#ignore the fact I named him Akira in this run
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#ignore the fact I named him Akira in this run#I love the Hee-Hos' lost comment#shin megami tensei iv apocalypse#smt4a#king frost#megaten
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Hello :3 ,
sorry if I seem a bit awkward here but it's my first ever ask so I have a specific scenario in my mind. I hope it doesn't bother you, I'm so sorry if it does! Please ignore if so!
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Name: Akira (Aki, Kira, Sweetheart?).
Pronounces: She/Her.
Fandom: Blue Lock.
Character: Shidou.
Type: Comfort (with hidden confession)
Scenario: Akira and Shidou are writting to each other. Akira finally opened up to him about her insecurity of not being enough for people (By looks and Behaviour, having an inferiority complex). She also confessed about having to face an (TW) assault (an attempt only..) , which still haunts her making her fear of being constantly judged and feeling slight discomfort around men. And that she is apologizing for being distant with him when he kindly approached her in the beginning. It was mainly due to the rumours. Also stating the fact that she could've never been able to confess this on his face so she is writing to him with the hopes of him forgiving her.
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~My headcanon here is that shidou might be a violent person but he is respectful to people who also gives him the same amount of respect.
~Also in this Akira and Shidou have been friends.
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AAHH I'M SO SORRY IF ITS TOO SPECIFIC (â â„đđŸâ„â )
Thank you so much for giving your time and reading this đđ«¶đŸ
Akira,
I get it now. Youâve been carrying a lot, huh? And yeah, I know youâve been distant, but donât think for a second I was mad about it. I didnât take it personally. Honestly, I think you were doing what you had to do to protect yourself, and I get that. But if Iâm being honest, I hate knowing youâve been feeling like youâre not enough. You are. You always have been.
You donât need to apologize to me for any of this. Iâm not the type to run from people because theyâve got a past or because of what other people say. Iâm here because I want to be. You donât owe me anything for trusting me with this, but I respect you even more for letting me in on something so personal.
I know Iâm not the easiest guy to talk to, but donât ever think Iâm going to turn my back on you. Youâve been through a lot, and itâs not something you should have had to go through, but I wonât let it define you. And I sure as hell wonât let it be the thing that pushes you away from me.
Iâm not asking for anything from you in return. Just⊠let me be here for you. You donât have to do this alone.
Youâre not weak, Kira. And Iâm not going anywhere.
Shidou <3

â a/n: hi akira!! thank you so much for choosing to send your first ever ask to me for this event <33 i hope this comforts you and know that my inbox is always open if you ever need someone to talk to love!
love letter event requests are still open!
© kingkaizen | do not copy, steal, or duplicate!
#love letter event <3#shidou ryusei#shidou fluff#shidou x reader fluff#shidou x reader#shidou ryuusei x reader#tw: assault
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It's getting late, Dawson figures, by the fact that the hen has dozed off in his arms and also by the seeming changing of the guard that walks by the closed door.
Harmonia, he muses, gingerly pulling himself back up and placing the hen back on the shelf where she came from. She opens an eye, chirping at him, more annoyed to lose her source of warmth than anything else. It seems like the perfect time to sneak out without being spotted, so of course Dawson runs into someone the moment he opens the door.
"Heyyy," he tries, drawing out the syllable as he attempts to step past the pirate in his way.
Said pirate, of course, doesn't quite let him. Akira Schmid crosses his arms, following Dawson's lead to engage him in an awkward failed-passing tango for a few steps. "You're in my closet."
"Sorry?" he squeaks out, rubbing the back of his neck self-consciously. "Look, I didn't mean anything, really - "
Akira cuts him off with a sigh, glaring at him. Dawson swallows sharply. Then, Akira grins, laughing, and the moment's suddenly so much lighter, Dawson giggling with him.
"You met Kiyoko, then?" He gestures with his head to the hen, who settles back down on her shelf, satisfied.
"Kiyoko?" Dawson echoes. He narrowly stops himself from saying What kind of name is that?
Akira nods, smiling up at the hen. "She escaped the room Vitek was keeping all the chickens in. Ended up here. I take care of her."
"She really didn't want to become dinner, huh?" The pilot's mate chuckles.
To that, the carpenter reaches out to ruffle Dawson's hair. "A survivor," he states. There's an unspoken Just like you that's tacked onto the end of it. There always is. Dawson hates it.
"What time is it?" he asks, to divert the topic.
"Nico's got about half an hour left on his shift."
"Crap," Dawson grits his teeth. "Dougie probably needs me then."
"I'm not stopping you," Akira shrugs. "As long as you're not stealing my adze. You're not, are you?" His eyes narrow.
"The hell would I even use it for?" Dawson gripes back.
"Squaring a beam, smoothing a plank, carving grooves," the carpenter lists off. "I need it. We got a couple small leaks I need to patch."
"We're docking tomorrow."
"Not if the ship takes on too much water. Now go. We've both got stuff to do." Akira waves him off. "And don't tell VV about Kiyoko."
"I'm not gonna tell Vitek about your pet."
"She's not my pet." Dawson levels him with a knowing gaze. Akira rolls his eyes in surrender. "She's a... companion."
"Suuure." Dawson dashes off before Akira can protest any further. He climbs up two sets of stairs and opens the hatch.
As he crosses the deck to find Dougie, Dawson ignores the weight pressing down on his shoulders, ignores the Voices pounding on his skull and talking louder and louder, still not wanting to be heard. What did he do? Did they get offended or something?
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(ii)
Oh, it makes COMPLETE sense...You're just not SEEING sense...!
Gah!?
H-Hey! Get away from-
*BOOOM!*
GYAGH!
HIYOKO!
*Narumi blasts herself forward and straddles Mahiru with her legs. When Hiyoko tries to pull her off, she's blasted into the wall. Narumi then uses her metal gauntlet to grab her by the jaw.
You wanna know a little secret, Mahiru Koizumi? I wasn't always the carefree little lass that you see before you...
But always living on the edge of death taught me to live every day like it might be my last...! And living in this backwater society where power corrupts...Papa's methods were NEVER gonna work, and in the end, the society that he was trying to overturn, KILLED HIM!
There are no good people in this world, and the only one's that pass are those who are willing to fight to the last breath for what they believe in.
I learned that all I could do was have fun while I still had the chance. You might not like it; and I damn sure know that I don't, but there's one simple fact about this world that you choose to ignore.
Charisma opens doors...and destruction gets ANSWERS. And I'm more than willing to become that symbol of Despair in order to have Hope born from it! The only reason we're fighting right now is because I want to see your Hope stand up and overcome me!
GUGH!
*Narumi pushes off Mahiru with her legs, rolls and then stands on her feet again.
I hate what Akira and Zetsubou stand for, but they're still my friends, and thanks to them, I've got a whole new outlook on life...
And I'm sorry...I really do sometimes wish we could see eye to eye on this. But then again, it's not like I'm unaware of my own faults and my hypocrisy...It runs deeper than you know...
Ok, she's lost me. What is she prattling on about now?
Let me try and put it this way...There's a reason why I decided to answer Tsumugi Shirogane's calling...
I've always loved the stories my Mama and Papa told me when I was very young...Especially the ones about you, and all the trials you overcame...It made me fall in love with the heroes and how they overcame the villains, and I wanted you heroes to live up to your names.
But when you boil it all down, my motives don't lie in destruction, honor, fame, wealth or influence...What I want, above all else...
Is DRAMA...!
Ngh...
*Mahiru crawls to her feet.
You're an iredeemable psychopath...!
And you...are letting me down big time...
Soldier: Osone!
Huh!?
*A barrage of armed soldiers suddenly rush into the room. They point their guns at the 77th class.
Crap...! Get up everyone...!
Can't...too...sore...!
Captain: We heard that there had been some commotion over in this department, and that some of our guys had been taken out. We were sent down as backup, but it looks like you managed to take care of it.
Yep, all handled...Just wanted to have a little fun, but I'm bored now...Do your thing Captain...
Wait! Just wait a second!
Why should I? Your Hope is clearly on it's last legs...
Which means you don't matter anymore...I'm bored now...Find peace in the next life or whatever...
Krggh!
Obsession Hanging 'Round My Neck Like a Noose: Part 1.
AAGGH!
Mahiru!
*Hiyoko cries out and helps her Big Sis up as she's once again blasted into a wall. Mahiru groans as she gets to her feet.
Are you ok!?
Ugh...! Nothing we do is working...! This kid's a whole other kind of creature!
I shall take that as a compliment!
*The Remnant's all lie in a heap on the floor after being knocked down by the merciless Osone.
Grgh...! I...I won't lose...! I'm not gonna lose to just some little girl!
Yeah...Take off those gauntlets and what are you really!? JUST SOME BRAT!
Sounds to me like you're getting desperate. Gotta say, I'm disappointed.
Huh...!?
I figured even after everything that you guys have been through, your Hope would hold out for juuuuuust a bit longer. And yet you all look ready to collapse.
Don't...underestimate our tenacity...!
After all we've been through, we've heard enough of that kind of garbage from a certain other person! Don't think that's gonna get to us!
Ah, of course...Still, it doesn't change the fact that you've let me down a little bit...Losing Hajime really messed you guys up, huh?
Do NOT SPEAK OF HAJIME you Satan Spawn!
Satan...spawn...
Aahaa...Ahahahahaha! HAHAHAHA!
*WHAAAAAM!*
GUAGH!
GUNDHAM!
DON'T TALK ABOUT MY PAPA LIKE THAT! I'LL KILL YOU!
GRRGGH!
*Narumi blasts forward and punches Gundham super hard in the stomach. He keels over and collapses.
My Papa died protecting people like you! I'm not about to let you forget his contributions! It's thanks to people like him that you're even still alive, you CHUNI-COCKSTAIN!
*SMACK!*
GAGH!
AGH!
*Narumi kicks Gundham and Sonia in their jaws, then spits on them.
Your father...We read reports on him when we were looking into your background. He was an Ultimate Rights Activist, right?
Post-tragedy, he was an advocate for the reinstallation of Ultimate Students in society, despite what those in this group have done. He was a good man, right until his death!
So why Osone!? Why join with Zetsubou and trample on every ideal he's built!? Don't you think he'd be disappointed in you!?
...
*Narumi scowls, walking back and forth.
Is it...revenge? You want to tear apart the society that took him from you, don't you?
Don't bring that word to me. It's riddled with gross, disgusting Despair...! It doesn't matter what the ends or the means are, revenge is wrong!
And yet you work for the Despair Organization. Despite you prattling on about Hope and how much it means to you, you side with the bad guys who live and exist for it! It doesn't make sense!
*BOOM!*
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{ 57 }
wish i were her.
akira kurusu x fem.reader
he always seemed so happy when she was around.
but really, who could blame him?
ann takamaki had to be the one beauty akira had been searching for, and there was no way you could ever compare to her.
yet still, your friends urged you to confess to him, that he would be stupid and blind not to return your feelings.
if only you weren't tasked with being his tutor, then maybe you wouldn't have fallen so deeply for him.
you recall your first meeting with him as if it just happened yesterday. shujin had recently opened its tutoring services in the library for students who were struggling with their classes, and you happened to be one of the tutors hired. you were able to tutor in a variety of subjects, but your strengths were seen in mathematics and science.
one afternoon, you were settled on one of the tables, pouring over your own notes in preparation for your own exam when the once silent library became filled with whispers as someone walked in. you thought nothing of it, debating if you should grab your headphones and study within the sanctuary of your music had it not been for a voice calling out your last name.
your gaze follows the voice, only to be met with startling grey eyes and unruly locks of hair. his lankiness and the way he pushed up his glasses was undeniable. you knew who he was almost immediately.
akira kurusu, the second year transfer student who harbored the most troubling reputation-
and you weren't sure if you were brave enough to associate with him. you move around your seat in a bit of an uncomfortable fashion, seeming to feel too exposed, too vulnerable beneath his gaze.
as if he could read your thoughts and look deeply into you, knowing how much you were judging him as pinpricks of shame makes the heat rise into your cheeks.
yet still, akira says nothing despite knowing what you thought of him and takes out a sheet of paper, displaying a horrendous exam grade on his biology exam. "as you can see, i'm in desperate need of help." he clears his throat, cheeks turning pink with his own embarrassment while running a hand across his hair. "but if you're uncomfortable with tutoring me, then i suppose i could try and do better on my own."
how callous could you possibly be, actually considering not helping this student when it was your job to do so? you shake your head almost vehemently, sliding out the chair next to you so that he could take a seat, "of course i'll help you, kurusu."
despite being in the same year as him, it actually came to be quite advantageous, as you could show him your own notes and compare them to his exam answers. you were able to carefully explain the concepts, and akira seemed to understand them better.
and that was how it all began.
after your sessions, akira would show you his progress and how much his grades had improved. he would flash you a beaming smile all while handing you pages of pages of his exams, allowing you to see his near perfect scores on each and every one of them. the first time you had seen his smile, you felt your chest squeeze almost painfully within your chest and a strange emotion eventually overtake you.
it was then that you realized that you had fallen deeply in love with akira. despite being so young, you couldn't stop your emotions from overflowing each time you saw him. perhaps akira had finally gotten the hang of his classes, since your tutoring sessions slowly became a rarity, with you only seeing him once a month instead of your daily and weekly meetings.
you desperately wanted to get closer to him, but it was difficult to do so. you didn't share the same homeroom with him, and most of your time was spent tutoring other students. coupled along with those issues, you couldn't ignore the fact that akira was usually seen walking around campus with ann.
the sight of which quickly dashed your hopes of getting closer to akira.
ann takamaki, the envy of yourself and the rest of the girls at shujin academy. whereas most of the other girls were envious of her beauty, you were mainly envious of how she had managed to capture akira's attention. sure, you had seen akira with his plethora of other friends, but something about ann struck you as her being special to him.
a feat you could never hope to achieve.
as the days quickly morphed into months, you realized that it was finally february. you were so busy trying to ignore your own heartache that you buried yourself in schoolwork and tutoring sessions all while your friends quickly urged you to confess to akira come valentine's day. they ignored your belief that he was dating ann, a bit too confident that they were just good friends before giving you a list of all the shops that still sold some quality chocolates if you didn't have time to make your own.
but you refused to buy any chocolates for him. feeling a bit more confident in your friends' reassurances, you figured that if you were going to confess to him, then it'd be better if it came from the heart. you had made homemade chocolates a few times before, but lost the nerve to give it to the one that held your affections, always managing to talk yourself out of it at the last minute.
but you were determined to change this time around.
just a week before valentine's day, you bought all of the necessary ingredients and carefully crafted your chocolates, making sure they had the right amount of sweetness without being too overwhelming. you crafted each and every one of them with care all while placing them in a heart shaped box. once you were satisfied with the amount of chocolates, you closed the box and wrapped it carefully in a ribbon that had your favorite color with a love letter addressed to him enclosed on top.
everything was perfect, and you were ready for him.
when valentine's day came, you decide to skip waiting in your classroom, feeling somewhat nauseous at the sight of all the red and pink hearts that decorated the school. your steps were uneven, and upon realizing how you didn't see akira anywhere was when you began to get worried.
your search for him leads you to go outside, when you saw a brief flash of his messy hair heading towards the vending machines outside. filled with a newfound excitement, you clutch the box of chocolates close to your chest and follow him.
his name was on the tip of your tongue when the sight of a girl with blond hair was seen flinging her arms around him. she was crying tears of happiness all while akira returned her embrace, causing a feeling of coldness to course through you.
rejection filled your veins, and you quickly turned away from the lovers seemingly caught up in their own little world. akira whispers what you assumed to be his own declaration of adoration for her, but you couldn't tell for sure due to the blood that was rushing through your ears. the tears made it difficult for you to see, but you were sure you had enough strength to toss the chocolates you had made for akira inside the nearest bin, not daring to look back.
it was then that you decided to skip school that day-
but little did you know, had you gained the confidence to go through with your confession, you would have seen how someone saw you and tried to stop you. you would have seen the way they reached out to you, all while murmuring treasure from beneath their breath as they carefully lifted your gift out of the trash and into the safety of their arms.
------âĄ
your friends never mentioned the valentine's day incident to you ever again, apologizing for their mistake while making it up to you by giving you all of your favorite snacks in hopes of helping you cheer up.
and you were grateful that they ignored how today was white day, the day meant for those who received valentine's day gifts to reciprocate. you spent lunch with your friends and spoke about your plans for summer before going on with your day. everything was completely normal, and your heartache over what had happened a month ago didn't bother you as much anymore.
in fact, you were doing a great job ignoring your feelings-
that is, until you saw akira, seemingly waiting for someone outside the library.
you didn't have any appointments, but had some homework to do, simply to get ahead of the syllabus. you briefly considered ignoring him and just walk in, but decided against it the moment your stomach began to twist at the thought of seeing him.
i guess i have to suck it up and study at home then.
you turn around, believing you had successfully avoided him when you hear him call out your name.
"hey, wait a minute!"
you were left frozen in place, gathering your courage when you turn around and look at him. you wanted to keep your gaze neutral, but knew that it probably came out as a grimace instead.
"can i help you with something, kurusu?"
your voice was cold, catching him off guard for a brief moment. you watch as he swallows thickly, running a hand across his hair (a habit you realized he did whenever he was nervous) when he finally says, "can you come to shinagawa with me? a-an aquarium just opened up and i figured i could take you."
by now, your brows were furrowed together in confusion, until something dawned on you. "listen, if this is some white day bullshit, then you don't have to worry about it because i didn't give you anything."
you forced yourself to ignore the hurt expression that crosses his features. "i-i know you didn't, but still, i wanted to take you somewhere. don't you want to take a break?"
you hesitate when it came to answering him. just why was he so dead set on taking you to an aquarium? as you pondered on what to say to him, he takes your silence as an answer and begins holding hands with you, leading you out of shujin. "come on, we're going."
despite how much your mind was screaming at you to pull your hand out of his, your heart was telling you otherwise. your stupid heart kept beating erratically out of your chest, and you truly couldn't fight back the desire to simply be close to him.
oddly enough, there weren't any signs of ann, or any of his other friends around. you simply allow akira to take you to shinagawa, remaining silent throughout the whole trip to the aquarium.
upon arriving, akira pays for your entry inside. you quickly felt your resolve and hardened heart quickly softening once you were surrounded by the majestic beauty of all the colorful fishes being bathed in an aquamarine glow. your giggles were infectious, your delight evident in the way your eyes shone all while taking in all the beauty the aquarium had to offer.
you and akira end up stopping near an area where a school of fishes were swimming around in. becoming mesmerized by them, you felt as if they were beckoning you to come closer to them. you allow your fingertips to press against the cool glass all while murmuring, "how beautiful."
