it calling you master?" Konata's catgrin widened.
"... Because I like being called master, okay?" Tony scratched the top of his head. "I told it my name was Master."
"That's fine master, we all have fetishes." Konata winked.
"...Do I even want to know yours?" Tony asked.
"I dunno, do~ you?" Konata asked.
"Hmmm... Sure. Go ahead." Tony permitted, a little scared.
"Well of course Yuri, Yaoi, Erotic Lactation-" Konata started to list off.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, that's enough there Konata! … Erotic Lactation, huh?" Tony asked.
"Mhm." Konata nodded.
"You're very... forward with your sexual preferences. Isn't that last one basically where you're breast fed?" Tony asked.
"Yeah, pretty much." Konata smiled, never missing a beat.
"I'll bet once you have Kagami to yourself, she'll be more then willing to appease your fetish." Tony smirked, causing Konata to blush at the thought. "Though, hopefully she won't have the same fetish."
"Why?" Konata asked.
"She probably couldn't get anything." Tony's eyes drifted down.
"Hey!" Konata shouted.
"Ah, you know I'm only teasing!" Tony laughed.
"Besides, my flat chest is a status symbol! It's super rare!" Konata put a hand over her chest proudly.
"Well, I guess Tsu-chan's pretty rare then as well." Tony said without thinking. He would soon regret it.
"Oh~, so you've been looking then?" Konata asked, her catgrin reappearing. Tony jumped and blushed.
"Well, I- Ya kno- ahehe..." Tony scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. "What were we doing again?"
"Hm... Oh right, we were gonna call Kagami!" Konata said.
"There's a bench, let's go sit." Tony pointed. As they walked over to it and turned to sit, Tony held a hand up to stop Konata.
"What's up?" Konata asked.
"Kon-kon, we're gonna sit down now. Try not to get lost on the way down." Tony said. Konata pouted.
"Yeah yeah." She said as she dialed Kagami. That's a lot of typing to do again. You all know how the call went. I'll flash near the end.
Supah Flash
"Tony, you want to talk to Tsukasa?" Kagami asked. Tony smiled much wider.
"I most certainly do want to ta-" Tony heard a click. "-lk to Tsu-chan!" Tony smiled. He waited a moment. "Tsu-chan?" Tony asked. No response. "Tsu-chan~?" Tony asked. He took the phone away from his ear and looked at the black screen. "Huh. Musta died on me." Tony said. "Damn it! I wanted to talk to Tsu-chan..." Tony sighed. The two started walking home.
"So let me ask you, would you prefer to call her Tsu-chan or Tsukasa?" Konata asked.
"I think Tsukasa, but she prefers Tsu-chan. So that's what I call her." Tony smiled.
"Hey, maybe you should ask her to call you master from now on!" Konata laughed. Tony blushed.
"I don't think I want to ask her to do that..." Tony mumbled.
"Why not?" Konata asked.
"'Cause I think she might and I might not be able to control myself if she did..." Tony's face started to resemble Kagami's in hue after she had yelled as he pictured Tsukasa actually calling him that.
"She probably would! I think she would pull a total Yui face!" Konata laughed.
"So, if my plan works, you won't have to study!" Tony smiled.
"Yeah, I hope you can pull it off!" Konata cheered. They quickened their pace a bit until they saw a large group of males in a crowd. They seemed gathered around someone and there was a lot of movement. It wasn't until Konata and Tony got closer they realized what was going on.
"Kon-kon?" Tony said.
"Yes Kan-kan?" Konata responded.
"Why the hell is it that every time it's just you and me, there's someone getting beaten or robbed?" Tony asked, the former applying.
"I dunno, I noticed that too..." Konata mumbled.
"I'll get 'em." Tony said, dashing forward. He felt that, while Konata might have a bit of martial arts training, that many people would probably be over her head. Tony jumped into the middle of the group, his feet landing on either side of a collapsed boy about his age. "FUS RO DAH!" Tony shouted, sending the group hurtling back. Tony took a stance. Three boys ran up and started attacking Tony, but it was obvious they didn't have a lot of fighting experience. Tony started taking the three of them with one hand. He used his free hand to hit them off. The remaining two boys backed up.
"We'll get you Caster!" They shouted as the other three got up and ran away with them. Tony eased and turned around, expecting the boy to be unconscious. However, the boy got to a sitting position and, though thoroughly beaten, had a smile on his face.
"Thanks man." He said.
"Damn kid, you're tough. You had to be pretty good to last against that, why don't you come with us and join our little family?" Tony asked, putting a hand out to help to boy up.
"Huh?" He asked.
"Sorry, I'm getting ahead of myself. I get excited when I see tough people. My name is Kanpeki Otokonoko, what's yours?" Tony asked, pulling the boy to his feet.
"Sanjo, Sanjo Caster. It might be from the concussion, but you look familiar." Sanjo said.
"You may recognize me from the World Tournament, I was Ryū Tora no Kami." Tony said, starting any first aid he could without any real supplies. It wasn't much, but he could at least diagnose some of the injuries.
"Wow, nice, you're world famous dude! I'm pretty lucky that you came along." Sanjo chuckled.
"Look at you kid. Beaten to a bloody pulp and your laughing like it's nothing. Like I said. You're tough. You interested in fighting?" Tony asked.
"Yeah! You interested in teaching?" Sanjo asked.
"Hold that thought, what was my name again?" Tony asked.
"Kanpeki Otokonoko, why?" Sanjo asked.
"Well, you don't seem to have a concussion, you replied quick enough and remembered my name. That would have been a bit more difficult had you been injured." Tony said. "That said, I warn you. I'm not gonna be an easy teacher." Tony warned.
