=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Mixed Greetings Christina Ortega Part 7 (FY/YYH) =-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Chichiri felt like asking Nuriko to beat him senseless. After all, at the gathering everyone had been enjoying themselves except for him. It wasn’t because no one had noticed him. On the contrary, quite a few women had asked him to dance...asked to sit with him and keep him company, but for some reason he had turned them all down. The concerned glances he had received from Hotohori and Houki hadn’t been lost on him, and they had even once invited him to move next to them, but he had declined. No. Maybe he wasn’t the one that should be beaten to a pulp. Perhaps Tasuki was the one that should take the blame. It was his fault after all, though the monk didn’t know why his loneliness and boredom should be blamed on his fellow seishi. After all, Tasuki had done nothing wrong. He had just been dancing with that woman...that girl...that...that...and why was Chichiri so upset!? Tasuki probably wouldn’t have gone with her had he not motioned for him to. Plus, Nuriko had spent the whole night dancing with the woman who had approached him as soon as they entered the throne room, and Chichiri felt no anger towards him. “Tasuki no BAKA!” He shouted at the wall, flushing as he realized how ridiculously he was acting. All the while, his eyes had been on Tasuki. This he knew. What Chichiri wanted to know was WHY his eyes had been on Tasuki...why he had ignored all the women in the room and kept his focus on his best friend. It was no secret that the former bandit had looked good that night. The monk snorted. Tasuki hadn’t looked good. He had looked great, but then again, so had everyone. Why, then, had he not been able to take his eyes off of him? It was strange. He felt weird...as if he was transgressing just by having these thoughts. Now, he sat alone in the bedroom that he was supposed to be sharing with Tasuki yelling at the wall like an idiot. Wonderful. Perhaps what had him the most worried was that he had watched Tasuki walk off with that woman and hadn’t seen him since. He wouldn’t...couldn’t be...Tasuki hated women...and why the hell did he care!? Tasuki could make love with anyone he wanted and it wouldn’t matter, or would it? Chichiri smirked. This was stupid. Tasuki hated women. He had always hated women...it was something to do with his family. The former bandit had mentioned his family to him once. Apparently his mother ruled his household and he had four older sisters, one of whom loved throwing logs at him. ...Then again, Tasuki had fallen in love with Miaka. Chichiri believed that Tasuki was over her. No, he knew that Tasuki was over her. Those moments that the two had spent together after Miaka and Taka had returned to their world talking about what had happened had been the most intimate moments that the monk had ever spent with Tasuki. He remembered how the former bandit had told him that he hadn’t loved Miaka at all for hours...well, yelled and screamed about how he hadn’t loved her...and then had suddenly broken down like a young child and cried. Chichiri had never heard a man curse himself so brutally before, and he had had no choice but to embrace his best friend and try to convince him that things would be ok. His mind taunted mockingly. He smiled to himself. “Chichiri no baka.” That was when the monk heard a knock on his door. Good eye lighting up, he forced a stern expression and stood from his bed. “Chotto matte kudasai no da!!” Sure that he was ready to reprimand, Chichiri slid his door open to find himself looking into Tasuki’s face... ...Tasuki’s bruised and unmoving face. The monk, through his intense worry, barely heard the voice of the man that was holding Tasuki up mutter, “I found Genrou lying in an alley on the outskirts of town. He was in this condition, and I haven’t been able to wake him. If you wouldn’t mind, I’d like to stay with him to make sure he’ll be all right.” Forcing himself to snap out of his stupor as the person literally dragged Tasuki into the room and put him down on top of the bed that had been designated as his, Chichiri turned to find himself facing the back of a man with dark blue hair that fell over a golden band around his forehead. A loose and damp white shirt with black slacks and boots clothed his shivering form, and as he turned around the monk quickly noted scar over his right cheek. Recognition made his eye widen in surprise. “Kouji-kun?” “You haven’t answered me,” Kouji told him as quickly unbuttoned