Chapter Four
Riku announced that dinner was ready. Imagine everyone's surprise that it was Cloud who cooked, rather than the Pekara Inn's resident chef. Kurama's eyes were shining in delight at the Korean dishes that were on the table. Once the boys and Cloud were seated, Tifa made her appearance, dressed in fresh clothes, followed by Denzel and Sakura. Tifa sat beside her husband, while Sakura took a seat by Riku and Denzel sat by Kurama.
Both Kyo and Sasuke were glaring at Sakura, who paid them no attention as she ate her food. The tension between the two boys and their vacationing landlord was very fierce, and after seeing Tifa woman handle both Kyo and Sasuke without blinking, forced the boys to hold their tongues. But the obvious violent thoughts that were going through their heads about what to do with their landlord were running rampant.
Their thoughts were interrupted when Cloud cleared his throat, with his gaze directed at Sasuke. "Don't you have something to say to my wife?" he asked.
Sasuke glared back at Cloud, then broke eye contact as he turned to Tifa. "I apologize for my actions in the hot springs," he said, although the way he said it made someone think he had drunk acid.
"Let's hope for your sake that it doesn't happen again," Tifa replied calmly.
Riku saw the anger on the boys' faces and decided to make some conversation in an attempt to defuse the situation. He turned to Tifa, who was just finishing her third helping of food, with her appetite rivaling that of Kurama's. "How do you know Senpai?" he asked.
Tifa turned to the young boy. "I've known Sakura ever since this place used to be an inn, young Hashimoto. In fact, I stayed here one time with my friend and my master while on a training trip."
"So what did you do before you married Cloud?" Jiro asked.
Tifa chose her words carefully. "I was pretty much a nomad, traveling the world, seeking out some of the world's strongest fighters. At first, I was only fighting for no reason but to become the strongest. Now, I fight for another purpose."
"And what purpose is that?" Kyo asked with contempt in his voice. He was seated across from her.
Tifa looked at Kyo. "Enlightenment. As I said, I was fighting so I could become the strongest fighter in the world. After I came back to Japan from training in Canada, I've decided that becoming the strongest fighter wasn't enough. So I decided to seek enlightenment by mastering myself. Sometimes your greatest enemy can be the person that stares back at you in the mirror."
Kyo scoffed. "Sounds pathetic if you ask me."
"No," Tifa rebuked, "pathetic is a wannabe kendoist who is a misogynist."
"How dare you?!" Kyo shouted. This was the second time Tifa has insulted him.
Tifa continued to turn the knife. "I've fought fighters your age who were trained assassins. You are not a threat." She finished her food and stood up. "Excuse me."
As she turned to leave, Kyo jumped from his seat. "You dare insult me, you vile female?" He pulled out his sword. "I don't care if Haruno did hire you. You don't belong here!!"
With a yell, Kyo charged at Tifa, with his sword held high. As he brought it down onto her, Tifa quickly reacted. Sidestepping to avoid the blow, with her hands shot out, grabbing his wrist and before Kyo knew it, he felt the cold blade of his own sword against his jugular.
Tifa had disarmed him and was now holding his own sword against his throat.
With the exception of Cloud, Denzel, and Sakura, everyone was shocked. One moment Kyo had his sword in his hand, and the next, Tifa had disarmed him and was holding it against his neck.
Kyo gasped. 'How…how did she do that?!' he thought. 'He's just as fast as Big Brother!' One wrong move and his jugular would have been severed.
For the first time in his life, an emotion came over Kyo.
Complete fear. Not even Jin was this bad.
Tifa went straight to the point. "Unless you challenge me to a fight," she drawled, "don't ever draw your sword at me. Were this a life-or-death battle with someone other than me, you wouldn't last five minutes. I'm only going to say this once, Sanada. If you EVER pull your sword on me and you didn't challenge me beforehand, your insides will be on the outside. Are we clear?"
Kyo slowly nodded.
"Good," Tifa said, seeing that her point was made. She then lowered his sword and in one smooth movement, tossed it at her, where it slid neatly inside her scabbard. She turned around and left.
Sakura resumed eating her dinner as if the entire event didn't happen. Denzel looked at Kyo. "That was a bad move, Kyo. You really shouldn't have done that."
