Chapter 7: Of Friendships and Martial Arts

Bookman Jr. was not very strong without his Innocence, Link realized while watching him spar one day. In fact, he could go so far to say the chronicler seemed a mere novice compared to Miss Lee. Martial arts were her strong suit in training, true, but she had the elder exorcist completely overwhelmed even without the aid of her Dark Boots. Indeed, as the two combatants circled each other across the tiled floor, both of their feet were bare.

The red-haired apostle struck, lashing out with his right leg and aiming for Miss Lee's waist, but as soon as his foot left the floor, she had darted away and her shin lightly tapped the crook of his knee. My God, she's fast. Link swallowed. Had she kicked him in earnest, she'd have ruined his leg permanently. Undeterred, Bookman Jr. darted back into stance after a beat, striking again, this time hitting his opponent with a quick jab.

"Rabbit, keep your elbows in!" Kanda shouted suddenly. Link winced at the volume of his voice but privately agreed with the Second Apostle's assessment. One fierce kick and Miss Lee could have broken a rib or two, but rather than take such a measure, the young woman darted suddenly to the left, circling the Bookman as he tried to face her again. She weaved this way and that, her entire body tense in with anticipation, but still she kept to her opponent's right, barely out of reach. She's trying to stay in his blind spot. Link realized, raising an eyebrow. Clever girl.

The tactic worked briefly before Bookman Jr. caught on to what she was doing, but by then it was too late. Miss Lee tackled the redhead, earning an encouraging shout from the other spectators. The Bookman cried out in alarm as she made short work of him, wrestling him to the ground and pinning him in a tight hold until he was helpless. He struggled to no avail for a few moments, trying anything to pry the young woman off him, before Miss Lee asked through clenched teeth, "Give up? I've got you pretty good, Junior. I'd give up."

Link raised his head and Kanda suddenly walked passed him, circling the tangled pair on the floor. He paused here and there as if considering the chronicler's options, then conceded with a nod. "She's right, Rabbit, I don't see you getting out of this."

Bookman Jr. responded by squirming even harder, thrashing his head back and forth and kicking his legs, but Miss Lee did not yield an inch. Her lean muscles tensed as she held him, her brow furrowed in such fierce concentration Link couldn't help but feel impressed. And amused. She looks like Tewaku. Realizing Bookman Jr. really wasn't going anywhere, the young woman's expression softened to one akin to boredom as she waited. She even had the audacity to yawn, and she made sure her hapless prisoner saw it, too.

"Are you kidding me!" Bookman Jr. yelled.

Miss Lee smiled and shook her bangs out of her face, grinning at her spectators. The majority of the room, including other sparring pairs, were roaring in laughter now. Some were yelling for the young woman to hold him till Doomsday and some, like Marie, were advising her let him go before one of them hurt the other. Miss Lee seemed more inclined to the former, simply making herself comfortable and pretending to fall asleep right there on her comrade. Finally, the chronicler himself seem to deflate, his head falling back against the tiled floor with a soft 'thump'.

"Fine, I yield! Get off me now!"

Immediately, Miss Lee twisted in her hold, planting a mocking kiss on her comrade's cheek, before letting go and stretching her arms over her head, innocent as a lamb. Bookman Jr. slunk back to his feet and was preparing to go nurse his wounded pride when Kanda suddenly snatched his headband and darted away, shouting taunts until the elder exorcist gave chase. Link permitted himself a small smile, stole a quick glance to where Walker had been training with Lord Krory, then back to Miss Lee as she came to stand next to him. He was startled to find a serious look on her face, a frown even as she crossed her arms. Link followed her gaze to find Bookman Jr. and Kanda practicing their hand to hand skills, but he could tell even this early that if the red-haired exorcist didn't change tactics soon, the Chan's beloved science project was going to have him in a headlock even stronger than their female counterpart's. The lady exorcist must've realized it as well, for she let out a long, almost disappointed sigh.

"Something on your mind, Miss Lee?"

