Kousuke's school life was going in a steady direction after Itsuki helped him shop for his new clothes and furniture. He was getting used to doing his job as head disciplinarian better, even gaining more respect from his peers for his fairness in judgement calls and admiration for being the best fighter at the school. After meeting Rina, they became good friends at school quickly, they had a good chemistry same way he did with Itsuki. She helped him out from time to time with clothing choices, even Itsuki liked being around with her, she was friendly and had a nice personality that people could gravitate to. Natsume was a pain still with her teasing but she was slowly working her way up to being a friend as well, not completely on best terms but least tolerable were she didn't bug Kousuke as much as she did in the beginning. She was already at the 'frenemy' level with Itsuki, a 50/50 relationship between the two, though at times the council would separate them when Natsume's teasing would irritate Itsuki. The two still had a sliver of respect for the other because of how much they cared about taking care of the students and their needs.
Kousuke was at his house finishing his daily at home workout routine he did every weekday without fail so far. He completed his 5,000 pushups in record time for good warm up before bed. He felt great breaking his record, he would shoot for 5,500 next at the beginning of next week till he got up to 10,000.
His home was looking better thanks to Itsuki helping him, it felt like an actual home and not just a box house for storage. He got the black card from her after that day ended, he promised he only use it for food and utilities, and he would never use it for personal spending. He still wanted to find a job to support himself and not mooch of Itsuki's family fortune.
Itsuki was able to keep Tsukikage at home after he manifested, her parents didn't mind her owning him after hearing about his circumstances, they thought it was romantic in a way even if Itsuki and Kousuke didn't agree on that. Kousuke was imagining her playing with Tsukikage at her house laughing and smiling like a little kid again. He had a pet at one time when he was a kid in his old life as well, but he forgot to lock the window in his room, it got out and was run over, breaking his heart.
He felt responsible for that, it made him think owning pets was a big distraction and not worth the pain of loss. Another excuse he made to sacrifice everything for studies, one he regrets now thinking back on it.
After finishing the workout and his train of thoughts Kousuke started to make his dinner for the night. With the new kitchen supplies and groceries making his dinner was more enjoyable and allowed him to practice his skill better. He wanted to make delicious meals like Mana did as a way to remember her.
With his meal done he tried to eat and enjoy it while watching an old samurai movie from the Showa Era, he still loved watching those types of genres on his free time. His otaku self never left him, it sneaked up here and there when he was in a moment of relaxation or finding stuff he really wanted.
His phone rang unexpectedly during the middle of the film during battle scenes. He tried to ignore the call to watch the movie, but the consistent ringing was grating on his nerves. He had enough of it after five minutes of the calls going back and forth, so he figured he'd answer quick than hang up if it wasn't important.
"Man, hello hello what the hell you want." He answered annoyed still.
"Hello Hayashi, it's Natsume, did I call at a bad time?" A startled Natsume asked from being snapped at.
Kousuke almost choked on his food hearing her voice. He didn't see who called him on the caller ID because cause he hurried to answer the phone to watch the movie. He tried to avoid suffocating by drinking his whole glass of milk to avoid choking to death.
"Hello, Hayashi, are you ok?" Natsume asked hearing the choking sounds worrying he was in trouble.
"*cough cough* Yes, sorry, I was eating right now you caught me off guard. Anyways what's up Iinchou do you need something?"
"Oh please call me Natsume, we're close now aren't we?" She asked him. lol
'Close my ass! We're barely at the respect level of friends. You're lucky Itsuki doesn't have a sixth sense when it comes to you, she sick Tsukikage on you for that stunt you pulled last time. Trying to use your weapons of mass destruction on me. We're ok so far, not that close yet.'
At Itsuki's house, she had instinctively sneezed upon her name being mentioned. She was confused for a bit but shook it off.
"Argh, fine how about Kurenai then. If it'll make you feel better."
He couldn't see it but Natsume was pouting he still wouldn't call her on a first-name basis.
"Kurenai is fine then. Anyways, I called because of those instructors I mentioned before. Well they finally arrived, and they wanted to meet everyone this weekend for the demonstration of their skills. Since you agreed to the exhibition match with one of them I wanted to give you a heads-up about it."
Kousuke spat out his milk hearing her say that. Not only was that a last minute bit of info, but it was uncalled to ask for so suddenly within in a short amount of time.
"This weekend! Are they insane, that's two days from now. You can't prepare in that short amount of time, do they expect us to be ready by then." Kousuke's face was exasperated. A short notice like this wasn't ideal for anyone who wanted adequate prep time to study their opponent or practice their moves ahead of time.