his shirt and peeled the wet cloth from his body. Without thinking, Chichiri walked to his bed, removed the blanket on top of it, and handed it to him. “I wouldn’t want to impose. Can I stay here?” Chichiri offered him a faint smile. “Hotohori-sama and Houki-sama won’t mind at all, and I think Tasuki would want you here no da.” Taking this as a yes, Kouji wrapped the blanket around himself, sitting on the ground next to Tasuki’s bed and leaning his head against the mattress, his eyes closing from exhaustion. “Anou...thank you for bringing him here, Kouji-kun no da, but what are you doing here in the first place? You’re still the leader of the Leikaku bandits na no da.” It seemed better not to antagonize over Tasuki’s current state despite his curiousity and concern. After all, if Kouji knew something he would have started talking already. “Genrou is the leader of the Leikaku bandits,” Kouji corrected, eyes opening slowly as he ran a hand through his wet hair that had been moistened by the falling snow. He laughed bitterly to himself and pointed a thumb at Tasuki. “Then again, he isn’t Genrou. No, Genrou was a thief who would do anything for the bandits who had taken him in after he had left his family. Genrou would have done anything to honor our former leader’s memory. Genrou...” He paused, and it was at that moment that Chichiri noticed the intense sadness in the younger man’s eyes. “Genrou was my best friend, but...well...Tasuki is your best friend, isn’t he? Since that Hikou guy is waiting to be reincarnated, Tasuki is the closest person to you...I had an obligation to bring him here.” “Kouji-kun...” This was not what Chichiri had been expecting. Sure, he and Kouji had their differences. The one time Tasuki had taken the monk to Leikaku a little over a year ago had been a nightmare. It had been obvious that Kouji wasn’t the only one missing Genrou, and they obviously blamed the Suzaku shichiseishi for taking their leader away. After those two weeks on Leikaku, Chichiri had left Tasuki with the men that had missed him so dearly and hadn’t seen him again before the previous day. The monk exhaled slowly, calmness covering his surprise and hurt at Kouji’s initial statement. “Tasuki likes who he is now, and I will not apologize for your loss. The Leikaku bandits may be noble, but they also kill and injure no da. They make people live in fear. If indeed I have steered Tasuki in some way then I will not ask for forgiveness for something I do not regret na no da.” He realized after saying this how harsh it had sounded and sighed. The monk felt as if he was playing a game of ‘tug-o-war’ with Tasuki as the rope. Smiling faintly, he put a hand on his forehead. Kouji smirked at this, his eyes turning from Chichiri to Tasuki who was twitching sporadically on top of the bed. “The Suzaku shichiseishi may be noble, but they’ve killed and injured. While fighting in the battle against Kutou, I watched Konan’s armies, led by the remaining seishi, destroy villages and innocent people who had no way to defend themselves. You killed people who were only fighting for what they believed in...you betrayed your best friend for Suzaku no Miko.” He shook his head slowly, gazing out of the window above the door at the snow that was steadily falling. “Gomen. I don’t want to fight with you. What’s done is done, I suppose.” “Yes, it is,” Chichiri muttered, gaze leveled at Kouji who was glaring at him through narrowed eyes. There was a tense silence as the two stared at each other. The monk supposed that he couldn’t blame Kouji. After all, he had a biased way of thinking. His youth had been spent as a bandit. Of course he didn’t know any better. Besides, if Tasuki had been his best friend for so long then he couldn’t be as narrow-minded as he seemed at that moment. “You didn’t tell me why you left Leikaku no da.” “I realized that when Gen...when Tasuki left Leikaku that he wasn’t going to come back, so I followed his tracks. The snow was falling so heavily that I lost him after a few hours. He was too far ahead, and his footprints had been buried, but I knew that he was coming here so I just continued on. By nightfall I knew that it was going to take me at least another day to reach the palace, and so I stopped in a small village.” He smiled sheepishly. “I must have been more exhausted than I thought because when I got up the day was half gone, and so I tried to get here as fast as I could, but when I reached the city gates I realized that I had no idea what to say...somehow, ‘I know you aren’t coming back so I wanted to see