"yeah, beautiful." akira finally admits out loud, yet when you turn back to look at him, you realize that his gaze wasn't on the fishes, but on you.
feeling shy all of a sudden, you allow your back to press against the glass. "so, was this date because of white day?"
akira doesn't answer your question, his face turning pink as he looked away from you and asks, "are you getting hungry? i made reservations somewhere that i think you'd enjoy."
you were about to call him out at how he refused to answer your question, but ultimately decided against it since you were feeling quite hungry. with a sigh, you keep your hands tied together behind your back, stepping closer to him as you told him that you were starving and that he could lead the way.
once he got your permission to take you out to eat, a tiny smile paints his handsome features, and he manages to surprise you once more.
you figured he would take you out to some ramen bar or that one place that served all those beef bowls-
what you weren't expecting was akira making reservations at a high-end restaurant, complete with all the delicious foods you could only hope to try in your dreams. while you ate, you felt akira's gaze on you, his stormy grey eyes never leaving yours as he seemed to have some ongoing debate in his mind. his stare was what makes you stop eating, placing down your fork as you asked him if anything was bothering him.
akira quickly shakes his head, taking a sip from his glass of water. you simply shrug at his answer, about to dig in to your food once more when a sudden announcement was heard.
"ladies and gentleman, thank you for joining us on this special day. we wish you all an unforgettable evening, with one last finishing touch from us..."
"what...?" you trail off, suddenly seeing the thick red curtains lift before revealing the view of the city bathed in a rosy pink hue of light. they appeared to mimic the beauty of gemstones sparkling beneath the intimate lighting of the moon, taking your very breath away when you whisper "how achingly beautiful this is..."
"i have a gift for you." akira's voice suddenly cuts through your reverie, causing you to finally look at him when he presents a gorgeous bouquet of red roses for you to take.
still in shock from the sight of the city glittering like jewels at night, you accept his gift, quickly becoming drunk off of the scent of roses all while akira explains to you.
"earlier, i lied about not receiving your gift. i was there; i saw you running away from me all while throwing away your chocolates for me."
he appears sincere, reaching out to take a hold of your free hand while running his fingertips up and down your skin, "it really hurt to see you throwing away something i knew i would cherish, my treasure. you have no idea how hard it was for me to make your chocolates last, or the sheer amount of times i've read your letter addressed to me."
by now, your mind was spinning. had you wrongfully assumed akira was already in a relationship with ann?
"but, on that day, i saw ann embracing you. i just thought-"
he shakes his head, carefully taking a hold of your hand to press a kiss behind it, "that day, ann was just happy about how well shiho was recovering. she was just excited about being able to spend some time with her best friend again, that's all. i was simply sharing her happiness..."
"oh akira...!" you hug your bouquet close to you, leaning in to press a kiss against his lips. in the end, your feelings for him had won out, and you found no other way to convey how much you love and adore him. he returns your kiss with just as much passion, and you were both becoming enamored, being surrounded with the scent of roses.
you ask him if you could spend more time with him and apologize for being so cold when all you wanted was to be with him. you promised to find a way to make up for lost time and do something for him in the future to make him just as happy as he made you today.
yet when he hears your words, akira simply shakes his head and presses a kiss against your forehead before admitting, "you've already made me so happy with your gift, treasure. i am simply returning the favor, solely because i love you, too."
a.n. - did i write this solely because i have daydreamed about myself going on a white day date with akira after playing royal?? the answer should be an obvious yes (/Ï)
all stories are written by rei; reposts, translations, and plagiarism are not allowed.
#akira kurusu x reader#akira x reader#kurusu akira x reader#akira kurusu fluff#joker x reader#akira kurusu imagine#ren amamiya x reader#ren x reader#amamiya ren x reader#akira kurusu angst#.stories
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I read â[Naruto] made budgeting and math his bitchâ and all I want to say, to ask, is to consider the possibility that heâs the one in charge of Team 7âs budget? Please and thank you for your time.
It takes Naruto a bit to notice it. Takes a while for all the pieces to line up just right for him to see it.
His team, as talented as they all are, are absolute shit with money.
They're up north, huddled together on the roadside just inside of Tomi, the capital city of the midsized island that makes up Gold Country, when the truth comes out.
Their mission had been long and draining and they're all looking forward to a ship back to the mainland and a stop at an Inn for a night before they start the trek back to Konoha.
The only problem with that plan is the fact that everyone is flat broke.
Everyone, that is, except for Naruto. Which the other three would know if they'd bothered to ask him instead of assuming he was just as broke as they are.
Because Naruto's wallet is basically still as fat as ever despite the length of time they've been gone and the fact that he's done his definition of splurging at the shops in Tomi. He'd put the few hours where they'd split up before meeting again to start looking for a ship back to very very good use.
Supplies were always cheaper for him outside of Konoha proper where the shopkeepers don't know him and he's actually allowed to haggle. Plus their contractor, an ancient silk merchant named Kaede, had taken enough of a liking to Naruto to put in a good word for him at the local shops.
A courtesy that she, apparently, hadn't offered to the rest of the team or maybe just one they hadn't bothered to take her up on. Naruto isn't sure which it is exactly.
But if it's the second option then Naruto's not sure what to think. He'd never turn a discount or chance to haggle down, no matter how small it is. He knows better.
"Well," Kakashi-sensei says brightly. "Looks like we'll be running to the mainland and camping until we're back home. Let that be a lesson to all of us to bring more money next time."
Sakura looks like she's on the verge of either tears or a tantrum and Sasuke looks as blank as always except for the slightly displeased curl of his mouth.
Naruto finds himself a mix of both of their reactions because what?
Bring more money? That was Kakashi-sensei's solution? Just bring more? Like what Naruto knows was in each of their wallets before they left Konoha wasn't a good six months of Naruto's regular budget?
And they've got relatively little to show for the fact that they spent it all?
How??
It's in that moment that the truth hits Naruto directly in the face.
He's the only poor person on this Team. He's the only one of them who has ever had to actually worry about money.
Sakura has parents who actually love and house her, all her mission earnings are pure profit. Kakashi-sensei is probably the shinobi version of rich with his rank and all the high-level missions he's taken. And Sasuke is absolutely the shinobi version of rich with the wealth of an entire Clan at his disposal.
When they run out of money they just ... go get more.
Naruto, with his crumbling apartment and trap-wire thin budget, lives an entirely different kind of life.
They can probably just walk right into the Konoha bank he's sure they all use, the same one Naruto's never been allowed into, and just withdraw more money.
Not Naruto. All of his money, whatever he's scrimped and saved for, has always either been on his person or hidden away in a hollowed space beneath his bed.
For a long moment, Naruto debates with himself. Considers not saying anything and just following along with Kakashi's plan.
But, well, he does have the money and they are his Team.
So ...
"I got this," Naruto huffs out as he holds up his still bulging wallet. "But we're doing it my way and you'd all better pay me back if I spend anything."
He doesn't bother to listen to their protests or whatever they might say or do. Instead he turns on his heel and stalks off towards the docks, intent on finding them a ride to the mainland that doesn't make him want to gouge his eyes out at the price.
Half an hour later finds them settled on the deck of a small fishing vessel, warm pork buns in hand, and Naruto not missing a single yen.
The hoard of shadow clones he has practically crawling over the ship ended up being payment enough for the weathered-looking woman who'd given them passage.
He ignores the way the others stare at him and focuses on eating his lunch, mind already ticking over what Inns he remembers them passing and what he could do to get them a night's stay for the lowest cost possible.
With him in the lead, they manage to make it all the way back to Fire Country without having to pay for much of anything at all. Naruto had bartered everything from his shadow clones to Kakashi-sensei kissing the back of some woman's hand to his own help modeling a kimono while waitressing in his female form at a restaurant in Blouder City for food and lodging.
He'd actually like that last job the most since Tsubame-san had not only let him keep the kimono but he'd made a small fortune in tips as well.
It's not until they stop at the Black River Inn, the last waypoint before they reach Konoha proper, that Naruto finally steps back. Much to the puzzlement of the rest of the team, he lets Kakashi-sensei step up and rent them a room instead.
Tatsuyomi, the man who runs the inn, is the brother-in-law of the woman who runs the Tree Bud in Konoha.
He knows Naruto on sight.
It's not until they're settled into their shared room that night, the others eating a hot meal from the kitchen and Naruto eating the last of meat buns the cook Akira had slipped him before Naruto left the restaurant in Boulder, that someone finally asks.
"How'd you get so good with money, Naruto?" Sakura is the one to break the ice. "Figured you'd blow it all on ramen or something by now."
"He didn't actually pay for much," Sasuke points out quietly. "And nothing full price. He traded and haggled for everything instead."
"Still," Sakura presses. "He's the only one of us who isn't broke and he managed to get us a stay in every Inn we came across on the way home. Kind of weird."
Naruto stops, stares down that the cold meat bun in his hand, eyes squinted almost closed and shoulders tight.
He forces himself to breathe, to let the tension flow off and away.
He takes a bite of his bun.
Chews.
"I've never had parents," Naruto finds himself saying.
Around him the room goes absolutely silent.
"Don't have a Clan or a guardian or anything either," Naruto's shoulders shift restlessly, nails biting into the soft flesh of the bun in his hand. "Been living off the orphan's stipend since I was four. The pay from that is ... there's never been a lot to go around. There's always bills and supplies so I had to learn to make what I had really count. Being hungry for a long time sucks you know? Never want to do that again, not after the first few times. Not unless I have to."
"Y-You get mission pay now though right?" Sakura says, voice low and eyes wide.
"Don't get the stipend anymore though, that stopped when I got my headband," Naruto shrugs again, uncomfortable in his skin for a reason he can't properly name. "And mission pay gets split so ..."
The quiet is thick around them. Sasuke is practically glaring at his bowl and Kakashi-sensei's knuckles are white around the edges of his book.
"But yeah," Naruto finally says as he pushes himself up onto his feet, half eaten bun in hand, and turns to hop up onto the windowsill, "I learned money stuff real young. Probably the only school thing I was ever really good at."
A flex of muscle has him out the window and sitting on the edge of the roof, feet dangling and conversation officially over.
The rest of the night and the journey back to Konoha proper is quiet.
The next time they go on an extended mission outside of the village it's Naruto who's in charge of any and everything even remotely money-related as soon as they pass the border.
And if their mission pay starts getting split three ways instead of four, well, Kakashi-sensei doesn't say anything so Naruto doesn't either.
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âI-Land (OT9) / Enhypenâ Love, I-Land
A special collection of stories, for a special group of boys...Happy anniversary to eggies, itâs been a year since I-Land announced the first batch of trainees, a year since we all dive into this roller coaster ride of a show.
~ Inspired by Taylor Swiftâs love songs ~
Tagging: @mari-kigold @akira-star @affectionaterainoflove @enhypenthusiast @periwinkle-ink
Warning: suggestive in Kâs part (just a brief makeout session), angsty in some parts BUT thereâs fluff to make up for it, cursing (literally all my works have curse words in them, I canât write without making the characters curse at least once lmao)
Word Count: 6k+
K - Wildest Dreams ; passionate love
You didnât know how you two ended up like this.
It was just a simple school project, and youâve told yourself it was going to be nothing more than that. That's what you kept repeating in your head, over and over again as you called him over. Yet in your heart, you knew you just wanted him all over you again, even if itâs just temporary, even though you knew it would tear you apart. Â
Nothing lasts forever...but this is gonna take me down.
You shouldnât be doing this.
You shouldnât be making out with the schoolâs enigma, you shouldnât have invited him to your house in the first place, knowing it would end up like this, with your lips latched onto his. You shouldnât be reciprocating the kiss, his mouth hot against yours, one hand tangled in your shirt to bring you ever closer, the other wrapped tight around your waist that you knew it would leave bruises. And most of all, you shouldnât be enjoying this as his lips moved down your neck, his warm breath tickling your sweet spot, tongue flicking over your collarbone.
Because you knew this moment would be your last, before he disappears and leaves you with a gaping hole in your heart.
K finally pulls away, panting slightly as he tilts his head, a cute gesture that doesnât match the smirk on his face. âYour lips are so red.â
Bringing a hand up to touch them, you knew they were swollen from the amount of times he bit and nipped at them. Your eyes flicked to his, before looking away. âWell, so are yours.â
K studied you for a bit, his gaze searching, making you feel suddenly small under his glare. What is he thinking? After a moment, he lets go of you, standing up and straightening out his shirt. âIâm going to go. See you tomorrow.â
And suddenly, you felt that panicky feeling in your chest again, and the fear came rushing back. You donât know if youâll see him tomorrow, or ever again. Those were just casual words, something to say instead of âgoodbye,â because some part of you, maybe it was just wishful thinking, hopes he feels the same. But K isnât like that. Heâs like the autumn breeze that comes and goes, before sending your life into winter without his presence. He never abides by the rules, and floats in that gray area in between, where your relationship with him also lies.
You knew what you were getting into when you kissed him on the rooftop that day, knew that it would only cause you pain. You donât want your time with him, all these passionate moments of love, to disappear until you can only recall them in your wildest dreams.
Your body reacts before you can think, grabbing his arm as he turned to the door. He stiffened in your grasp, but didnât make an effort to break away.
âStay, please.â You mentally curse your voice for sounding so weak, the hand on his arm trembling.
K turned around to face you again, his cold, calculating eyes softening as they met your uncertain ones. His arm finally relaxed, and he sat down again.
âAlright.â
Heeseung - Superstar ; idol love
âI swear to god, why arenât they picking up?â you tapped your phone in frustration, frowning. As if on cue, a message lit up your screen, and you opened it, curious to see the reason behind your friendâs unresponsiveness.
Sorry, I wonât be able to make it to the concert. Iâm working on a project with K.
âK, huh?â you shook your head at your friendâs words. âArenât they afraid that heâll break their heart? Project, my ass.â
Sighing, you pocketed your phone. Thereâs not much you can do to convince them that their relationship with K was only going to hurt them, but you couldnât stop the two from having their hands all over each other, ever since your friend came to you screeching about their first kiss on the school rooftop. Like some romantic K-drama where a bad boy falls for the good girl.
Well, not like your love life is any better....
You shook your head, deciding to push these thoughts out of your head and go enjoy your schoolâs spring concert by yourself. At least youâll be able to stare at Heeseung all you want without your friend teasing you.
A small twinge of sadness echoed in your chest at the thought of Heeseung, but you quickly pushed that out of your mind. You werenât here just for him, of course. Youngbin and Geonu were doing a duet, Seon had a sexy solo that heâs been bragging about for weeks, and Nicholas, Jaeho, and the rest of their dance team prepared a special stage as well. So no, as much as you like spending most of the time ogling Heeseung, you were there to support your friends, have a good time off from your studies, and ignoring these annoying fangirls that always surround himâ
Yeah, right. You knew it all circles back to Heeseung eventually.
Kicking at some pebbles on the ground, you sighed and realized that the guards were about to close the entrance doors soon. Joining the queue of parents and students, you handed your ticket to the theater teacher (who fixed you with a scrutinizing stare, perhaps remembering you as that problematic theater student she took under her wing a few years ago) and entered the auditorium. The lights dimmed, and the show began.Â
You screamed yourself hoarse during the performances, cheering on your friends (turns out Seonâs performance did live up to the epic stage he was talking about, you saw the girlsâand some boysâpractically drooling), and the thought of Heeseung left your mind. Until the final encore, that is, when he and Geonu took center stage to cover âButterflyâ by BTS.
Your eyes widened as he started singing, heart racing a million miles per hour. A smile unconsciously made its way onto your face, and your breath caught in your throat as his eyes flickered over the audience. As if reading your mind, they landed on you, leaving you breathless. Please notice me...oh my god, his eyes are so pretty....
âDid you see that? He made eye contact with me!â the girl beside you squealed, and the moment was gone. The smile wiped off your face, and you turned to her, seeing her beaming at the same boy you were looking at before. Your gaze broke away to scan the masses of people staring at the boys on stage with love-struck expressions on their faces, and suddenly you just feel...alone. Some part of your heart broke, and it was like reality struck you across your face.
You were just another wide-eyed fan desperately in love with a superstar who doesnât even know your name.
That revelation followed you outside after the concert ended, and as if the weather understands your thoughts, it had started pouring outside. Rummaging around in your bag, only to come up empty, you gulped down your tears and resolved to walk home without an umbrella. Damn it, you shouldâve come prepared!
Well, you canât really prepare for heartbreak, can you?
You hadnât gone two paces however, when you felt something opening up above you, and turning, you almost had a heart attack upon seeing Heeseung standing beside you. He held an umbrella over you both, his eyes darting from you to the ground, a small blush painted across his cheeks. He seemed fidgety, unlike the confident boy on stage moments ago, and youâre left speechless. An awkward silence passed between you two, before he cleared his throat.
âYouâre really cuteâI mean, youâre Y/N from my research class, right?â You nodded, internally screaming at the fact that he just called you cute. âI...I, um, I saw you didnât have an umbrella and itâs really pouring out here, so uh-â he laughed nervously, a small grin forming on his lips as he stared at you expectedly. âDo you want to share?â
Jake - Fearless ; first love
âBleh, sappy couples,â you shook your head, wrinkling your nose at the scene in front of you. Then again, everyone basically called you and Jake a sappy couple, so you really shouldnât be saying anything.
Speaking of Jake, you caught him running down the road towards you, his umbrella jostling over his head. Laughing to yourself, you watched as the umbrella caught on another, then got tangled in a whole mess of umbrellas. Jake quickly disentangled his from the rest, apologizing profusely to the party of concert-goers who only shook their heads and motioned for him to go. Giving them a slight nod, he ran up to you, thankfully with no further mishaps, stumbling to a stop in front of you.
âHi,â he said breathlessly, beaming at you. You swear every time you look at him, it was like falling for him all over again. Despite the cold and the rain, the feeling spread all over you and you felt suddenly warm and fuzzy.
âLetâs go.â You grabbed his hand, and he tucked you under the umbrella, arm wrapped around your waist. The two of you began walking home. âHow was the concert?â
âAmazing, though I still wish you got to perform,â you snuggled up to his side, unable to keep a smile off your face. Jake sighed, somewhat regretfully.
âYou know I have to work overtime this week, or I wonât be able to pay the rent for the apartment.â
âI know, I know.â You turned to him, eyeing the dark bags under his eyes. âYou look exhausted....hey, you shouldâve gone home to rest, not come out in the rain to pick me up. You can catch a coldââ
âI donât want you to walk home by yourself after dark, itâs too dangerous,â Jake interrupted. He grinned at you, and you felt like your heart was gonna melt. Is this what love feels like? Then Iâm glad that heâs my first.
The two of you were almost home, when you realized that you were approaching the abandoned parking lot near your house. An idea struck you then, and you suddenly grabbed Jakeâs hand, startling him out of his rant about the shitty customer at the cafe.
âCome on, letâs dance in the rain.â
âHuh?â Jakeâs eyebrows knit into a frown. âWerenât you worried about catching a cold a few minutes ago?â
You shook your head, a cheeky grin on your face. Your heartbeat quickened, a shot of adrenaline rushing through you. You werenât usually like this, but you thought back to the shows you watched, and well, first love means trying something new, right? âThe rain is letting up Jake, weâll be fine. Please?â
A flicker of doubt crossed his face, and you thought he was going to say no, before he nodded and closed the umbrella. You let out a gasp as the cool drops hit your face, and a loud squeal when Jake grabbed your hand and twirled you around the parking lot.
