Heaven and Earth (Lord Roku and Orangejuice)

[Orangejuice]

The school bell's chime carried across the spring's warm afternoon breeze. A stampede of students, eagerly homeward bound, erupted from the many classrooms and spilled unceremoniously into the wide but still too narrow halls. Despite this, the chaotic traffic managed to make a haphazard attempt to organize itself. Though it was a daily occurrance that managed to miraculously function, some forewent the madness and simply decided to wait out the barely restrained masses.

In classroom 3C, Muteki Mayu was one. She leaned her forehead against the corner window, feeling its coldness against her skin, looking out at the sportsfield outside. Although highly accomplished as one of the school's fighters, she never really had the opportunity to explore anything else but martial arts. Seeing students playing in the field made her wonder what life would have been like with the freedom to join those carefree souls after school in their carefree practices. For her, the path she walked was decided from the moment she was born. It was always the heiress of the Muteki clan. Feh. They should give it to her cousin. He was stronger than her, smarter than her - he was just born to the wrong brother. To put him as the heir would go against tradition, and the clan loved its traditions.

She closed her eyes and cleared her mind. It wasn't long till she opened them to the sound of approaching footsteps. By the accent and cadence of the tread, it was the devil spoken.

"Hello Kanpachi," She uttered
"Mayu-sama. Shall I accompany you home today?" His voice was like a straight line
"No. I will return after I finish work."

He left with a bow that seemed unfit for his tall frame. Mayu slumped forward and rested her head on her arms, falling asleep.

"Hey. You can't stay here kid. It's time to go home." The teacher shook her awake and waited for her to fully rise.

Mayu opened her eyes and saw the darkened room around her. She gave a small nod, picked up her belongings and exited the empty school. It was a surprise that she was left in that room for that long. It was late in the evening now. Feeling adventurous, she made up her mind to walk home. Despite the hour, there were still a fair amount of people around. What they were up to, Mayu didn't know. This part of Shibara wasn't particularly known for its shops or entertainments, most of which would have been closed by now anyway. But it was welcoming to have the indirect company.

It wasn't until she reached a quiet street that she realized she was being followed. She turned a corner and made a quick glance. Four men. No. More. She saw movement across the street. They likely planned to make their move further in the street, but she turned too soon. Now four more were moving to cut her off. She moved with quiet aplomb though. She had nothing to fear from these ruffians. She tried to lose them without incident, but with their numbers they slowly herded her into a corner. Eight men stood before her with no idea of the mistake they were about to make. Even if she were a helpless lamb, which she was not, her family would sweep through the streets like a purging fire.

"I would turn around and leave, if I were you." Her bold declaration caused the gang to burst into laughter despite the scowl that accompanied it. Or perhaps because of it.
"We're just looking for some money for our starving kids," One mocked.

Mayu pulled out a money clip from her bag, ladened with currency, and threw it at their feet without hesitation. They balked at first, looking back up at her they could see she still had the same scowl - as if this was just some minor inconvenience, an adult dealing with a gang of kids. Then they grinned when the realization hit them that her family was likely very rich. When she saw their expressions she merely rolled her eyes. Dumb men.

"I would rather not have to fight you. So please take the money and leave."

They laughed at the subtle threat. They simply stood there until one of them suddenly disappeared in a burst of movement - he uses chi! - and a fist collided with Mayu's cheek. The blow knocked her back a few steps, bumping her against a wall. It looked like she was going to have to do some explaining to her father later. She rubbed her sore cheek.

"Now we want a good time too." One of them hissed, licking his lips.

 

[Rashuad-012]

"Tenchi! Tenchi-kun! Wake up!" cried a gentle voice to his ears as he slept the day away over his wooden desk.

"I said..." the voice persisted, "Wake up you jackass!" and then a solid pressure of an open palm slap danced across his left cheek, raising him from slumber. He cupped his face into his hands, howling in a session of stinging pain jumping across his face. As the sensation subsided, Tenchi's attention quickly turned to his surrounding area. He noticed how the classroom was completely vacant with the exception of he and his friend, Akiko Muramasa. He granted her an annoyed scowl with a muffled snarl, a single brow twitching out of his control.