you one more time’ didn’t seem like a good thing to say. It’s a good thing I decided to wander around the outskirts of town and think because that’s when I found him.” Chichiri had no choice but to sigh. After all, it seemed obvious where Tasuki had picked up his careless tactics. Kouji hadn’t even bothered to put on a coat before he left Leikaku. It was a wonder that he hadn’t collapsed on the way to the palace. Opening his mouth to voice his thoughts, he turned with surprise as a soft groan emitted from the bed. Kouji’s attention shifted, as well, and the two gazed at Tasuki worriedly. “Miaka...” “Miaka?” The monk’s eye narrowed with confusion. Why would Tasuki be calling for her? He hadn’t even seen Suzaku no Miko in two years. “Tasuki, can you hear me? Tasuki?” Suddenly, something flashed in his mind and his good eye widened. “Miaka...Miaka...!” Kouji frowned, both puzzled and concerned, before facing Chichiri who had stood and was walking towards the door. “Hey, he’s doing this and you’re just walking out?” “I’m going to get Hotohori-sama and Nuriko na no da,” Chichiri told him emotionlessly, his face guarded against all the thoughts whirling through his mind. “For some reason, I have a bad feeling about this na no da.” He left after saying these words, and Kouji folded his arms over his chest with a snort. Of course he should have a bad feeling about this. Tasuki had nearly been beaten to death. Wasn’t that something to have a bad feeling about? *** Sukunami Taka felt like he was on top of the world. So far, he had managed to keep his grades up in college, land a steady job, and Yuuki Miaka, his love from his previous life as well as this one, was finally going to move in with him. She was about to start her second year of high school, and they were more in love than ever. Taka grinned to himself. That was kinda hard to say. After all, they had initially met a year ago by this world’s calender...years ago in The Four Gods Sky and Earth when he had still gone by his seishi name Tamahome. For what was definitely not the first time, Taka let his mind drift back to six months ago and all that he had gone through with his love...with his friends. He closed his eyes momentarily, pausing midstep on the staircase leading to his apartment. How was Houki-sama? Boushin? Had Nuriko, Chiriko, Hotohori, and Mitsukake been reincarnated yet? Taka shifted the cardboard box containing some of Miaka’s clothes and other trinkets in his arms with a sigh. How many years had gone by in the book? Were Chichiri and Tasuki ok? They were alive at least. Even this far away, he would have felt something if one of them had died. “It’s been such a long time,” He whispered to himself, and a familiar pang of guilt hit him. The way he had acted half a year ago in that world as he regained his memories was humiliating. His love for Miaka had clouded his mind. Not that he regretted being with his love at all. However, he also loved his friends...those who had stood by him even when he didn’t believe in himself. He clearly remembered his final fight with Nakago a year earlier...remembered what it had felt like to have the powers of his friend within him. Mitsukake’s generosity. Hotohori’s kindness. Chiriko’s wisdom. Nuriko’s strength and passion for life. Chichiri’s calmness and patience. Tasuki’s courage. Shame still covered him as he remembered his actions six months ago. Despite their insistence...their care...he had left them because of his narrow-mindedness. The shocked looks on everyone’s faces, the emotional ways they told him what he meant to them, Chiriko’s persistence, Tasuki’s tears...and yet he had left them. He snorted disgustedly at himself. Then, when he was all alone against Tenkou, they still came for him...after all that, they still came. They were always there for him even at times when Miaka wasn’t...even when they were suffering, too. A smile returned to his face, faint at first but becoming wider by the second. After all, even though school had started for him and would start for Miaka that coming week a few guests would still be welcome. This idea had been with him for nearly two months now, and Taka found that he could no longer ignore it. They could summon Tasuki and Chichiri from the book...and maybe the others could use the Nyan-Nyans so that they could be in physical form and come as well. Taka could already see himself trying to explain to Chichiri and Chiriko the mechanics of a train, taking Hotohori and Mitsukake to an American restaurant where they would be forced to eat buffalo wings and other finger