"Which High School do you want to go to, Daisuke?" Momo asked as the group sat around for the last time as Middle Schoolers. Daisuke snapped out of his deep thoughts and looked at the group who was staring back at him.
"I don't know." He said plainly. "Don't really care either. As long as I have a good chance in getting a decent career due to this school, I'm happy. How about you guys?"
It was a scattered response across the room, but surely had the same enthusiastic tone: "AU High!"
AU High, the school that had been famous for it's artsy classes. Anything that had been seen as an art, past or future, was a class over there. Painting, Drawing, Kendo, Video Game Developing, Music, Writing, Editing, Architect, ect. AU was also one of the hardest High Schools to get into. They received around a million applications a year world wide, and they only accept two thousand. Daisuke didn't know how, why, or when, but it was a large fad to try and get in AU. It was sometimes a automatic invitation to Tokyo University of you had done well enough.
"I'm going to score so big on this exit exam!" Kori said with utmost confidence.
"Not if we happen to score higher." Yuri said in a tough, but still playful tone of voice.
"You wanna challenge?" Kori asked.
"You're on!"
"Okay you two…" Deíji said. "If you're going to fight, then please take it outside."
Daisuke remained staring outside. He had heard a couple of the things that were going on. The crashing of a table flipping over, the two wrestling on the floor, shouts from Deíji to calm down, shouts from Momo to fight harder and bite Kori. But as all this happened, he only frowned more. He was going to miss the gang. Even if he had only known them for, how long was it now… three months, it was. Three months of hanging out, trying to learn English, the fights, the confusion, but also the treats that Kori had made, and Momo had attempted, but horribly failed. Three months that were going to become nothing but memories by tomorrow.
"You okay, Daisuke?" Raine asked as the girls continued to fight.
"Not really." He said. With this heard across the room, the girls stopped their fighting instantly and waited for Daisuke to say something. It sounded like he was going to tell them his problems.
"What's wrong? You don't think you'll get into AU?"
"That's not it. It's just…"
"What is it? You can tell us." Deíji said.
"Well, it's kinda complicated."
"Complicated? How so?" Raine asked.
"I'm leaving." He blurted out.
The room had an eerie silence in it. Nobody said a thing, but only let what they heard sink in. But even though nobody said anything, Daisuke continued.
"And not just for a while. I'm going to be gone all summer."
"Well, that's alright." Momo said. "We'll just see you in High School, right."
"That's the worse part." Daisuke said. Boy was he about to get it. "I've been so busy with stuff lately that, well… I kinda forgot to fill out my application to any High School."
"YOU WHAT?"
"Daisuke!" Yuri yelled. "You know that they send almost all failed applicant senders and flunkies to the same school. You know that don't you? How are you going to get a decent job, now? You've pretty much ruined your future!"
"How did it happen?" Kori demanded.
"Well, I had the paper in front of me on the night before. I procrastinated to do all the paperwork until the last minute."
"You mean all five pages?" Raine pointed out.
"Yeah. And I fell asleep before I had done any of the work. And when I woke up the next morning, my application was gone."
"So, now you're not even going to try and apply?" Deíji asked, sounding a little hurt by this news.
"Worse yet, what's this about you not going to be here this summer? We all swore that we would stay in Sakura all summer." Yuki said.
Yuki, waiting for help from her friends to bash even harder on Daisuke's stupidity, she heard nothing. She turned around to see her friends not looking in her general direction at all.
"You guys are staying for the summer… aren't you?"
"Well, Yuri, I was going to tell you, but I'm going home to talk to my parents." Kori said, flashing a small smile at Daisuke. He knew what she was going to talk to them about.
"I'm going home, too. Hideo begged me to help him out with our mom." Raine said. "I'll be gone all summer to. I mean, I do live in Australia."
"I've got to go home and finalize my adoption with my family." Momo said.
"And my parents are still driving at finding the right guy for me." Deíji explained.
"You're all leaving?" Yuri asked.
"Look on the bright side," Raine said with a grin. "Yuki's still gonna be here."
Yuri walked into Kori's room. Kori was in the middle of packing, and she stopped when she saw Yuri in her room.
"So, you're gonna talk to your folks?" Yuri asked.
"Yep. It's going to be hard, but hey, Daisuke's going to have to talk to his dad if I do, and I can't be a hypocrite."
"That should be a good day for you."
