Legend Of The Strongest Delinquent
Hey everyone, and get ready for the start of my new fanfic. This is a story following the plot of the History's Strongest Disciple Kenichi series, with my OC filling the role of the protagonist. Kenichi will still be an important character in this story, but he'll mainly play second banana to the OC MC. Why? Because Kenichi always felt so out of place.
Think about it: the story is about a bunch of Martial Artists and fighters who mainly start out as Delinquents, but all have great talent in the art and progress to become truly gifted fighters, but the main character is a meek, cowardly student who is bullied and can't fight and has no talent at all, yet his power comes hard work and training. That sounds nice, but the character himself is just so lacking.
He has hardly any qualities that a good main character needs. Throughout the entire story, no matter how strong he gets, he's still a coward who's afraid, even with ordinary grunts, and won't even admit it. He's constantly being outshined by his friends and rivals, and he's just so whiny that it gets on my nerves. Plus, his only real motive for strength is to protect some girl he just met, who is fully capable of protecting herself and treats him like a child.
So yeah, that's why I decided to shift the focus of this story to a more fitting main character, in my opinion.
Disclaimer: The following is a non-profit fan-based parody. History's Strongest Disciple Kenichi is owned by Funimation and Syun Matsuena. Please support the official release.
"Shirou" Regular speech.
"Shirou" Thoughts.
SEIKUKEN Attack names.
(Shirou) Words said previously.
[Shirou] Words said in unison.
The Start Of A Legend
Play OST - A Certain Scientific Railgun - Ketsui to Kakugo
In a small part of Eastern Japan was a large city called Koryuu City. It had basically everything you'd expect from any city: large buildings, suburban neighborhoods, shopping districts, and High Schools. But unlike other cities or towns, it had one thing that the city was known for: Crime. This area was filled with lawbreakers. Surprisingly enough, though, 80% of those who caused trouble were students.
The city had an overdose of delinquents, punks, and street gangs. That, plus the fact that police influence was unbelievably low, made this city a place where fighting, discord, and brawls were an everyday occurrence. This brings us to the start of this tale.
In the middle of a quiet part of town, inside a dark alley, was the sight of a brawl. Right now, there were four rough-looking guys who were all already bruised and beaten up brutally. One was knocked out and leaning by the wall with an arm that was bent. Another one is lying on the ground with a bloody forehead. A third one was conscious but in a lot of pain and was flat on his back. And the last one was just knocked to the wall and fell down. Leaning against the wall, he had blood coming from his nose, lip, and a missing tooth.
Walking up to the one just knocked to the wall was the person responsible for beating all these thugs. Compared to the four of them, who all looked like they were eighteen at least, the one who beat them looked younger than all of them.
The young man in question was sixteen years of age, Possessing bright silver hair that went down to his neck and eyes that were a deep shade of blue. He was in great shape for his age. His body was built strong though not bulky like a bodybuilder; it was lean and yet very well defined, and there wasn't a single visible sign of fat anywhere on him. He was wearing a black T-shirt that had long white sleeves starting from his elbows, along with light-grey long pants that had two small leather belts tied around each of the cuffs, and black dress shoes. This young man was Shirou Tsukiharu.
Shirou walked up to the thug he just hit, who was breathing heavily.
"…We were out of line; we're sorry man…" The thug said quietly, hoping to appease Shirou. "…We get the message; you don't need to—"
He was interrupted when Shirou kicked him in the gut and dug into his heel, causing him to cough up in pain.
"Oh, come on, you were the ones who started it in the first place." Shirou said, uncaring. "You don't really think you're going to get off with an apology, do you?"
Shirou then stopped and pulled back his leg. At that point, the thug was unconscious. This only made Shirou feel bored.
"Pathetic, I thought you third-strings would at least be good for a morning exercise, but I'm barely awake." Shirou then took out his phone and checked the time. This made him sigh. "Yeah, I guess it is about that time."
Having said that, Shirou started to walk away and headed for the end of the alley, intending to leave.
"Lucky you, you all get to live for another day." Shirou said to them as he left.
Music Off
—
Shirou was currently walking down a suburban street that was in the direction of the High School that he attended. While walking, Shirou happened to pass by some other students that unlike him were wearing their uniforms. Whenever they saw him, they would always try to avoid eye contact or walk faster to keep their distance. However, Shirou didn't seem to react all that much.
"Hey! Shirou!" A voice called out.
Shirou turned around to see someone coming up behind him. It was another student, though he didn't seem afraid of him. This person was his friend Kenichi Shirahama. Kenichi is a young man of average height with medium-length spiky brown hair in the back, some hanging in the front on the sides, and brown eyes. He is also wearing his school uniform, which consists of a long-sleeved blue blazer, a white buttoned-up dress shirt, matching blue pants, and sports shoes. He also had a small band-aid beneath his right eye and a Yin-Yang badge on his collar. Physically, Kenichi has a thin, somewhat scrawny, and frail physique—The exact opposite of Shirou.
"Kenichi, why the rush?" Shirou asked, somewhat bored. "Is there a problem?"
"Yes, there's a problem!" Kenichi said, frantic as he stopped in front of him. "I'm late! I studied too hard last night, and now I overslept again!"
"Is that all?" Shirou asked, uncaring.
"What do you mean, is that all!? And why aren't you wearing your uniform?" Kenichi demanded, pointing his finger at him.
Shirou shrugged. "You know I never wear that stupid thing. Besides, it's not like there's a rule that says we have to."
"But it's our obligation as students, especially First-years, to abide by the school's morals, and that includes following the dress code." Kenichi argued like he was reciting a quota.
"Well, too bad, but I'm not a morally correct student." Shirou brushed off and kept walking.
"If you keep acting this way, people will start thinking you're a delinquent." Kenichi warned him, walking beside him.
"I am a delinquent." Shirou replied unconcerned. "A punk-ass delinquent."