"That's alright, I'll try and be an easy student." Sanjo replied.
"Well okay then! By the way, just in case I can't train you at a given time, and if she isn't opposed to it, perhaps my sister can train you. Kon-kon?" Tony asked.
"Sure, Master Liu encouraged I take on a student!" Konata said.
"Who?" Tony asked.
"My old martial arts teacher." Konata clarified.
"Ah. Well, what do you say Sanjo?" Tony asked the boy.
"Thank you for taking me as your student." Sanjo bowed. Tony smiled.
"Training will take place at 3-14-17 Kita-Satte. I have a training room inside, and my number is ***-****. Please call once you're feeling better and we can begin." Tony smiled.
"Thank you master." Sanjo decided to be formal. A feeling of joy took over Tony at the title.
"I look forward to working with you." Tony put a hand out, which Sanjo firmly gripped and shook, sealing the deal.
"As do I." Sanjo smiled.
"Think you can make it home okay?" Tony asked.
"Yeah, probably." Sanjo looked in the direction of his house.
"Very well then. I'll see you when you're feeling better." Tony smiled as he and Konata started walking off.
"Goodbye master." Sanjo said before starting to walk off as well. Wait until Mikeru hears about this... I just met and became the student of a god!
"You've got a student!" Konata whispered to Tony.
"So do you." Tony whispered back.
"He's most yours though." Konata said.
"Will you settle for he's ours." Tony smiled.
"Deal!" Konata smiled as their houses came into view. At the sight, Konata started running faster, catching Tony off guard. They arrived. "Ha! I win Kan-kan!" Konata cheered for herself.
"You cheated!" Tony accused with a smile on his face.
"I don't cheat! I bend rules! There wasn't a rule about running faster!" Konata said. "Maybe YOU cheated!"
"How can I cheat, there were never any rules!" Tony shrugged.
"Iunno..." Konata shrugged. "Hey, if Tsukasa was a Yu-Gi-Oh card, what do you think it would be like?" Konata asked.
"Hm... A high defense... Low attack, like lower then Kuriboh... Her card effect would say "You can not attack this monster while you control one Kagami Hiiragi". And she would be one of the cutest duel monster cards ever." Tony thought. Konata laughed.
"I can totally see that!" Konata laughed. "Well, good night Kan-kan! Been nice getting hopelessly and desperately lost with ya!" Konata waved as she went up to her door.
"Same same Kon-kon!" Tony waved back.
POV Kagami
"Hmph. He either hung up or his phone died." Kagami hung up. Kagami looked over to Tsukasa to see she was disappointed. "Hey, you get to see him tomorrow at school!" Kagami smiled to her twin. Tsukasa smiled back.
"Yeah..." She smiled.
"Hey Tsukasa, Tony has a plan to copy my answers. He said he would pass it along to you, Konata, and Miyuki. So if you want to hit the sack, you can." Kagami offered.
"Onee-chan, you never want us to copy you!" Tsukasa pointed out.
"We-well, I want to be in a class with you guys..." Kagami blushed, looking back to her work to avoid deredere detection. Tsukasa, while not commenting on it, did notice.
Onee-chan is slipping... I think she means she wants to be in a class with Kona-chan. Tsukasa giggled correctly in her head. "Okay Onee-chan. I'm gonna go to sleep, I'll see you in the morning." Tsukasa got up.
"Good night Tsukasa!" Kagami waved as her blush settled.
"Night Onee-chan!" Tsukasa waved back. Kagami smiled.
You better be right Tony. Kagami thought as she continued studying.
Luckier Channel
"Luckier~! Channel~!" Minoru shouted out. "Hiya luckies! I'm going to be your navigator today, I'm sorry everyone, but Akira's getting chewed out at the moment for leaving early. So, what to say, what to say... I didn't really prepare anything for this! Um... This is harder then Akira makes it look..." Minoru puzzled.
"Hiya Luckies!" Akira shouted as she jumped into the camera.
"Akira! You're back, how did it go?" Minoru asked.
"Damn director cut my pay." Akira said scornfully.
"Ouch. I'm sorry Akira." Minoru said. He remembered something. "Hey, maybe you can ask Tony to have a talk with him! He's already said he'll talk to your mother!" Minoru said. Akira lit up a bit.
"Yeah! That's totally an awesome idea Shiraishi!" Akira shouted, a twinkle in her eye. "Maybe he can convince them to give back all the pay they cut for no reason!" Akira said.
"I'll bet they'll listen to a world champion fighter..." Minoru smiled.
*Music Tone*
"I guess that's all the time we have for today! I'll see you all next chapter! Bye nii~!" Akira chimed.
"..."
"So you think Kan-chan will help?"
"Yeah, I bet he will. Maybe he can get your mother to give back that yen a fan sent you!"
"That would be amazing..."
*End*
Aftersection
Hey all! Did you enjoy this chapter? Did you enjoy my references? I got one off on Flygon and Sqweebs(again). The Sqweebs one was super small, but still there! Did you enjoy typing this chapter up? What? You didn't type this? Who did? …. I did? Oh, right, I remember now. Anyway, this all came pretty quickly, I have no clue what in half this chapter to be completely honest. I've realized that, while I type faster and better and come up with better ideas when I'm tired, I also have some pretty bad grammar. I looked over this several times and found something each time hehe. My thanks to Flygon Master for his continued help as Beta of this story! I'll probably remember something that went here later and either add it before publishing or add it to the next chapter's beginning notes. In any case, I'll see you next chapter!