You thought this only existed in movies, but itâs all real. Youâre dancing with the love of your life, fearlessly, in the middle of a rain shower. His hands clasped around your waist, a wide smile stretching from ear to ear as you grabbed onto his shoulders and he lifted you off your feet, like the ballroom dances in these old fashioned films. The wind whistled in your ears, the rain splashing on the sidewalk sounds like music. You couldnât stop laughing, and neither can he, and you knew you were going to remember this moment for the rest of your life.
However, your strength gave out after a while, and the two of you stood there, swaying side to side. At this point, you couldnât care that your clothes are wet and sticking to your skin, and you lean your forehead against Jakeâs. He giggled, small droplets of water trailing down from his soaked hair. And he slowly leans in, the distance between you two shortening, your hands begin to shake as your breath quickens.
Is he going toâ?
Sensing your nervousness, he grabbed one of your hands in his, pulling you in. You felt a little more brave as you tugged at the front of his shirt in your other hand, and connected your lips, at last.
Itâs a first kiss, itâs flawless, really something, itâs fearless.
Jay - Ours ; long distance love
Lucky Jake, you muttered to yourself, sighing as you rested your head on the counter. He doesnât have to deal with stupid customers at this time, and at least he has more experience with people yelling at him. Or maybe youâre just jealous that he has someone to hang out with, go on dates with, and laugh by his side.
You smiled sadly to yourself and took out your phone, opening the photo gallery. You felt a pang of nostalgia and wistfulness as you clicked on the first photo of you and Jay. It was from your date at the shopping mall, where Jay had chosen several outfits and forced you to try them on. It was a time where you had let your insecurities get the best of you, and Jay was having none of it. The photo was of him hugging you after you tried on one of the outfits he picked out.
You look beautiful, you can hear him say. Stunning, amazing, donât ever doubt yourself again.
I wonât, you had murmured back. Thank you, love.
âSeriously, is this some sort of playhouse? Canât even do their job right....â
Your head quickly shot up, eyes widening at the intimidating businessman in front of you. Fuck, not him again....
He rolled his eyes at you. âTwo large cups of mocha latte with a half shot of espresso. And make it quick, Iâm in a hurry.â
You purse your lips in disdain. âYes, sir.â
Putting your phone away, you sighed as you began making his order. If Jay was here, he wouldâve made you laugh by making fun of his attitude, or just straight up told the man off. But heâs not here, and heâs not going to help you out, you thought to yourself, gritting your teeth together as you mixed the coffee. Heâs working for that fashion company in Paris, so just let him live his dream. Câmon, Y/N, just make this damn coffee, give it to that damn businessman who canât keep his damn mouth shutâ
âBe careful, you idiot! Youâre going to spill them!â
You snapped out of your daze, again, by the harsh voice of the customer, who grabbed the two coffees, spilling foam over your hands, causing you to hiss in pain. And he had the audacity to walk away muttering, âGosh, Iâm never coming back to this shitty place again.â
Swallowing the pain, you went to wash your hands at the sink. Itâs part of the job, there will always be some people yelling at you, itâs not your fault, you tried to comfort yourself, though you were sick and tired of this. This endless routine, the fake smiles you have to put on, a gaping hole in your heart you canât cover up. Itâs been over a year since Jay has gone, and suddenly, you missed him more than ever. Frustrated, you turned the faucet off, almost yanking it off the sink in the process. Burying your face in your hands, your mind wandered to something Jay had told you, right before he left for the trip.
Donât you worry your pretty little mind, people throw rocks at things that shine.
You smiled at Jayâs words, and took a deep breath, calming yourself down. You will get through this. Drying your hands off on a towel, you smooth out the wrinkles in your shirt and set your face in a hard line. Just a few more hours, and youâll finally get off work. You can do this.
Making your way to the counter again, you prepared to put on your custom smile and act like the cheerful barista you were supposed to be. âHello! How may Iââ
âY/N?â
Your breath caught in your throat, as your eyes met the person you were just thinking about. No, itâs not possible, howâ The two of you stared at each other in disbelief, before Jayâs face relaxed into a bright smile, and he opened his arms.
You ran out from behind the counter and wrapped your hands around him. Nuzzling your face into the crook of his neck, you held on tight, and thatâs when the tears came, happy and sad at the same time.
Jay didnât say anything, for there was no need to use words when actions and feelings showed it all. He grasped you in his arms, body shaking slightly as he blinked back the tears from his own eyes. Iâm finally back home.
The two of you stood there for who knows how long, but you couldnât care less. No matter how many annoying customers you have to face, no matter how many times coffee spills all over you, nothing can separate you from what is yours.
You can say what you want, but this love is ours.
Sunoo - Sparks Fly ; pure love
You and Sunoo quietly crept out of the cafe, not wanting to disturb the couple hugging by the counter. Unfortunately for you two though, it had started raining outside, and none of you brought an umbrella.
âReally? And the forecast said it wouldnât rain,â Sunoo grumbled, pouting. âThe weather person needs to get fired.â
You laughed at his words, resisting the urge to pinch his cheeks. âTheyâre just trying to do their job, Sunoo. I mean, itâs not that bad....should we just make a run for it?â
Sunoo gasped dramatically. âAnd mess up our hair? How will I take our end-of-the-date selfie with our soggy selves?â
You rolled your eyes, âwe can use our school bags to cover us. I mean, itâs either that, or be late to our movie night.â
Sunoo mulled over it for a moment, scrunching his nose in concentration. âOh, fine. But weâre sticking to the cover until we have to cross the street.â
âDeal.â The two of you shuffled along the awning of the cafe, until you reached the end of the street where the crosswalks are. You two looked at each other, hunching your bookbags over your head. One hand holding onto your bag, you stretched your hand out to Sunoo, a smile crossing both of your faces as he took it.
âOne.â
âTwo.â
âThree. GO!â
The two of you dashed out into the rain, laughing and screaming like little kids. A wild, childish bliss took over you, and you couldnât stop giggling as you gripped tightly onto Sunooâs hand. He looked over at you, and you can see that he was having the time of his life as well, smiling so much that his eyes seemed to disappear. You wish time could stop at that moment, as rain poured down around you two, the happy feeling in your chest expanding with love.
All too soon, your journey ended as you two rushed up, panting, to the door of your house. Letting your bags fall over your shoulders, the two of you turned to each other and laughed. You reached over to part the hair from his eyes, and he playfully flicked his head, spraying water on your face. You let out an indignant yelp, before lightly pushing him, then reaching to catch him again before he slips down the wet steps. Sunoo held onto your arm, trying to contain his laughter, though his bright smile gave it away.
âGosh, weâre a mess,â you said as you tried to catch your breath. Putting your bag down, you fumbled in your pocket for your keys. âBut you know what? Letâs do that again next time.â
âWell, hopefully weâll actually remember to bring an umbrella next time,â Sunoo said, shaking out his wet bag. He grinned at you, and you swear you can see sparks fly whenever he smiles.
Jungwon - Mine ; enduring love
You trudged down the street, not minding the fact that youâre thoroughly soaked by the rain. Everything felt like a blur around you as your mind kept replaying the scene from moments before, and the tears came streaming down your face again, mingling with the drops from the sky. The sound of laughter pierced through your reverie, and you turned to see a couple giggling together at the front steps of their house, the sight making your heart squeeze.
What went wrong?
We were like them too, so what happened to us?
Sniffing, you wiped your nose with the back of your hand, turning away from the scene. Looking around, you realized that you had walked farther away from the house than you expected, and that it was already dark. Should I go back? As much as you donât want to confront Jungwon right now, you donât want him to worry either. Would he even worry though? Maybe this really is the end...
Making up your mind, you resolved to just keep walking, until you finally decided on what to do. Taking out your phone, you texted your friend whether you can stay over at theirs tonight. Slipping the device back into your pocket, you continued plodding along.
Until someone grabbed your arm, and you screamed.
âY/N, itâs me! Itâs me.â
Whirling around, your heart rate slowed as you made eye contact with your boyfriend. The rain had slowed to a drizzle now, and you saw that his eyes were red, like he had been crying too.
âJungwon...â you extricated your arm from his hold, and took a deep breath. âWhat are you doing here?â
âI ran after you,â he mumbled, looking down at the ground. âAfter you left.â
You blinked in surprise, not expecting that answer. âO-oh.â
Not knowing what to say, the two of you stood there, and each passing minute felt like a wall growing bigger and bigger between you two. You didnât know how the two of you even ended up like thisâan offhand comment, which somehow led to yelling and cursing, and then you were running out into the streets alone, crying. And now, to this silence. It felt like hours before Jungwon spoke up.
âIâm sorry.â
Gulping, you forced the words out of your throat too. âIâm sorry too. I shouldâve stayed instead of just running away like that.â
He shook his head. âNo, this was my fault. I shouldnât have yelled at you...talked to you in that way.â
You sighed. âWell, letâs just say itâs both of our faults, then. It doesnât matter.â
Jungwon nodded hesitantly, peering up at you. âShould we go back to the dorms?â
You bit your bottom lip, thinking. Everything felt too much, like a fragile heart broken into a million pieces, each one jagged and misshapen. âI already texted my friend that Iâll stay over at their house tonight. Should weâshould we just take a break, Jungwon? These days weâve just been arguing and fighting with each other, I donât know how we can continue this, if we can evenââ
Your voice cracked, and the whirlpool of tears finally broke free as you sobbed, face in your hands. Your body tenses as you feel Jungwonâs arms wrap around you, relaxing slightly as he patted your back, trying to soothe your sorrows.
âY/N, do you remember when we first met?â
He was working part-time at a restaurant as a waiter, and you thought he was pretty cute. You found that he was going to the same school as you, and the two of you became best friends. You fell for him a few months later, and ever since then, he was always by your side. Until everything fell apart a few weeks ago, when your tempers ran short and tension climbed high.
âI thought you were so beautiful...and remember our promise? I swore I was going to stay with you, that we wonât make the same mistake as your parents. You are the best thing thatâs ever been mine. I know itâs hard to be together right now, when both of us are so busy that we don't have time with each other anymore...but Iâll always have time for you, Y/N. I know this sounds cheesy and all, but I just want to say that I love you and I donât want to let you go.â
Sniffing, this time the tears flow because of his words. Turning around, you gave him a cheeky grin as you wiped your face. âDidnât know you were such a romantic, Jungwon.â
His cheeks turned a shade of pink, and he shyly held out his hand. You took it, and the two of you started walking back home.
Niki - Jump Then Fall ; childhood love
Never mind, Iâm going home tonight.
You raised your eyebrows at your friendâs message. Probably some couple problems with Jungwon. You were about to text back a reply, before you felt your pants get splashed with water.
You lifted your eyes to the sky, exasperated because you already know who did it. Sometimes I wonder how I even have a crush on him. I waited for him after dance practice and this is what I get? Turning around, you faced your friend, or as you like to call him, your greatest enemy, Nishimura Riki.
He has his usual mischievous grin on his face, jumping from foot to foot as he kicks at another puddle. Thankfully, you jumped out of the way just in time. Narrowing your eyes playfully, you said, âI see how it is...this is war.â
The rain had left numerous puddles on the sidewalk (probably due to the potholes your school refused to spend their money to fix), and you chased Niki down the street, splashing him with water. He laughed loudly and reached up (dangit, why is he so tall?), grabbed one of the branches of a tree, shaking the water from it. Gasping, your eyes widened as you got drenched from the drops. You glared at him, only causing his smile to stretch even wider from ear to ear. âI won,â Niki announced triumphantly.
You pouted, rolling your eyes. âOh, fine. But itâs not fair, how did you even get this tall?â
Niki shrugged, as if it was no big deal, though you want to wipe the smug grin off his face. âI grew 13 centimeters last year.â
âImpossible,â you huffed. He shoved his hands in his pockets, raising his eyebrows at you as if challenging your statement. Shrugging his dance bag over one shoulder, Niki started walking, and you followed. âYou just want to brag about your height.â
âMaybe I do, maybe I donât,â Niki teased in a sing-song voice. âEither way, Iâm still taller than you~â
You smiled grudgingly, stealing a look at him from the corner of your eye. It seems like yesterday when you both were kids, and he was this bouncy little boy who loved to annoy the hell out of you. He still does, but you felt a twinge of nostalgia as you see how tall and mature he had come, and even more good-looking as well. If only he knows how much I like him.
Sensing your stare, Niki wiggled his eyebrows at you, making you laugh at his expression. âWhat are you looking at?â
âNothing,â you turned away, embarrassed. You really need to be less obvious, though Nikiâs too oblivious to know anything about your feelings for him.Â
âNo, itâs something,â he leaned closer to you, and suddenly you forgot how to breathe properly. âIs there something on my face?â
You shook your head quickly, gaze wandering anywhere but his eyes. Spying a puddle in the corner of your vision, an idea flashed through your mind. Leaning closer, so that your faces were only inches apart, you noticed that Nikiâs cheeks were blushing pink at the close distance. Maybe this isnât so one-sided after all.
âActually, there is something.âÂ
âW-what?â You expected him to pull away, but his eyes were dreamy, getting lost in your own. Or maybe you were the one getting lost in his. Tearing your gaze away, you grabbed his hand and dragged him towards the biggest puddle near the curb of the street. Taking a deep breath, you jumped straight into it, causing a huge splash that doused both you and Niki in water. You wished you could capture this moment on camera: Nikiâs flustered face when you took his hand, his eyes widening comically as water sprayed his clothes. You laughed out loud, smirking at him. âI won,â you said, mimicking his voice from earlier.Â
Your smile faded when Niki didnât say anything back, the shocked expression still on his face. Confused, you asked, âwhatâs wrong?â
Clearing his throat, he motioned his head towards your intertwined hands. âUm, youâre still holding onto my hand.â
Maybe itâs cliche, two childhood friends falling for each other, but whatâs wrong with cliches? You tightened your grip on his hand, grinning as his face flared red. âIs there something wrong with it?â
âNothing,â he looked down, making you giggle. Oh, how the tables have turned. You took a step closer.Â
âNo, itâs something.â
He glanced up at you, unable to conceal a shy smile. You loved the way his hair falls in his face, slightly damp from jumping into too many puddles.
And all I can say is come closer, take a deep breath and jump then fall into me.
Daniel - Fifteen ; platonic love
âWhen are they going to confess already?â you snickered, eyeing the two teens playing in the puddles. Daniel followed your stare, shrugging at your words.
âWhen they finally get in through their heads that their feelings are mutual,â Daniel said. âWho knows how long thatâll take.â
You fold your arms across your chest, turning away and gazing wistfully into the distance. âMaybe one day Iâll find love like that.â
Daniel raised an eyebrow at you. âYou got time, youâre still fifteen after all.â
Your hands dropped, and you sighed as your shoulders sagged. âI canât believe Iâm fifteen already...high school is so hard.âÂ
Daniel laughed at the whine in your voice, reaching over to ruffle your hair. You pushed his hand away, glaring at him. âHey, donât laugh. You didnât get any of the difficult classes this year.â
âThatâs because I already know I want to major in art so...thereâs no need to take these classes anyway.â
You stopped and turned to him, narrowing your eyes. âWhat in art, specifically?â
Daniel's eyes flickered to yours, looking away in embarrassment. âOh, just something in music.â
You grinned slyly, probing further. âWhat in music, exactly?â
Daniel gulped, hoping you wouldnât laugh at him this time. âUm...well, I really want to become a rapperâŠâ
Your eyes widened and you gasped. âA rapper? Daniel, thatâs amazing!â
Your friend blinked in confusion, surprised at your excitement. âYou-you think so?â
Nodding fervently, you started walking again. Around you, the streetlights flared to life. âYeah, I mean, you seem pretty passionate about it. I remembered how the teacher caught you writing lyrics in the back of the textbook when youâre supposed to be paying attention during class.â
Daniel humphed, his long strides quickly catching up with yours. âHey, math is boring, alright? You werenât listening either.â
You decided to concede with him on that point, because math, indeed, is a pain in the ass (also because you were afraid heâll stop letting you copy his homework right before class). âFine, but Iâm just saying that you shouldnât be ashamed of your dream. Youâre dedicated, I know you can do it.â
Daniel smiled shyly at your words. âThanks, Y/N.â
You smiled back half-heartedly. âAnd here I am, with nothing planned out. I still donât know who I want to be, or even who I am.â
âItâs fine if you havenât figured yourself out yet, just go with the flow and do things that make you feel happy. Then youâll discover where your interests and dreams lie,â Daniel said sagely, making your eyes roll at his tone. He bumped your shoulder with his. âIâll always be here for you, yeah?â
âThanks, but I just...you know how youâre at that time in your life, when youâre just questioning everything? Like, what is the meaning of life? Why am I here?â
âJust to suffer,â Daniel whispered, flinching away as you whacked him on the arm. âOk, ok, I didnât know you were going to get this deep.â
âMaybe I should be an English teacher then,â you said thoughtfully. âMake all the students analyze the meaning of the universe, like how Mr. Kim is forcing us to analyze Romeo and Juliet.â
âRomeo and JulietâŠâ Daniel stopped suddenly, making you bump into him. âOh no...I forgot my copy of the book at school!â
You gave him a look. âSeriously? I told you to get it out of your locker!â
Daniel scuffed his shoe on the sidewalk, avoiding your gaze. âWell, you know how loud and chaotic the dismissal was...I couldnât hear you.â
You shook your head in resignation. âWhatever, Iâll just send you pictures of the pages we have to read.â
Danielâs head shot up, eyes staring hopefully at you. âReally? Y/N, thank you so much, you know you're my best friend right?â
You rolled your eyes. âJust make sure to remember it next time, or youâre on your own.â
(Jokes on you, Daniel knows youâll grudgingly share your book with him for the rest of the year if he keeps forgetting it).
Sunghoon - Love Story ; forbidden love
âSunghoon!â you whisper-shouted, grimacing as your boyfriend stepped on a stick. The sound seemed too loud in the quiet darkness, and you looked around wildly. Grabbing his arm, you dragged him behind a rock, lips pursed in a tense line. Heart pounding, you felt both worried and exhilarated at the same time.Â
âSorry,â Sunghoon said sheepishly, scratching the nape of his neck. âDidnât see that.â
You frowned at him, turning around. âAnd I thought princes have stealth training as part of their schooling.â
Sunghoon scoffed. âAll they teach us is how to look buff and strong so we can pick fights with your family.â
Stifling a laugh, you took his arm again, pulling him along. âTrue true, that sounds a lot like what they teach Youngbin too...though Youngbin isnât the fighting type.â
âYour brotherâs too soft,â Sunghoon muttered, âI feel sorry for him sometimes...heâd rather be kind than argue.â
Your lips quirked up in a sad smile. âYeah, but thereâs not much we can do about the feud, right?â
Nodding, Sunghoon carefully stepped over a pile of leaves, hand clutching tight onto yours. As the two of you cautiously stepped around the bend in the country road, Sunghoon let out a light gasp seeing what lay ahead. You grinned at his expression, quickening your pace until you two stopped in front of an enormous garden. Its gates were made up of interlocking flowers and vines, a sweeping archway of overhanging branches from two willow trees, and an open field lined with flowers of every kind laid beyond. Pushing away the branches, Sunghoon watched as you unraveled the flower gate and stepped into the beautiful utopia.