"Yeah." Kori said with a smile. "It'll be the greatest pay back from riding my back like that. Speaking of riding backs…" Kori grinned at Yuri.
"What's that suppose to mean?" Yuri asked.
"You know, this may be the last night you'll ever see Daisuke, right?"
"I still don't see what you're saying."
"Has Daisuke been good to you? Paid attention to you, talked to you, never touched in places he shouldn't."
"Yeah. But what does that have to–"
"Don't you think you owe him a little somethin'-somethin'?"
"Are you suggesting…?"
"Why not?"
"Why not? Kori, I've just learned how to get over that and stop making guys take advantage of me."
"It's not taking advantage of you. Aren't you the one offering it?"
"I was last time. Besides, I don't think that Daisuke's the type to be too into it. He'd only do to find out what it feels like."
"How do you know? Perhaps he's had fantasies with you being his star."
"I don't want to think about that!"
"Oh, c'mon, Yuri." Kori said with a pouting face, leaning on her suitcase as she tried to pull it closed. "The kid deserves it."
"What do you mean 'deserves' it? I'm not a slut, Kori."
"Anymore."
"Shut up."
"Listen," Kori said, finally latching her suitcase. "Either you make a move, or you lose him."
"What are you talking about?"
"If Daisuke's the type who doesn't grab at you, even if you throw the biggest hint in the world in his face, I think he's the type who will hunt you down around the world to find you again if you two separated after having it."
"Why doesn't he just find a new girl?" Yuri asked, leaning on the door. She knew this conversation could go on for a while, so she figured she might as well make herself comfortable.
"Would you want him to?"
"Of course not."
"Then, I suggest you get in gear and give him something to remember you by."
"Kori, I appreciate you butting into my love life, but I'm fine at the moment. I don't need him to live."
"No, of course not. All I'm saying is, you know you'll regret it if you let him go. Who knows, perhaps he'll get into the same school Yuki. I heard that she didn't sign up the paper at the right time either."
"What?" Yuri's ear perked at the last statement.
"Oh yeah. She's also been claiming that she was 'busy'. Hmm, I wonder why those two were 'busy' at the same? And why he was too tired to fill out the paperwork. Perhaps Yuki's beaten you to the punch."
"Don't mess around like that, Kori."
"I'm actually serious, this time. As scary as that sounds, it's true. I'm actually serious. Now, I think you should find your priorities, straighten them out, and keep your man."
"He's not my man."
"Well, you're going to close him one way or another if you keep thinking like that, sista."
Yuki and Daisuke skid in separate ways. Both were starting to sweat and panting from blocking and making blows on one another. Daisuke made a next strike towards her, but she dodged and tried making a counterattack, but Daisuke was there before she could even start. With another block, she backed up, holding her weapon with a light grip.
He was getting a lot better, she had to agree. She was giving everything she had in her, and it seemed that he was simply practicing. Even with a couple forbidden attacks, he had either dodged, blocked, or ricocheted back towards her. She could almost never lay a finger on him, and when she did, it was never enough to do enough damage to slow down.
Yuki put her weapon away as she stared at him. The sun was starting to set, and the world around them was becoming a slight orange atmosphere.
"You did good today." Yuki said as she leaned herself against a tree, and slowly slid down to sit.
"What about you? You were good today." Daisuke said, sitting next to her.
"I know. But if I was good, you were a god. You're getting too good for me, Daisuke."
"Don't say that." He said with a smile. "You only lose if you give up. Defeat is simply a chance to do better."
"You're a rapid learner. It's like every time I fight you, you're twice as good as you were the last time. Even if it's over a course of only a couple of days. What's your secret."
"I don't really have a secret. I guess I just want to protect the people I care about." Daisuke said shrugging his shoulder.
"People you care about, huh?" Yuki said fairly slow, processing the words he said into her mind, one word at a time. "And who are those people, huh?"
"My friends, my dad, classmates… I suppose all those who I couldn't stand to see suffer."
"So, you mean all of humanity."
"Relatively speaking, I guess." He answered with a shrug.
"So, you're leaving tomorrow for training, right?"
"Yeah. I'm going to Kyutaka to train." Daisuke thought about going to Kyutaka, a trainer for DHA. "Say, if you and Hakura are against DHA, why are you sending me to a guy who works for them?"