Kyo wasn't listening. His knees buckled as he slumped forward. 'That…that female has caught me off guard once again! What is she…she must be some kind of demon!'
Cloud said nothing. After all, he knew first-hand what his wife was capable of. Sasuke was looking at a grinning Sakura. She was pleased with what she had seen so far. The grin soon vanished as she continued eating.
After dinner, the boys decided to take a bath while Tifa and Cloud cleaned up the dishes. In the hot springs, Denzel was lounging on a rock, chatting with the Pekara Inn residents. Even though Sasuke disliked Tifa for embarrassing him and Cloud for forcing him to apologize, he had nothing against Denzel. After all, he was an Okayama University student.
Denzel knew that he was an outsider in this close-knit group. The last thing he wanted was to become an outcast.
The conversation was civil enough, with Denzel telling them about training under Tifa, his rivalries, and finally, being accepted into Okayama University after passing the entrance exams.
Kyo then spoke up. "She attacked me with a ki technique. How is that possible?"
"Tifa is the Shinden Tsushima Shihan," Denzel explained. "She's been practicing martial arts ever since she was fourteen. The ki attacks are nothing. She can break stones with her bare hands and feet. Her kicks have the destructive force of a hurricane. I saw her, her friend, and Cloud take apart a car with their bare hands."
Before Sasuke could ask a question, there was the unmistakable sound of a battle, which was coming from the rooftop. "What the fuck was that?" the raven-haired ronin asked as everyone looked around in alarm.
Denzel, however, simply leaned back against his rock. "They're at it again."
Jiro turned to Denzel. "Is this normal for them?"
The Kyokugenryu Karate apprentice nodded. "That's one of the reasons why their bond is so strong. They both love to fight."
The Pekara Inn Residents watched as the duel took place on the roof. It was a sword battle. Cloud was armed with a broadsword Chinese blade, while Tifa was armed with her own sword. The boys quickly donned bathrobes and towels and watched the battle that was taking place.
Cloud was an expert in Chinese swordplay and it showed as he deftly parried his wife's feints and thrusts. Tifa was indeed the Shihan of the Shiden Tsushima-ryu Battojutsu. Kyo was watching the fight with interest. He knew that Cloud was a master in martial arts, but he was also watching Tifa.
'I have seen this female before,' he thought. 'But I can't remember…' Kyo watched as Cloud spun and when he came back facing Tifa, Kyo saw that Cloud was holding TWO swords in his hands, forcing Tifa to step up her game. She succeeded in hacking one of the blades in two.
The dueling couple was now on the wire overhang, with Kyo and the other boys mesmerized at their amazing center of balance as they fought over the hot springs.
Cloud lunged in, unleashing a series of sword strikes, which Tifa defended and parried against. The audience was even more amazed when Tifa performed a split, then flipped down to the hot springs, with Cloud somersaulting after her, the Pekara boys giving them a wide berth as they continued to fight.
Kyo, in the meantime, was watching Tifa fight. 'Haruno said that she was a master of the Shinden Tsushima-ryu Battojutsu. She is especially skilled with the blade. She reminds me of Big Brother.'
The battle was growing in intensity as sparks began to kick off from the weapons. The boys were treated to a real show, a real display of sportsmanship and skill.
The match ended in a standoff, with their blades at each other's throats. Tifa smirked. "You didn't touch me this time, Cloud."
Cloud returned the smirk. "Are you sure about that?"
It was at that moment that Tifa realized that Cloud had slashed the ribbons that were securing her hair. It had become unwound from the sides of her head, reducing her back into a pair of braids.
Kyo was impressed, even though Tifa was a woman.
The couple bowed to each other, then sheathed their swords. The boys then made a path for Tifa and Cloud as they left the hot springs.
Minutes later, Cloud and Tifa were taking their bath in the private hot springs on the third floor. With her hair tied up in a pile around her head, the American martial artist rested against her husband's chest, sighing contently as his arms were wrapped around her torso.
"You did call Naomi, right?" Cloud asked.
Tifa kissed Cloud on his shoulder. "I did. He'll be expecting Jiro tomorrow morning. You know the annex behind the main house?"
