“Come on girl, you can show these clowns.”

“Must not laugh. Must not laugh.”

Neko and Shisho looked on in silence as the two challengers accosted Rika. She, though she would have likely preferred to just turn and flee, stood quietly, trying to think of something to say. “Oh, yeah!” she shouted, still in the process of thinking, “Well, my name is Ume, and…” After hesitating for a moment, she pointed her finger straight at them. “My team is the best team!” Sheepishly, she bent her elbow and looked toward her two team members. “Right?” One grinned. The other would have grinned. “I’m on it, aren’t I?” the walking mask retorted, crossing his arms in a very adult way. “Of course we are,” the cat-girl replied, putting one of her hands on her hips. “See!” Rika continued, firming her pointing arm.

“Pah, what a joke,” the brazen Rick taunted, throwing back his arms, and cocking his head at an arrogant angle, “Come on, Shion, let’s beat it.” With that, both of the red clad challengers turned and walked away. The boy’s last lingering words were, “We need to find Jin and Falsh, and start the day’s exercise.” The three guests of the tournament were left standing there, staring at the backs of the young pair as they disappeared into the crowds. “What jerks!” Rika and Neko said, practically in unison. “No kidding,” Shisho interjected at the end of a giggle, “You handled yourself very bravely, Ume. I’m impressed.” That caught the girl’s ear. “Really?” she asked as she posed in an innocent manner. “Absolutely. You know, I like a girl who can stand up for herself. She makes for a more reliable partner.”

“How old are both of you?” the cat-girl interjected. “Yeah, how old are you?” Akira mimed, floating defensively between the girl and the mask. “I’m fourteen years old,” Rika replied to Neko, “Why?”

“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you,” Shisho answered, not obviously looking at either interrogator. “Try me,” the winged elf pressed. “And what, my cute little friend, would you do for me if I told you?“

“That’s a really weird question, black guy.”

“How about I just say eighteen. That will save us a lot of time. Speaking of which, I would suggest we scoot before any more goons show up looking for us.”

“That’s a good idea,” Neko responded, already a step ahead, “I still want to check out the town.”

“Then let’s go,” the half-demon added, “I’ll show you all of my favorite places so far.”

With that, the three person team of five began to venture around South by Southwest Town. Along the way, the girl in white and the man in black pointed out all of the various areas they had frequented since they had arrived. He continued to make passes at the girls, while they cleverly avoided his ineffective three liners. They all made friendly conversation, trying to find a common interest, which turned out to be only that they each knew a form of combat. For a little while, they talked about strategy. The walking mask debriefed his strength distribution ability, the half-demon described her Aero style of defense, and the ninja divulged her unarmed Jutsu (After which, she learned that blunt weapons were legal as necessary). Indeed, it was a delightful tour, and good times were had by all.

As the afternoon came upon them, and they were nearly back to their cabin, they were met with an interruption. More specifically, Rika was the one who greeted it. As she turned to point something out, she noticed someone from within the crowds. They did not catch her eye for more than a moment, but it was enough to grab her attention. She stopped walking as she peered into the mess of martial artists. Besides her elfin companion, the others were five steps ahead before they noticed. Naturally, they rushed back, unsure of what she was looking at. With a kind of urgency, the half-demon turned to them. “I’m sorry,” she said, hopping backwards just slightly, “I have to go. I remembered something that just came up. I’ll see you tomorrow!” Before skipping away, she gave a hasty bow, and then left.

As she faded into the rest of the tournament participants, Neko shouted a quick goodbye, while Shisho tried to keep his eyes locked on her retreating behind. “Well then,” the walking mask began once she was lost, “How about we go to the cantina? We could get a late lunch.”

“Nah, I’ve already been,” the cat-girl replied, not particularly interested in sitting down with him, “Besides, it was kinda dead in there. I think I’ll scope out the competition a little more closely. It looks like there’s gonna be some strong… People in this thing.”

“You must have been there this morning. No one’s there, at that hour. They’re all out exercising. Plenty of people will be there, now. Not to say I wouldn’t like a more intimate setting with a beautiful woman, like yourself.”

“You try your hardest, don’t you.”

“If you aren’t going to give one-hundred percent, what’s the point?”

One smiled, the other would have smiled. They continued along, going past their cabin and on to the cantina. Just as the black mask had promised, there was a fighter occupying almost every seat, and a fair amount simply standing around. They took a seat at the bar, waiting for a table to become unoccupied. After noticing that at least one person stayed at each table, no matter how many others came and went, they decided to eat where they were. The attendant asked what they would like. “Oden, if you have it, and some warm osake,” was Neko’s order. After learning they had nothing “Oriental,” she ordered some plain rice. No alcohol. The tournament did start the next day. Shisho ordered plain rice as well, but offered to bring it out to Sukoshi. Eating was something he often forgot he did not have to do. Luckily, it was free.