"About time! You were going to be left behind." she smiled, tilting her head.
"Late or not! You didn't have to slap me to wake me up, you idiot! What's wrong with you!?" he barked at her.

She scoffed, pouting her cheeks as she turned from him. Her fingers gracefully brushed a lock of her hair from her shoulder. It just barely swated him across his nose and sparked another snarl out of him.

"You're so rude, Tenchi-kun. At least say thank you for keeping you company! Everyone else didn't even think twice about you."

His lips ready to spout a reply, her words contrived him to halt. A long, awkward pause came over the both of them. Tenchi huffed at the fact that she was right, and that she'd hold it against him. "Thanks, Aki-chan.... Can we go now?"

It wasn't a golden appeal, but it was one nonetheless, and she took it. Akiko giggled, smiling brightly as she made way for the exit. "All is forgiven! Now come on, you're supposed to walk me home!" she cheered. Tenchi quickly hopped up, backpack in hand as he caught up with her in the blink of an eye.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------An Hour Later----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

He heard calls of welcome echo behind the door after dropping Akiko off. Now he was all that remained along the path home. The streets were quiet and peaceful with the gentle spring winds glazing over the neighborhood. The atmosphere of nature was a primal song to his ears; the crunch of leaves at his feet, laughter of fellow colleges on the air, the brisk wind blowing through--MY GOD IT WAS BORING!

Tenchi sighed in emotional agony at the quiet aura; it was truly sickening to his character. To cure his sickness, Tenchi suited up into his skeleton hoodie, switched on his cellphone and plugged in his left earphone listening to a song from his training music album. Almost as an instinct he started mumbling along to the song, memorizing the lyrics word for word. As he trotted down the path he got louder and louder with his singing.

Deep in thought, he shut his eyes and--embarrassingly--began to dance along. He was a skillful fighter, but a horrifying dancer; it was almost as if he possessed two left feet.. Or maybe three! Regardless of the point he ended up bumping into a random obstacle, a man to make matters worse. And when he looked up, he saw what felt like a legion of them all around the perimeter... And with a guest cornered it seemed. A cute one too. Like any man would, he stepped in with a heroic demeanor.

"Am I interrupting something?" he said, still present and flat on his rear.

 

[Orangejuice]

Mayu assessed the situation. Judging from the strength of the blow she received, the man was a technically inferior fighter than her. He surprised her with his burst of speed, but utilizing chi to increase one's speed was one of the most facile and basic applications of the body's energy. It is simply feeding as much chi as your muscles can hold. The real judge of his technical ability was the execution of his punch. He timed the pulse of his chi incorrectly, weakening the blow significantly. The hit looked impressive enough she supposed - she did stagger backwards - but that was mostly his physical strength and her light weight pushing her back. She really should have been knocked unconscious. Despite this, judging by the fact that the rest of the men were positioned behind him, he was potentially their strong arm, suggesting that they were weaker. If she could make an example of this man, a bloody example, perhaps the rest would beat feet and she could go home without having to beat a bunch of amateurs. She would have to utterly crush him though. But that thought didn't pose a significant problem. He was scum. And he needed to be taught a lesson. Hitting harmless teenagers deserved an appropriate karmic response.

She returned to a standing position, a scowl on her face now. She was going to strike first this time and she would end it quickly. She pulled in a long breath and exhaled deeply. She took half a step... and halted almost immediately as her eyes caught movement along the back. Someone had stumbled into this unfortunate situation, though the men seemed to disregard him.

"Am I interrupting something?"

"Keep your teeth together and walk away, kid," The closest ruffian towered over the teenager and blocked him from moving past

Mayu didn't want anyone injured on her account. She locked eyes with the newcomer and simply said, "Go."

 

[Rashuad-012]

"Eh?"

He looked up at the brutish man with a blank expression. It was sensed the thug was being serious with him and posed a threat; and yet Tenchi remained unphased. They shared a glare at one another for a period of minutes before uttering from his mouth.