âA secret garden,â Sunghoon commented in awe. âHowâŠâ
âYoungbin and I used to go here all the time, whenever our families fight,â you answered. âNow that heâs confined to the training field, I feel too lonely being here all by myself.â
âAre you sure Youngbin wouldnât mind?â Sunghoon asked, not wanting to intrude in sibling affairs.
You cast a funny look at him. âNo, Iâm sure he wonât. Besides...youâre the person Iâm closest to besides him.â
The comment made Sunghoon blush, and he followed you down the path. On each side of him bloomed hundreds of colorful blossoms, making Sunghoon wonder who lived here long ago to tend to them all. Marigolds, roses, lilies, fuchsias, tulips, flowers of every kind decorated the leaves and vines. He reached out to pluck a red rose from the fray, careful not to prick his fingers. Stopping every now and then to admire the flowers, you tugged him towards the open field. Sitting down on the grass, you leaned your head against his shoulder.
âLook, the sun is rising.â
And indeed it was. Sunghoon smiled as you two relaxed in silence, watching the sunlight streak over the horizon in different shades of pink, yellow, and orange. A new day, a new beginning, he thought. He turned when he felt something being placed on his head, only to meet your grinning face as you adjusted the flower crown in his hair.Â
âThere,â you said, pushing a stray hair away from his eye. Leaning back proudly, you nodded at how the wreath of white daisies complemented his raven hair. âYou look pretty, flower boy.â
Sunghoon took the red rose, breaking off the stem, tucked it behind your ear. âNo, youâre prettier.â
âWhatever,â you said, though Sunghoon saw that you were trying hard not to smile. âDo you know what this reminds me of?â
âWhat?â Sunghoon asked, laying back onto the grass. He took the flower crown off and held it up to the sky, scrutinizing your handiwork. You mirrored his movement, turning on your side to face him.
âThereâs this story I read in the library a few days ago, about how two young lovers woke up at dawn so they could watch the sunrise together.â
âOh?â Raising an eyebrow, Sunghoon motioned for you to continue.
âMhm,â You gazed off into the distance, a thoughtful look on your face. The sunbeams have gotten brighter, and they cast a glow on your face that Sunghoon couldnât describe, other than ethereal. âIt reminded me of us.â
âWho knows,â Sunghoon shrugged. âMaybe someday someone will write a story about us too.â
âA forbidden love story?â You snickered. âWho would write something like that?â
ââ ââ ââ ââ ââ ââ ââ ââ ââ ââ ââ
~ Which story is your favorite? ~
#i-land imagines#iland imagines#enhypen#enhypen imagines#enhypen reactions#enhypen drabbles#enhypen scenarios#enhypen heeseung#enhypen jake#enhypen jay#enhypen sunoo#enhypen jungwon#enhypen niki#enhypen sunghoon#iland k#i-land k#iland daniel#i-land daniel#park jay#park sunghoon#sim jaeyun#sim jake#kim sunoo#park jongseong#nishimura riki#yang jungwon#lee heeseung#enhypen headcanons#junjun.fic
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There's a Will; There's a Way (Extra) Chuuya and Akira Part Two
           Several weeks had passed. Between missions and work, Chuuya and Akira caught moments in the Painted Glass. They still teased each other, but they had become closer. They were close friends. Neither had told the other their last name, it was too dangerous for either to do so. However, there was a connection and honesty between the two that neither had really felt before. It was different from Chuuyaâs comradery with Dazai; it was different from Akiraâs sisterhood with (Y/N). The two felt close on a level they really hadnât experienced with anyone else. They felt safe and comfortable, free to be themselves without worry of judgement or jobs.
           âSo then, that asshole fucking claws me, but I twist around and kick him in the face!â Akira grinned as she recounted the story. âThen Atsushi gives us this whole big speech about working togetherâwhich, by the way, bo-ringâbut then we all work together and kick Shibusawaâs ass! You should have seen it.â She leaned back in her chair and laughed. âMan, it was exhilarating!â
           âYou seem pretty happy for someone who didnât end the fight,â commented Chuuya, smirking.
           Akira rolled her eyes. âListen, without me, those kids wouldnât have won. Doesnât matter how powerful they are. Theyâre still just kids in the end.â
           âTheyâre adults.â Chuuya took a sip of wine. âIf theyâre fighting there, theyâve clearly been through a lot.â
           âDoesnât mean theyâre mature or know what theyâre doing. I have a feeling you and I both know what it means to really grow up and learn how to survive in this world. They havenât,â said Akira. âThey still think everything is black and white. Theyâre learning about the grey.â
           Chuuya nodded in understanding. âWho exactly were these kids?â He was feigning ignorance and maintaining his relative anonymity.
           âAkutagawa, Atsushi, and Kyouka?â Akira leaned back and laughed. âBunch of punks.â She took a drink of whiskey.
           âAtsushi and KyoukaâŠIâve seen them in the paper, havenât I?â commented Chuuya. âTheyâre part of thatâŠ.Armed Detective Agency, right?â
           âYeah,â said Akira. âGuess theyâre kind of famous now.â
He was carefully guarding the fact that he knew them. âHowâd you get to working with fancy detectives?â
           âWhat? Is it so hard to believe I like the attention and drama sometimes?â teased Akira.
           He rolled his eyes. âYou are a small-time bar owner. How do you get mixed up with people who get hired by the government?â
           Akira smirked and leaned closer to him. âPromise not to tell?â she whispered conspiratorially.
           Chuuya raised an eyebrow. âWhat, you a criminal or some shit?â
           Akiraâs eyes sparkled slyly. âAnd if I was? Would I have to tie you up so you didnât run to the police? I would have a lot of fun stringing you up.â
           Rolling his eyes, the redhead pretended to consider. âI guess I could keep your secret.â
           Akira laughed. âEven if I was very bad? Evil, even?â
            You canât be worse than me. Would you accept me if you knew the dark parts of me? âI wouldnât care,â said Chuuya honestly.
           Akira blinked and paused as she was lifting her glass. For a moment, the world stopped as they both realized how serious things had just gotten. It had gotten dangerously close to breaching the fine line they had created between being close friends and the emotions that were just below the surface.
           Akira cleared her throat and said, âInformation broker.â She shattered the moment easily.
           âHm?â Chuuya started from the sobering moment they had just had.
           âThatâs why I help the Agency out,â said Akira. âI have a nice little habit of getting my hands on information that people prefer to keep private.â
           âSo I was right!â Chuuya chuckled, trying to get back to just joking around. âYou probably do blackmail your connections.â
           âMaybe a little bit,â admitted Akira cheekily, smirking. âAnyways, a few years back this cutie, (Y/N), stumbled into my bar during a case, and we became friends. Ever since then, sheâs contacted me many times for information. Thatâs how I end up helping the Armed Detective Agency.â She took a swig of whiskey. âMind you, I wasnât asked to help during the fog incident. I just stumbled into the group by accident.â
           âWas it the same for the last kid? Akutagawa?â Chuuya was genuinely curious this time since Akutagawa hadnât really mentioned how he fought with the weretiger and the Agency.
           Akira sneered. âYeah, he was getting beaten by his ability.â
           âYou donât like him, do you?â Canât exactly blame you. Impertinent kid.
           âHeâs Port Mafia,â spat Akira.
           Chuuya felt his heart ache for a moment. Quickly, he took a drink to clear his throat. It suddenly felt too tight. âThatâs a lot more anger than the average person holds for the Port Mafia.â
           Akiraâ eyes darkened. âI lost all I had left to the Port Mafia,â she murmured.
           His heart clenched again. Chuuya didnât like hearing her being hurt. Even worse, it was because of an organization he was a part of. âIâm sorry.â He didnât ask for explanation.
           However, Akira volunteered it. She felt safe with Chuuya. She didnât dare admit everything, butâŠAkira could tell him parts of the truth. âMy momâŠshe died when I was young. I still donât know the full story of how it happenedâŠâ
           âWas the Port Mafia involved?â murmured Chuuya.
           âNo.â Akira took a drink. The liquid burned her throat, taking the pain along with it. âNo. That would have been simpler. I just remember my father coming home one day and telling me she was gone. He never talked about it after, and even with all my connectionsâŠthere havenât been any answers.â A few tears began to gather in the corners of her eyes.
           Chuuya waited silently for her to continue. He wouldnât rush her. Not in this state.
           âSo, uh, a few years later, my father went to the war. He was a doctor, you know? That was the first he left me,â said Akira softly. âHe took a nurse with him. SheâŠHe always preferred her over me.â She laughed wryly. âI never did figure out what I did to have my father dislike me so much.â
           âAkiraâŠâ murmured Chuuya.
           Akira downed her drink and reached to refill it. âWhen he came back, the girl wasnât with him. I thought that I finally had my father back, butâŠHe was different. He only cared about work. Always gone, always out of the house. I went to and from school by myself. I learned to do everything by myself. My father and I were pretty much strangers. I came to terms with just seeing him getting home late and night. I came to terms with everythingâŠâ
           âThereâs more, isnât there?â Chuuya could tell so much weighed on her mind. And, nothing about the Port Mafia had come up yet.
           Akira chuckled mirthlessly. âI wish there wasnât.â
           Chuuya reached over and brushed his thumb over her knuckles softly. âYou donât have to tell me.â It was unusual for him to be so gentle, butâŠthis was special.
           âI want to,â replied Akira honestly. âI trust you.â
           Chuuya blinked. A warmth he had never felt spread through his chest. He liked the feeling. He wanted more.
           âI was at his obsession with work, right?â asked Akira, acting as if she was retelling an everyday tale. âRightâŠWell, I really thought things couldnât get any worse. Turns out I was wrong.â Akira took a gulp of whiskey. âOne day, my father was justâŠgone.â
           âGone?â questioned Chuuya, frowning.
           âGone. The only clue I ever got was that there were mafiosos waiting around our house. I did the research when I got older,â said Akira.
           âIs heâŠdead?â
            To me. âMy father is gone,â said the raven-haired woman. My father is dead. Ogai Mori, Port Mafia Boss, is alive. Akira put her drink down. âIâm never getting him back.â Tears began to fall down her cheeks. For all her anger at Mori, she still harbored a deep pain and sadness at having lost him. Hidden away in the darkest corners of her heart was the agony of knowing her father was out there. She pretended like the abandonment didnât bother any more, that she was just angry, but she was lying. Akira wished with all her heart to understand why he had left her. To understand why she wasnât good enough. To understand⊠She was broken from her mind by a sudden pressure on her face.
           Chuuya brushed his fingers over Akiraâs cheek gently, wiping the tears away. He said no words. He had never been great with emotions, certainly not expressing them. He simply sat there next to her, quietly comforting her. The inside of his mind, however, was less peaceful. Chuuya knew he could never admit to her his job. It would not only be a betrayal because she had been so truthful, but it would ruin his friendship with Akira. She would hate him, and Chuuya⊠For some reason, though he knew for only a few months, he couldnât bare that thought. After all, he liked her in a way he had never experienced.
#there's a will; there's a way#bsd anime#bsd manga#bsd#bsd chuuya#chuuya nakahara x oc#chuuya#original character#chuuya nakahara#chuuya x oc#bungou stray dogs oc#bsd oc#oc#bungou stray dogs#bungo stray dogs#bsd fic#bsd fanfic#port mafia
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Right Where You Left Me (Kakashi x OC)
Pairings: Kakashi x OC, Jiraiya x Tsunade
Synopsis:
She was the daughter of a Legendary Sannin, He, a son of a disgraced shinobi. Fate brought them together but life tore them apart. Will they be able to take control of their destinies and find their way back to each other?
...Or will they be another victim of the cruel shinobi world they are both a part of?
Feel free to reblog!
Chapter Five
When Tsunade stepped outside the casino, she was frozen in her steps. She knew almost instantly that Akira was close by. She could still feel the faint but lingering presence of her chakra.
Akiraâs here. Sheâs here.
There was no way Tsunade could have possibly mistaken Akiraâs chakra for someone elseâs. She may not have have seen her for a decade but Tsunade could never forget the familiarity of Akiraâs presence. She knew it like the back of her hand.Â
Akiraâs chakra has always been a little different than of a normal shinobi largely due to the fact that wasnât like the rest of them either. The uniqueness of her chakra was hidden in plain sight and would have been very obvious if one knows what to look for.Â
By each passing second, Tsunade could feel herself sobering up. The sudden realization that her daughter was in such a close vicinity caught her off guard. She was suddenly overwhelmed by the emotions she had been trying to ignore for the past ten years.Â
She wanted to see her.Â
She had been meaning meaning to see Akira so many times in the last years that she had lost count of them. She had even gone as far as to reach the outskirts of their village only to turn back around and run for the hills. Tsunade just couldnât face Akira. She was scared of what awaits her once she returned home, afraid of what Akira would say after she left her so many years ago.
She was terrified to be a burden for her daughter. It was never her intention to leave as long as she did, she only wanted to grieve properly and move on from Dan and Nawakiâs death but for some reason, a decade later, she was still grieving.
Tsunade didnât exactly know what she was doing but she somehow found herself roaming around the unfamiliar village for the last person keeping her alive.
Just a glimpse. Just a glimpse then Iâll be gone. Tsunade kept repeating the words to herself. She had continously kept tabs on Akira through Jiraiya but there was nothing like seeing her in the flesh.Â
Tsunade was well aware of the fact that she had hurt her daughter and she knew that her sudden return would cause her only more pain. She just couldnât do that again. She just wasnât ready to put Akira through all of that all over again.Â
Though Tsunade could easily discern Akiraâs chakra from a specific distance, she was certain that it was not the case for her daughter. Though it was clear that Akira was blessed with a remarkable skill in chakra control like her mother, Akira was just too young to remember Tsunadeâs chakra. She was just so young.
It wasnât long until Tsunade found her sitting on the bar of a sushi shop. Tsuandeâs breath was caught in her throat. For a moment, the world around her disappeared and all she could see was her daughter. She was sitting on her own, her back faced Tsunade but there was no doubt in Tsunadeâs mind that it was Akira.Â
She knew it was her.
Her hair that used to reach her waist as a child now fell just a little past over her shoulder in waves of light blonde, a familiar Konoha issued cloak hung neatly on the back of her chair but Akiraâs gaze was worlds away. She spun a chopstick in between her fingers as she stared at practically nothing.
Tsunade realized Akira was here on a mission. Tsunade almost scoffed at herself for thinking otherwise. Of course, sheâs here on a mission. What was I expecting?
She would never admit it even to herself but a part of her still hoped that her worst fears hasnât become a reality. Throughout the years, Jiraiya had relentlessly assured Tsunade that there was no reason for her to believe that Akira loathed her. He had told her that Akira understood why her mother left but she knew deep down that Akira must have hated her for leaving. She hated herself for leaving.
 What she did was cruel and selfish. But it was better than dragging Akira down with her to a pit of endless grieving and what ifs.
She had her glimpse of Akira. She had with her own two eyes how Akira had grown into an astonishing young woman. Tsunade knew she should leave. It was obvious that Akira was better off without her but she couldnât bring herself to move. She knew she was being selfish yet again. Akira deserved so much better than her, she deserved a mother who can take care of her and not someone who needed taking care of.
Tsunade knew that the right thing to do was to keep her distance and she wasnât sure if it was the  alcohol or just her but she found herself weaving hand signs and masking her appearance before closing the gap that separated her from her daughter.Â
She had absolutely no idea what she was going to do when she sat on the stool next to Akira but the words came out of her mouth without her permission.
âYouâre a long way from home.â Akira stopped mid-sip from her drink and looked at her right where the voice came from and found a woman clearly in her late 50s with graying hair and a smirk.Â
For the second time that night,Tsunadeâs breath was caught in her throat. When Akiraâs eyes pierced into her own, for a split second, she saw Danâs face instead. Even when Akira was young, people had told her how much they looked similar but seeing at her now, Tsunade thought how wrong all of them were. Akira had always been so much like Dan than she was of her. They just didnât know him enough to see.Â
Akira blinked a couple of times in confusion, unsure if she was the one being talked to by the unfamiliar woman. âIâm sorry?â
Instincts were suddenly taking over Akiraâs entire body. She discreetly checked the shuriken holster on her left leg just in case the woman attacked.
âYouâre Tsunadeâs daughter.â She said as a matter of fact then casually orders a dish from the menu.
âOh, no.â A defeated sigh escaped Akiraâs lips. I know where this is going. She had encountered this conversation too many times than she wanted to remember. The resemblance between her and her mother kept giving away their relationship to the people Tsunade had a debt to.
âShe owes you money doesnât she?â
The woman chuckled, the lines on her face becoming more visible as she did so. â She does actually.â
Akira shrugged nonchalantly, âIâm not paying for her.â Akira was definitely curious about the woman now. She seemed familiar, like theyâve met somewhere before though Akira was absolutely certain this was the first time she had ever seen the lady.
âDo I know you?â Akiraâs eyes narrowed amd Tsunadeâs heart skipped a beat.
âI used to know when you were younger.â That wasnât exactly a lie in Tsunadeâs part. She did know Akira as a child. Not anymore. The person sitting right next to her was completely different from the child who bid her goodbye on the village gates. That child was oblivious, unaware, still free from the gravity of her duties. This girl, no, this woman she was seeing bled of confidence and grace in ever action. Tsunade could see from her face how she had embraced her responsibilities wholeheartedly despite its burden. She had grown into someone Tsunade could only dream of becoming.
âReally?â Akiraâs right eyebrow arched this time, still suspicious. So, Tsunade, still enamoured by the presence of her daughter, continued her cover story. She told her stories, facts only someone from the village would know and things no one would have known if they didnât see Akira grow up. And true enough, Akira was convinced of her identity.
For what seemed like only a few minutes for Tsunade but hours in reality, the two exchanged stories with each other. It was much easier this way. To Akira, she was just a retired shinobi traveling the world, not someone living a life full of regrets. She told her stories of her time as a shinobi, the adventures, the missions, something she never had the chance to do when Akira was younger as she did not fully understood yet what it takes to become a shinobi. Still, she was careful to keep her cover on and noticed that Akira never mentioned any names. But still, it didnât took long for Akira to succumb into the familiarity of the elder lady.
She didnât have a lot of women in her life growing up. She had her friends for sure but Rin was gone, Kurenai was just only a few years older than her and even Kushina was not much older either. They were like her older sisters and Biwako Sarutobi became her honorary grandmother. The fact that the two most important women in her life died at the same night didnât help at all. She didnât have anyone to buy clothes with or talk to when her budding romance with Kakashi at the time became all too confusing. She went through all of these alone. Of course, she had Jiraiya but despite being the writer the Make Out Series, there were things only a fellow woman can understand.