"And I really wish you'd stop saying that!" Kenichi said, once again frantic.
Despite these two being mirror opposites of each other, they were actually very close friends. They first meet when they were kids, though at some point they were separated after Kenichi had to move. A few years later they were reunited just before the start of High School. They had become High School students about a month ago, and in that time Kenichi always tried to stay out of trouble while Shirou welcomed it.
As they were walking, Kenichi was not looking where he was going and was about to bump into a female student who was in front of him.
"Anyway, we need to—!" Kenichi's words were cut off when grabbed his wrist and tossed him over her shoulder. "Waaaa!?—" He screamed out thinking he was going to hit the ground head first. And he would have if Shirou, who reacted in time rushed in and grabbed Kenichi by the back of his arm, stopping his fall. He then let go, making Kenichi hit the ground gently this time.
Shirou followed by trying to throw a punch at the girl, though she dodged by leaning back. The girl then countered by trying to hit him in the chin with a high kick, but Shirou saw it coming and parried it with his own kick. They collided, and the girl jumped back to gain some distance.
Kenichi breathed a sigh of relief at the fact that he wasn't hurt, though the books in his bag spilled out. Shirou, however, turned his attention to the girl.
"Hey!" Shirou yelled. "What the hell's your problem?!" He glared at her. The girl immediately looked at Shirou with a worried and somewhat fearful expression.
"Oh, my God! I'm so sorry!" She apologized intensely. "I'm sorry I threw him like that. It was just a reflex!" She quickly added.
[Huh?] They both looked confused.
"Is that normal?" Kenichi asked Shirou, whispering.
"How the Hell should I know?" Shirou replied, not whispering.
Now getting a good look at her, they see she is a young teenage girl of average height. She has fair skin with a beauty mark under her left eye, and bright blue eyes, she also had glasses and long straight blond hair that was tied in a few braids. While she can easily be considered very pretty and attractive, her most noticeable physical trait is her slender yet surprisingly developed and curvaceous frame for a teenage girl, especially her massive, jiggly breasts. She also sports thick thighs with rather round, fat, juicy buttocks and a lean yet well-defined build.
But right now, Kenichi wasn't focusing on that. Instead, he was more concerned about the fact that all the books in his backpack had pilled out and were on the ground.
"Whoa!" My books!" Kenichi shrieked, frantically picking them up.
"I'm really sorry. Here let me help you." The girl kneeled down and helped him put them up.
While picking up the books, the girl noticed the small badge Kenichi was wearing.
"Huh? That badge." The girl muttered.
Kenichi heard her. "Oh, you mean this?" He pointed to his badge.
She nodded. "Yeah, that's a Yin-Yang badge, isn't it? Do you remember where you got it?"
Kenichi thought about it, trying to remember. "Hmm, honestly no, I had it for as long as I can remember. Actually, Shirou has one too." He then looked towards Shirou. "That reminds me, where's your badge."
Shirou rolled his eyes. "It's at home, Kenichi; I don't wear it every second of the day like you."
Kenichi scratched his head as if he had forgotten something and looked at his wristwatch, then suddenly, he shot up and had a panicked expression. "OH, NO! It's already this late! He screamed before running off. While running, he turned back and called out. "I'm going on ahead! You two better hurry, or you'll be late too!"
And with that, he kept running off into the distance. Leaving behind Shirou who was still standing there and the girl who was sitting on the ground.
Shirou sighed. "Does that guy have to freak out about everything?"
The girl stood up and noticed a book still on the ground. "Oh no, he must have forgotten this one."
"Sounds typical." Shirou held out his hand. "Give it to me, I hand it to him when I see him."
The girl gave him the book. The title of the book said: How To Make Friends: Volume 1. Seeing it made Shirou annoyed. "Are you kidding me? What is with that guy and these stupid How-To books? Even an idiot knows they never work."
The girl smiled at him. "By the way you talk, you two must be pretty close."
Shirou shrugged. "We've known each other a while, no big deal."
"Oh, I forgot, I never introduced myself. I'm Miu Furinji." The now-named Miu introduced herself. "I'm transferring to Koryuu High School today."
"A transfer student, huh?" Shirou asked, his hands in his pockets. "What year are you?"
"I'm a First Year." Miu answered.
"Same here." Shirou responded.
"Can I ask you something? Do you have experience with Martial Arts?" Miu asked curiously.
"You talking about how I stopped your kick, right?" Shirou deduced. "A full explanation will take a while, so ask me again later."
"I guess you're right. We'll be late for class if we don't hurry." Miu decided. "Can we talk after class then?"
"Sure, whatever." Shirou said uncaringly as he turned and started to leave. "Oh, and one more thing, in the future, try not to kick so much while wearing a skirt unless you want everyone to see what you've got underneath."
Miu at first seemed confused by his advice until she heard that last part and remembered that she high-kicked while wearing a mini-skirt. In other words, every time she kicks, she gives whoever is in front of her a view of her panties. Realizing that she had become embarrassed, she placed her hands on the helm of her skirt, and her face blushed brightly.
—
Later that day, classes were underway at Koryuu High School. The High School had a standard High School building. It was white, had three floors, and split into three different sections. Outside the school building was a greenhouse, and on one section of the school building's roof was a swimming pool. Another one had a flat, tiled floor with a water tank above the doorway. The classrooms for the First-Year students were on the third floor, and that's where Kenichi was, though Shirou was in a different class he was currently ditching.
It was now afternoon, and the bell rang, signaling that class was over and the start of lunch break. Soon all the students exited their classrooms and went around campus to enjoy their break. Kenichi, in particular, was enjoying his time eating his lunch while sitting on a bench near a tree in the courtyard while reading more How-To books. Though before long Shirou approached him.
"Hey!" Shirou made his presence known.