"You guys are weird...." he said with a slight frown. He got up to his feet and dusted himself off casually, as if there wasn't a surrounding gang of aggrivated males about to kick his head in. Primal looks came his way once he stood up and put his headphones back into place. No matter what type of person you were, being ignored was always a major insult. Tenchi dug into his pocket, and what he flet shocked his soul to the core. Pulling out his phone he realized his creen was cracked to bits. He felt his face drop to the earth, hurt and insulted!

"You idiots owe me a new phone! Do you know how much this damn thing costs!?" he growled in anger, barking at the top of his lungs at his opposition. Few of them simply turned to each other, then laughed befre turning around and focusing back on the woman. Four others approached and started teasing him, imittating his voice.

"Oh~ Mister! You broke my phone~!"

"I'm gonna make you pay for it!" another gested. He reached out his hand to grip Tenchi by the nose. Tenchi quickly shunned the man aside and smirked.

"Let me show you what's wrong with you..." he snickered. A small crowd of the thugs enclosed him in a circle formation. He reached out and punched his first opponent square in the nose, and another directly behind him as he pulled back. With another strike approaching from the rear, he kicked his leg out and flattened him into a pair of garbage bags. From the pile of trash rolled out a useful umbrella that landed at his feet. No time to think, Tenchi kicked it into his possession and used it like a small staff. He struck forward to parry an incoming attacker, then left and right, quickly stabbing backwards and slapping the final enemy to the ground. Hearing another replace him, he quickly turned to face him taking a balanced stance low to the ground as he struck a barrage of blows to his enemies feet before tripping him over entirely.

 

[Orangejuice]

Mayu dropped her bag to the ground and seized the opening the boy created as all the attention was directed at him. He was confident enough to start a fight, so she had to believe he was capable of handling himself while she dealt with the rest of these unwashed ruffians. The moment the man in front of her turned his head to look at her, she kicked him behind his knee with an audible snap and gave a swift chop to the back of his neck as his leg gave way, dropping him like a sack of flour. She advanced rapidly towards the next opponent, who was too slow to avoid a spinning hook kick to his head, knocking him straight into the hard concrete with a crack. The last two in the company of brigands faced her square on, committed to the fight, unable to make the reasonable decision to flee anymore.

One with a red bandana lunged at her with a one-two jab. Yet she neither withdrew nor stood her ground, but instead forged ahead, parrying with her elbows like wings sweeping forward and quickly countering with an uppercut that made the man's eyes roll into the back of his head. The last man gave out a loud battle cry as he charged forth, but he stopped as Mayu chambered a kick, her stance resembling a pelican's in appearance. Seeing his hesitation, she moved in a whirlwind of motion towards him and grappled him. She wrinkled her nose as the proximity revealed to her his malodor, but she quickly released with a throw aimed at a dumpster. The impact dented the dumpster's frame, and dazed the man. Mayu sprinted towards him and slammed a chi empowered fist next to the man's head. She took a quick glance and saw that the boy had finished with his opponents. Not that she needed the help. They were amateurs.

"Take your friends and leave." Her tone was without ill intent, but her crimson eyes promised great fury for anyone who tried to cross her at this moment.

She fixed her school uniform, and took the money she threw on the ground. At least she wouldn't have to explain that. With the thugs scattered, she walked up to the boy.

"Thank you." She looked at him closely, he wasn't quite wearing the school uniform, but it seemed he was about the same age, "Are you from Tendai?"

She hoped he wasn't some member of her fanclub looking to curry favor by being a white knight gallantly riding in.

 

[Rashuad-012]

He planted his foot firmly into the gut of the opposed and used the weight to lift his free leg into a rising kick and leading himself into a flip. With precise timing and accuracy he kicked both legs out forward, sending two more enemies flying out of the alley. Just in time Tenchi landed on his hands and leaped back into a normal stance; his arms held out with his legs bracing one another. Angered eyes tore into the souls of those who remained, shocking them to the very bone as they fled in terror.