"I said the same thing but they wouldn't take no for an answer, they're all eager to fight right away. Since Takemura-Kocho agreed to give them what they wanted we can't say no to their demands. I'm sorry Hayashi-Kun I'll make it up to you somehow I swear. Please don't back out now there's nobody who can replace you this late." Natsume was pleading on the other end of the call. Kousuke could tell she was not doing this to him on purpose, it was out of her hands.
Now Kousuke couldn't enjoy the movie anymore. The news ruined the mood along with Natsume's guilt.
'For crying out loud! This is ridiculous. Two days to prepare for a match against an elite instructor who's coming to the school. I've seen the teachers there and their pretty good in being high levels even a few above me and they're not pushovers either. Can't imagine how these ones will be if a lot was spent on getting them hired.'
"Argh, fine I agree to do it under these circumstances, but question who's the other ones fighting with me?" He needed to know for peace of mind.
"Oh right, I forgot to mention it to you sorry. Let's see Misturugi Ren, Sakurai Ryuji, Yagami Hiro, and Ichinose Tatsuya."
"Who?" Kousuke asked upon hearing the unknown name.
"Ichinose Tatsuya the other student who signed up late like you did. He's supposed to be a part-time idol and musician so getting him registered was difficult with his schedule."
"I can see that but why is he participating if he's an idol? Won't he get hurt?" He questioned.
"That was a condition with his manager. She said he'll participate as an apology for the late registration. Apparently, Ichinose kept forgetting to fill out the paperwork so it's his punishment."
Kousuke felt dead inside after hearing that explanation.
'He forgot to fill out the paperwork is he a complete moron? And it's an exhibition match against a top instructor, what can he do that merits his skills in a fight? Oh my aching head, I feel like I'm going to die again.'
"Fine, but I'll hold you to the owing me part, now good night."
Natsume giggled at Kousuke finally agreeing to her request, she thanked Kousuke and hung up to start the arrangements with the other clubs who were assigned the prep work. Kousuke fell to his floor exhausted after that phone call, he was completely burned out from that crazy conversation. In an irritating rush, he gobbled down the rest of his food and went to bed on his futon unhappy with the scenario he was put in.
The next morning he went out jogging to get himself ready for his match, his music blasting through his earbuds trying to keep his mind calm from the annoyance he had from last night. He made his way to the park, where he ran up to grab a tree branch to perform pull-ups angrily. He made it almost to four hundred but stopped when someone began tickling his sides. He couldn't help but laugh and lose concentration from it, he lost his grip from the branch falling on his rear end from the drop.
"Itai, who did that!" He grumbled from the bad prank on him.
His head snapped back to see who was behind him. Rina was leaning over laughing at him after the trick she pulled.
'That's weird. How did she sneak up on me like that? I should have sensed her coming or smelled her at least. That was perfect silence in masking her presence against my trained senses. Definitely more to her than she appears to be.'
"Yo." She said offering a hand to lift him up.
Kousuke accepted, still a little irritatable after the prank she pulled on him but not worth being angry over.
"What are you doing here?" Rina asked.
"Training. I just got told last minute those matches with the instructors are tomorrow so warming up beforehand"
"Sure that's a good idea. Maybe you should take it easy instead." She tried to suggest thinking he would be in bad shape to fight if he over did it with just a single day to prepare.
"Nah, not in my nature. I like to be prepared just in case. Anyways why are you here. You're not working today?"
"Nope. I got the next three days off from the overtime I put in. I was doing some cardio myself when I saw you. Mind if I join?"
He nodded yes. Rina was glad he agreed to let her join, it would be nice to have another join in with her. The two ran together for a good length, with her surprisingly keeping up with him. They kept it up till they saw Ryuji a few feet away.
The two hid behind a tree to see what he was up to since he was private about his life. No one knew what he did after school besides being in the clubs he was in. Kousuke and Rina saw him talking to an older woman, she was sturdy, wearing bandages around her chest, a biker jacket, and pants. She looked like an old delinquent from those Showa films about gangsters or school baddies.
"Who's he talking to?" Rina whispered.
"Don't know. Didn't think he was into older women with muscles like him, she looks really tough too."
They listened carefully to the conversation at hand. The older woman sounded like she was disgusted with Ryuji, he stood there quiet, almost submissive, something they never saw him act in a way.
"Heard you're taking part in the exhibition matches tomorrow." The woman asked.
"Yes."
"Will you win?"
"Yes."
The older woman didn't believe him. She smacked him across his face which shocked Kousuke and Rina.
"You don't sound confident. Say it again, will you win." She asked again with a demanding voice.
"Yes."
Another slap could be heard as it thundered in the air.
"I don't believe you. Are you really my younger brother? How did you come from my late father? This is why you'll never amount to anything. No confidence in yourself at all. If you lose don't bother coming home. Our family doesn't need some weakling who gets into meaningless fights just to prove how tough he is. That clear?"