She was silent as she contemplated her answer, absently rubbing one of her bare feet against her opposite ankle. "While we were trapped on the Ark back in Edo, we…" She sighed. "Sorry, Lavi, Allen, and Krory fought against a pair of Noah who called themselves Jasdevi."

"I'm aware." Link nodded. "I read all five reports of the incident myself."

"Then you'll remember in mine, I mentioned some of the Noah's taunts about how we as exorcists rely too much on our Innocence and don't train our bodies enough."

"Indeed. You followed it up with a suggestion to increase hand to hand training among other more body-oriented exercises." The Inspector raised an eyebrow as the fight between Bookman Jr. and Kanda suddenly ended, the latter holding the redhead in a firm headlock as he strode across the room to speak with Exorcist Marie. "Does that concern you, then?"

"It does. Doesn't it you?" She turned to him. "By human standards, Kanda's unnaturally strong and hellishly quick. If Lavi can't last more than five minutes fighting him, then how is he supposed to face the Noah again? And those damn twins aren't the worst of the lot."

Language, Miss Lee. A lady shouldn't say such crude words. Was what he wanted to say but then remembered this particular lady enjoyed roughhousing with her male comrades. Link cleared his throat. "So you believe it would benefit yourself and your comrades to spar with Exorcist Kanda and other advanced combatants on a regular basis until they build up some speed and endurance more suited to contesting the Noah?"

"Kanda's the only one among us to actually kill a Noah." She sighed again, this time in resignation. "Granted, I suppose he owes his life to what he is."

That made his head turn. "You know about that?"

"Of course I do. We grew up together."

He hadn't been aware any exorcists below the rank of general were aware of Kanda's artificial accommodator status. Exempting Noise Marie, of course. Any intel from the Second Apostle Program had been sealed years ago, privy only to high-ranking officers of the Order, their assistants, and the unfortunate ones caught up in the disaster. The only way Miss Lee could have known about the matter at all was if someone had willingly shared that information. We grew up together…. Slowly, Link crossed his arms. "Very interesting, my lady. Exorcist Kanda's natural temperament is so abrasive I'm impressed anyone would find friendship in him."

"It's rather easy when you're alone and scared." Miss Lee smiled at him. "But we've been training together for a long time. Hard to keep up with akuma if you can't even keep up with a fellow exorcist."

"Perhaps." Link felt uneasy, though he hid it well behind a stone face. Before ever meeting him in person, he knew full well Yu Kanda was dangerous. He'd seen the Second Exorcist, the creature Central did not see fit to consider a human, fight before, both in person and through footage recorded by the Order's golems. He'd read the report from nine years ago, detailing how over thirty-five Crows had lost their lives in an effort to subdue the mad Second Apostle, Alma Karma, who was then in turn slain by Exorcist Kanda. And since then, the accommodator in question had only grown stronger and stronger as the years passed. The Chan Clan's monstrous creation lived up to its name and its purpose. Link considered himself an exceptional combatant, the top of his class and hand-picked to monitor Allen Walker, but in a fight to the finish with the Second, he was not certain he would be the victor.

"You can hold your own in a battle with Yu Kanda?"

That seemed to make her fidget. "I-I try to. It's not easy, but I have won fights against him in the past. I broke his arm and a few of his ribs once without even using my Innocence."

Christ… He'd underestimated her. He'd known she was strong from the first time he'd seen her fight, but this…this was unreal…she was…

"Maybe we should spar some time." Miss Lee stepped away from his side to stand in front of him, hands on her hips. "I don't like the idea of fighting Crows, but I think I'll be okay against you. It would be fun."

Fun, would it? The Inspector offered an indulgent smile. "Perhaps one day. You are truly a skilled martial artist, Miss Lee. It would be an honor."

The lady exorcist widened her eyes at the compliment, her cheeks tinging a slight red. "You think so, Inspector?"

"Indeed." I think you would win.

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Author's Notes: This one takes place shortly after chapter six. Chapter eight's going to be a little different.

Special thanks to everyone who's reviewed, favorited, and followed.

D. Gray Man is owned by Katsura Hoshino.