"Shirou, how's it going." Kenichi greeted, pleased to see him.
"Tch the usual; I got called in by some stupid teacher for refusing to wear the damn uniform." Shirou said, clicking his tongue irritated.
Kenichi had a well-meaning smile. "Well, that couldn't be helped. I told you, you should've worn it."
"Well, I'm still not going to." Shirou said, not leaving it up for debate. He then reached into his school bag. "By the way, you dropped this earlier."
Shirou handed Kenichi the book he dropped this morning. Kenichi quickly took it, relieved and grateful.
"My book! Thank goodness, I don't know what I would've done without this one."
"I still don't get why you even read that crap." Shirou dismissed his attitude. "Those things are just rip-offs that tell you basic stuff anybody could've figured out on their own unless they're some idiot."
"Well excuse me for being an idiot!" Kenichi replied, insulted by his remark. "I just really want this to work, so far I haven't been able to make any new friends in my class if I don't do something it'll be the same as Middle School." He sighed. "I'm just glad I have a strong friend like you so I don't get picked on as much."
"And yet you give them plenty of other reasons to pick on you." Shirou muttered, feeling aloof from his friend's personality.
"Um… Excuse me." A timid voice spoke out from above. This caught both of their attention.
"Eh… Where?" Kenichi kept looking around, trying to find the source of the voice.
Shirou found it immediately. "Above you."
Kenichi then looked up to try and see but the second he did, his face was met with a shoe landed on it, and jumping down from the tree to land on the ground beside them was Miu, who was holding down her skirt. Kenichi fell to the ground after with a bloody nose after his face was used as a landing post. While Shirou just watched.
"We've got to stop meeting like this." Shirou said casually.
"Sorry! Sorry!" Miu apologized intensely again while bowing her head. "It's just the skirts in this school are really short."
"Ouch!" Kenichi moaned in pain while getting up. "Why do I keep getting hurt today?"
"I'm such a klutz." Miu knocked herself on the head with an upset sigh. "At the last school, the same thing happened… I don't know why. I don't know why, but I can never act the same as the other students."
"I can think of a few reasons why." Shirou thought.
"Shouldn't it be obvious?" Kenichi thought.
Miu then looked at them nervously. "Can I… Be friends with you two?"
Shirou just shrugged, unfazed. "Whatever, knock yourself out."
Kenichi, however, just blushed brightly and looked completely flushed after hearing her request.
"If I take a closer look, this girl… Is actually really cute!" Kenichi thought excitedly.
"And what about you?" Miu asked, waiting to hear Kenichi's answer.
Kenichi then turned around and rested his arm by the tree. "Erm, well… You can be my friend." He answered, trying to sound cool but still had a huge blush. "I have a big heart anyway."
"Really~!" Miu responded, really happy with his answer.
Shirou chopped Kenichi on the head, annoyed. "Quit pretending you're cool; it doesn't even look real."
"Was it really necessary to hit me!" Kenichi asked frantically while messaging his head.
"We both know it was." Shirou answered, uncaring.
"Oh, I haven't introduced myself yet." Miu remembered, interrupting them. "Shirou knows this, but I'm Miu Furinji. Just call me Miu."
They all sat down on the bench. "I'm Kenichi Shirahama, you can just call me Kenichi." He introduced himself.
"Sure, Kenichi." Miu complied.
Kenichi was enjoying the situation immensely until he picked up something Miu said and looked surprised. "Wait a minute, how does Shirou already know your name?"
Miu smiled innocently. "Because we already introduced ourselves when we met this morning. In fact, we made plans to meet after class, which is why I'm here."
"EEEHHH!" Kenichi cried out with comical tears running down his face while gripping Shirou's collar. "Why? Why do you always get the best end of everything?! I thought this was my chance?!"
Shirou just pried Kenichi off of him, ignoring Kenichi's outburst, and stated. "And you wonder why people pick on you."
Miu gave a well-meaning smile at them and spoke. "Well… I've got a lot of things I wanted to ask you. Does this school have a Gymnastics club?"
"Sure, we've got plenty of clubs." Shirou stated, crossing his arms behind his head. "Including ones we don't need."
"Now that I remember, didn't this school's Gymnastics club win at Nations once." Kenichi brought up.
"Really, that's great!" Miu said excitedly.
"Do you like Gymnastics?" Kenichi asked, hoping to keep the conversation going.
"Yeah, a little. I've always wanted to learn a sport that was more feminine…" Miu explained before she asked. "What about you, Kenichi? What club are you a part of?"
Kenichi smiled and answered. "The Karate Club." He then looked a little embarrassed. "I know it doesn't really suit me, but I just picked it because I didn't want to get picked on."
"In that case, you should quit the Karate club." Shirou advised, surprising them.
"Huh, why would I do that?" Kenichi asked, confused.
"You really don't get how things work around here, do you?" Shirou asked rhetorically before he continued. "Tell me, what do you know about the gang Ragnarok?"
"Haa! Ragnarok!" Kenichi seemed spooked by the name.
"Ragnarok?" Miu said, not understand the problem. "What's that?"
"Guess I should start from the beginning." Shirou began. "As you know, this town is crawling with delinquents and gangs. The biggest of them all is the gang known as Ragnarok. They're made entirely of High School students and are feared for crushing every other gang that crosses them. Among them are students from this school."
"I get that, but what does that have to do with the Karate club?" Kenichi asked, not getting the problem.
"A lot actually, the students of this school that are members of Ragnarok practically run the place, even some teachers fear them, and other delinquents at this school know not to act up out of fear of Ragnarok." Shirou explained. "As for the Ragnarok members, they spend their time joining clubs to spread their influence, for example, taking over a club to make all the members their grunts. The Karate club is an example of that."