"Yes." Ryuji said again fighting through the throbbing pain in his face.
The woman walked away from Ryuji, the sight of the ends of her coat flowing in the air made her look even stronger and mysterious. Ryuji gritted his teeth and fists. He felt ashamed he was being treated like a child, his biggest pet peeve being triggered again. He lit up a cigarette to calm his nerves as he headed off to be alone.
"Will he be ok?" Rina asked.
"Don't know. He must be under a lot of pressure for tomorrow. He's been struggling hard to keep up at school. Hopefully he'll be ok for his match."
"Are you as well?" Rina asked Kousuke, with concern in her eyes.
"I try not to be, it'll just mess up my attitude toward the fight. My Master told me 'being under pressure is worthless like a dog turd. Just get rid of it so you don't have to deal with it anymore' or something to that matter."
"Sounds like they were pretty tough." Rina said.
"Oh yes, she was," Koutetsu said affectionately, then stopped when a black silhouette of his master invaded his mind showing red glowing eyes and a smile to match.
Kousuke shook his head to get that image out, he asked Rina if she wanted to continue the jog for a bit till he headed home later to prep more for his match.
The two ran till late afternoon arrived, they stopped at a large plot of grass looking at the scenery before. Both sitting down, Kousuke wiped the sweat off his forehead while Rina unzipped her hoodie letting her body breath in some cold air. Kousuke didn't mean to but he saw the crop top shirt she wore underneath, her slim waist and exposed neckline showing. He blushed and looked away before she noticed.
"Woo, that was a good run. You really love your training. I fear whoever fights you tomorrow." She told him trying to catch her breath.
"Thanks. Can never get to confident though. Rather it be a good match and no surprises in honesty. But man am I tired. I barely slept last night cause of the bad news." Rina could see he was more tired than he wanted to admit. She wanted to help him relax, so she carefully walked behind him, sitting down quietly she grabbed him from behind to lay his head down on her thighs as a pillow to rest on.
"Huh? What's this for?" He tried asking with his voice stumbling and face red.
"Just relax. You need to calm yourself before tomorrow you're too stressed out."
He tried to fight it off but she had a strong grip on him. He couldn't argue with her anymore, he gave up and just let her have her way.
"I'm not stressed, just don't want to embarrass myself with how they set everything up." He tried to keep composure.
"Hehe."
"Something funny?" He asked.
"Nothing, you're just very honest with yourself is all. I admire that. Just like how hard you worked to get Itsuki that bracelet. You really put others before yourself do you."
Kousuke's eyes darted away, he didn't mind the compliment. He just felt like he didn't deserve it was all.
"Rest up, there's still time before dark comes in. It is a beautiful day after all." He agreed with that. The sun looked great in the sky, the sounds of birds and children playing was a wonderful mood. He couldn't help it but he dozed off on her legs, Rina watched him sleep peacefully. Her fingers rubbed through his hair, embracing the peaceful atmosphere for the moment.
The day had finally come, Kousuke and the students arrived at the school arena to meet the new instructors and see the matches they would witness later.
Kousuke was bored waiting for the ceremony to start, he wanted it to be over with quick. He was drowning out the boredom with his earbuds playing J-Metal songs, he didn't see Itsuki yet or the others who would compete with him. He felt a tap on his shoulders during his wait, it was Rina standing next to him.
"Hello, Kousuke." She waved to him.
"Oh, hey Rina. You here by yourself?"
"Actually I came here with friends but I wanted to say hi to you first." She told him.
Kousuke appreciated the gesture Rina gave. Rina ran back to her friends, who teased her for talking to Kousuke. After his makeover the females fawned over him as they did with Hiro, knocking him off his status as the number one.
Itsuki would get annoyed when they would approach Kousuke asking for his number or offer him lunches, he had to do his best to avoid those situations since he didn't want to get bit in the ankles by Tsukikage again for annoying Itsuki. It became a running gag for him, that anytime Itsuki got jealous or upset with anything involving Kousuke, Tsukikage would bite him every time In retaliation.
Itsuki wouldn't be present in the seats with Kousuke, she had to stand next to Natsume for the presentation. Answering the question of why Kousuke didn't see her earlier.
Anna Takemura stood at the podium to address the students and parents who arrived graciously to meet the long awaited instructors.
"Good morning everyone. I'm sorry for this scheduling but it was the wish of the new instructors. As you know I'm the headmaster of this School Takemura Anna, everyone in attendance will be treated to free food and beverages as the matches start. There'll be five matches in general each with the instructors and a student of our choosing to participate. We've asked the participants to limit their abilities to avoid accidental killings but have allowed the use of their weapons to keep it fair in the spirit of competition. We hope you enjoy the show of force and approve of the strength of the instructors coming here to lead your children into a bright future and the students who want to become stronger in their futures. And now to present them to you."