As the older lady continued to speak next to her, Akira wondered if this is what it felt like to have a mother. The shinobi in her told her to shut up, pack her things and leave the woman who literally showed up from nowhere. She reminded herself that genjutsu was not exactly her strong suit but the other part of her was a little too assured that this woman was harmless and she was technically part of her old life. She was just so kind and she listened and laughed with her.
 They talked about the village and how much it has changed over the last few years. Tsunade told her abour her travels and the places she had visited and it came to her knowledge that Akira had dreamt to travel sthe world as well. Not for missions, but for herself. When Tsunade asked asked what was stopping her, Akiraâs answer was short but it was more than enough for her to see the dedication that she has for the village. Like her father.Â
âI guess I want to protext my people more than anything.â She answered with a shrug and a smile. Tsunade knew she meant each word from the look in her eyes alone. Akira told her how protecting the village was what she wants to do the most not because she needs to,but because she wants to. There was nothing else she would rather be than be a protector of her home.
âSo you want to become Hokage, then? Is that what you want too?â Do you have his dream too?
Akiraâs laugh filled the air. âNo.â she chuckled. âI donât really like paperwork.â This made Tsunade laugh herself. She guess that Akira had seen the mountains of paperwork from the Third Hokage and it did not look appealing to her either.
â I prefer protecting the village from the outside. Besides, Iâm better off at field work anyway.â
âCaptain?â Their converstaion was interrupted by two seemingly normal shinobis to the normal eye but their all too familiar black cloaks immediately gave away their identities to Tsunade.
ANBU.
Akira quickly excused herself from their conversation and headed out. Tsunade was well aware of the fact that Akira had joined the ANBU at an age younger than what everyone was accustomed to but she was never informed that Akira had become a team captain. Both she and Jiraiya had been against the idea of Akira being an ANBU knowing how dangerous the missions they were sent to are but there was really nothing anyone could do when Akira sets her mind to something. All they could do was to watch and pray that she would come home every time.
The three talked in hushed tones but Tsunade heard enough to perceive that whatever their mission is, it was not going as planned.Â
There was a moment of silence between the three as Akira contemplated what their next move would be.
âTell the others weâre moving out on the first light.â Her command was curt but spoken with absolute finality.Â
When Akira returned to her seat, there was a noticeable change in her mood. âMissionâs not going well, huh?â Tsunade asked though the answer was more than obvious by the look in Akiraâs face.
Akira let out a deep and frustrated sigh. âI donât really like long-term missions.â
âSomeone waiting for you back home?â Tsunade took her chances and asked. She wondered if Akira had had the chance to fall in love yet. She hoped that Akira hadnât yet as she wanted to be there for her daughter when she starts dating but the deep flush of red quickly spreading across Akiraâs cheeks told her otherwise.
Oh.
Akira contemplated for a second wether she would divulge that information to the still annamed woman but before she could tell herself to stop, s smile was already forming on her lips.
âThere is, actually.â
Man, I really should shut-up now.
Tsunade could see a gleam in Akiraâs eyes as she told her how much this man means to her. All her worries from her mission seemed to disappear with the mention of the man. She looked incredibly happy and for that, Tsunade was beyond grateful.Â
If you ever find yourself in the Land of Fire, You should come by to the village. I think he would love to meet you.â Akira says as she gestured for the bill.
Tsunade would love to meet him as well knowing that she is forever indebted to this person for bringing joy into her daughterâs life.Â
The two women reached for the bill at the same time, and for a split second, their skins touched. All Tsunade could think about was heat.
Akiraâs skin was abnormally hot against her. The medic ninja in her was sure that Akira had a fever of at least a hundred at the bare minimum.Â
âI got this. Itâs the least I could do for my mother.â Akira says, pulling out a couple of bills from her wallet.
âYouâre sick.â Tsunade placed a hand on Akiraâs forehead and confirmed that she was warmer than usual.Â
Akira looked at her in confusion before dismissing her with a laugh. âIâm always warm.â She grinned. âThatâs just me.âÂ
Tsunade knew it must have been an effect of being the Okamiâs reincarnation she had developed while growing up. It wasnât like this when Akira was a child or she would have instantly noticed it.Â
Questions as to what else Akira may have developed plague Tsunadeâs mind but she never had the chance to ask Akira because she was once again caught off guard when Akira placed her own Konoha issued cloak around Tsunadeâs shoulders.
âHere. Looks like you need it more than I do.â Akira adjusted the cloak on Tsunadeâs shoulder and zipped it into place.Â
âBut itâs cold out-â
âIâm always warm remember?â Akira held the entrance curtains of the shop out of the way for Tsunade.
The two of them stood outside the shop where the moon was already shining bright and the streets were lit with street lights.Â
âYou know between the two of us, you have more chances in seeing my mother more than I do.â Akira started. She knew that it was incredibly inappropriate to ask a favor from someone she had just met and whom she refuses to grace with her name but she was desperate. She had to see her mother even for a moment.
Akira had made it a point to not talk about Tsunade whenever Jiraiya was around knowing ythat the man was also having a hard time dealing with his own feelings and juggling his time between fulfilling his destiny and fathering Akira as much as he possibly can.
This woman was her last chance in order to talk to her mother and sparing Jiraiya.
âSo if you ever see her, can you do me a favor and tell her to come home?â Akira looked straight into the eyes of her mother and Tsunade saw right through her and into the sadness Akira was trying so hard to conceal.
âTell her that I understand that she doesnât owe anything to me but I need to know-â Akiraâs voice broke.
âTell her I need to know if it was me.â Akira forced a smile in her face. âI deserve at least that.â
I need to know if she left because I was different. Because I wasnât like the others.
âOkay?â
âOf course.â There was nothing else Tsunade could say before Akira gave her one last smile - a smile that would haunt Tsunade for the rest of her days- before disappearing into the night with the hopes of seeing the kind woman once againÂ
Tsunade was left on the street on her own ince again with only her thoughts to accompany her. Of all the possible scenarios that had ran through her head, never did she once imagine that Akira woulld blame herself for the decisions she made.
It was never Akira, It was always her who had the problem.
She had always been perfect to Tsunadeâs eyes from the moment she was born. She was the one good thing that happened in Tsunadeâs life. She was her miracle.
Tsunade promised herself that she would tell Akira that herself.
âââââ
Tsunade found herself standing outside the window of her daughterâs rented room, her eyes brimmed with tears as the gravity of what she had done all those years ago finally sinked in. Â
Akira blamed herself for something she had nothing to do with.
Just a few feet away from her, her daughter laid fast asleep on the futon. She was curled into a tight ball, the duvet only covering her lower body and the pillow that her head was supposed to be resting on, lay discarded on the floor.Â
Tsunade couldnât help but smile. The familiarity of the scene she was witnessing felt right. It felt like home. She had done this thousands of times before, back when the woman in front of her was nothing but a baby that can fit right into her arms, then a young child whose abilities were one of a kind she posed a danger to her own, and now, a fine kunoichi who had already surpassed her predecessors in every aspect.Â
Yet despite that, Tsunade can still see the child she loved more than anyone or anything in the world. She can still see Dan in her. Akira may indeed inherited her motherâs looks but there was so much of Dan that lives in her.
She knew deep inside what she had to do. She needed to stop this nonsense. Dan may have been gone but he left her the most precious gift anyone could ask for and she was so busy tending to her own grief that she didnât see who needed her the most.Â
Tsunade knew she needed to come home.
She needed to come home to Akira.
But she was a little too late.
Way too late.
âââââ
A/N: Thank you for all the support! I really appreciate them more than you can imagine.
#kakashi#kakashi hatake#kakashi angst#kakashi x oc#naruto#naruto shippuden#jiraiya#dan x tsunade#jiraiya x tsunade#tsunade#kakashi x reader#kakashi fanfiction#anbu kakashi#angst#anime#senju#anime fanfiction#imagines#jiratsu#kakashi sensei#kakashi love#team kakashi#kakashi x y/n#love#kakashi fluff#kakashi headcanons#naruto headcanons#hatake#kakashi imagines#kakashi series
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Secret Service: TERRORISM - 11
Writer: Akira
Season: Winter
Characters: Hiyori, Kohaku, Jun
Proofreading: bakemonoremy (JP) & Skyress (ENG)
Translation: haranami & hyenahunt
Jun: I mean, when you first moved into our room, Sakura-kun, your expression seemed to say there wasn't a thing in the world that was dear to you.
Location: Ryokan
Hiyori: Mmm... We'd certainly like to rise to the occasion, but we do have our own issues at hand, you see.
This is a mere guess, but I'd venture that as the leader of Eden, Nagisa-kun has received a Secret Order â one decreeing that he is forbidden from turning down any formal requests made of him by another idol... or something to that effect.
Kohaku: âOh⊠Secret Orders, huh? Does every unit get one? Even if they arenât participatinâ in the preliminaries?â
Hiyori: The units from ES who were seeded in do, yes â namely, Trickstar and us of Eden.
Though ES has no authority to enforce such rules on any underground idols working solo, of course.
Breaking the normal kind of 'order' will cost you a fine, but only in SSL$ â
And as SSL$ are only necessary during the preliminaries, it'll be no real loss to us even if we do break the rules, you see.
I suppose they're simply set to help make things feel a little more fair.
Jun: Yep. For the record, my order's that I'm not allowed to mention Jin Sagami's name during the prelims.
But even if I say what my order is, kinda like this, and basically break the rule in the process, it's no problem at all for us.
We could get fined so hard we go into the red, but it's not gonna affect our seeding rights and we'll be able to enter the finals just fine.
Hiyori: In that aspect, the SS organising committee abides by the rules more than you'd expect. They wouldn't do something like accuse us of going overboard after such a fact, and strip us of our seed rights, I believe.
Jun: These orders seem like they're really just for fun, in the end~ So they're a lil' more forgiving, kinda, like they won't hurt you too bad if you break 'em.
Kohaku: âThatâs true, but the real issue here is that the management gets tâchoose how much the fine is gonna be.â
âThereâs no guarantee that they wonât fine ya a bunch anâ effectively force ya tâforfeit the competition if the occasion calls for it.â
âThatâs why weâre playinâ it safe and tryinâ our darned hardest tânot break any rules.â
Hiyori: That's rather sensible of you. As it is, the ES bigshots are already singling you out as the token troublemakers.
Kohaku: âYep. These Orders are pretty much just a nice, convenient way for the SS management tâcherry pick the idols thatâll make it to the finals and get rid of the ones whoâre causinâ trouble.â
âItâd be to our advantage tâbehave ourselves.â
âThis ainât an issue of how many fans youâve got, or even how good of an idol you are. All that really matters is whether or not you suit ESâs agenda.â
âIt really drives me up the wall, but thereâs no denyinâ that SS is a crucial battle that involves the whole idol industry. Everythinâ that happens now â plus the final outcome â is gonna have a huge impact on our careers from here on out.â
âThe best case scenario would be tâwin. If ya canât manage to, you oughta at least think of your future anâ try not to stir up any trouble.
âBut that just ainât like us at all.â
Jun: Haha. This is just my two cents, but â
Both you guys and Trickstar are the type who wanna just ignore all that grown-up business and run a riot, aren'tcha~?
That's gotta be rough~ Anyone who treasures anything can't afford to be nearly so reckless.
But y'know, I'm actually happy 'bout this. I mean, when you first moved into our room, Sakura-kun, your expression seemed to say there wasn't a thing in the world that was dear to you.
Jun: And look at you now â you've found so much to cherish, haven't you?
Kohaku: âIs that what ya think of me? No wonder youâve been lookinâ at me all gooey-eyed every now and then.â
âAnyways, these Orders really are a pain in the neck, and those Secret Orders are even worse.â
âA special command given to nobody but the leader of each unit, huhâŠâ
Hiyori: Indeed. And as you can imagine, Nagisa-kun can't tell a soul about his Secret Order, so all we can do is merely guess at what it is.
Jun: Break your Secret Order and a simple SSL$ fine isn't gonna be nearly enough to cut it, apparently~
So even with our seed rights and all, we've gotta be careful of that, too.
Hiyori: That's right. On that note, it seems like Nagisa-kun wrote us a letter right before flying off to Shikoku on Ibara's heels.
Upon reading it, I daresay I gained a rough idea as to what his Secret Order was.
Kohaku: âIs that what you were talkinâ about earlier? He canât turn down any formal request an idol makes?â
Hiyori: Correct. Though we're free to do as we please during the preliminaries...
It appears that by spending their SSL$, other units are able to call on idols who aren't participating to help out.
Jun: That does seem to be the case, yeah. Those other idols can be called in as temporary guests or helpers.
A great way to bring in some publicity, isn't it? It's kinda like having a secret weapon to suddenly turn the tables with.
Of course, when it comes to guys like us and Trickstar who got seeded in, not to mention participating big names like super idol Hidaka-sensei who're close to the management â
Our summoning cost, or well, the SSL$ needed to bring us in would be way too much. So by the looks of it, not just anyone can call on us for help.
Hiyori: It's also up to whoever's being called on to decide whether they'd like to help or not, you see.
I feel anyone would hesitate to spend lavish amounts summoning Trickstar, who's comparatively free-wheeling and a struggle to rein in.
But due to Nagisa-kun's Secret Order, we're unable to turn down helper requests.
No matter how despicable the other party may be, or how unenthusiastic we may feel about it, we absolutely must take it on.
Jun: That's pretty much how it was this morning, too, although it wasn't an actual helper request or anything.
Hiyori: Ah yes, that... I really did wonder what was going on when those boys barged in, absolutely seething with anger. All the same, it turned out to be something rather sympathetic once we heard them out.
Kohaku: â...? Canât say I really get it, but⊠You can never know when someoneâs gonna come askinâ fer your help, and Eden canât turn âem down when that happens, right?â
âBut, fer some reason, Nagisa-han and Vice Prez-han are both off doinâ god-knows-what with my partner Madara-han, so they canât accept any requests.â
Hiyori: Indeed. That's why we're on constant standby as Eve, so that we may take on any helper requests at any point in time.
Since goodness knows what kind of abhorrent punishment awaits us if we break the Secret Order, hm?
Our most beloved princess, our little Bloody Mary might even have to endure some dreadful ordeal if we did.
But even that was something Nagisa-kun only alluded to in his letter of absence of sorts, so I can't be certain if it's true.
It may have all been a means to keep us uninvolved, including the Secret Order.
And even if that was what we're dealing with, we wouldn't think of risking it all just to find out. After all, if it truly, truly turned out to be the case, then it'd only spell the absolute worst for us.
Kohaku: âYeah, Iâve definitely got a bad feelinâ about this... SS is the idol industryâs biggest festival, so itâs bound to have just as many evil plots festerinâ behind the scenes.â
âThatâs probably why Madara-han is puttinâ his life on the line and searchinâ through that deep, stagnant darkness.â
âBut, still, he shouldâve asked me fer help. No matter how bright a star shines, it canât dispel all the darkness on its lonesome.â
âHe canât win on his own, and heâs a darn fool if he thinks otherwise.â
Hiyori: ......
Kohaku: â...Thatâs enough of that, though. Sorry fer callinâ ya this late, Eve.â
âWe ainât in a fun situation â everythingâs up in the air. But Iâm gonna work mâhardest to try anâ arrive at the best possible outcome.â
âItâs not like you two are in a position where you can do whatever suits your fancy, but ya should at least try not to end up regrettinâ anything.â
âIf ya donât hold on tight to the things ya treasure while theyâre still in reach, youâre gonna end up beatinâ yourself up about it, just like I am.â
âŠâŠâŠâŠâŠ
â prev ⊠all ⊠next â
#enstars#enstars translation#ensemble stars#s: secret service#hyenahunttl#era: !!#type: event#hiyori tomoe#jun sazanami#kohaku oukawa
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Akira growled as he walked downtown. He was just trying to keep his head clear. He couldn't get the fuck away from all of this. He was tired. He wasn't sure what to do about anything. Akira Otoishi was very afraid of what was going to become his younger brother. And he was very confused about where this voice narrating him was coming from. Akira looks around, including the consideration of a nearby dumpster, for the source of the voice. "Hello," he calls out. Panic was being to well in Akira's chest as he considers that he may have finally been pushed over the edge. He notices a gangly clerk hanging around outside of the store. This clerk is Manabu. His name tag says so, and so does the narrator. Akira approaches him. "Excuse me," he asks, "do you have a phone? I think I need to call a ride." "Sure," Manabu replied, "but I don't think you need a ride. You seem soooooooooooper tense." "Yeah, well, maybe that's why I need a ride," Akira responds shortly. His irritation is not hidden very well. "I run a game store," Manabu continues despite the last comment, "Perhaps you'd like to play something with me? Get your mind at ease? It'll be good for it." 'A fucking sales pitch. I am going to Kill this fucker. I'm going to burn this fucking store to the ground,' Akira rolls his eyes, but pauses as he notices Manabu's eyebrows raise. He flushes, horrified that his thoughts, violent, volatile, and generally boiling under his vapid facade, unknown or ignored by his peers, were in the open. "Okayokayokay. Okay, fine," he relents, "I'll play." "... this isn't an excuse to just get in my store is it?" Manabu laughs nervously, he seems genuinely afraid. "We'll see. Maaaaaybe Iâll spare ya, if you let me win," Akira winks at Manabu. "I can't do that," the clerk chuckles again as he held open the door, "Where'd the fun in that be?" Manabu shuts the door and locks it. Akira turns around, and Manabu smiles, "I just don't want people wandering in while we play. Come on, there's a table in the back room. That's my little break area." Akira hesitates, the narration had put him on edge, but Manabu grabs his shoulder reassuringly, âIf I was going to hurt you, donât you think Iâd put some more thought into hiding the fact I locked you in? And I do have a phone you could easily overpower me to get to.â âHow does he-â Akira cut himself short, he was beginning to understand how to play Manabuâs game. âGame?â The punk opens his mouth to inquire further, but the clerk interrupts, âWhy yes, weâre already playing the game, technically, but itâs okay. Again, if I was going to, I would have already. Just a little power of mine. I donât use it to cheat, donât worry. I just use it to make the games more interesting.â
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My Status as an Assassin Obviously Exceeds the Hero's
by Matsuri Akai, Illustrations by Tozai
Volume 01
Story  â
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Summary
Oda Akira is the kind of guy who people forget is even there. His unassuming nature pays off, though, when his entire class is swept away to a fantasy world, and he slips easily into his new role as a silent assassin. Between his suspiciously high starting stats and too many details that donât fit, Akira is sure something is wrong. But digging into royal secrets is a dangerous game, and when Akira uncovers an evil scheme, he also makes a powerful enemyâthe very king who brought him to this world! With the help of the elven spirit medium Amelia, can he find the power to set things right, and get his revenge?Â
Review
I tried this light novel because the idea of an entire class of kids being isekai-ed and that the assassin might be the true âheroâ and/or that the hero might be a red herring sounded like a fun concept. The first couple of chapters were okay as setup. It wastes no time dropping the kids in the new world and assigning magical attributes that typically match their natural talents and strengths. Akira, a loner who typically goes ignored by others, which makes him a natural fit for the assassin class. Unlike his classmates, he questions the motives and facts being fed to them.