"What about it?"
"I talked with Sakura on the way here," Tifa said. "She wanted to see if she could get the curse lifted so she could turn it into a girls' dorm. Chai and Rashard know more about exorcizing curses than I do, so when they come up in a couple of weeks, I'll talk to them about seeing if they can do something about the annex."
"You know that the others won't like this," Cloud pointed out. "They sure as hell didn't like it when you showed up."
"I know," Tifa replied. "I also noticed that Uchiha didn't like the fact that you forced him to apologize." She didn't see the smile that was forming on her husband's face."
"Just wait," he replied. "They haven't seen anything yet."
The following morning, the Pekara Inn Residents were told to meet in the lobby room following breakfast by Tifa and Cloud for a meeting. After breakfast and helping Riku with the dishes, the boys found that their interim landlords were waiting for them. Both were standing and Tifa was holding a book in her hands.
"I'm glad that all of you have shown up for this meeting," Cloud said after the boys settled in.
"What is this about?" Kyo asked.
"In order to keep the Pekara Inn up and running," Cloud began, "everyone has to do their part."
"Meaning what?" Sasuke asked.
"As of this moment, everyone has a set of chores to do," Tifa announced.
The result was as expected. Almost immediately, Sasuke, Kyo, and Jiro voiced their disapproval, saying that it was the landlord's duties to clean the dorm.
Tifa silenced them all by slamming the book on the table. The title read: Pekara Inn Ledger.
"This is the dorm's ledger," Tifa explained. "Because of all of you, this place has significant damage to it, thanks to Uchiha, Sanada, and even young Tomiya. Cloud and I will work on the repairs, while the rest of you will keep this place clean." She turned to Jiro. "As for you, Amano, it says that you owe back rent - six months' worth. It also notes that you squandered Sakura's life savings on a trip to Tokyo."
"Sasuke, your responsibility will be on the first floor," Cloud said. "Everything must be cleaned. Kyo, you have the second floor. And the third floor will be done by both of you." He tossed Jiro an apron. "As for you, Jiro, you will be working at the teahouse with Naomi," he said. "You will work there until you pay what you owe to both the Pekara Inn and to Sakura."
"And as for Kurama and Alex," Tifa continued, "the two of them will help Riku with maintaining the kitchen and the laundry." Tifa turns to Kurama. "Kurama, as of this moment, no more inventions that will go boom-boom. Twice a week, the hot springs will be cleaned by Uchiha, Sanada, and Amano on rotation."
"That's not fair!!" Sasuke exclaimed. "What will Denzel be doing while we slave away?!"
Tifa's eyes narrowed at the raven-haired ronin, causing him to flinch. "Unlike you, Uchiha, he IS a Okayama University student. But that doesn't mean that he won't lend a hand to do the chores. He will help out with the chores since he is also living here, if only temporarily." She then had a cool, calm smile on her face. "If you don't want to help with the chores, then we can switch and you can work on the dorm repairs. If you refuse to do either…" She pointed to the front door. Almost immediately, the boys got the hint.
"Kazuya is exempt since he helps Naomi at the teahouse," Cloud explained. He looked at Jiro. "I think you better hurry, Jiro. Naomi is already expecting you at the teahouse."
Grumbling to himself, Jiro took the apron and walked out the door, slamming it behind him.
At the teahouse, Jiro stormed in. Kazuya and Ino were already working, while Naomi was sitting behind the cash register. Sakura was seated at the far end of the cafe, studying. "I don't believe this!!" Jiro said as he sat down in a chair.
Naomi had a mild expression on his face. "Did Tifa and Cloud tell you about our arrangement?" he asked. Off of Jiro's look, Naomi replied, "I'll take that as a yes."
Jiro saw Sakura at the other end and marched over to her. "Aren't you going to do something about this?!" he half-shouted. "Those two got Sasuke and Kyo working to maintain the dorm while I'm stuck here!"
Sakura looked back at Jiro with none of her usual fear. "You brought this on yourself," she said in a cold tone. "Now leave me alone. I have to study."
Jiro was about to yell out something else when he felt a hand on his shoulder. Turning around, he saw that it was Naomi.
"Put that apron on and get to work," he ordered.