foods, or hitting the clubs and bars with Tasuki and Nuriko. The thought sinking in, Taka hurriedly continued up to his apartment. It had been so long since they had seen the others. He could practically see Miaka’s face lighting up at the idea. Opening the door that he had left unlocked, Taka set the box down on the carpeted floor before entering the bedroom which he would be sharing with Miaka. “Oy, I’ve been thinking about this for a long time, and I wanted to know what you would...Miaka!!!” Sparks were flying from the lightbulb on the ceiling that had been burst open. The television at the back of the room was also broken as well as the mirror next to the bathroom, shards of it lying on the floor. In the center of the room, the bed had been overturned, and by the window a creature whose skin had a greenish glow flapped the insect-like wings on his back and buzzed contentedly. Taka’s eyes widened in alarm. Miaka’s unconscious form was cradled in his arms, blood flowing out of her mouth and from a gash on her forehead, tinting her long brown hair. Her white pajamas were torn revealing her scarred pale flesh underneath. “It seems that you’ve caught me, Suzaku seishi, Tamahome.” “Let Miaka go,” Taka demanded fiercely, knowing that the ogre symbol on his forehead was already shining brightly. “I’ll only give you one warning...if you do anything more to her, you’ll die.” The human bug laughed harshly at this, obviously amused. “Oh really, Ogre Boy? THIS thing is your lover? I would have thought the most powerful of the Suzaku shichiseishi would have better taste. Whatever. While I would love to play with you, I’ve been ordered to deliver your miko ASAP. Pardon my hurry.” Before Taka could even think of reacting, the insect had kicked open the glass window pane and was gone in the blink of an eye. Body shaking with rage and humiliation, Taka slammed his fist against the wall with disbelief. “MIAKA!!!!” Sinking to his knees, Taka buried his face in his hands as tears of fury began flowing freely. The ogre symbol on his forehead was now burning so brightly that his whole face was covered with an eerie red glow. *** Koenma chewed on his Fuukamen before watching with alarm as George carried a large pile of papers into the room and set it down on his desk next to the other piles about the youkai attacks in Tokyo. “Here is the information you requested about Mikagami Tokiya’s acquaintances, Koenma-sama.” “I just wanted the basics! It isn’t like I want to write a book about them, BAKA!!!!” Sighing with annoyance, Koenma turned his glare towards Hiei who was leaning against the wall, his face expressionless. “I hope you appreciate this. Researching a bunch of humans that have nothing to do with your present case is a waste of my time and will also result in the possible enlarging of the youkai army!” Hiei’s lips turned up into a cold half-smile. “I want to know about this guy. Besides, he was attacked by one of the youkai in the army...a powerful one at that. If we don’t find out all we can, you will regret it.” Kuwabara snorted and began lip synching mockingly. Kurama gazed at Hiei questioningly before watching as Yusuke picked up the first piece of paper from the pile. “This is a lot of information about the Hokage,” He informed them and, glancing down at the sheet, he began reading slowly. “The Hokage was a ninja clan from 400 years ago in a time of civil war. They were one of the strongest clans in Japan until the Owari clan destroyed their village and killed everyone including Ohka, the present leader. “However, Ohka had two sons...one was Kurei who was born to Reina and the other Recca who was born to Kagero.” Yusuke’s eyes narrowed. “It seems as if Kagero had the skill of time manipulation and...opened a gateway to send her son to our time making her...immortal...Koenma, is it just me or does this sound like a load of shit?” Koenma closed his eyes as he digested this information. “It’s rare for a ningen to posses time manipulation abilities, but it does occasionally occur. I don’t doubt that it happened.” Yusuke groaned. Kuwabara’s eyes looked as if they were about to pop out of their sockets. “Anyway, it seems as if Recca appeared during our era and was taken in by one Hanabishi Shigeo,” Yusuke continued hesitantly. “He grew up without knowing of his past, believing himself to be Hanabishi Recca and his father’s biological son.” Botan raised a pad of paper in her hands and began jotting down notes. “Hanabishi Shigeo must know something if he’s raised a kid like Recca...Hanabishi Recca sounds like an