"Wait, the Captain of the Karate club is a Third-year named Tsukuba, who's crazy strong." Kenichi noted, now afraid. "Not only is he huge but he's scary enough that everyone follows every order he gives in a second, He's terrifying!" He described. "Are saying he's from Ragnarok?!"
"No doubt." Shirou confirmed. "That's why you should just quit. With a guy like him running the place, the members are more concerned with learning how to beat people up than teaching new members any actually Karate. You'll just waste your time there."
Kenichi then held his head down, looking upset and distraught. "I guess you're right. I just really wanted to learn self-defense."
"That reminds me." Miu spoke up, looking at Shirou. "You still haven't answered my question. Shirou, have you studied Martial Arts before?"
"Oh, that." Shirou remembered as he scratched his hair a bit. "I learned from my Dad for a while, though in my last year of Middle School, I started brawling."
"Wait, really?" Kenichi asked, not being aware of that fact. "I didn't know you did Martial Arts."
"I started shortly after you moved away." Shirou explained. "Though the Old Man's overseas right now."
"What kind of discipline did your father teach you?" Miu asked, now curious. "Judo, Karate, Tae-Kwon-Do?" She guessed.
Shirou shook his head. "Nah, It was MMA, Mix Martial Arts. I didn't want to be too limited to one style. I also started brawling for the same reason: I love fighting that's freestyle."
"I really wish you wouldn't do stuff like that, though; it's not right to keep causing trouble." Kenichi advised, hoping to persuade him.
"We've had this conversation before. Let it go already." Shirou replied decidedly.
"Hmm, I suppose it's not a problem to enjoy fighting but…" Miu's expression changed. Her eyes looked razor-sharp and piercing. "Wouldn't you rather learn, real Martial Arts?"
Kenichi looked surprised and a little confused by her sudden change, while Shirou felt as if she was changing him and smirked. He then stood up. "If you know a place that teaches Martial Arts that is worth my time, I'd be interested in seeing it."
And with that, Shirou walked away. Miu smiled as if she could feel his fighting spirit, while Kenichi just felt lost and out of place by all this.
—
Once School had ended, it was now sunset, and all the students were walking home. However, students who had club activities stayed behind a bit longer. Shirou himself was about to walk home until, while he was walking by the courtyard, he heard a familiar voice.
"Hey, Shirou~"
Shirou turned to see the person who had called out to him was Haruo Niijima. Niijima has a rather "alienated" appearance. Slightly tall for his age, he has a slim yet solid physique, sharp fingernails, and gangly limbs. His facial features are somewhat demonic: a long tongue with a sharp nose, long pointed ears, and teeth that switch between jagged, fanged, or even just normal. Not surprisingly, many other students refer to him as a "Demon-faced space alien" or something similar. He sports a puddle-bowl haircut and wears the same uniform as Kenichi. He is also a First-year.
Naturally, Shirou didn't look happy to see him. "Niijima, what do you want?"
"Ha, isn't that obvious?" Niijima asked before laughing. "I want world domination!"
"Oh God." Shirou muttered, wishing he hadn't asked.
"But moving on from that for now." Niijima moved in closer and gave him a chilling smile. "Have you thought about my proposal?"
"You mean your stupid idea of taking over the School?" Shirou guessed, hoping to get more personal space.
"That's right, and it's not stupid!" Niijima said loudly, taking out his PDA. "Just think about it, right now Ragnarok rules this school with an Iron Fist, but you're high up on the totem pole yourself, I got stats on everyone, and your stats are among the highest." He explained, typing things down on his screen. "Trust me when I say this; with my brain and your power nothing could stop us, the whole school would kneel at our feet!"
Shirou barely reacted to his declaration and simply replied. "Listen, Niijima. I'm not interested in any small-string goals like taking over some stupid High School. Besides, our relationship is one of give-and-take. I protect you from bullies, and you give me any info I need. It's simple enough, so let's keep it that way."
"Hmph, you're no fun." Niijima shrugged, still smiling. "But I'll win you over one of these days."
Shirou and Niijima met a short while back. Niijima is the kind of person who, even though he is weak, worms his way out of situations by kissing up to the Strongest person he can find and then hiding behind their shadow. In his mind, it's always best to be on the winning side no matter who they are. When he met Shirou, he immediately clung to him. Though Shirou found him annoying, he knew Niijima could be useful. Niijima was good at digging up the dirt and being in the know. Shirou knew there were advantages to having a good source of information, so he kept him around. And Niijima traded his info for protection. They both use each other, and they are both aware of that. That's how they keep such a stable connection.
"Speaking of which, I want info on the Karate club." Shirou instructed him.
"Sure thing, but first." Niijima leaned in. "In exchange, I want you to give me the scope on the new transfer student. Give-and-take, remember."
"Fine, her name's Miu Furinji. She's blonde and wears glasses, wants to go to the Gymnastics club, and likes Martial Arts." He listed, while Niijima wrote it all down on his PDA. "Now answer my question." Shirou demanded.
"Let me guess, you want to know about Kenichi quitting the club don't you?" Niijima said, knowing he was right.
"Good, I don't have to explain." Shirou replied. "So spill it."
"Hahahaha! It's actually pretty hilarious!" Niijima said through his laughter. "He went to the club and told them he wanted to quit, and so the Captain accepted. But the rule is anyone who leaves the Karate club has to participate in a match first! Hahaha, it's practically a farewell beating!"
"What, since when is that a rule?" Shirou questioned, unaware.
"Since Tsukuba became the Captain, of course." Niijima informed him like it was obvious. "What else would you expect from a member of Ragnarok?"
"I should have known." Shirou face-palmed. "Who's his opponent?"
"He's a First-year named Daimonji." Niijima looked him up on his PDA. "According to my student info, Daimonji's battle level is 73. He'll beat up anybody if he doesn't like them. And get this: when he was in Middle School, just because he disliked some people, he sent them to the hospital. Because the kids who were beaten up by him were so scared, they transferred schools. And that's how Daimonji managed to get away from punishment." He listed down.