"And good riddance!" he shouted. "You idiots show your ugly faces again, and I'll pummel you!"


Turning around he met face to face with the suspected victim. He used that term loosely in his mind. She presented herself in neat uniform, jet-black raven hair, with blood colored eyes that intimidated the average.


"Thank you" she said to him.


And yet, all he could manage to focus on was the facts that were laid out in the beginning. The first: She called him "kid". And the second: She was there, and by context, the reason his phone ended up broken. That reminded, he snapped into a snarl.


"Don't 'Thank you' me, lady! Because of you, I have to get my phone replaced! Don you know how much music I have on this thing!?" he growled.


To her he probably seemed like a jerk, and was sealing the deal at that. However anyone that knew Tenchi would know it's not his intention. He was glad to assist and will always do so if needed. It was just ill timing for his phone to take the brunt of the situation.

 

[Orangejuice]

Upon seeing how he moved, she became certain that the boy was a student from Tendai. Martial skills of that caliber were generally committed to the school, whether they wanted to or not. It was simply irresponsible to let anyone of enough skill to go unbridled. He was too cocky though. That was a sign of a novice or someone who had something to prove. He would have to expunge that quality or it would be a weakness that may damn him in the future.

She raised a brow quietly as he belted out a rebuke at her gratitude. Well at least he wasn't trying to win her over like some pathetic sycophants. But it was hardly her fault that he entered business that was not his. Nor was it her fault that he did not heed her warning. Feh. He was a fool. Nonetheless, a debt was owed.

Mayu quickly rummaged through her bag and pulled out the money clip she had recovered. She made an estimate of how much the phone cost in her mind, then doubled it. She drew the amount from the money clip with deft fingers. With a practiced swiftness and grace she wrapped her comparatively small hands around his and pressed the thick roll of crisp, clean currency into his palm.

"This should be sufficient reparation. I apologize for your troubles."

Her tone betrayed no hint of annoyance, but those close to her would recognize the infinitesimal signals. The neutrality of her tone. The overly diplomatic diction. The empty stare. She did not appreciate his attitude, but let it go. She placed the remainder of her money into her bag, made a quick check that she had everything, then made a curt bow. She turned around and ambled homeward bound.

 

[Rashuad-012]

He pushed her payment back to her chest, and quietly walked away from her. Tenchi required no payment for his phone nor his assistance, whether she could handle herself or not. He was more concerned with simply getting out of the alley and going home, where he can kick back, relax, and nap to the rough, gritty sounds of rock music.

"I don't need your money. Just get out of here, and we're even."

Sensing a reply on her lips, he quickly turned his gaze to the street and walked away. Hands tucked warmly in his jacket pockets, fractured phone blasting skrillex along his stroll downtown. With every step it bothered him how she was so ready to pay her due to him. Tenchi never liked having anything handed to him, he wanted to work for it; it felt better to earn things in life. This moral law applied to more than gifts, but to the respect he's come to command along in life. It was like a thief stealing everything it owns, only to be given something from one of his targets.

 

[Orangejuice]

Mayu canted her head slightly at his reaction. It confused her. He appeared to be an arrogant brat, yet displayed roguish honor. But the fact of the matter was that a Muteki does not let debts go unpaid. Though she had started heading towards her home, she had reined her gait to buy her time to think. What could men not refuse? Hmmm... What was the English proverb her cousin told her once? "The quickest way to a man's heart was through his stomach?" She looked around and spotted a ramen stand further down the street. She weighed the money in her hands, then turned around.

"This money sure is heavy." She called out in the boy's direction, "It would be nice to spend it all on some delicious ramen. But the stand is so far away... it would be a shame if I were attacked again. I wouldn't be able to eat any ramen."

She put the back of her hand to her forehead and feigned a sigh that came out a little too false. Honestly she wasn't sure where this impishness was coming from, but it was rare to be able to break from the rigid form of the heiress of a destined clan. Uncertain whether he was taking the bait or not, she continued to over act.

"I wish I had company. Eating alone is so sad."

Surprisingly, the last words came out more genuinely than she had intended.