“So, you said you were a ninja, right?” the walking mask asked as he watched her eat. “Yep,” she replied, having already finished half of her rice, “I’m the only daughter of a master.”

“A kunoichi is what you’d be called, right?”

“That’s right. A female shinobi.”

“Tell me, what are some of the services that a kunoichi might get paid to perform.”

“Why such an interest?”

“Oh, I might need something taken care of.”

“Ah, well, I might do any number of things. There’s any kind of spying. Sometimes I use stealth, sometimes I infiltrate. There’s thievery. I might have to kidnap someone once in a while. There are all kinds of bodyguard jobs. Parcel delivery is getting popular. Rarely, I work as an assassin. I can be a decoy. Sometimes I’ll be a false target, sometimes I use an erotic distraction. There’s…”

Blackness.

“And If I wanted to be ‘distracted’ for a little while, exactly how much would that cost?”

“Mister, I don’t whore myself out for no reason. I’m not exactly pure, but that’s part of being a kunoichi. That’s just a strength we have, and I don’t really appreciate being asked like that. You better have either a good reason why I should, or a better reason why I shouldn’t clobber you for saying something like that.”

“Do you think we’re going to win these events? How much prize money were they offering?”

“Get to the point.”

“Half of my winnings from both events. They’ll go straight to you.”

“Are you serious? You would really be willing to give up that much?”

“To spend a few minutes with you, I would climb the highest peaks and dive the deepest trenches.”

“In that case, you have yourself a deal. But it’s really too bad you had to tell me that.”

“Why?”

“Because I’m easy, and now you’re not getting any until we win.”

+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+

It was night. It was either late in the evening, or early in the morning, but the sky remained black. Black Shisho leaned against the back of his team’s cabin. He imagined the two girls, one elf, and the cat were sleeping soundly behind him. Rika was sleeping off a disappointment. The person she had spotted walking through town got away from her, and she had not been able to spot him since. Since she was not as large as any of the other participants, she had a difficult time moving around the town. While the walking mask had to ask to learn that story, he personally saw his other team member fall into bed. Neko was sleeping of catnip. She lit a pipe-full to calm down, and then immediately wandered off. Though he tried to follow her, Sukoshi made sure she was not any less annoyed with him.

He himself planned to sleep where he was. Rather than submit two sleeping women to his tireless lust, he decided to keep a firm wall between him and them. He had, at least, that much restraint. But, as he fantasized about how exciting being a participant in the Emperor of Fighting event was going to be, he thought that the ground was not an appropriate bed. The roof would be more romantic. He jumped up, thoughts of what he would do if he won floating through his head. He pictured himself carrying off a young girl, like Rika, who was impressed with his height and strength. He imagined himself running alongside a mature woman, like Neko, who was impressed by his speed and flexibility. “Oh, yeah, I am the Emperor of Fighting,” he declared smugly. When he thought of women, he thought of victory.

“Hey, buddy, keep it down. I’m trying to sleep.” Suddenly, Black Shisho became aware that someone was already on the roof. He turned, a friendly apology ready. When he saw who it was, however, he instantly went from friendly to terrifying. “YOU!” he shouted, already half way out of his mind. Forming a claw out of his fingers, he stomped forward, making a slash into the air. The person he recognized had rolled over onto his side, and, consequently, had rolled down and off the side of the roof. The walking mask jumped right down after him. He lashed out with his left. A miss. The person was already standing, completely aware that he was being attacked. “The black guy from the metal dungeon,” he said, remembering who his attacker was. “That old man, one of the body snatchers,” the black mask replied.

“Whoa, there. If you think I’m one of those guys who sticks guys in tubes, then you’ve got the wrong guy.”

“Oh, yeah? That’s a lie, I guarantee you. What were you doing there, then?”

“Leaving. Tubes aren’t really my style.”

“Bull. You attacked me.”

“You attacked me, man. I was escaping the same direction you were taking down white coat guys.”

“Hm… That’s completely true.”

As if nothing had happened, Black Shisho and the older gentleman were no longer enemies. “I’m very sorry about knocking you off the roof,” the walking mask offered, raising an open palm. “I sure hope you don’t treat your other team mates like that,” the man replied, stepping up and giving his hand a quick squeeze. “Excuse me?”

“Oh, yeah, you don’t know. I’m S mark One line One One Five One line One Zero. That’s S’1 for short. I’m your last team member. I prefer sleeping outside, so I been on the roof since I got here.”

“Why hasn’t anyone met you, yet?”

“I’ve been catching up on my sleep. Speakin’ of which, I’m gonna find a new roof to sleep on. I’ll see you before your first match, tomorrow. Later.”

“Uh, later.”

__________________

Shisho, Kawaii, Fuzen, Ijinken, Neko, Sukoshi, Dreamer, Miss Spider, and Black Shisho.
Char Fic: The Song of Healing and Mask of the Black Truth and Gaiden.
Signature and Avatar made by Lady Knives.