One Heck of a Case...

~ Third Person Pov, A few Hours Later... ~

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"Not bad at all kiddo; you've already gotten the hang of all the movements." Jihan said.

The rest of them watched, very much impressed by the amount progress Ayano has made so far, despite it being only his first day of training.

"Heh... Thank you for teaching me." He said, bowing slightly.

Jihan smiled, and walked back to his friends...

...

He leaned against the wall, from a far watching Ayano. "...I can't believe it. The boy actually managed to squeeze all three of our martial arts in himself back to back; and not do badly with the spars at the same time... Hmph..."

Warren seeing that his friend had an unresolved thought, asked. "What's on your mind...?"

"It's just... the kid's talent. I've never seen someone pick up martial arts so quickly, yet naturally; At least, not without the copy ability." Jihan explained, causing Warren to raise a brow.

He sighed, "I guess you're right about that... But, I can say, that without a shadow of a doubt is the fact the boy doesn't have that ability." Warren chided.

Jihan quickly glanced to the side, "I, suppose... Whatever it is. He's very gifted. But, I'm still not entirely sure about this... It's all just a little unbelievable to me."

Warren swiftly agreed; "You're quite right about that last bit... But personally? I think the boy's simply naturally gifted at least; at the rate he's progressing... it wouldn't be stretch for him to master our techniques within this week alone, and if not? Then, I can see him understanding the general concept behind them."

Jihan sighed, continuing his scrutiny...

Ayano on the other hand, had finally gathered himself, and was leaving, waving his new masters goodbye for the day.

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"Alright Eli... I think we need to have a little talk..." Zack said.

"Hmm? About what...?" Eli answered, placing down his tea cup.

Zack sighed; "About that boy you told us to take in... Look, I'll be completely straight with you; What he did today wasn't normal by any means. Simply calling him a prodigy, or a genius doesn't even do him justice either..."

Zack released a small breath of weariness; "Not only that, I even saw the kid healed up from injuries, that would take normal folks weeks to heal from, in just half an hour. Hearing about it is one thing, but seeing wounds being mended in front of your face is another."

Jay quickly stepped up, "-He's right Eli... It's quite hard to ignore the latter..." He agreed.

Jay continued; "-I'm thinking that Ayano must have the unique body; I just don't see how else he could even recovery so quickly to begin with, coupled with the fact that we both know about that type of constitution, and how it can't be obtained by, natural means...-"

Hearing all this, Eli let out another tired breath; "You both think I don't know all this? I just saw potential in him, that's why I took him up in the first place. As of the past recent years, I... became a firm believer that Potential shouldn't be wasted, under any circumstances." He paused, lowering his voice.

"..."

"And... That boy knows nothing." He huffed, lightly.

"I can tell that much is true. The conflicts we had back in our time; has ended over five decades ago, and we ought to just let it rest there, and stop being paranoid." He slowed down, calming himself.

"Regardless... I'm still planning to train the boy, and... If you any of you feel unsure about it, you can go whenever you please; go ahead, but me? I won't stop." Eli explained. Not wanting his chance to slip by.

"Enough!" Hudson shouted.

"..."

"Eli... Listen to me. I think what they were both trying to say, is that we should probably be a bit cautious about all this. Being involved with a person like this could potentially be dangerous for our families, and friends, and we aren't nearly as fierce as we used to be either." He finished, looking over at his old friends.

"Still, I'm going to agree with you, and train up the boy... I believe my legacy needs to be carried on. And, I'm sure everyone wants to do so too... So..." He paused.

"Are you all in this?" Hudson finally asked...

All of them present looked at him, and smiled. With Zack being the first to speak up;

"Of course! A boy like him should be trained... As much as I dislike geniuses. I've got to put respect where it's due, and I could tell that the kid's not a slacker. His skill, it was earned."

They all nodded...

"-All right then... I've booked us a stay at one of the nearby hotels, we'll be staying there for now.-" Jay added.

"Haha! I almost forgot that you were rich. By the way, Vodkas are on you!" Zack added excitedly.

...

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~ Third Person Pov ~

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Finally, home sweet home... It's a bit unfortunate how late it is... Ayano kicked off his sneakers and left them neatly at the door, moving as quietly as he could.