"Kyutaka was the one who had said to leave DHA to Hakura. Kyutaka had owed a favor the president for saving his life back in the day, and the president of DHA had asked him to stay and train children. He couldn't go back on his promise, but Kyutaka said that the president had changed a little since they had first been friends. His ideals had become more business-like, instead of saving the world through one person at a time feeling. So, Hakura had said she would leave and start another group, one like DHA with broader ideals."
"So, Kyutaka is really with you guys?"
"Yep. But the old man can't stand the thought of being a hypocrite, so he doesn't leave."
"Hmm." Daisuke said, thinking. "An alliance with somebody who you don't agree at all with. Sounds kinda funny."
"It kinda is."
There was a small silence between the two. As the sun continue to set, the newly summer breeze had started to swing and the aroma of pine needles rode on the backs of the wind. The moon showed itself in the sky, presenting an orange color and magnified than usual.
"So, what High School did you apply for?" Daisuke asked.
"AU High. You?"
"I didn't get my paperwork turned in on time."
Yuki laughed a little. "That's the Daisuke I've known."
"Speaking of knowing each other, how long have you been a Demon Hunter?"
"Since the third grade, actually. I mean, I could see them since kindergarten, but I usually try to ignore them and went on with my life. Once in a while I would cry if they got too close to me." She laughed as if she could literally see herself at the moment crying of the weakest demon in the world. "But in third grade, my mom sent me to Karate, and there I learned about self-defense and protecting others. Ever since then, I started to go out here and handle things on my own. It was by fifth grade I figured the rest of the world couldn't see these demons. Everyone thought I was a freak for talking about scary monsters in fourth grade."
"Yeah. You were usually alone in school when I met you."
"Well, Kindergarten to fourth grade pretty much made sure of that." She smiled again, only this time, it was given force and not appearing naturally.
"You remember who we met, right?" Daisuke asked, changing the subject.
"How could I forget. You were getting into another one of your fist fights because somebody said something about your mom being a whore."
"And since I'm pretty tight with my mom and if anybody ever said anything about her…"
"Well, I was pretty impressed when I saw four guys on the ground cleaning up their bloodied noses. And as soon as I saw the other six guys of the group go after you at once, I thought it might be nice to help you out."
"I appreciated it. None of my friends knew how to stick up for themselves, since I hung out with mostly game freaks and anime freaks. Sure, they could try, but they really couldn't do much. Having somebody else watch my back felt nice."
"I'm glad that I could help you out." She said with another smile.
The moon started to grow paler and turned into its original color. It seemed to distance itself away from Earth, and the sun started to go over the mountains. It started to grow darker, but the two were enjoying each other's company so it didn't really bother them.
"I couldn't believe it when I heard you were sent to an all girls school because you were gay."
"How did you hear about it?" Daisuke asked, surprised that she would bring such a thing up. He didn't know she knew about it.
"It was big news all around school. Some people were completely shocked by it, other guys said they 'obviously knew it'. Others just talked about to so they had something to talk about."
"It was that big of news."
"Yeah, actually. Weird thing is: the day I heard about that, was the same day I met Hakura."
"Really? How did you meet her?"
"Well, I had hung out with a couple of people who I didn't know where demon hunters at the arcade downtown. And they would have their fits from being with other Demon Hunters, but I stayed normal. One day, Hakura just was smoking outside the arcade, not really anybody that caught my eye. But when she called my name and said that I had talent, I knew exactly what she was talking about. I didn't know how she knew, but I started to trust her then. In just a couple weeks, she taught me a couple of things to enhance my power. She said that she was having trouble with a certain Demon Hunter and she needed him dead. She told me that it was you, and I refused at first, but when she told me that you someday may have the power to destroy the world and might snap like Kagori has, I thought about the world over you. No offense."
"None taken."
"Anyway, after I saw you, I knew that the gay rumor couldn't have been true. So I wondered why you were at an all girls school, who you hung out with, all that stuff, everything. So I convinced Hakura to try and manipulate you into our little group that we have now. She said that sounded pretty good, and I begged for me to watch over you at Sakura's."
"And what was with the Rumor Weed thing?"
"Well, I found dirt in the locker room, and I didn't want any girl to take you before I had a chance to sit down and talk to you, so I threw dirt in every direction I could. Especially at Yuri. I can see something in Yuri that I don't like. I don't know.. sometimes I have a feeling that she meant to be with you, and I'm not."