interesting guy.” Koenma nodded and snatched the paper from Yusuke, choosing to read it himself. The tantei snorted. “Recently, however, it was discovered that his half-brother and rival, Kurei, landed in this time, as well. This forced Kagero, now going by Kage Houshi, to approach her son and teach him of his ability.” “What ability?” Kurama questioned, his emerald eyes clouded by confusion. Shrugging, Koenma responded, “This doesn’t say.” Kuwabara facefaulted. How would they know what to make of this guy if they didn’t know what abilities he had!? “What it does say,” Koenma continued, “is that she also rounded up people that held something called elemental weapons to help her son fight. These people included Ishijima Domon, Kirisawa Fuuko, and Mikagami Tokiya, the guy that Hiei found. Apparently, Recca faced Kurei once and it barely ended at a draw...oh my...” “Nan desuka?” Yusuke asked, wondering what it was that had caught Koenma’s attention. Things were getting weirder by the minute. At first, he thought Hiei had just come upon some guy that happened to have a cool weapon. Now, he knew that there was something big going on...even if these people didn’t have anything to do with the youkai army, they were worth checking out. People from 400 years ago didn’t just appear everyday. “It says here that the four of them enlisted in the Ura Buto Satsujin!” “Ura Buto Satsujin?” Kuwabara crossed his arms over his chest, not understanding. “What’s the Ura Buto Satsujin?” Botan looked up at this, her eyes widening with surprise. “Ura Buto Satsujin? I’ve heard of it! Only briefly, though. Many of the spirits I’ve guided have been killed in that tournament. Think of Ankoku. It’s like that, only for extra strong humans and not demons.” Koenma nodded. “However, for some reason even I have not been able to learn much about it. For some reason, spiritual beings have a hard time getting in which is strange considering that it is run by humans only. The details of their matches in the Ura Buto Satsujin are not described here, obviously, because no one could or wanted to keep track of it. However, it is known that another member of the Hokage was gained in the tournament...a much younger boy whose name is Kaoru Koganei.” The godling looked at the tantei, three of which were watching him with mixed expressions of puzzlement and surprise. Hiei, however, was obviously very proud of his judgment, and his crimson eyes were sparkling with amusement. Koenma threw his hands up in the air with exasperation. “Fine! I’ll admit you did well, Hiei! We don’t know enough about these people to approach them. I want Mikagami Tokiya and Hanabishi Recca monitored...find out about the other three if you get the chance, too. I’ll keep looking for information on Kuroino Ai. Hiei, keep an eye out for him since you’re the only one who knows what he looks like at this point. For now, the youkai army is not a big threat, but the moment I tell you to switch to that case, you four are to drop all surveillance on the Hokage.” The four nodded their understanding. “It’s gonna be kinda weird to follow a bunch of regular humans around,” Kuwabara mumbled to himself as he walked out of Koenma’s office along with the others. “I’ve kinda gotten used to the demons.” “If we’re lucky, Mikagami Tokiya will be able to tell us something about this Ai that he was attacked by,” Yusuke voiced as he put a hand through his hair with a sigh. “Botan said that his soul hasn’t come through yet which means that he didn’t die from the fight.” Hiei dropped back from the others, keeping his eyes on the floor as Kurama followed suit and remained in step behind him. “I feel the same way,” Kurama told him softly. “Somehow, I don’t think this is just going to be an easy monitoring mission.” “We’ll see,” Hiei muttered quietly, disappearing from sight a second later. Kurama watched him go through understanding green eyes. After all, it was obvious that Hiei was suspicious of these ningens and, to be honest, what he had just learned from Koenma had peaked his interest. Recca’s unknown ability, some secretive killing tournament, a guy who can make a sword out of water? He smiled to himself as he continued to follow Yusuke and Kuwabara. Koenma’s expression had told him that the youkai army case was definitely being pushed to the side. It was obvious that the godling had become curious about the five ningens, as well. One thing was certain. This surveillance mission definitely wouldn’t be boring. =-=-=-=-=-=-= O-wa-ri!! More to come!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=