"Tch, just great." Shirou clicked his tongue; he was clearly pissed off. "Instead of Tsukuba, they threw some wild attack dog at him. This'll just be a show they can watch to get their sick kicks."
"Ha, you got that right." Niijima continued, finding the whole thing funny. "That dude is one of the Strongest people in the club, old Week-Knees Kenichi will be sent to the hospital when this is over."
"I'm leaving." Shirou said, walking away.
"Hey, just remember what we talked about!" Niijima called out loudly while Shirou left. "Just think it over, okay!"
—
The sky turned dark and night fell as the moon shined in the night sky. The only bright light was the street lights and the small bit of the sun that could just barely be seen, still setting over the horizon. During this time Kenichi was walking down the street, his shoulders slumped and his face filled with anguish and dismay. He had the aura of someone whose life was over, and in this case, that was partially true.
Before long, Shirou had found him and approached him. "So this is where you were."
"Oh, hi, Shirou." Kenichi greeted. His tone was a downcast one.
"I heard what happened at the club, and judging by the look on your face, it's true." Shirou noted. "When's the fight?"
"In a week." Kenichi answered, still slumped.
They then stopped walking and started to talk.
"I just don't get it; all the Upper-Classmen in the Karate club are strong, and so were all the bullies in Middle-School. They already knew they were strong so why must they pick on others?" Kenichi asked, upset, and not understanding it. "What reason could they have?"
"It depends on your definition of strong." Shirou answered, understanding fully well. "The way I see it, those bullies and Upper-Classmen are weaklings."
"Weak?" Kenichi repeated, not agreeing. "There's no way they are. You've seen what they can do."
"You're missing the point. It's not what they do, but why they do it." Shirou continued. "No one wants to be weak, and anybody would want to be strong. So, a solution most people come up with is finding someone weaker than them. They do that to lord their strength over that person, believing that it makes them strong by default, feeling relieved that at least they're not at the bottom of the food chain. That's usually how they think." He explained, then pointing at Kenichi. "And you're the weakest in town, so every bully made you their target."
"Are you kidding me!" Kenichi said in a frustrated outburst. "I have to go through all this just so they can feel better about themselves?! How is that fair? I'm more than just something others need to punch to bloat up their egos!"
"It's not like you did anything to stop this from happening." Shirou reminded him, shutting him up. "Whenever any kind of struggle comes up, you always throw in the towel before trying or just run away. Whenever anyone puts you down, you just let them. You never stood up for yourself and just showed everyone a person who was basically asking to be bullied. How can you complain when you're the one who let this happen?"
Kenichi's frustration deflated like a balloon, and he just seemed depressed. "I know, but still. It's not like I wanted to let things turn out this way. It's just whenever these things happen my legs won't stop shaking, and by the time my thoughts are in order I've already given up." He admitted, ashamed. "I truly want to be brave, but I just can't."
"Well, that's probably because you have such a low opinion of yourself. And it doesn't help that you're weaker than a Straw-weight." Kenichi felt like an arrow pierced his self-esteem after hearing Shirou say that. "You're going to have to fix those if you ever want to stand up to Daimonji."
Kenichi seemed even more depressed after being reminded of the fight. "That's right, I still haven't figured out what I'm going to do about that."
"Well, you still have a week. Hopefully, you'll figure something out," Shirou suggested.
"But what can I do? There's no way I can beat him." Kenichi told himself, pessimistic, while looking down. "Daimonji and all the others in the club all say only the strong are permitted to learn Karate, and they're all stronger than me."
"Only the strong have the right to learn, huh?" Shirou repeated, skeptical. "That's bullshit. Only wild apes like them would believe that."
"Huh, really?" Kenichi asked, now looking at him. "What makes you say that?"
"Back when I was a kid, my Dad told me something." Shirou said, thinking back. "Everyone in the world started out a weakling. That means in the beginning, we were at the same level, but it's your choice on where you go from there. Learning how to fight is a right everyone has because it makes the weak strong, someone who thinks he started out strong before he even started obviously needs to get their head checked."
"So then, you're saying he's wrong and that weak people have a right to learn Karate too?" Kenichi asked.
"Of course he's wrong." Shirou confirmed as he began to walk. "He only thinks otherwise because his head's full of crap. When some weak idiot gets a small taste of power, they let it go to their head, but Daimonji's still just a third-string."
"Maybe to you." Kenichi muttered, following him before he started thinking. "But still, does that mean when people get strong, they automatically want to fight others?"
Shirou shrugged. "Who can say?"
"Well, I definitely will not become like that!" Kenichi said with new determination. "If I become strong, I will use it to protect the weak! I will become a Hero. Then I will take care of those punks!"
"Is that right?" Shirou asked, clearly not sharing the enthusiasm. "Well then, Hero-san, why don't you try taking care of them." He pointed to the right.
Kenichi, who seemed confused, looked in the direction his friend was pointing, and his nerve was immediately shattered by what he saw.
A few feet away from them was a group of rough-looking thugs, three to be exact, one with sunglasses, one with a scar, and one with a mustache, who were standing next to a car that was parked by the street. Besides them, there was also a weak-looking old man on the ground, and what was most surprising was that standing against those thugs was none other than Miu, who seemed to be defending the old man.
"What did you say? I dare you to say it again!" The thug with a scar threatened Miu.
"Hurry up and apologize to the old man." Miu responded, unafraid.
It looked like a fight was going to break out soon. But while Shirou seemed interested, Kenichi quickly backed away and hid behind the street corner.
"I didn't see a thing, didn't see a thing…." Kenichi inwardly babbled to himself while breaking out in a cold sweat.
"Not much of a Hero, are you?" Shirou commented.
"I'm not strong yet!" Kenichi defended. "They're gangsters. This is way too much!"