"Ayano?" Yukari's voice called out from upstairs.

"Yeah?" he replied.

A few moments later, her footsteps echoed down the stairs, followed by the soft flicker of the hallway light switching on.

"You're home late today..." she said as she stepped into view.

"Yeah, sorry... Let's just say I've been doing some stuff," he responded, his voice low. He wasn't sure whether he could tell her about the situation with his new masters just yet. He preferred not to—at least not until he was certain about how to explain it.

"I see... well, I hope you—Wait..." Her eyes narrowed as she looked at him more closely.

"Is that... blood on your shirt?"

'Oh...'

'Oh, crap.'

He had forgotten all about that. He'd taken a beating earlier that day, and during the worst of it, he must have coughed up blood that stained his clothes. It had completely slipped his mind. He made it his priority to focus on memorizing the techniques he was learning...

And by doing that, he didn't focus on this.

"Look, I know this looks bad, Yukari... but I can explain."

The words barely left his mouth before he caught the glare she shot him—sharp enough to cut through reinforced steel.

...

"I guess it's about time... I should be a little honest with you. I've found others—others like me," he confessed plainly.

"Explain," she said, her tone cold and direct.

"What I meant was... there are others with strength like mine. But stronger—much stronger. Do you remember what you told me the first time we really sat down and talked?" he asked.

She gave a slow nod, but the expression on her face betrayed more than she let on. Even through the calm front she tried to maintain, Ayano could see the disappointment and concern all etched in her features.

It didn't take a genius to recognize it—just someone with a shred of empathy...

"R-Right... I think they might have what you called the extreme body like I do. Or maybe it's something even more than that, something like the great body...? I'm not sure, and I won't pretend that I am. All I know is, they're powerful. So powerful, I didn't, and wouldn't even stand a chance against them."

Yukari's eyes flickered with a painful mix of emotions—anger, betrayal, worry—all tangled into one unreadable look.

"So this is why you've been coming home so late every day...?" she asked.

"Yes..." he admitted. Though that wasn't the whole truth. He hadn't mentioned the underground casino yet to her, nor did he plan to. That part he still planned to keep to himself—At least, for now.

"Why didn't you think to inform me about any of this?"

"I needed time... time to wrap my head around everything." He raised his hands slightly in a gesture of surrender, knowing full well there was no easy way to explain.

"And the way it happened... it was coincidence, really. But I get it. I get why you're upset. Honestly, it was reckless. I didn't plan to jump into it like that."

"Regardless... you should have told me something. Anything."

...

He faltered slightly, his voice slightly softer now. "Yukari... I'm so—"

"—NO!!" she snapped, cutting him off without hesitation. "You can't just walk in here and apologize, like it fixes everything you've been doing...! What if you had been kidnapped by that person!?"

He slowly lowered his head, shame settling in his gut, realizing that she was right. "Please, just let me expl—"

"What is there to even explain, DAMN IT!?" Her voice cracked under the weight of her fear, and sheer fury.

"Do you even realize how dangerous this world truly is?! My late husband died because of that same forsaken, and careless attitude! What the hell do you think would've happened to me if I lost YOU too!? What if they—"

She stopped. Yukari looked at him, seeing that he wasn't saying anything... Instead, he looked like a defeated man...

Her anger had finally quelled; 'Oh, oh... No.' She thought to herself, getting out of her chair, whilst backing up slowly in the

"A-Ayano... I'm... I'm so... so-"

"-Sorry?" He finished.

"Don't be, Yukari... It's, fine. I deserved all of it. Making a decision like that without consulting you was plain stupid; and to be honest, even I'm not sure why I chose it..."

Ayano then remembered the quest he was given. And, that, it was optional. Meaning, he could've taken it at any time, yet he chose to do it there, without properly thinking of the risks, nor the consequences that could potentially stem from it.

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He sighed silently, easing out of his chair in the process, and with a small smile; "I'll just head up to my room. If you need anything... Then, don't be afraid to call me. Good night, Yukari."

He walked passed her as if everything was normal. However, he was disappointed in himself... As he did, She had reached out to stop him, but stopped herself instead.

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END