"What?" Daisuke asked.
"Daisuke…" Even though it was dark, Daisuke could tell that Yuki was blushing. "I've liked you before we actually met."
"Really?"
Yuri simply nodded. She drummed her two index fingers on her knees. Her thoughts were so scrambled right now. She wanted to something power and deep, but not deep enough to throw him off guard and scare him away. She didn't want to move too fast too quick. But before she could actually think about what she wanted to say, her heart and her tongue tied together, and she said what she had felt.
"I use to watch you play sports with you and your friends. You were really attractive. A little weird at times, but…" She smiled, but continued bravely. "but still cute, and funny, and sensitive, and… I don't know what to say. I want to be with you. Forever. I haven't shown this side of myself to anybody, and probably won't show it to anybody but you. I want to say I love you, Daisuke, but the word love doesn't contain my feelings."
Yuri turned away from Daisuke. She couldn't stand seeing the face he might have been making. She was embarrassed at her forwardness.
"But at the same time, I feel as though I've already lost to Yuri. Perhaps that is the reason I feel such as resentment towards her. I can't look at her without feeling something deep, the very opposite I feel for you. And at the same time, I also feel small, weak and…"
She looked at him, ready to do something drastic, but something was wrong… Was it just her imagination, or was his eyes closed. And was he…snoring! She couldn't believe it! He had fallen asleep on her deep speech. But she couldn't be mad at him. It was a big day for him, and their training took a lot out of the both of them. She felt like she need a break to. Even though he was asleep, she still finished her speech: "You make me completed Daisuke. You're the Yin to my Yang. And nobody else could ever be like you." And to finish it off, a gentle kiss on the cheek.
"Nice speech." A voice said to Yuki's left, and Yuki saw a small flame ignite. Yuki stood up slowly, a little soar from practice and she was in no alarm, and she wiped the dirt off the area she sat on. She smelt the smoke from the cigarette. Who else could it be.
"Hello, Hakura." She said, a little embarrassed. "How long have you been there?"
"Long enough to hear your conversation." Yuki saw Hakura leaning on a tree in the shadows. "Finally, you open your heart to somebody and you didn't shield your appearance."
"So." Yuki said defensively.
"No, that's good." Hakura said, coming out of the shadows and coming towards Yuki. "With an open heart comes great strength. You found the one thing that you wanted to protect. Now that you've found this, a new power is ready to be unleashed."
"What do you mean? Because of a love speech I made?"
"Yes. It showed that you'll do anything for Daisuke, even if it doesn't benefit you, or even the very opposite: destroy. Now that your heart is open and active, you can become as strong as Daisuke will be at the end of the summer. With a lot of hard work, that is."
"No doubt."
Hakura walked over to in front of Daisuke. She stared at him as she let the cigarette hang from the corners of her mouth.
"What are we going to do about this idiot?"
"We could just let him sleep outside." Yuki teased.
"We could. But we should probably let him rest comfortably tomorrow. I mean, he is the last chance for the world."
"What? What do you mean?"
Before Hakura could answer, she disappeared with a sudden light again, along with Daisuke. Daisuke? The Last hope of the world? What was Hakura talking about? Was Kagori that much of a threat against humanity? Or was it something else, something bigger and worse than Kagori could ever wish to be?
It was seven in the morning, and Daisuke couldn't find anybody around the entire campus. No students, teachers, or friends. It was like they had all vanished. He wanted to say good-bye to a handful of people. Sure, it may have been a Saturday, but he still wanted to say bye for the day got too late. He had only five hours until he left. He walked through all his friends rooms, the kendo room, the bus stop, the offices, and he still got the same thing as the last place: emptiness.
"Where is everybody?" Daisuke asked himself. "It's seven in the morning, and they're not even in bed. Where could they possibly be?" just as he said that, his stomach growled. He was hungry. He hadn't eaten breakfast. Wait a second… the cafeteria. The only place he hadn't checked.
He ran into cafeteria, only to find it dark, empty and silent, just like the rest of the school. With a large disappointment, he had sat down and sighed his usual disappointed sighs. He still couldn't find anybody he really wanted to say good-bye before he left.
"SURPRISE!" hundreds of voices were thrown across the room as the lights switched on, and every he thought he would thank, and more, had unhidden themselves from behind doors, under tables, in closets for the janitor, everywhere he didn't think of.