Naturally, things are not as they seem and the plot gets a lot more interesting, with Akira being singled out by the Captain of the Guards, only for him to then be murdered and the blame put onto Akira himself as he is forced to go on the run. We also get a few other point of views, the hero, and one of Akiraâs few âfriendsâ to name a couple, as they and a few others learn that some of the people who summoned them are not to be fully trusted. The overall initial mystery setup of what might be happening and getting a few more of Akiraâs peers involved in the story was interesting and makes you wonder what exactly is going on in this magical world and the royal family.
Unfortunately it falls apart, for me at least, after Akira is on the run and meets an elven princess named Amelia. I donât know, perhaps it was just too typical a setup where our protagonist meets an insanely hot elven princess who immediately falls in love with him... and even though he is a âlonerâ with poor social skills and comfort, it doesnât take him long to devote himself to take care of her always and forever. Her back story was also rather slapped together and seemed rather harsh (evil magic sister) and quickly resolved without much effort, at least for now. It just felt OOC for him from his earlier stated personality and history.
I donât know, the entire time they are together just killed most of my interest. Perhaps I didnât fully understand the genre I was expecting and that skewed by expectations. I was hoping that this one would break from the âformulaâ and be a little more interesting. Nothing wrong with a harem building OP fantasy, but Iâm just not as interested in them unless they offer something else to âhookâ me.
Nothing wrong with this book, just not to my personal taste (at least by the end of book 1). Perhaps I will give this one more volume and see if it develops in a way that appeals to me. The story line with the other students or the truth behind their summoning might develop into something interesting. Is it worth reading more? If I have read this series wrong, let me know, Iâm open to a good story!



#My Status as an Assassin Obviously Exceeds the Hero's#japanese light novel#shounen#magical world#isekai
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One Foolâs Heart [Rank 4]
Fandom: Persona 5
Pairing: Akira / Reader, later: Akira / Akechi (one-sided)
Warnings: age difference, consensual underage romance, implied/referenced self-harm, implied/referenced child abuse, references to depression, unreliable narrator, angst, hurt & comfort, p3 cameos, p4 cameos, no persona 5 royal spoilers
Summary: All you wanted was a nice part time job to scrape by. But if you had known how much of a smug sass-master Akira Kurusu would turn out to be, youâd have thought twice about agreeing to tutor him.
Notes: Rank 3 | Rank 5 Masterlist
[Rank 4]
[you]: We still need to talk about what happened.
[you]: I can see youâre reading this.
[you]: You canât just ignore me.
   The clear lack of response is evidence enough that yes, your dad can ignore you, and he is very motivated to do so. Even a whole month after the incident, heâs still avoiding you like a contagious disease, the exact opposite from your mother who clings to you like a very persistent octopus, demanding you to call her every day. It does the exact opposite from calming your nerves, and unlike anything before it draws Narukamiâs suspicion like a beacon. You didnât want to, but to redirect his attention, you used the only strategy you knew would hit him critically: You called him Yuu. Hearing his first name for the very first time, Narukami looked like you were trying to sell him drugs.
   âWho are you, and where is the real one?â heâd asked, face blank of expression, but his eyes had betrayed him, lighting up with joy that had squeezed your heart to walnut size. After four years, itâs long due, especially when it took you only a couple of weeks to reach that level of closeness with Akira. Though Akira shouldnât be the touchstone for a delicate business like this. Youâve learnt Akira is someone people open up to dangerously quickly. His little, honest smiles are keys unlocking every door; whenever he throws his head back and laughs, people stop breathing for the tiniest seconds and stare, mesmerised and with a world full of possibilities opening up before them. It leaves you with a very strange feeling, one that warms your chest, but at the same time scares you to inspect it more closely, because the answer will surely lead to forbidden territory. Already you know that what you feel towards Akira isnât something you can easily look past or ignore.   The realisation came slowly, but in the end inevitable like sand running down in an hourglass. The fact that you can relax around him in ways you donât even dare to do while hanging out with other friends has become very suspicious to you. Especially since youâve started hanging out in his attic a couple of weeks ago. The puzzled look Boss sends your way whenever you pass him before heading upstairs weighs just as much as the demanding one of the young fortune telling lady in Shinjuku trying to guilt trip you into buying more of her self made lucky soaps you really donât need more of as one of your drawers is already close to bursting with how many youâve squeezed inside. Youâre pretty sure Boss is onto you, but for some reason he hasnât called the Child Protective Service yet, and stupid as you are, youâre pushing your luck further. Which of course doesnât solve your problem at all.
  Learning little personal things about Akira feels like opening the Pandoraâs box. Youâve learnt he has this weird habit of asking Morgana questions and looking at him with a serious face expecting an answer before he remembers youâre in the same room and talking to a cat isnât considered a normal thingâ and still, that doesnât leave him flustered; youâre not sure Akira even knows that word, because he just laughs, shakes his head, and then proceeds like nothing happened. According to his book shelf, heâs quite well-read. You spy cultural magazines about movies and theatres, books about language of flowers, efficient time management and fishing. Novels by authors from different countries build a wall on the highest rack, their familiar names and titles a welcome distraction from whenever Akira does something that requires you intensely staring at his face. Breathing for example. His room is littered with little discreet secrets you try not to dwell on too long like the tools on his work desk or all the dirty laundry covered in strange black goo. All those things donât change the fact that his room still doesnât look anything like a place a teenager should occupy. It doesnât bother Akira, but even so, you occasionally sneak in basic living necessities like a small garbage bin, a pot with tulips, a white piggy bank and a desk lamp. Either Akira accepts everything without commenting or he thinks all this stuff has been there all this time.
  Another thing youâve learnt about Akira is that he does not speak about his past and all the circumstances that lead up to him living in the attic above Leblanc. Once you tried to ask indirectly about that, but he immediately saw through you and for the rest of the study session you were rewarded with a cool, tight-lipped smile. Itâs just as much of a delicate topic as the relationship with your family, and sometimes you can imagine the baggage you both are carrying with every secret weighing on your shoulders, clearly visible and yet both of you refuse to talk about it and choose to ignore the blatant obstacles you both stumble over rather than work together to put them away. Ignoring problems has always been one of your special traits youâre unrivalled at, so itâs no surprise that this is your tactics of approach regarding the budding feelings for Akira.   And just like that, a chance to put you miles away from facing what exactly you feel towards him comes sooner than expected. Talk about an upcoming party has slithered around the campus for a couple of days and youâve planned your complete week just around it so you can go and get mindlessly drunk. You leave the dormitory around 8. After a day spent going through your texts and revising notes, you  depart without a guilty conscious, especially with exams approaching steadily. On your way to Ginza you get some additional booze, scrolling through messages from Narukami who tells you to come around if you miss the last train. Itâs so sweet, especially because you know he isnât a big fan of those parties. He probably knows what youâre up to and yes, one-night stands certainly donât belong to your proudest moments, but right now you want to think of anything but Akira or that your dad still owes you an explanation you know he will give you wrapped up nicely in lies.
  The location this time is inside a shared apartment of two of your fellow students. Atsui and Samui, prodigy twins known for their mean serves, finally celebrate their birthday and oh boy, it is going to be a wild one. As kids from two highly esteemed doctors, their apartment is everything you wish for, and if you wouldnât have dignity, youâd probably leech off your parentsâ money as well. Their entrance area is bigger than your kitchen. Someone pushes a plastic cup with beer in your hand, then sends you into the lionâs den with an encouraging, little push. A gigantic table in the middle of the room is already surrounded by students playing beer pong, screaming at each other. The majority of the assembled already has had a few drinks judging from the hollering. The music blasts with a deep bass vibrating through your whole body as you slither around groups of people, receiving greeting claps on your shoulder here and bone braking hugs there.
  The superficiality of it all is the appeal, the sole motivation driving you to join these gatherings. Empty promises and half felt concerns are exactly what you crave right now, the sheer lack of emotional responsibility towards these people that will forget everything you say the next morning. It fills you with a strange feeling, like youâre floating in a bubble, separated from everyone without fearing theyâll pop it and expose you. Itâs safe and easy, maybe lazy but exactly what you need right now.
  You look for familiar faces, and find one immediately, though it doesnât exactly make you jump in joy. On the other end of the room you notice Tadashi, a guy youâve met during one of your very rare visits to a college sport course in your first semester. Somehow you managed to stay in contact after all those years, and now he greets you by throwing a chicken wing in your direction. It lands with a splat at the wall behind you. You flip him off.
  Unsurprisingly, after too many rounds of drinking games, you end up in his apartment somewhere in Akihabara. Youâve barely passed the door when Tadashiâs hands find their way on your hips and in your hair, his mouth draws a hot path from your lips to your neck where they find a spot to settle and mark. Caged between a wall and his warm body, your fingers impatiently tug at his shirt until itâs off, landing forgotten somewhere on the ground. Tadashiâs training pays off, he easily swipes you up, pulling your legs around his waist. Seconds later you land on his bed, bouncing and giggling. Itâs been so long since youâve felt the intimate warmth of another body, every nerve is on fire and tense with expectation. Once things really go down, it becomes difficult to focus on him when your mind is occupied with somethingâ someone else. The body on you changes into a dead weight pressing down on you, lips scrapping your skin. Fingers inside you try to bring you over the edge only to let you fall alone, alone and what usually feels like an exciting trip is suddenly a rollercoaster ride you want to get over with as soon as possible.
  His fingers travel from your neck to your chin, your cheeks and he conducts your face to the side to plaster kisses all over your jaw and that moment changes everything. You notice his slender, long fingers caressing your skin, working you apart from inside and they remind you of a different set of fingers, just as long and slenderâ and thatâs your breaking point.
  The sound of a water boiler wakes you from a foggy dream. It takes a moment to remember where you are, the dozen faces of American musicians in posters on unfamiliar walls watching your every move as you get up and throw a blanket around your body. An off key hum lures you into the kitchen, where slim rays of sunshine draw blurry lines on the ground. Itâs enough to make you squint and groan, the light too much for your eyes and hangover mind still trying to put together the images from last night.
  In front of the counter top, Tadashi is standing barefoot, preparing coffee. When he notices your frowning face, he offers you a cigarette with a crooked grin. Usually, youâd decline, but since everything has been going downhill lately, you succumb and indulge in one. The nicotine soothes your nerves to a straight line, allowing to hold up an easy conversation despite how awkward you expected it to be.
  âYou really thought the plot line was good?â Tadashi raises an eyebrow at you, thumbing on his iPhone in search for a summary of the TV show youâve both seen. The ash hangs dangerously at the tip of his cigarette, but you canât find an ashtray. âIt feels like there are a thousand plot holes.â
  âWell, itâs not like it has to make lots of sense? Itâs a kidâs show?â The lack of immediate response tells you he thinks differently, but somehow you still feel smug about it, and take another sip from your coffee. That is until Tadashi, way too casually, asks, âBy the way, whoâs Akira?â
  You stare at him. Tadashi stares back. The only thing you manage is a stupid, âHuh?â
  The corners of Tadashiâs mouth jump. He leans back against the counter, his slim hips resting against the edge as he slurps his coffee unnecessarily loud like he wants to prove something. âHey, Iâm not judging. Just curious about the lucky fella.â
  âYou meanâ,â you start, but no matter how you think about continuing, you know itâll just get worse. âYouâre not saying Iââ
  Tadashiâs grin widens. âOh, you did. It was likeâ,â he curls his fingers into a fist and then snaps them open like an explosion, âyou became a lot more excited, if you know what I mean.â
  âOh God, this isnât really happening,â you groan, pressing your palms against your eyes. If you canât see him, he canât see you, and youâre saved from an embarrassing conversation. But Tadashi has the complete opposite in mind and instead of remaining silent during your mental breakdown, he probes further, âSo, do I know him?â
  God, you hope he doesnât. Anything else would mean the end of you. But you canât say itâs impossible for him to know Akira because heâs still in high school, so instead you settle on a vague truth. âNo, heâs someone from work. By the way, did you read Laheyâs text? Can I get your notes? Cool, thanks!â You flee to his room, ignoring the blank expression he throws at you that clearly shows how bad you are at changing topics. Inside, you quickly dress even though youâre in desperate need of a shower. Judging from how hot you feel, your face must be on fire.
  Thousand thoughts stumble through your brain, each full of knots and no loose threads in sight, so you donât even know where to start. Thinking about Akira is one thing. Imagining having sex with him should put you in prison. Hypothetically speaking, if this is a crush, and here you shudder because crushes are for teenagers, how can it escalate so quickly? To be fair, yes you were drunk, so maybe that shouldnât count, but the images of him towering above you, his grey sly eyes eating you up while his mouth maps your bodyâ itâs all too clear, the lines too sharp. This canât happen again, you wonât allow it.
  Thankfully, Tadashi doesnât say anything else when you return. You exchange goodbyes, mentioning meeting up some time again soon, but you both know that wonât happen, and thatâs fine. The foundation of your relationship is based on on and off meetings that are just perfect because there is no expectations, no promises to keep. Itâs easy because you both avoid complications, and that somehow makes Tadashi the perfect boyfriend candidate. Well, not for you, but thereâs certainly someone out there for him.
  On your way home, you still think about the night and what it might mean for the future. How are you supposed to look Akira in the eyes and not be reminded of how you shamelessly moaned his name. The challenge becomes unexpectedly harder when your phone vibrates with a message. Akiraâs name blinks in white letters, leaving you with a dreadful feeling in your stomach.
[Akira]: this is an emergency
[Akira]: mayday, mayday
[Akira]: call 911
[you]: What
[Akira]: help, send help! i got two cards for cake knight rises! someone has to go with me!
     You stare at the message, failing to see the problem. Why doesnât he ask Ryuji or Ann?
[you]: Â So ask your friends?
[Akira]: Â i'm asking u? u r a friend?
    He really shouldnât be able to make your heart jump with such simple sentences, and yet it stumbles in your chest like a hiker on foreign terrain.
[you]: Â When?
[Akira]: Â is that a yes??
[you]: Â Depending on when. Iâm supposed to teach you stuff, or did you forget?
[Akira]: Â letâs consider it a field trip
[you]: Â How about we donât and just go about it the same as always?
[Akira]: Â objection
[you]: Â Denied.
[Akira]: Â :(
[Akira]: Â why so mean? i deserve a reward after nailing my finals.
[you]: Â And I deserve a pay raise, but we donât always get what we want.
[Akira]: Â as the gentleman that i am, i'll even pay for your popcorn
[you]: Â Sold. As long as we donât end up in one of those late night screenings and the police make me responsible for dragging a minor around at this hour.
[Akira]: Â sounds illegal. i'm in.
[you]: Â Akira, no.
[Akira]: Â akira yes
  Saying No to Akira is harder than backflipping from the second floor without breaking your ankles, and youâre sure he knows you canât resist him any longer judging from how heâs spamming please for the next thirty seconds, and after that an additional twenty more with thanks after you finally agree. After deciding where to meet, you hurry home to take a shower and change into new clothes. Thereâs still some time left, so you check your messages. Apart from the usual suspects, a.k.a your mom, some fellow students and Narukami, Iori also send you a notification with a link, urging you to check out a fan page of a big cosplay group. But when the site finally loads, itâs the actual Phan-Site of the Phantom Thieves, filled with dozens discussion forums and comments. Right at the top is a red bar, above a question that makes you frown: [Are the Phantom Thieves just?]
  Now that you think about it, you havenât heard from them since the incident with Madarame back in May. Two months have passed, and they feel more like a distant childhood memory rather than the latest breaking news covered by every TV channel. You wonder what theyâre up to, or if theyâre still around, and judging from some users, theyâre also unsure about their whereabouts. At least one question you can answer pretty easily, and that is a big No on them being just. Whatever tricks they pull to make the people confess, it doesnât put them above the law or allow them to go on with their unorthodox methods. Hopefully the police can get some leads on them and things will settle down once theyâre locked up.
  Once itâs finally time to go, youâre actually relieved to get outside again and take a break from your readings, the black letters starting to merge into one indistinguishable shape in front of you.
  Shibuya is surprisingly calm for the evening hour, ignoring all the students gathering after school. The slowly approaching heat wave the weather forecasts warn about starts showing in shorter skirts, thinner clothes and dozens of pony tails bouncing from left to right. You wait at the meeting point, a small alley leading to an airsoft shop, when someone calls your name, and you look up, expecting to see Akira. He either went through a facial surgery during the last couple of days you havenât seen him, or that man dressed in a cheap suit with a slim chin and sunken in cheeks approaching you right now is someone entirely different. Your brain fails to see how or why this guy knows your name, when he reaches you and grins like a maniac salesman trying to get rid of some shady goods.
  âInterested in making easy money? No questions asked, no names. Lots of cash.â A heavy hand lands on your shoulder, squeezing. It feels like a noose around your neck.
  This isnât really happening, is it? Dumbfounded, you stare at his hand, then his face, outweighing the benefits of either punching or kicking him. Hookers offering girls jobs isnât a rare thing in Shibuya, but in broad daylight? Heâs either really desperate or really full of himself, but the little detail that makes everything a lot more absurd is that he knows your name and it sends cold shivers down your spine.
  âOkay, Iâll give you two seconds to take your hands off me, or I will put my shoe through your face,â you warn him, succeeding to sound a lot braver than you feel. Warning bells go off in your head when he doesnât move. You shrug his hand off, and take one nice big step away, but he follows you and closes the distance like a magnet drawn to its opposite pole.
  âHow the fuck do you know me,â you say, now unable to stop the panic from seeping into your voice. The man laughs; a sharp, unpleasant sound easily drowned in the buzzing chatter of people walking past the alley, totally unaware of whatâs happening in there.
  âWe know everything about you,â he says with a lazy smile, digging a bony finger just under your collarbone. âYour name, where you live. Unlucky for you, youâre all buddy buddy with the wrong people.â
  You donât even know that many, and from those you call friends none strike you as people acquainted with the dark side of Tokyo. Which really makes you wonder how they even know about your existence in the first place.
  The man drags his eyes to a spot behind you, and when he leans in, you smell the sour odour of booze and nicotine. âTell Kurusu he better has our Bossâs money ready due or heâll find his friendsâ numbers in our booking register.â With a greasy smile, he vanishes in the shadows between the skyscrapers, leaving you with spinning thoughts of What the fuck, what the fuck, what the actual fuck, until someone grabs your arm and yanks you out of the back alley. The worst scenarios run in high speed resolution through your head, but you gasp in relieve when you see itâs just Akiraâs familiar face looming over you, quickly followed by a screeching âWhat the fuck?!â and a punch to his arm.
  At least Akira doesnât look like heâs offended; no, it seems that heâs anticipated something like that, and you realise he must have seen you with the hooker.