Itsuki and Natsume opened the door for the new instructors to present themselves to the audience. There were two women and two men, one of them wasn't there yet. Anna just got the word the fifth was late due to oversleeping. She was fuming in anger at the incompetence but continued as a professional for the attendees.
Each of the instructors was either from a different country and style. Kousuke could tell they were impressive from their auras, the matches were going to be interesting indeed.
Rina changed her seat to sit next to Kousuke before the introductions began.
"I thought you were with friends?" He asked sarcastically.
"Well you seemed lonely so I thought I keep you company, you're my friend too. My other friends will sit down in their own seats for the day. Is it ok to sit next to you?" She asked politely.
"Do as you please. I'm not bothered." Rina accepted the invitation. The two sat patiently waiting for the instructors to start introducing themselves.
"Ok everyone we shall let our new instructors begin. Please if you will."
They nodded in acceptance. Number one was a woman in a traditional priestess robe with charms in her hair and large prayer beads.
"Good morning everyone, my name is Izumi Akira. I'll be helping with incantations and purifying ritual techniques, if you need guidance along the way of your life I will be there for you. It is very nice to meet you all, may Buddha bless you in your days."
Number two stepped forward next. This one was a tall woman in a soldier's uniform, she had tied blonde hair and an intimidating face. Her Japanese was choppy, being garbled by her thick Russian accent, so a translator spell was put on her to fix the problem.
"Good morning everyone. I'm Alexandra Lundgren. I'll be assisting in combative training programs and military tactics along with coaching the wrestling team. Nice to meet with you all."
Number three came up. The man wore traditional clothing for a Master in Aikido. He looked close to his forties but everyone could see he was not a pushover.
"Greetings young ones, I'm Kurosawa Gentaro, and I'll be helping with advanced martial arts training. It's a pleasure to be your teacher in the path of a warrior."
Everyone was in awe of him the most. His demeanor and speech radiated authority with his formal accent. Kousuke really wanted to train with him after the matches, he felt like he could teach him techniques to improve his style.
Number four went up. This one was American, he too was a retired soldier with an impressive appearance, short hair, and a beard. He couldn't speak Japanese at all just English and Spanish so another translator spell was used on him.
"Hola niños y niñas . I'm Barnaby Morales. I'm helping with weapons training and equipment maintenance upgrade programs. It's always good to have an understanding of one's equipment before battle and the proper training in using them. Everyone I look forward to training you. Hurra!."
Everyone clapped at the instructors introductions. Anna felt embarrassed the last one didn't show up, she promised to rip their ear off when they arrived.
"Sorry everyone we promised five but the last one is busy at the moment so we will proceed with..."
"WAAAAAIT!!!!"
Everyone heard the voice coming down from the entrance to the arena. The next thing they saw was a young woman dashing to the stage with lightning speed. She leaped with great force till she landed next to Anna.
Everyone gasped at her. She was bent over breathing heavily after that crazy run to the school she just did. Everyone could tell, even the other instructors despite how young the woman was, her aura emanating from her was massive, near suffocating. She had to be the strongest one out of them all.
She had on sports shoes, athletic short shorts, with spats underneath. She wore a sports crop top, and a large hoodie bigger than her upper body. Her black hair was tied in a large braid from behind with a ring on its end, with three small braids on left side of her head with long bangs almost covering her eyes. The most impressive part of her was her body. She was slim but her muscles were extremely ripped and developed on an unbelievable scale, every definition could be seen even from far away.
"Sorry, I overslept my alarm clock didn't go off." The late instructor said still trying to catch her breath.
"The hell? Did you run all the way here in the short amount of time?" Anna asked not able to believe what she just saw.
"Yes, I did Kocho. I'm sorry I'll accept punishment later. Ahem, yo everyone! Kuramori Megumi at you're service. I'm not sure what I can teach but I'm glad to be here with you all."
The way Megumi spoke was extremely carefree without any hint of formality amor responsibility in it her words. The other instructors looked embarrassed including Anna. Everyone was amazed at her introduction and her brazen display of lateness without any apology to it. She was unrefined but bold with her honesty in all.
"HUH!!!!!" Kousuke shouted as Rina saw his face look completely terrified like his soul just left his body.
"Eh, Kousuke you ok? Do you know that woman?" She had to ask, confused to his state of mind.
"Know her? That's my….my…. That's my Sensei(Master)!"
Rina was quiet for a moment but upon hearing his response it had hit her.
"EH!!!!!"