His friends were the first to come to him and the crowd followed. Confetti had fallen from the sky, and balloons represented themselves.
"What's all this for?" Daisuke asked.
The principal, a person he hadn't seen since day one, had walked over to him and smiled at him.
"You're the first male on this campus, and you were actually a joy to have here. Sakura's school had been opened over fifty years ago, and a male who wasn't a delivery man hasn't set foot on this place. It's a huge historical thing to have the first male ever stand on this place to be a student. We haven't even had male teachers here."
"Still, what's all this about?"
"As much as you're an idiot," Raine said coming up behind the principal. "You're still one helluva guy, there Daisuke."
"We aren't going to forget you." Deíji said next to Raine.
"And neither is the History of Sakura All Girls School. Come on in everybody, group picture!" the principal called.
Everyone got into a large group and smiled. But what Daisuke liked about this picture was that his friends were all around him. Above him were Momo, and Raine, in front of him was Deíji, and Kori, and next to him were Yuri and Yuki. After the photo was taken, the party continued with chatting food, yearbook signings, and tearful good-byes. It turned out that a lot of girls admired Daisuke that Daisuke didn't even know. It was as if half of Sakura had known pretty much everything about him, and he didn't even know their names.
As the party went on, Yuki walked up to Yuri after throwing away a empty cup that used to contain punch.
"I gotta go to the bathroom. Wanna come?"
"Why? You're a big Demon Hunter. Can't you go by yourself."
"Usually I would, but…" Yuki gave the impression that something important was on Yuki's mind. Yuri got the hint and the two walked out of the room, and headed toward the restroom.
"Alright, what's up?" Yuri asked as they walked down the halls.
"The boss sees some potential in you. She wanted to know if you were interested in joining our little group."
"Why me?"
"Well, clearly, you're fit out to be a Demon Hunter. You can see demons, deal with demons, and you've only been able to see them for a short amount of time and haven't showed any signs of fear. And you can handle coming in range with other Demon Hunters and not throw a fit either. You are a special kind of Demon Hunter. And what me, the boss, and Daisuke are is just a small group of that kind of special Demon Hunters."
"So, you mean, I'd be able to train? And actually fight?"
"The boss says that you have the ability to become as good as me and Daisuke by the end of the summer. But you're going to have to drill."
"Well, since none of my friends are going be here, I don't have anything better to do."
"She also wants you to know that this isn't going to be some walk in the park, that the training is going to hurt a lot. So you better prepare for the worst."
How bad could it be? Yuri asked in awe. What are they going to be doing to me? Making me sit the electrical chair?
"I'm in. There's nothing more than to be as good as Daisuke."
"Why? So you can still keep in touch with him through Demon Hunting?"
Yuri didn't say anything. Why would she want to be made fun of by Yuki anyway. Yuki was always picking on her and showing her how weak she was. Why would she need to listen to another abuse she's make.
"Listen, Yuri." Yuki said as she stopped in the middle of the hall, indicating that she had something important to say. "As much as what's happened to us in the past, I want to put it behind us."
"Why so suddenly?"
"We're going to be partners, aren't we? I want to be partners before we're rivals. Even if we're after the same guy, I think we should still watch each others back."
Those words made Yuri stay still as Yuki walked on. Was that a compliment? Yuri didn't know the first thing about using Demon Hunting skills, and Yuki was already treating her like an equal. Perhaps what Daisuke had said about her was true. Maybe just because they saw each other as enemies in the past, Yuri didn't even try to get to know her, besides her weaknesses. But now that hey were going to be training together, Yuki seemed like a really nice girl.
After they got back from the bathroom, everyone was getting their yearbook signed by Daisuke. Even girls who didn't even really didn't know too much about him wanted an "autograph". He was going to be famous through out Sakura history. But the signing took up the rest of the hours, and pretty soon his ride was here. As he put his baggage in the trunk of the car, the girls stood at the door of their dorms.
"Well," Momo said. "One of you two are going to have to smooch Daisuke good-bye."
Yuki and Yuri looked at each other. But what Yuri noticed was Yuki's eyes weren't filled with hatred or competition, but rather a giving sort of look.
"Go ahead." Yuki said. "I can see him later anyway."
Yuri didn't try to find out what Yuki meant by that, but she went up to Daisuke. She looked at his golden eyes, and smiled.
