The two glared at each other. The thick tension in the air as Rakaia could only give a slight snarl as Saitou stood in the doorway, arms crossed as he kept an intense expression of his own.
Rakaia stood silent for a moment before Luna stepped in. "What are you doing here?" She questioned him, annoyed at his presence as he stood in front of them. "The fight is tomorrow, how are you even able to…."
"I didn't come here to talk to you." Saitou abruptly cut her off. "I came here to talk to the runt, that's all." He turned his attention back towards Rakaia as Cana stood on his other side.
"What is there even to talk about?" She shot at him as she stood on her guard as well. "What is so important that you just had to make your way through school to find us? And where the hell are your brothers?" Her eyes narrowed as she questioned him, lightly bawling her fist, ready for a fight just in case he planned an ambush.
Saitou just shook his head and took a step toward them. "They're not here." He responded as he took a deep breath before he continued speaking. "I didn't bring them with me this time. They're back at home. Honestly, I would prefer if they stayed out of this." He told them truthfully. His hard-faced expression remained, but his words had a completely different tone than what Rakaia was used to.
"How come?" Rakaia chose to speak. "All of a sudden you want to do things alone? That was never your style before." He added as Saitou's eyes locked on with Rakaia's.
"Don't mock me, runt, I just need to talk to you since this is our business after all," Saitou responded.
"That's a new one," Cana piped up. "Now all of a sudden no one belongs in your business when all you've done is jump at every corner." She growled.
"Seriously, what's this even about? Are you brothers waiting for you to give them a signal or something!" She shouted as Rakaia eyed Saitou closely as he took on Cana's barrage of shouts. "Do you think we would seriously believe anything you have to..."
"Cana hold up" Rakaia stuck his arm out in front of her as he eyed Saitou.
"Huh!" Cana turned towards him, giving him a clueless look. "Kaia, you're kidding me, right? Don't tell me you're going to give him the benefit of the doubt." Cana retorted as she pointed towards Saitou.
"Trust me, I don't like it any more than you do, but I don't think he's lying," Rakaia responded as he looked Saitou up and down. "I think he's really by himself this time around" Rakaia slightly turned his head to see if he could spot Saitou's brother hanging around anywhere.
The school gym was big, but not massive. It housed a few squared circle rings and equipment for students to train and hone their skills. Black mats were placed all around the gymnasium to provide some type of cushion for the students and anyone else who participated in their workout. The windows were large, bringing in a huge amount of light from outside, also to view of the large field outside of the gym.
"Are you sure about this Rakaia?" Luna asked him, concerned that he might be making a big mistake. "This could be a plan to get the best of you before your match tomorrow." she voiced, but loud enough for both Rakaia and Cana to hear.
"That's the thing, I don't think it is," Rakaia replied, earning a questionable gaze from Luna. "Think about it. The last couple of times we fought, he didn't try to be sneaky about what he was up to. Brothers or not, he was all in our faces ready to pound our heads in. This time…. I don't know this time is different." Rakaia took a few steps towards Saitou, his eyes never leaving him.
"You want to talk, let's talk." Rakaia crossed his arms as Saitou couldn't help but let a small smirk slide across his face.
"About time, but let's do this somewhere that's a bit less noisy if you know what I mean." He cocked his head to the side to note the people in the surrounding area.
"Kaia…." Cana said his name cautiously.
"Rakaia are you sure about this?" Luna's brown eyes locked on to him.
Rakaia took a moment to answer before turning half around to look at his two friends. "Yeah, I'm sure." He began walking towards Saitou. "You guys keep training without me." He waved his hand back signaling a goodbye as he walked past Saitou who followed him a few steps behind in return. The two left the gymnasium leaving both Luna and Cana questioning whether this was a good idea or not.
-Outside-
Silence took over as the two kept their thoughts and words to themselves as they made their way across the open field, walking away from anyone who might overhear their conversation. Drawing in closer to the woods, Saitou suddenly stopped.
"Alright this is far enough, I don't think nobody will eavesdrop here," Saitou stated as he looked around for a bit before being satisfied with the location he chose.
"Planning on jumping me here." Rakaia slowly turned around to face as the two stood some ways apart. "I got to say, this isn't your usual means of getting one up on me." He crossed his arms as he glared at his opponent.
"I don't need some elaborate plan to beat you up, runt." Saitou calmly replied. "I think I've proven that already, if I wanted to, I could take you down right now with no problem. No help, one on one." He told him as Rakaia let a sly smirk cross his face.
"We can test that theory." Rakaia uncrossed his arms as Saitou let a slight chuckle at Rakaia's actions.
"Whoa there, there's no need to rush, we got a fight tomorrow, so we can wait until then." He told him as Rakaia's face went from a sly expression to one that was somewhat annoyed.
"So, what's all this about Saitou?" Rakaia asked him slightly impatient." What did you want to talk about?" Rakaia asked him to get to the point.