"That doesn't seem to be stopping her." Shirou pointed out.
Kenichi realized Miu was facing them and looked concerned.
"She's in trouble!" Kenichi panicked before being distressed. "…But I'm not strong, and they're gangsters… This is not good at all!" He then looked down, unable to even look. "Besides, in situations like this… It's better to just give them what they want."
"Would you stop whining already." Shirou sighed. "Just sit back. I'll show you how it's done." He then began his approach.
"You've got a lot of guts, girl." The thug with sunglasses said, amused.
"Why did you guys push down the old man?" Miu questioned angrily.
"Who told him to walk in the middle of the road?" The thug with a scar responded. "We just pushed him to the side."
"But you guys parked your big car in the middle of the road." Miu argued. "That's annoying."
"So what? You weaklings only deserve to walk on the side!" The thug with a scar said arrogantly. "That's the nature of things, got it?
"That's right, because we're strong. We can do whatever we want!" The thug with a mustache agreed, with arrogance. "Just see for yourself! All these guys are obeying our rules, right?" As he said, people could be seen walking by, but all of them averted their eyes and pretended they didn't notice what was going on. "You're all a bunch of weaklings!"
Miu remained unfazed. "Cut the crap and apologize." She demanded.
The thug with the mustache grabbed her arm angrily. "Dumb woman, what's your problem?"
"Looks like you really don't understand—" The thug with a scar started before he was interrupted.
Play OST - A Certain Magical Index - Accelerator Theme
"God shut up already." Shirou spoke out, approaching them. "Weakling this, Strong that. Why do all you third-strings say the same thing?"
"Shirou?" Miu thought, surprised by her new friend's presence.
"Huh, who the hell are you?" The thug with the scar asked when he was right in front of him.
Shirou smirked and clenched his fists. "I'm the strong. And you're about to learn what being weak feels like!"
Quick as a flash, Shirou dove in close and threw a straight punch at the thug who was holding Miu in the face. The punch gave him a bloody nose and caused him to release his grip. Shirou followed up in an instant and kicked the thug in the head, aiming directly for his temple, which made him groggy. He finished the job by decking down and hitting him with a strong blow to the gut, which knocked the wind out of him and made the thug drop to the ground.
Kenichi watched from afar with amazement. "Wow… That was amazing."
"His speed and timing were perfect, and his power is on point too." Miu thought, impressed by his assault. "He must have had some serious training."
The other two thugs were shocked and looked at Shirou with disbelief. The thug with sunglasses regained some sense and shouted. "Hey! What the hell's wrong with you!?"
"What? You're the ones who said the weak only deserve to walk on the side." Shirou reminded him. "And since you guys are the weakest of all, you don't even deserve to stand. Only crawl."
"You Bastard!" The thug with sunglasses roared as he charged at him.
"Ah, man, you're slow." Shirou mocked.
Shirou charged in himself and closed the distance in a second. Just as they were about to run past each other, Shirou launched an overhead punch that landed dead-center in the thug's face, knocking him back a bit. Shirou then reached out and grabbed the thug's arm.
"You're gonna wish you'd just moved your car!" Shirou shouted, sadistic.
Putting his strength into his wrist and grip, he spun the thug around before throwing him forward, a direct collision with the large car. And upon collision, his body crashed into the car's windshield and broke through the glass.
The last remaining thug looked so angry that he could explode. Having had enough of this, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a knife. "That's it. I'll kill you!"
Shirou kept his back turned and smirked. "You'll die trying."
The thug fell for his taunt and tried to rush in and slash him. But before he could, to both their surprise, someone else finished him. It all happened in the blink of an eye. It was Miu who had jumped forward like a gust of wind and fly-kicked the thug in the face, instantly knocking him unconscious and knocking the knife in the air. The surprise didn't stop as she used his body as a springboard and jumped upwards in the air. With the grace and finesse of a feather, she danced in the sky, back-flipped, and landed on the ground on her feet like a Cat. The knife fell back down, and she caught it in her hands.
Music Off
"That really made me mad." Miu stated, throwing away the knife.
In the swiftness of her attack, her glasses fell off, and it almost felt like she had become a different person. Her eyes were definitely different. They seemed sharper and slit, like a Cat's eyes.
Kenichi just watched the whole thing and was completely blown away. "A-Awesome… Her movements were as light as a feather."
Shirou narrowed his eyes at Miu. "Those moves… I've seen them before."
He was taken out of his thoughts when Miu approached him and smiled, her eyes and expression back to normal. "Hey, thanks for helping me."
Shirou was a little surprised by the quick shift in her attitude but didn't question it.
"I didn't ask you for the assist." Shirou brushed her off. "I could've handled him myself."
Miu kept her smile. "Sorry, I just felt like I should have done something as well. After all, I'm the one who picked a fight with them."
"I suppose, anyways." Shirou looked to his right and called out. "Hey Kenichi, you can stop hiding now!"
Kenichi almost tripped when he was suddenly over—But decided to come out from the corner and join up with the two of them.
"Kenichi was here too?" Miu asked, surprised.
"That was amazing, you guys!" Kenichi praised in awe. "Shirou is one thing, but I had no idea you could fight like that, Miu."
"He's right. No ordinary girl could fight like that." Shirou agreed, though not as impressed. "Mind explaining yourself?"
Miu looked a bit nervous and scratched her head a little, trying to figure out what she should say.
—
A little while later, the three of them moved to a nearby public park called Kirigakure Park. Kenichi and Miu were sitting on a park bench while Shirou was leaning beside a nearby tree.
"I mean it, though; thanks for helping me back there." Miu said gratefully.
"Enough of the thanks already." Shirou said, looking away. "Just answer me. Are you a Martial Artist?"
Miu nodded, a bit nervous. "Yeah, I didn't want to hide it. I just wanted to try and be normal for a bit."