"Well, it was great meeting a guy like you, Daisuke."
"No." Daisuke said. "The pleasure was all mine."
Daisuke stepped in for a kiss, and their lips gently brushed together, and Daisuke held her for a couple of seconds. Than as he let go, and slowly back up and opened the car door. Then he looked behind him, to the dorm door. He raised a fist in the air and shouted: "FOR AU HIGH!"
"FOR AU HIGH!" the girls screamed back in unison.
With one last look at Yuri's eyes and a smile good-bye. Daisuke closed the door as he got in, and the cab drove away. As they started to drive away, he saw Yuri's face spilled over with tears. But he couldn't concentrate on that. Not now. He had to wipe his own tears away…
"There's a reason I have called this meeting." Kagori said, looking at the crowd he had in front him. The eleven that he had called.
There was first the wolf, Kudo Yukin. With short black hair, almost a bushy texture, there was a scar that ran across one of his eyes. He hardly talked, never really spoke to anybody. The nickname people had for him usually was the "Lone Wolf", and Moku almost automatically picked up on that.
Then there was Kiyo Mitsune, other known as "Kitsune" which was Japanese for fox. She usually played small pranks on people, usually older and more mature people, such as seniors in High School or, even once in a while, professors. With long, dyed purple hair, and brown eyes, she went through the day without a care.
Kitsune's best friend was Saru Doichi. With being in gymnastics all his life, and being born in the year of the monkey, he had been given the title of a monkey. His flexibility had served him to be one of the most unique guys at school. And when unique comes, usually humor follows. He had always tried to make his friends laugh.
Gei Sakura had been the school's prettiest girl, and most seductive girls. She could get a guy to spend every yen he had in his wallet in a matter of days, and then she usually dropped them on the spot. She was thought of as the butterfly.
Gui Hakito had been someone that people usually a Goth. A somewhat angry, aggressive, wearing-black-24-hour-7-days-a-week type of person. He, like Hideo, had hardly said anything. But he did enjoy reading, a did a little poetry, but he tried to keep that as much of a secret as he could. Moku had thought of him as a Raven a little.
Lily Anderson had been one of the only people from out of Japan to be in the group. Coming from America in a Foreign Exchange program, she had come here for a couple of months, but was thought dead when her touring bus had gotten into a car crash. She can't remember much, but she supposedly had her hair dyed a bright-brick red in the midst of accident. Or maybe before hand. She was the hawk of the group with a freakishly good sense of eye sight.
Fugabyshu Haku had been a little different to say in the least. He had kept to himself, and seemed a little more pale than the rest of then students. He was quiet, and his speech was not the same as everyone else. He had seemed to live under a rock most of his life… just like a snake.
Plait Ken had been the other person that was from out of Japan. A runaway from his home in England, he had been a stray on the streets of Kyoto for the last three years and learned how to speak the language from a translator that he used to visit every so often. While on the streets, he had gotten in many fights, and got buffed beyond any normal teenage boy. And the only place around that he could steal food from was the local fish market. Eating only fish in his life, and not losing an entire fight, no matter how many people had been in the fight at once, he had been given the title, "Great White".
Yu-Po, had been a Chinese girl who had been born in China, but raised all her life in Japan. A lot like Sakura, she was a large catch at school from being from the continent. But instead of going out with guys for money and clothes, she simply went for the thrill of getting people in high hopes and breaking their hearts. Moku thought this sounded a lot like the Black Widow.
Yakamatsu Kai had been the nation's fastest runner in his middle school. He usually ran a barely-above-four-minutes kilometer. But he took his running seriously. That didn't mean he didn't enjoy just kicking back and joking around once in a while, but he usually was serious about most of the stuff he had done.
Kagori looked out into the crowd of people. Moku had done well. These people were going to be easy to talk to, get ideas from, and order around. Kagori stood at the front of a long table, five people on each side, and Moku at the other end of the table from Kagori.
"And what's that?" Doichi asked with a grin. "Some big plans for us, or somethin'."
"Very large. That is, if you don't mind going up against Daisuke."
"He may be the son of the greatest Demon Hunter in this century, but that doesn't mean he is." Kai said.
"Besides," Moku pointed out. "Daisuke isn't going to be able to handle all of our powers together. Why don't we just ambush him."
"That's true." Po had said. "He's just one person. Why can't we just head in and attack him while he doesn't expect it."