  âWhat was that? What money? In what shady business are you involved?â There are too many questions, but Akira per usual talks too little to give you all the answers. Right now, he just looks over your head to where the man disappeared, and thereâs something in his eyes you canât read because itâs something youâve never associated with Akira before: Danger. A shadow jumps across his eyes, dark enough to dim the grey, smooth surface and turn it into a charcoal storm. Somewhere in the back of your head you register his finger tips still pushing too hard into your skin, but the pain is swallowed by this intense feeling of anxiety and worry. Akira remains silent and pulls you deeper into the light flooded streets of Shibuya, where people laugh and enjoy their time regardless of what youâve just been through.
  âHey, can you talk to me?â you call to Akira, but he keeps his eyes trained on an invisible path before him, his mouth pressed into a thin, white line. âHey, Kurusu.â You pull your arm back, he tightens his grip in return, and for the first time you wonder if he is choking on his secrets just as much as you are.
  âKurusu,â you try again, then softer, âAkira.â
  Finally, he slows down and turns around. The fire in his eyes is gone, replaced by a dim light that is lost in the reflection of his glasses.
  âCome on.â Itâs your turn to guide him now, gently pulling at his hand. You find a narrow alleyway with vending machines standing side by side like colourful soldiers. Armed with two canned coffees, you sit beside Akira on a narrow railing, and place the cool can on his thigh until he finally takes it from you. The silence grows into a palpable entity with fangs ready to strike, so you wait until Akira is ready to face it, lying to yourself that whatever he is going to tell you, it won't be that bad.
  After what feels like an eternity, Akira shifts slightly so his knees face towards you, and just like his body opens up to you, so does his mouth. âI kind of got into trouble with the yakuza,â he says with a suspicious lack of emotions. âAnd now they want three million yen until July 7th.â
  Somewhere behind you the beast growls, snarling how much better the silence has been in contrast to whatever this is. But then you realise itâs just a dog barking somewhere on the main street and you exhale slowly.
  âOkay, that isâŠâ Insane, suicidal. âThatâs crazy. What happened exactly?â
  Slowly, Akira raises his eyes. Theyâre hollow and send a shudder down your spine. âYou have your secrets, and I have mine,â he declares.
  The way heâs staring at you, guarded and with a raised chin, his shoulders stiff like brittle marble ready to crumble at the tiniest collision, you can see heâs eagerly waiting for you to push him away. The only thing coming to your mind though is, âWhat kind of an answer is that? And no, donât turn away from me!â You snatch his chin before he turns his head, digging a thumb into his skin just below his lower lip. Akira parts his lips in a little, silent O. âThis is serious, so talk to me.â
  Akira considers you for a long moment, somehow perfectly holding still. The only movement comes from his tongue, quickly darting out to lick his lower lip, and you swallow a strange sound threatening to escape your throat.
  âYou mean just like you talk to me?â he quietly shoots back, blowing a perfect hole in your composed mask. For a second, youâre speechless and your brain is completely void of any decent arguments to show him how those things are completely unrelated. But youâve waited too long.
  The water named reason evaporated and now thereâs no way to stop the fuse from burning down.
  âIf you really think that this is the same as meââ you start, your heart throbbing painfully like a bird trying to escape; too loud, too hard, too much. Just faintly, youâre aware that it isnât the tip of your thumb against his skin anymore, but your nail digging a sharp, crescent curve into his chin because your fingers are trembling. ââ that this is really the same as me refusing to tell you about my parents abusing my brother, then you are wrong. Wrong, and very, very cruel, Akira.â
  All your breath leaves your lungs, while Akiraâs becomes stuck in his throat. You pull your hand back like heâs burnt you, and on a metaphoric level, he has. You hate him for that, and you hate your body even more because after this, it doesnât move. The anger overshadows your flight instinct and stays rooted like it wants to fight. You feel like throwing up.
  After a whole minute of silence, Akira finally manages a small, dreadful, âIâm sorry.â
  âDonât tell me youâre sorry. Tell me what you did to make the yakuza go after you.â
  âI donât want you getting involved,â he tries and fails to save the situation.
  âNot sure if youâve noticed, but judging from what happened there, I am involved already. So, well done.â
  Akira pulls his face into a grimace close to a kicked man, left in his burning house without any means to extinguish the fire. Itâs so typical for you to turn the play around, to become the one hurting others after being hurt. The feeling of guilt settling inside you isnât unfamiliar, somehow even sharper this time. Akira leans away and breaks from your hold, running a free hand through his unruly hair. The soft tap tap tap of his foot against the pavement drives you insane.
  âThatâs why I shouldnât tell you more. I donât want things to become worse,â he says and avoids looking at you.
  You cross your arms and lean against the cool wall, soaking in the feeling of some sort of grounding and security. âWell, itâs not like Iâll dive head first into some sort of rescue mission. Iâm not a cop, and I certainly donât have any means to get that much money.â
  Suddenly, Akira barks a horrible, humourless laugh. Itâs like a jagged cut through the image you have of him as the boy you know at the moment. âAnd here goes my hope that you might be one of the Phantom Thieves, capable of helping me.â
  âAkira, stop joking about that,â you say, feeling your irritation return. âTheyâre not even real.â He shoots you a quick, strange glance, one you doubt youâd be able to decipher even if you had a dictionary solely dedicated to him. âSo, are you going to tell me what happened or not?â
  You count until ten. Akira keeps staring at a crack on the ground in front of him, its junctions looking much like hands with claws. Just when you made peace with the fact that he wonât answer, Akira finally says, âOur Student Council President is my friend. In trying to do the right thing and help the schoolâs students, she got into trouble.â You swear if heâs going to say I just wanted to help, you will scream and rip his hair off. âAnd I just wanted to help,â he closes his vague story, but itâs still enough for you to get the broad picture. Youâve heard about the rumours regarding shady businesses involving high school students around Shibuya, but that the Shujin Academy might be one of the targeted schools hasnât occurred to you at allâ a very naive thought, now that you think about it.
  âI hope you do realise now that kindness is a double-edged sword,â you manage, working hard on controlling your breath. Itâs just the perfect story fit for someone like Akira; for someone who gives too much and ends up ripped apart. Something that could just as easily happen to Narukami, now that you realise how alike they are, how they both put everyone else above them. Behaviour like this makes you so mad, you want to cry from frustration.
  Akira answers with a thoughtful hum. âIs it though?â
  âYouâre not seriously trying to argue with me about that.â
  âIâm not. Maybe youâre right, but I donât regret it.â
  You try to see the crack in his expression, just like the one on the ground. But Akiraâs confidence is a solid wall unaffected by your prodding, and something about that positivity robs you of air.
  âWhy am I not surprised,â you murmur, and to your surprise, Akira gives something close to a little earnest laugh.
  âWell, it isnât the worst that happened to me because I was being nosy,â he admits, leaning back as well now. âBut the yakuza, hm ⊠Iâm pretty sure that will look great on my resume.â
  âPlease donât even think about putting that in it.â
  Akira grins, but itâs short lived. He sits straighter, now looking very sternly at you, and you donât like that look on his face. âUntil itâs settled, maybe it would be best for you to avoid Shibuya. Also ⊠maybe we ⊠shouldnât âŠâ His voice gets quieter and quieter, and you know what heâs going to say next, but before Akira can finish his sentence, you quickly move on.
  âWhat exactly are you going to do?â you ask, the canned coffee long forgotten on the ground beside your feet and only brought back to your attention after you accidentally kick it when you lean forward. âLast time I checked, three million yen donât just grow on trees.â
  âI have a plan,â Akira immediately replies, which makes warning bells go off in your head.
  âPlease donât tell me youâre going to rob a bank.â
  He gives you a crooked grin, part mirth, part malice, but it looks so fake   and forced, it makes you cringe. âI would never.â
  âOh, Akira. What the hell is going on.â
  Akira answers with a heartbreaking smile. Moments like these make you forget how young Akira actually is. Thereâs something in his eyes that speaks of experience; in the straight line his mouth tightens into that speaks of hardship. Itâs unfair, and you wish whatever happened to him could have waited a couple of years until heâd been ready for it. The ignorance towards a youthâs suffering should be a crime.
  âDonât worry, itâs going to be alright,â he offers you at last, though it sounds more like heâs talking to himself. Your arms burn with the desire to give him a nice, tight hug, but youâre not sure if youâve unlocked that ability in your confidant level yet, so instead you grab his hand and pull him to his feet.
  âOkay. You know what, Iâm just going to trust you on this,â you say. At least the easiness of lying is something youâve inherited from your dad. âBut if you need a hand, you can give me a call.â
  Akira stares at you like youâve grown a second head.
  âYeah, just donât think youâll get rid of me that easily,â you say, stretching until your back pops. As weird as it is, somehow you feel a lot better than you maybe should. Akira looks at you with a strange expression, a mix between awe and horror.
  âNot gonna lie, I was ready to bet five thousand yen that youâd block my number and never talk to me again,â he says, sheepishly pulling at this bangs.
  âBet?â Your eyebrows go up. âWho lost?â
  âMorâ,â he starts, but then shakes his head. âNo, itâs just a figure of speech.â
  âHuh.â If you knew better, youâd think he was going to sayâ But no, thatâs impossible.
  A quick glance down at your watch tells you that the movie has started already, and to be honest, youâre not really motivated to watch it anyway with all the incidents today. Actually, youâd really rather go home and sleep a night on everything youâve just heard. Just as you want to say that to Akira, heâs suddenly looming above you, and you flinch back, trying to remember if you heard the tiniest sound of him approaching.
  âBy the way, you got something on your neck,â Akira says, and before you can react, heâs leaning right into your personal space and rubs just above the spot where your turtleneck shirt barely covers the hickey Tadashi oh so graciously left the previous night, that prick. Your eyes widen and you give a pathetic sounds just as he notices that itâs not just some smudge, and slowly his hand falls back to his side.
  âOh,â he says weakly, the sound strangely hollow. âItâs not aââ
  âNo,â you say, uselessly covering it with a hand and turning your head away from him. The previous night drops down on you like a crushing waterfall, the phantom feeling of Akira's hands on your body and his piercing eyes telling silent stories you can only dream about. âItâs uhm âŠâ
  âItâs aâ,â Akira starts, but doesnât finish. Instead he takes a step away from you and kneads the back of his neck. âI think I have to go.â
  âOh.â Now you feel really stupid. âYeah, I think me too.â
  âOkay.â Akira exhales slowly. âYeah, okay. Iâll see you.â
  âYeah,â you offer, but Akira has already turned around and left, his long legs carrying him with the speed of light out of the alley. You remain there a couple of seconds, just starring at the place heâs just been standing, trying not to think too hard about how your skin burns where his fingers just touched you. Your way home you label Walk of Shame.
  The door to your apartment is already unlocked. Which could mean means two things: Either Iori is broke again and is scavenging your fridge, or someone is desperate enough trying to rob a studentâs place. With your phone in your hand ready to call the cops, like thatâs something you needed additionally to todayâs revelations, you open the door and carefully enter your apartment. The light is on. No sound comes from your kitchen, so it canât be Iori, but once youâre inside and stand on the threshold to your living room, you wish it were him instead of the person sitting on your couch.
  âYou wanted to talk?â your father says instead of a greeting. âThen letâs talk.â
#philliamwrites#ao3#fanfiction#reader insert#persona 5#p5#akira kurusu#ren amamiya#persona 5 joker#akira kurusu x reader#ren amamiya x reader#persona 5 joker x reader#reader
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Crossroads was a favorite haunt of any number of high ranking demons in the city. The bar even played host to Arsene himself once - it was rumored - who had complimented the owner on her fine spirits and even finer ambiance. Goro supposed the Archdemon - if he did in fact actually spend a night at the bar - had likely been referring to the incredibly attractive waitstaff.
He knew he was certainly enjoying the view.
âAkechi?â Kurusu blinked in bewilderment, too long eyelashes fluttering gently against pale cheeks. He was wearing makeup. Expertly applied make up that did astounding things to his already fantastic features. Combined with the dark red stilettos and slinky black cocktail dress the effect was dazzling. Though that might have just been Kurusu, he tended to have that effect on him.
Akechi tried to unscramble his thoughts at the sudden appearance of the boy he may or may not have recently discovered he liked in a more than just platonic way in the high end demon bar he was investigating.
âKurus-â He was cut off by the other boy leaping forward, clasping a warm hand across his mouth as he was half tackled, half pushed behind a nearby curtain.
âShhh!â The other boy whispered, a wild look in his dark eyes as he pressed them both close to the wall and out of sight. âDonât say my name. Not here.â Kurusu looked sheepish, the color in his cheeks visible even in the dim light of the corner they were hidden in. âCall my Ren. Itâs the name I gave them so this doesnât link back to my probation.â
Goro tried hard not to think about how close the other boy was, how their bodies were pressed so close together, how deep and dark Kurusuâs eyes looked in the dim lights of the bar. It was difficult, with Kurusuâs finger pressed to his lip and the boyâs other hand laid gently on Akechiâs chest - and god he was so tall in those heels, Goro had to tilt his head back in order to meet his eyes and -
Focus.
âKu- Ren.â He corrected himself, swallowing thickly as he tried to gather his thoughts. âWhat are you even doing here? If your probation officer finds out youâve been working at a demon bar -â
Kurusu winced, pretty face looking pained as he drifted back an inch or two. It wasnât nearly enough space for Goro to unscramble his thoughts, but it at least took away the maddening distraction of Kurusuâs lips being so close to his own. The downside of course being that now he could see Kurusuâs lips and take in the brilliant shade of scarlet they were painted and how the color made him painfully aware of how close they still were.
He was never going to be able to go back to LeBlanc and order coffee from the dark haired delinquent again. Not without being tormented with images of Kurusu in that backless dress giving him that soft, inviting smile Akira sometimes gave him when it was just the two of them at the cafe. The one that came with an unspoken invitation that Goro had never allowed himself to accept.
He had known coming to Crossroads was a bad idea.
âI know, which is why Iâm asking you not to tell anyone.â Both of Kurusuâs hands have settled on his chest now, and Goro canât help but notice the warmth of them seeping in through his coat. âIâm so sorry to ask you this, but Shujin isnât exactly cheap and there arenât a lot of places willing to hire someone with my record.â Tarnished silver eyes turned downward, and Goro could see the way his mouth turned slightly in a frown. âNot any place thatâs safe to work at least.â
Goro sighed, âThis isnât a safe place to work.â He tried to put the full weight of just what Crossroads was into his words. âThe demons here -â
âArenât going to try anything with me.â Kurusu said defiantly. âThey wouldnât dare. Not with Lala looking after me.â
Lala. When the fuck had Kurusu met Lala? When the fuck had Lala given favor to Kurusu?
The owner of Crossroads was usually busy hosting the high ranking demons on the exclusive upper floor, leaving most of the hiring for the first floor to a trusted underling. Lala was one of the few humans in the city so highly respected by the Archdemons that ran the demonic territories that she could afford ignoring Yaldabaothâs strict ordinances. It might have been uncertain whether Arsene had ever actually come to Crossroads, but there was no question the Archdemon had given his favor to the barâs owner.Â
The whole night was rapidly getting away from him. He had just needed to talk to a damn Pixie about Kaneshiro. And now he was finding out one of the very few friends he actually had was running around in the demon ward looking very nice in a cocktail dress and heels with the protection of Lala of all people.
#My writing#Fic snippet#persona 5#persona 5 au#persona 5 royal#akeshu#shuake#akira kurusu#ren amamiya#goro akechi#lala chan#p5 arsene#p5 lala#Demonic Noir AU#akira kurusu in drag
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Asking Out A Clueless Reader [Persona 5]
anon: can i ask for a college au! hcs of p5 thieves & mishima crushing on a ~clueless~ fem reader & maybe asking her out? fem reader even for the girl thieves please coz i like them too oop-Â
Characters Included: Akira Kurusu, Ryuji Sakamoto, Ann Takamaki, Yusuke Kitagawa, Makito Niijima, Haru Okumura, Futaba Sakura, Goro Akechi & Yuuki Mishima
Note: Can I edit it a bit? Iâm not so familiar with College AU that much (The College AU Iâve read so far contains NSFW), so Imma do it in Highschool setting (though the setting isnât really mention here), if thatâs alright with you. If you want, you can request again. :) Hope yaâll enjoy this!
Readerâs Gender: Female
Warning: Spoiler warning!
Akira Kurusu
What attracted him to you is your personality at most, how innocent you were, how you never had any trouble communicating with him (even though he has a bad reputation), and how you stick up for yourself when youâre getting bullied. Those traits were just the beginning, and before Akira knew it, heâs already in love with you.
But the one thing he hated yet loved about you is how oblivious and clueless you are. Like you canât pick up someone flirting with you unless someone told you about it, though youâll still deny it stating they were just being nice.
This has an advantage and disadvantage at the same time.
Advantage because that means you werenât interested in any boys and friendzone them immediately. Disadvantage, he gets friendzone as well.
Like the rest of the Phantom Thieves can tell their leader is already in love with you, and they tried helping him by making hints about it to your clueless self. Futaba practically screamed, âheâs in love with you!â. And youâll be like, âOh! I love him too! I also love all of you!â shots fire
But nevertheless, Akira never gave up. He persisted through your oblivious self by giving you your favorite flowers, favorite food and things you like.Â
You, of course, thought he was just a caring friend (even though you wanted to believe he likes you just the same way you like him, but thatâs just a secret).
I can see him taking his time in confessing to you, and when he does. You immediately friendzone him down.Â
But he never gave up. He persisted that you two should go out, and you always thinking itâs a friendly hang-out. Akiraâs actually, surprise surprise, on the verge of giving up, he actually doesnât know what to do.
Even though you were clueless, you managed to notice his personality towards you shift. You thought, at first, it was something you did. But you realized (with the help of the Phantom Thieves) that Akira love you as much as you love him.Â
This time, you were the one who confessed to him. To say he was shock was an understatement. He was overjoyed when you confessed to him your feelings, he literally grab you and hug you in pure joy.Â
Ryuji Sakamoto
Ohh... boy.. here we go.
What attracted him to you is your willingness to support him, to befriend him and to take care of him, even though Kamoshida forbids everyone to talk to Ryuji. This poor bby admires your determination and willingness to break the rules just to take care of his body.
He has never admired you this much before, but now, heâs falling deeper in love with you.
His two friends, Ann and Akira, noticed his attraction to you so they endlessly teased him about it. The two of them even managed to pair you two up for a project, how they manage to do that, Ryuji doesnât even want to know.
However, doing this said-project, is when he confessed his feelings to you. You. being clueless and oblivious, state you feel the same as him and hope you two continue being friends. OuCH--
Even though Ryuji wanted to give up, the now Phantom Thieves slap him back to his senses (Well.. Ann did the slapping). Now, Ryuji is more determined than ever.
Ryuji took Akiraâs advice to take it slow, though Ryuji prefers a fast-pace since heâs impatient, he decided to do it. He waited patiently for you, giving you little trinkets he found and give you flowers he managed to steal from the flower shop.