"You lost the chance to be normal when you flipped Kenichi this morning." Shirou told her drily.
Kenichi sighed, depressed. "Between the two of you, I think I'm starting to feel weaker than normal."
Miu placed a hand on his shoulder. "Kenichi, I just want you to know, that guy from your club who told you Martial Arts is for the strong, he doesn't know what he's talking about."
"What do you mean by that?" Kenichi asked, interested.
"My Sensei has always explained it to me like this: The Martial Arts were originally created to help the weak fight against the strong." Miu recited. "That means someone's size isn't really important. So the guy from the club really has it backward."
"That's the same thing Shirou said." Kenichi noted, surprised. "But his version was a lot rougher."
"Or maybe you guys are too soft." Shirou argued.
"But that still doesn't solve my problem. I've only got a week left to live." Kenichi groaned, depressed, until he remembered something. "Oh! My How-To Books!"
Kenichi reached into his bag and was about to open a book until Shirou, looking fed up, punched into the tree and turned to Kenichi.
"Put the books away before I take them away." Shirou warned him.
Complying with his demands, Kenichi put away his book and looked like he had another idea. "Wait, Shirou, why don't you fight Daimonji instead."
Shirou shook his head. "That won't work. The fight's been set up as an official bout between two members of the club, which I'm not a part of, and you technically still are until after the fight. You can't just have someone fight for you. And besides." Shirou looked at him seriously. "I may be your friend, but I won't fight your battles for you. This fight is something you need to handle by yourself."
"I'm deaaaddd!" Kenichi cried out, giving up all hope.
Miu closed her eyes and smiled at him. "Listen… If you're really serious about getting strong, then I think I know of a place that can help you out if you're willing to give it a try." She suggested.
"Think they can teach me to take out thugs like you just did?!" Kenichi asked, excited and hopeful.
"I can't answer that. I can tell you that in this place, you'll get a lot stronger than you are right now, guaranteed." Miu assured him before turning her head back. "Though, when I say you'll get stronger, that's assuming you'll stay alive."
"Huh?"
Kenichi just seemed confused by that last part. So Shirou decided to ask.
"And let me guess. This place is the one that teaches the real Martial Arts you were talking about this morning."
Miu just smiled at him. "And what would you do if I said yes?"
"I'd say I'm more interested after seeing you fight." Shirou answered. "Let me see for myself what it's like."
"Well, since you are both interested." Miu reached into her school bag and took out a piece of paper. "If you're really determined, go to the place on this map tomorrow."
After handing Kenichi the map, Miu stands up and walks away. Unfortunately, though, once Kenichi and Shirou take a look at the map, they realize a problem. They have no idea how to read it. Miu's direction and way of drawing landmarks and distances were the equivalents to how a child would draw a map. So, knowing that they wouldn't be able to find the location without a better understanding of the direction, Shirou took them to a place where he knew someone who could help them.
—
"Hey, I'm home!" Shirou shouted, slamming open the door.
Shirou had instructed Kenichi to follow him to his house. Shirou's home was an average two-floor house with a living room with a large TV near the wall and a couch, a kitchen area, a dining room with a dinner table in the middle, and a glass door leading to the backyard. The second floor had three bedrooms and a bathroom.
"Why'd we come here?" Kenichi questioned, looking around.
"Because a smart guy I know lives here, and he'll know how to translate the map." Shirou answered.
"Hey, welcome back." A young voice greeted.
Coming downstairs was the person he spoke of. He was a young boy a few inches shorter than Kenichi; he had pale-white skin, and his blue eyes were the same color as Shirou's, only they looked softer. Unlike Shirou, he had jet-black hair that went up to his shoulders. It was smooth and straight, not like Shirou's, which was spiky. He was dressed in a red dress shirt with long sleeves and black pants that looked comfortable for running. He also wore a pair of white socks.
This boy was Haruto Tsukiharu, age 14, Shirou's younger Brother and a Third-year in Middle School.
"Oh, hey, Haruto-kun." Kenichi greeted.
"Hi, Kenichi." Haruto greeted back. "Nice to see you again."
Kenichi looked away and sweated a bit. "I can't help but notice he doesn't call me Kenichi-san like when we were kids. Guess I shouldn't bring it up."
"You came back later than usual. What happened?" Haruto asked, more curious than concerned. "Did you get into another fight?"
"No… I mean, yes, but that's not important." Shirou then took out the map. "We need your help to decipher this map."
Haruto took it while Kenichi just looked at Shirou dumbstruck.
"Hold on a second. You're telling me the "smart guy" you know was Haruto-kun?" Kenichi questioned, Skeptical. "You seriously think your little Brother can figure out that mess?"
"Don't be skeptical. He's actually a lot smarter than most people seem to think. Plus, he's an expert at figuring things out with only a little information and working out a hidden problem." Shirou reasoned. "And more importantly, he's way smarter than you."
"Was that last part really necessary!" Kenichi shouted back, insulted.
Meanwhile, Haruto looked over the map while scratching his head. "I'm going on a limb here, and I guess a girl drew this."
"Yeah, how'd you know?" Kenichi asked.
"It wasn't all that hard." Haruto answered deadpan. The map had directions like First, this pretty place where the Cat sleeps, take a left, or go over this brick wall. And more than that there were some drawings of flowers, a Cat and a sun with a smiley face, there wasn't a single landmark and all the roads were curly. "Where exactly is the map supposed to lead you?"
"To a place where the girl said to go to tomorrow night so we can get stronger so Kenichi can get strong enough to beat a bully in the Karate club that was using him as a punching bag and has now set him up for a fight he can't possibly win as a way to entertain themselves," Shirou said all that without stopping or slowing down.
"That simple, huh?" Haruto asked, having followed all that.
"What is with this family?" Kenichi thought before thinking about it more. "But then again, I don't really have room to talk."