"Daisuke is a special type of Demon Hunter." Kagori answered. "As low as his numbers may seem, something lies inside of him that makes him stronger than any other person on the planet. If he finds something he needs to protect, like a friend for example, he'll raise his number high enough to destroy just about anybody."
"Than how do we defeat him?" Kitsune asked.
"Well, just as Daisuke has his special weapon, I have one for each of you." Kagori said, just as he stacked ten old, dusty, scarred books, pages stained with water wrinkles, and smelt of dirt.
"What are those?" Haku asked.
"These books are to said to contain a forbidden technique in the Demon Hunting world. They are powers beyond any human comprehension, and can annihilate any enemy if mastered correctly. You can even destroy me and the take over the Earth if you wanted to."
"Wait a sec…" Yukin said. "If it's such a great weapon, and you're even throwing out the fact that we can destroy you, there's got to be a catch. What is it?"
"There's only a small thing." Kagori said. "They become a part of your soul, and you may never grow."
"How do you mean, never grow?" Ken asked.
"Your body never grows again. If you outlast the book, you can live for all eternity."
"You said outlast the book," Hakito said with suspicion. "What's that suppose to mean."
"There are rumor to be said that these books, once attached to you, suck your soul, piece by piece, until you're merely a puppet. But then again, it's only a book, and I've carried them around. How dangerous can they really be, unless you're that weak spirited."
"Hold on a second." Doichi said with the same suspicious look that everyone else was handing out. "If they're that easy to overcome, how come you're not taking one?"
"Because," Kagori said, closing his eyes. He seemed like he was soaking in the moment. "There's a master book out there, the king of all these books. You see here," he pointed to the side of the book, which had an odd, ancient picture of each animal he had told Moku to find. "There is a book with a picture of a lion on it, the king of all. That s the true power I must harness to destroy DHA."
"Why'd you give us the lower books if you're just going to be stronger than us, anyway? It's like we're not even going to change status at all in this group. You're still going to be the strongest, so why bother with the books and risk losing our souls?" Kai asked.
"I don't even know where the location of this great master book is."
"So?" Sakura said. "You're going to find it eventually."
"As you see us gathered around this table, I want you to know one thing." Kagori said as he turned around, looking out a large window. "The alliances you make are up to your partners and you. I merely see you as pawns in my plan, I'm not going to lie. So, if you wish to gather friends and destroy me before I get my hands on the book and kill you, I completely understand. I need you for that long. But I believe that Daisuke Hiromushu knows where this great book is somewhere in the world. If I can only manipulate his mind and take that knowledge."
"Why are you telling us this? What does this have to do with anything?" Doichi said.
"I'm pretty much giving you three options: to kill me and live your life until Daisuke kills you, kill Daisuke and live your life until I kill you, or kill the both of us, but getting to the weaker one first until you can harness your power. It's your choice. Your plan, and your friends, and your enemies. I don't expect you all to become friends. All though, I don't have a doubt that it can be possible."
Kagori turned back around. The sun beamed through the heavy, violet curtains of the room where the president use to have his meetings in the DHA head quarters. Kagori started to leave the room, until he turned around, still having the crowds attention.
"Moku had told you your animal. Come get your books if you wish to. I'll be hiding out in this building if you wish to report to me, or want any information or to fight me to the death." And with that, Kagori walked out.
As Kagori walked down the hall, he felt a familiar presence. He stopped walking, and without turning around he spoke: "You can come from hiding, Iro."
Iro reappeared from his invisibility. He grinned at Kagori.
"You didn't tell them everything, did you?" Iro said with a dirty grin.
"If I wanted to choose people to fight Daisuke that I had liked, or cared about, I wouldn't have given them the books. Those fools can't find out that those books contain a curse."
"What happens if they do?"
"You know that the Master Book only shows itself after blood had been spilled from the other ten books."
"But there's eleven kids." Iro said.
"Iro, if you desire to live as you do, with all body parts attached to you, I suggest you silence yourself."
Iro had already known who Kagori was protecting: Moku. The messenger boy who could never even think about double crossing Kagori, or his ideas. The rest of the group seemed like they wouldn't even think about trying to kill Kagori twice.
Hm, Iro thought. This is probably one of the only times in history where the great Kagori will ever show kindness to anybody without having anything in return for himself.