"Straight shooter aren't you?" Saitou responded as he walked over to a nearby boulder and sat on top of it. "By now you should know what's going on since you came in and nearly busted up our deal last night." Saitou finally decided to get to the topic at hand.
"Can't really say that I do?" Rakaia shrugged his shoulders. "It's not like I'm a part of a gang or anything, so I can't really say that's a part of my need-to-know list." Rakaia retorted.
Rolling his eyes Saitou continued to speak. "The girl you saw last night that got the best of your little friend is a dangerous one, her name's Visha. "She's a part of a well-known gang organization called the Poisonous Snakes," Saitou told him.
"The same one you're a part of, right?" Rakaia stuffed his hands in his pockets as Saitou nodded his head. "So, what are you telling me for, it's not like any of that has anything to do with me," Rakaia responded still trying to figure out where Saitou was getting at.
Saitou let out a sly chuckle, causing Rakaia to slightly tilt his head questionably at Saitou. "That's what you think." He replied, getting back to his serious expression. "That little she-devil is actually very interested in you." His eyes locked on to Rakaia's "In fact, she's going to be at our little bout tomorrow." He finished as Rakaia's eyes shot up for a split second.
"Surprised huh?" Saitou caught on quickly. "Yeah, so was I when she told me." His face slightly turned away from Rakaia's as he looked at the ground for a moment.
"But why me? Doesn't she have enough people in her little snake pit?" Rakaia questioned him as Saitou slowly lifted his eyes to look at Rakaia.
"To be honest runt, I don't know what she sees in you. In fact, if you ask me, I think it would be a complete waste of time recruiting someone like you, but it's more to it than that." His voice drifted off again as he diverted his eyes upwards.
"What do you mean?" Rakaia asked slightly puzzled.
"She wants you runt, but the way this gang works if someone is coming in, then someone is getting replaced." Saitou began to explain seeing if Rakaia was still following. "So, if someone is getting replaced then someone is getting kicked out." Saitou continued as he made sure that he locked eyes with Rakaia "And that someone is….Me." Saitou finished as Rakaia couldn't help but widen his eyes for a bit as Saitou let his words sink in.
Silence struck the two as Saitou's words hung in the air. Rakaia was slightly stunned by the words that just hit him and Saitou gave Rakaia time to process what was said to him.
"So, you see why I…." Saitou was cut off by a burst of abrupt laughter erupting from Rakaia as he fell out on the ground laughing at Saitou. "What the…. What the hell! This is serious runt!" Saitou yelled at him.
"HAHAHAHAHAHA!" Rakaia couldn't help but find the situation hysterical. "I can't…. believe….HAHAHA….They're going to replace you with me!" Rakaia continued to laugh as Saitou gritted his teeth at the underclassmen.
"Grrr you stupid little..." Saitou walked up to Rakaia, grabbing him by his shirt collar. "She's going to kill me!" He shouted at him causing Rakaia's laughter to stop in mid-laugh as he quickly locked eyes with Saitou with a serious expression now taking form on his face.
"What?" Rakaia managed to get out as Saitou released him, his feet landing on the ground with a light thud. "What do you mean, she's going to kill you?" Rakaia asked him as Saitou turned his back towards him and took a few steps away from him.
"This is how the poisonous snakes work, they cut off a head and watch as a new one grows. So, Visha and Basilisk will be at the fight tomorrow to watch and see what the new head is capable of." Saitou stated.
"You mean me?" Rakaia crossed his arms.
"If you beat me." Saitou returned, turning around to face Rakaia again. "If you can beat me, then you take my place in the poisonous snakes." His eyes were slightly staring at the ground. "And that means me and brothers."
"Wait your brothers to…." Rakaia questioned. "What the hell Saitou! Why don't you just quit?" Rakaia slightly shouted.
"Don't you think that I've already tried that! That's not how this works!" Saitou shouted. "You don't just quit when you want to! You don't get to walk away like it's nothing!" Saitou argued. "It''s not that simple!"
Saitou turned away from Rakaia and took a seat by a nearby tree. "My brothers have been trying to get out for a while now, but just ended up doing one more dirty job after another." Saitou began as Rakaia took a page out of Saitou's book and leaned against a nearby tree.
"It's not like they got it any easier either, sure enough, some jobs are harder than others, but seeing people come and go makes you start to think about things you know." He looked at the sky as he continued talking, knowing for sure that he had Rakaia's attention. "They said I have to beat you tomorrow, or it's over for me and my brothers." He ended as silenced followed his statement.
Rakaia closed his eyes for a bit, processing Saitou's words. "Sorry, to say this runt; but…."
"I'm not throwing the fight for you." Rakaia cut him off. Saitou's eyes widened a bit as he quickly turned his head towards Rakaia. "I still have a score to settle and it's getting settled tomorrow," Rakaia assured him as Saitou stood up almost running towards Rakaia.
"You don't get it runt; this is bigger than you and me!" Saitou grabbed Rakaia by the collar again. "Lives are at stake! I'm not asking for much, just throw the damn match and I'll let you pound me afterward." He pleaded.