"Well, I think I can draw a more readable map by tomorrow." Haruto guessed. "But without knowing exactly where the destination is, I can only guess based on the route."
"Good enough." Shirou then turned to Kenichi. "Let's meet up tomorrow night."
Kenichi nodded, pleased. "All right."
—
The next day, after school was over and night fell over the town once again, the two boys met up and followed the map to find wherever Miu wanted them to go. With the new map that Haruto made being much easier to read than the first one made by Miu, they were able to find the place a lot sooner than they had expected. The place they had found, though, in a word, was… Intimidating.
It was a very large gate to an even larger dojo and stone walls surrounding the place in a square shape. Over the wall, near the edge, they could see an extremely large forest area within the confines of the wall. One look was enough for anyone to guess; this place wasn't normal. On top of the front gate was a sign that had Kanji written on it. The Kanji said Ryozanpaku.
"Ryozanpaku?" Shirou read out loud. "Isn't that the name of a mountain or something?"
"Are you really sure this is the place?" Kenichi asked, still unsure.
"Only way to be sure is to go inside and ask." Shirou suggested.
"Yeah, you're right." Kenichi then shook his head and looked determined. "I've gotten this far, so there's no reason to be scared!"
After saying that, he rushed forward and tried to push the front gate open, only to find that it wouldn't budge no matter how hard he pushed.
"Uwahh… This is heavy! Move, dammit!" Kenichi grunted, struggling. "Ughhh… It's not moving! Is it bolted down or something?!"
Shirou sighed and stepped forward. "Just step back, Kenichi."
With a mighty push, Shirou slammed his hands into the gate and tried to push it open. Like Kenichi, he was having trouble making them even budge, but after a loud grunt, he was not only able to make the doors budge but even made a small opening. He then pulled back and took a breather.
"Man, that is heavy." Shirou stretched out his arms. "But I think I can open it after a few more seconds."
"Here, why don't you let me try."
A muscular hand reached past them and, with one finger, pushed the doors open.
Turning around, the two of them saw the owner of that voice, and their eyes widened in shock. It was a giant of an old man, or close to a giant, at least. The man standing before them was a massive man in a long green kimono, which clung tightly to his heavily muscular body, bandages wrapped around his arms, which were most likely for Martial Arts, and he also wore sandals. He had a build that makes a professional bodybuilder look puny by comparison. The fact was he was way over 6 feet tall. He was fair-skinned with blue eyes and blonde hair. His hair reached his mid-back, and he also had a chest-length beard along with a mustache.
"What business brings you here, young ones?" The old man asked softly. "To our Ryozanpaku?"
"This old man." Shirou looked at him, astonished.
Kenichi was cowering at the sight of him. "B-Business ah, I was just leaving!" He screamed as he tried to run away, but before he could get far, the old man appeared in front of his path and cut him off, which made Kenichi bump into him and fall to the ground.
"What? He moved so fast I couldn't see a thing. It's like he teleported." Shirou said quietly, amazed.
Kenichi just looked completely bewildered, looking back and forth from where the old man was to where he was. "What the…?! Did you just warp!?" He then started shaking and quietly asked. "How'd you do that?"
"Judging by the look on your face, I'm not sure you could handle the answer to that question." The old man noted. "Try to calm down a bit."
"He's right." Shirou flicked Kenichi's forehead. "Keep freaking out like that, and you might faint."
"Sorry." Kenichi got up and faced the old man, excited. "By any chance, are you a Martial Arts Master?"
The old man cheerfully laughed. "Haha, I wouldn't call myself a Master, but ever since my younger days, I've never lost a fight."
"I've never lost a fight either." Shirou pointed out.
"Is that so? Then I think you'll like it here." The old ma told him happily.
"S-Sir, I'm Kenichi Shirahama, and this is my friend Shirou Tsukiharu." Kenichi introduced them while bowing. "We were sent here by Miu Furinji. It's both an honor and a pleasure to meet you."
"Settle down, boy scout." Shirou told him drily.
"That was quite an impressive introduction, young man. Your manners are excellent, but there's no need to be formal around here." The old man stroked his beard and walked through the gate. "So then, Miu sent you two, huh?"
"Yes." Kenichi confirmed, following him inside.
"This should be interesting." Shirou commented, following them.
—
And that's the chapter. First of all, something I always like doing is going into the lore of the world the story is taking place in, and as such, I explained at the beginning of this chapter that the town they live in is pretty much lawless for the most part. And when you think about it, that would explain why everyone can get into so many fights, disturb the peace, use dangerous weapons, and even trash an entire public restaurant without ever getting in trouble. Plus, after watching the anime, I've never seen a police officer in any episode, even once. So yeah, the town has no cops.
Now as for the main character, yes, I placed a Shirou Tsukiharu in this world, too, because I wanted to create a character who was the complete opposite of Kenichi. Strong, brave, confident, reliable, talented, and a Delinquent. Shirou fit that perfectly, so it was easier than just making up a completely new character.
However, as you saw in this chapter, he has a younger Brother and a father. Those two will be very important characters in the story, just not now. Haruto is a character I just made up, but he has a role in the story. Shirou's father is someone we'll meet later, but he'll also have a role to play.
As for Shirou's strength, he's not overpowered or anything. He just knows how to hold his own in a fight, and he'll have a lot of good fights as the plot progresses. It just doesn't take much to beat ordinary thugs or canon fodder. And his specialty is Mix Martial Arts because I think that style is a good match for someone who wants to fight freely.
Now, just to let you all know, I still plan on giving my full attention to the stories I'm currently writing, and even though I really want to write this story, It'll be hard to give it the same amount of attention as the others so updates on this will usually take a while if that's not too much trouble though, stay tuned.
Anyway, thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed. If you want more, then be sure to leave a review. If you like the story, click the follow/favorite, and as always, have an awesome day.