How you still remain clueless is beyond him. Practically EVERYONE KNOWS HIS FEELINGS FOR YOU. ARE YOU THAT BLIND?!Â
Anyway, for you to realize his feelings for you is one way, someone has to tell you and stick it through your thick skull. Which, in this case, is Ann.Â
Ann might not seem like it but she deeply cares for Ryuji (AnnxRyuji fan here) and seeing him on the verge of giving up upsets her. So she confronted you.Â
After this encounter with Ann, you immediately confessed to Ryuji the next day. How stupid you were, how you never realize you were hurting him so much, how you already love him as well.
Ryuji, at first was awestruck and speechless, like heâll stand there, staring at you with mouth open. You need to say his name several times before he could snap out of his trance. He immediately screamed happily as he jumps around like a madman, screaming âI FINALLY GOT HER! WHOOO!â
You could only giggle at the sight.
Ann Takamaki
What attracted her to you is your willingness to stand up for what you believe is right and how you stood up for your friend. She was amazed when you started screaming at Kamoshida, who was about to hit your friend. She has grown to respect you, and soon came to love you even.
Of course she would subtle about this and try to act like everything was normal (alongside her bad acting skills). You and her immediately hit it off, much to her immense pleasure.
She found out your favorites and you two frequently hang out with each other. When she realized she likes you more of a friend, she panic. I mean, not everyone is accepting about LGBTQ+ community, hOW WAS SHE SUPPOSED TO TELL YOU THIS?!
Ann would DEFINITELY confined to Akira, Morgana and Ryuji about this, two of the people she could trust at the time being, alongside you. Morgana would probably be upset but heâll eventually accept it. Both Akira and Ryuji said the same thing though, much to her displeasure, âbe yourselfâ, âif you like her, go get her!â and âweâll be here supporting you two.â
She knew they mean well, but that only makes her anxiety skyrocket. So she decided to just tell you directly. You, being your clueless self, thought she meant being your best friend, but she shot it down saying she wants to be your girlfriend, which made you blush.
Ann thought you were disgusted of her so she decided to walk away with a sad, teary face. You could only watch her as she walk away, like her, you were also conflicted.Â
For the next few days, everyone could tell something was wrong with the two of you. They always see you two hanging out together, but now, itâs like you two were strangers to one another.
You, having enough of this, gathered your courage and march over to her classroom. When she tried to ignore you, you huff and welcome yourself to their classroom and walk towards her. She panic as she tried to run away, but you grab her wrist in time.
âWhen will you stop running away from me?!â
âWhen the tension between us is gone!â
âBut.. I like you too, Ann!â
This cause her eyes to widen at your confession. And tears began to pour out of her eyes, she doesnât know if its relief or happiness, but now she knew her feelings were requited and you feel the same about her.
She promises that the two of you will go through everyoneâs criticism together.
Yusuke Kitagawa
What attracted him to you is your artistic skills, yes, nothing more. Jk. No, thatâs only the beginning. He does admit he admires your skills in art, but what he adores about you is how you smile to him, welcome him to the school, how you gave him some of your food and help him in buying art supplies by halving your allowance. Heâs forever grateful to you.
Unfortunately, this boy is the same as you, being oblivious to the fact he loves you MORE than a FRIEND. Which made his friends sigh at the two of you. Well, you know the saying, âTwo idiots are better together.âÂ
âThereâs no such saying like that.â -Makoto
Though Yusukeâs case is much more understandable, since he didnât grow up in a favorable household, with no one telling him love and such. He devoted his life in his arts, and was pick up by his master, Madarame. But was ultimately betrayed by him.
Anyway, you two will hang out like normal. But, unlike your clueless self, Yusuke will pick up on his heart beating faster around you, how he started to become nervous whenever heâs near you and how he started to view you in a different light.
He thought he was ill, really. Until the Phantom Thieves explained to him that he was in love with you.Â
He decided to believe in them, I mean, thereâs no reason for them to lie, right? So he asked their advice.
âOoh! Ask her to paint her nude!â
âNO! FUTABA-CHAN!â
âThatâs brilliant! Why didnât I think of that?â
â...âÂ
â...Yusuke.. no.â
So Yusuke decided to just tell you, but he didnât account to the fact that you were also clueless and oblivious. So when he confessed to you, you were confused.
Yusuke decided to explain to you what he understand from his friends. And you started to understand it as well.
And the two of you decided to try it out, if it fails, then the two of you can still be friends. But not to worry! Luckily, the feeling of love is mutual between the two of you, and you two were NOT planning to break it off any time sooner.
Makoto Niijima
What attracted you to her is your dedication to your studies and beliefs, how you also carry yourself in such a prideful manner yet everyone around you respects you (which sheâs totally not jealous of) and the fact that you will stand up to yourself if you feel them saying something bad about you or the people. Makoto admires these traits of yours from afar as she watches you animatedly argue to the teacher about something which she doesnât understand, she marvels at the sight of you.
If youâre in the Student Council, she would try to befriend you. But sheâs so socially awkward that you decided to be her friend, probably out of pity. She was BEYOND embarrassed at this encounter, it was so unlike her! But nevertheless, she was happy that youâre her friend now.
You two can be seen hanging out in Makotoâs office as she signs all the papers while you are either helping her or just talking to her about your day. Sheâs happy either way really, but she much enjoys hearing your voice over her scribbles on the papers.
You might think Makoto is also oblivious or clueless, but I donât think sheâs that kind of person. I think she knows that sheâs falling in love with you and, like Ann, panics about it.
Unlike Ann though, Makoto doesnât confides it to her friends, preferring to keep it to herself. But if Akira max out her friendship, she would bring it up to him. Akira just listens as she explains it to him, before saying the same thing he said to Ann.
Nervous would be an understatement for Makoto. You might think sheâll confront you about her feelings, oh no no my dear. I believe sheâll outright IGNORE it.
Youâll slowly notice how Makoto tries to ignore you and avoid you. You think that you mustâve done something wrong for Makoto to act like this. So, you did the most logical thing, you did a Kabedon on her.
She shriek a bit when your hand slammed on the wall behind her as she stares at your innocent face. âW-Wha--?â
âWhyâre you ignoring me, Mako-chan?âÂ
She b l u s h e s.Â
She tried run away from you but you hold her in place with your hand on either side of her body.Â
With no other options, she decided to just tell you about her feelings.Â
You listened as she spills out her secret to you, that sheâs bi, that she likes you for a while and that if she tells you, sheâll risk getting told off by other people and risking losing you.Â
I think, even though youâre clueless and oblivious, you knew that she meant more than a friend. You told her the truth, that you donât really know what kind of love you hold for her (she saddened at that) but when she confessed, it made your chest beat faster and float.Â
Makoto blinks, once, twice, thrice, before flashing you a smile and bringing you in a relieved hug. Tears started to build on her eyes as she exhale a sigh of relief.
She also promises you that you two will go through the criticism of society together.
Haru Okumura
What attracted her to you is how you also took an interest to plants and take care of them. Sheâs also attracted to your strong will to be yourself despite everyone telling you to change, you paid them no heed. You also donât let others push you around, not even your parents (if you have one).Â
Out of all the girls, sheâll immediately accept the fact sheâs bi and in love with you.
I would like to think sheâll also take it slow in asking you out, Like Akira, sheâll start out with giving you small trinkets that reminded her of you, giving you your favorite food and giving you meaningful flowers. (I would like to think she knows Victorian Flower Language).
She would probably be subtle about her affection towards you. But I would DEFINITELY see her giving you flowers that means admiration, affection and love. (With you being clueless about the meaning of the flowers).
Haru, unlike the others, doesnât mind if youâre clueless and oblivious to her affection. In fact, she enjoys seeing you being your clueless self.Â
I think sheâll be open about her feelings to you to her Phantom Thieves, with them accepting her for who she is.Â
Unlike before, she had to hide the fact sheâs bi since her father thought it was a disgrace to the Okumuraâs family name. But now, no longer in her fatherâs control, she can be open about her sexuality and no longer feels insecure about it.
When she confesses to you, expect it being simple enough. She would bring you two flowers that means love (White Carnation and Red Carnation). You would accept them, of course, and then she would confess her love to you.
You, being your clueless self, thought meant that she wants to be more than friends. âSo.. weâre best friends now?â
Haru, nonetheless, giggles as she shakes her head. âNope. I want to be your partner for life, [Y/N]-chan! Your girlfriend!â
When it finally register in your mind, you immediately became twins to the Red Carnation. Haru giggles once more to your cute expression as she brings you to a hug.
(I hope you accept her confession, or else youâll feel the wrath of the Phantom Thieves...)
You two will DEFINITELY promise to each other that youâll love each other, no matter what anyone says.Â
Futaba Sakura
What attracted her to you is how funny you can be and how good you are in programming, like hacking and encoding codes. How you speak for yourself if youâre being downgraded by someone. How you speak so easily to someone about technical stuff. She REALLY wants to befriend you, but sheâs still a socially-awkward NEET girl.
Youâll probably notice her staring at you, before her turning her head away in embarrassment. You have to be the one befriending her in this case.Â
When you befriend her, you two will be inseparable. You two will do everything together, prank calling someone, hacking into a website, encoding codes, and probably make a game together.
Futaba was so happy that she finally has a friend thatâs almost like her, seeing the world in the same yet different point.Â
I can totally see her like Yusuke, being oblivious and clueless about her feelings to you.
When Futaba started to feel something weird happening to her, she freaks out. IS SHE SICK?!
The Phantom Thieves, and Sojiro, explained to her that no, sheâs not sick and no, sheâs not gonna die. Theyâll explain to her that sheâs in love with you.
Futaba is aware of the LGBTQ+ but she didnât think it was possible to a girl like her. But she guess itâs the case where youâre disclose to everyone and someone comes in and youâre immediately in love with them.Â
âNo Futaba. Thatâs called obsession.â
â... same thing.â
Like the Futaba we all know and love, she doesnât know what to do. She panics whenever you show up or she thinks about her feelings.Â
Then, one day, she decided to just tell you and get it over with. But she decided to do it very uniquely.Â
She programmed a website that reveals to you about her feelings. When you open it, it pops out, âI †u. Would u be my girlfriend?âÂ
You immediately knew what she meant, even though youâre clueless and oblivious. You threw yourself to a anxiously waiting and fidgeting Futaba, who screams as she catches you and both of you falling to the ground.
You two promise that no matter what anyone says, you two will be together forever. Sheâs your number one after all~
Goro Akechi
What attracted him to you is how you carried yourself, similar to Makoto basically, and your intellectual ability. Heâs also attracted to your observant and quiet nature, and how you appear to be aloof at times, you were also listening to others conversation (COUGH so me COUGH). And the fact that you saw him through his mask and lies.Â
He befriends you immediately and the two of you hit it off fairly easily. The two of your personality coinciding with each other.Â
If he feels himself falling in love with you, heâll deny it. He doesnât want you involve any more than this, he already befriended you, he doesnât need to give you anymore danger. But he couldnât help the fact that he already has opened his heart to you.Â
But he knew you were clueless and oblivious, so he decided to go along with it. Hiding away his feelings.Â
He thought he was being sneaky, but the Phantom Thieves caught on his feelings for you. At first, they donât encourage him, since heâs a traitor still. But they soon accepted it and supported him.
Akechi was still hesitant to follow his heart but Akira encourages him. So he decided to court you in a traditional way.Â
He started out slow, similar to Haruâs and Akiraâs. Giving you small trinkets, buying your favorite food and taking you places to places.Â
He thought youâll leave him after his reputation was tarnish after Shido admitting his crimes. But you stayed with him, so he decided to confess to you.
You, being clueless, thought he was referring not wanting to be friends with you since heâs wording goes, âI donât wanna be friends with you anymore.. I canâ take it..-â
You started to tear up and Akechi flinch when he sees tears in your eyes. Wha-?
âYou donât want to be friends with me, Akechi-kun?â You sniffed and Akechi now realized his mistake.
âN-NO! I MEAN--!â
You bursted out crying, which attracted attention to the both of you. âAkechi-kun doesnât like me anymore!â
â[Y-Y/N]! C-Calm down! I love you!â Akechi proclaims as he held your crying face between his hands.
You sniff as you stared at him. â.. you do?â
Akechi nodded his head. âYeah.. and I want to be your boyfriend, [Y/N].â
You decided to just nodded your head, not trusting your voice as Akechi held you in pure ecstatically, completely ignoring the stares you two are getting.
Yuuki Mishima
What attracted him to you is the fact you stood up to him when he was getting bullied, and your determination to stand up against the bullies, even though it got you wounded. He was forever grateful to you though, thatâs a plus. Heâs also attracted to the fact that you believe in the Phantom Thievesâ justice, just like him.
He already knew he was in love with you since a long time ago. (fun fact: you two are childhood friends). Heâll always worry about you if you get beaten up by bullies,
The fact that you were clueless and oblivious is what Mishima GREATLY dislikes about you. Itâs already embarrassing that youâre the one sticking up for him, but the fact that HE has to make the first move.Â
Mishima might need encouragement before actually doing something, that someone would be Akira ofc. After him encouraging the bby fanboy, Mishima would be walking up to you but his confidence would slowly go down and would ultimately back out at the last second. (Akira and Morgana sighing in the background).
I would think Mishima would confess on you by accident rlly. While doing the project, heâll accidentally slip it out.
You (ofc) thought he meant being best friends. Mishima decided to let you believe he meant that.Â
Akira would sigh in frustration and just resort in talking to you directly.Â
He would explain that Mishima loves you, and not as a friend, as a girlfriend and heâll also add that Mishima is a chicken.
You would ultimately be the one confessing to his flustered self, who just nodded his head.Â
[I tried, okay? But Iâm not used to Mishimaâs character yet ;-; srry bby boi]
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I was curious to hear about what you think of the anime splitting DB & DBZ into separate shows. Personally, I get Toeiâs logic and find it ridiculous how some extremists & purists act so hostile/resentful about DBZ being treated as a sequel to DB, especially since Akira Toriyama didnât have any problems with it.
I agree, anon, there's really not much to the name change. The way I understood it, the manga kept the same title, "Dragon Ball", from start to finish, while the anime changed to "Dragon Ball Z", mostly to put a fresh coat of paint on the series, I suppose. I always understood the "Z" was a reference to Toriyama's intention to bring the story to a close, which turned out to be ironic, since the Z portion lasted so much longer.
But yeah, that's basically all it is. There was a clear division between one and the other. Z has Gohan and Vegeta, and OG Dragon Ball does not, for example. But you can make a similar case for other parts of the story. The division between kid Goku and adult Goku, in the Piccolo Junior Saga. I've long maintained that there's a very clear border around the halfway point, when Goku fights Recoome. Before that moment, everyone was worried about Dragon Balls, and after that moment, it became all about Super Saiyans. And you could make a case for the post-Frieza stuff being a very different story from what came before. I watched the opening theme to the French dub of DBZ once, and the visuals kept emphasizing Goku for the "Dragon Ball" part of the song, and Buu-Era Gohan for the "Dragon Ball Z" part, like the Buu stuff was Z alone. So there's plenty of other candidates for places to draw the line if you wanted to cut the story in two.
Ultimately, "purist" fans are going to do what they always do, and a lot of them use these artificial divisions to arbitrarily declare the point where the show stopped being "good". It's the same bullshit as the myth about Toriyama wanting to end it with Frieza. There's no truth to that, beyond Toriyama considering it and eventually deciding to continue. A lot of people think he planned to keep Goku dead after the Cell Games, and was forced to bring him back to appease the fans, but that makes no sense either. Goku returned *very* soon after the chapter where he died. Fans act like he was absent from the comic for seven years, just because he was dead that long, but it was more like a few months. But a lot of fans like to perpetuate that myth, because they think it justifies their dislike of the Buu Saga. "Oh, it could have been good if Toriyama hadn't been hijacked by Goku stans, so now it's terrible."
As far as I'm concerned, the post-Frieza stuff is the best part, and I think the Saiyans and Frieza are good but overrated. I also really dig the run from Mercenary Tao to Piccolo Junior a lot. This is probably why I never tried to play the whole "It was great until X," because there's ups and downs for me. And the ups are very long, and the downs are still pretty good, so I don't try to convince people that my opinions are facts. "Oh, well Toriyama got a new assistant after General Blue, and then he left around Raditz and came back when Trunks showed up, and that guy was the one who made it kick ass." That's dumb.
Like, with JoJo, I can understand preferring art styles and characters, which change over the course of the series. Part 8 just looks different from Part 4, and some folks like one more than the other. I mostly dig Part 7 for the horses and the scenic views of the continental U.S. Not everyone would agree. But I don't see a lot of folks saying things like "Oh Part 6 is terrible because Araki overdosed on Bad Comics Pills in the early 2000's." No, just say you don't like it, and move on.
But Dragon Ball is pretty damn consistent, other than the art style getting more angular over time. People will talk about the shift from fantasy to scifi, but Z ended with the boys fighting a genie in Superheaven, so how scifi is that? You don't have to like the later stuff, but it's not so easy to put it in a box like that.
But the fandom snobs love to act like their opinions are objective truths. "Oh, the Saiyans arc was better because Goku and Vegeta's hair actually moves." Really? Is that what this show is about? Hair animation? I like the Cell episodes because he's a fucking monster from the future, and that's rad as hell. I guess I was too busy having fun to notice that the *hair* isn't as well animated.
Actually, let me flip that around. The Androids/Cell/Buu episodes are superior because everyone is jacked in those. Early Vegeta's costume was all baggy, but after Namek he had the big horseneck and Bulma made him a uniform so tight that you can see his entire asscrack. That's *better*, as far as I'm concerned. Tien always looks swole as hell, but he's extra jacked in the Cell Saga, and that's the way I like it. Everyone who disagrees is a plebian.
It sounds pretty dumb, doesn't it? But that's what these elitists do. They pick on some minor infraction and tell you it's unlovable beyond this point, and if you do love it, there must be something wrong with you. Well, I'm here to say there ain't, folks. Toriyama's still making this stuff, so don't try to tell me he regrets the later material. If the Buu Saga is so terrible, why does everyone keep making sequels to it? Toriyama could just ignore the parts he doesn't want to use, the way he apparently ignores GT.
It's like the Terminator movies. I bought a box set recently because I never saw 4 or 6, and I thought it'd be fun to watch them all in order. But I already know the later movies have nothing to do with each other. T3 killed off Sarah Conner off-screen, but she's alive in T6. Basically, every movie after T2 is trying to be a direct sequel to 2, without bothering to acknowledge the others, because different people made 4, 5, and 6, and I guess they all hated 3. So they just did their own thing. Toriyama could do the same thing whenever he wants, but he always seems to make an effort to acknowledge his older stories. He doesn't de-age Gohan or change Bulla's name. Because he remembers working on the Cell and Buu stuff and he still respects it enough to keep it. I know people don't like how Videl turned out in DBS, but that process started way back in 1995.
I'm not saying people shouldn't have opinions, but acting like the letter Z ruined 60% of the story is kind of reductive, to say the least. Sometimes, things change, and they may not change the way we want them to, but that doesn't mean they're "ruined" or that other people can't enjoy them.
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