"Are you really that afraid?" Rakaia asked him as Saitou stopped for a second and looked at him for a moment. "This whole week you have done nothing but tell the world how you're going to bury me tomorrow and now look at you." Rakaia pointed out.
Saitou gritted his teeth for a moment. "This is different runt; you don't know what kind of people we're dealing with here." He explained. "Whatever Visha told me; she meant it and it could be the same for you if you get on her bad side."
"I think I'm willing to take that chance." Rakaia responded back. "Besides I have to pay you back for not what you did to me, but what you did to Luna, Cana, and for what you did to Noah." Rakaia slowly removed Saitou's hand, loosening the grip on his shirt collar. "I feel for you and your brothers, but I can't take a dive just because you're backed against a wall. When we fight tomorrow, just know I'm fighting to win…and that's a promise." Rakaia finished as Saitou couldn't help but stare at his future opponent.
Rakaia's eyes didn't waver, his resolve was absolute as he stared down Saitou's bewildered expression. "This isn't some hero story Saitou. I'm not throwing the fight just because you got yourself and others you care about in a situation that you can't get out of. I've watched you beat on my friends without giving a damn about what that would do to us and now that I got the chance to pay you back, you want me to take pity on you and give you an easy win, just so you can walk away Scott free, dancing around telling everyone how you hammered me into the ground." His eyes continued to remain locked on him as his arms slightly trembled a bit. "No, you don't get to slide through the cracks so easily." He finished.
Saitou now, narrowing his eyes at his opponent for tomorrow's fight, couldn't help but grit his teeth at the kid that stood in front of him. "Slide through the cracks…" He repeated as he slowly bawled his hands up into a fist, glaring daggers at Rakaia. "You think this is a game, don't you? Like this is something you can walk away from. I didn't come here to beg you kid; I came here because I don't have any more options!" He shouted at him.
"My brothers' lives are at stake! And you want to settle some grudge you got against me!" Saitou stormed up to Rakaia, getting in his face. "If you want to hold it so badly, then why don't we go right now?" Saitou growled at him as Rakaia just kept his eyes locked on him, not showing any fear; but slowly shook his head from side to side.
"Nah, it wouldn't be the same to beat you right now." He turned his back towards Saitou and began to walk away from him, but not without saying. "I want to beat you in front of everyone." He uttered slowly.
Saitou's guard slightly dropped at Rakaia's words. "Oh, well look at this; maybe you and I are kind of alike in that regard." Saitou returned. "If that's the way you want it, then fine; I'll obliterate you in front of the entire school." He growled as a small sick smirk formed on his face. "Yeah, In front of the school, Visha, Basilisk; in front of everybody!" He screamed out loud. "I'll crush you runt, and I'll make sure this is the last fight you ever have!" His words echoed in Rakaia's head as he stopped walking and slightly turned his head to face him again.
The gentle breeze washed over the two individuals as they stared at each other with two conflicting morals.
"If I want to save my brothers, all I have to do is just wipe the damn floor with you and that's it." Saitou slightly laughed as he figured out that he was left with his final option. "I don't know why I didn't think about it before, it's not like I haven't been kicking your ass already, so what's one more day?" He eyed Rakaia, waiting for him to jump; waiting for him to let his words cloud his judgment and charge at him, but Rakaia never did, he just stood there and stared at him.
A small sigh escaped his lips as Rakaia looked at Saitou, shoving his hands back into his pockets as he turned his back towards him again. "See you tomorrow, Saitou," He took a couple of steps forward as he continued to walk away, but not without finishing with his last statement "Just make sure you keep that same energy." He ended as he continued to walk away from him, his mind swimming in thoughts as Saitou continued to shout insults at him from behind, not caring to turn back again seeing the mess that Saitou had quickly turned into before their actual fight.
Back at the school
Luna continued to watch as Cana's feet made contact with the punching bag in front of her, but her mind wasn't on training her new friend since Rakaia had walked off with Saitou.
Cana continued to pound the punching bag in front of her, but like Luna, her mind was fixated on something else as she stopped, breathing heavily. "Should we have let him walk with Saitou?" Cana asked the former prized fighter, who couldn't help, but look towards the door that Rakaia walked out of.
Shaking her head slightly. "I think we should have at least gone with them." She answered back slowly turning her head back towards Cana. "I think we should go find him, just to make sure that he's alright." Luna gestured as Cana nodded her head in approval.
"Good, 'cause I'm tired of waiting." As she quickly made her way toward the door, followed by Luna.
But suddenly the door quickly opened before the two could make their way towards it, causing both of their mouths to drop in unison as the person that stood there wasn't Rakaia, but a short female figure with short green hair with two long strands laying against the side of her face. Her purple hat turned backward as her golden eyes quickly scanned the room and fell onto its target.
"Well, well, well…. Look at what we have here." The woman stated as the screen pans out to reveal that Luna and Cana were staring down the one person that didn't expect to