An Assassin's Respite

Totally Serious Shopping

Time had passed uneventfully and the training camp was just a couple of days away. They had just finished their last class before the weekend began. 

“I can't believe the training camp is so close.” Kagura states.

“I know, the time flew by even though nothing happened,” Emiko adds.

“I haven’t even properly prepared. I need to go shopping for some things.” Chiyo says.

“Me too,” Kagura adds.

“Now that you mention it, I could use a new swimsuit,” Emiko notes.

“I could do for some more things to bring,” Shiba says.

“Well, then why don’t we all go shopping together?” Kagura suggests.

“Yeah, that sounds fun!” Emiko exclaims.

“Does anyone else care to join?” Emiko asks, directing her vision towards Kazuna.

“I would,” Matt says while raising his hand.

“Okay, anyone else?” Kagura asks again, this time followed by everyone’s collective gazes.

Kazuna lets out a sigh.

“Fine.” He mumbles as he raises a hand leading to cheers from his classmates.

With Kazuna now joining them somewhat by force, they decided to schedule their group shopping day for Sunday afternoon. Kazuna arrives at the mall plaza along with Ria and Kari and sees Kagura, Haruna, Haruka, Chiyo, Emiko, Ayame, Akeno, Matt, Shiba, and Yua who had been invited by Kagura were all waiting there already. He decided to bring Kari along since he thought she would enjoy it.

“About time,” Yua says.

“You really do arrive precisely on time all the time, huh?” Kagura notes.

“I’ve tried to get him to stop that.” Ria states.

“Well, I think it’s quite cute,” Yua says.

“Anyway, I know that we all came here together, but I doubt that it’ll stay that way for long. So why don’t we set a time to meet back here?” Kagura suggests.

“That sounds like a good idea,” Akeno says.

“Well since we got here at 2 pm why don’t we meet back here at 4 pm?” Kagura suggests.

“That sounds cool,” Matt says and everyone else nods in agreement.

“Great! Then are there any girls that would want to go with me to pick out swimsuits?” Kagura asks.

“I could use a new swimsuit,” Yua notes.

“Sounds fun!” Emiko exclaims.

“Right.” Chiyo agrees.

Ayame, Akeno, Haruna, and Haruka all nod in agreement.

“I would like to join as well,” Matt says, but the stares of all the girls made him back down.

“Ria, Kari, would you like to join us?” Kagura asks.

The pair are silent so Kazuna speaks up.

“Why don’t you join them. The two of you could do with getting closer with them.” He suggests.

Kari decides to follow his advice and Ria tags along a little more reluctantly. The group of girls heads for the swimsuit shop leaving Kazuna, Matt, and Shiba behind.

“They’re like amazons. Beautiful women that we men could never hope to obtain.” Matt notes.

“That’s actually one of the more intelligent things you’ve said.” Kazuna states.

“That was one of the more painful things you’ve said,” Matt says in a pained voice.

“So what should we do?” Shiba asks.

“Getting some swim trunks would be nice seeing as I don’t even own a pair,” Kazuna says.

“What? How can you not own a single pair?” Matt exclaims.

“They weren’t optimal for missions and I never went for casual swims.” He replies.

“Oh, right. Super assassin. Anyway, to the men’s clothing store.” Matt says.

The trio shortly arrived at a men’s clothing store that happened to be right across from the place the girls went to.

“Oh, how the stars have aligned,” Matt says with stars in his eyes.

“We came here for swim trunks, not to stalk,” Kazuna says.

“UHHH, fine,” Matt grumbles.

In the store across the way, the girls were starting to pick out swimsuits.

“How does this one look?” Akeno asks as she was holding a black 2 piece suit.

“Oh, you’ve got a pretty good sense of fashion,” Yua notes with a handful of swimsuits.

“How does this look?” Emiko asks while holding up a white and orange striped one-piece.

“I think you should show off your body more with a two-piece like this,” Chiyo suggests while holding up another swimsuit.

While the other girls were sifting through different colors and styles, Kagura, Ayame, and Ria had yet to even grab a single swimsuit.

“Struggling to pick, are we? Should I help?” Yua says.

"N-No, I am perfectly capable of picking something out on my own.” Kagura stammers.

She hovers over a couple of swimsuits but doesn’t reach for anything. 

“Here, try this one,” Yua says while handing her a swimsuit.

“A-Are you sure I-I mean t-this is kind of revealing,” Kagura says.

“Huh?! This is pretty standard though.” Yua points out.

“If you say so,” Kagura replies a little reluctantly.

Yua had picked a swimsuit for Ayame and Kari and Ria had picked one on her own in the meantime. It may have not seemed like it to them but they had spent 20 minutes in that one store while the boys' group was done within 5 minutes and were looking for a new store to go to. 

“Where to next?” Shiba asks.

“I would like to get a phone so that I can stay in touch with Kari.” Kazuna states.

“Wait, you don’t have a phone?” Matt asks in surprise.

“No.” He replies.

“I’d understand if you weren’t loaded the way you were,” Matt says.

“It never felt necessary so I never got one.” He adds as they head to the electronics store.

After a few short minutes of walking, they enter the electronics store. As they began to walk around, they were greeted by a girl with a familiar head of red hair.

“Hello and welcome to-” The girl suddenly stops speaking once they turned around.

“Wait a minute.” Matt mumbles.

“W-W-W-What are you all doing here!?” Mia exclaims.

“Us? What are you doing here?” Matt asks in response.

“I… I just needed a new phone.” She lies.

“Oh? Then what’s with the getup?” He questions.

“Well, Uhm, you see, Uhm.” She stutters when an employee approaches them.

“Mia, I know you just started here so if you need me to help then I can.” She says.

Mia remains silent while her face slowly turns red so Matt decides to take advantage.

“No, no, no, that won’t be necessary she’s doing just fine,” Matt says with a sheepish grin.

“Oh, well then I’ll leave her to it.” She replies with a smile.

Mia gives Matt a look that could kill, but he knew that he had all the power there.

“Now, now don’t give me that look and help us out. My friend here wants to get a phone, do you have any suggestions?” He asks.

“Why would-” She starts to growl but Matt interrupts her.

“Now that’s no way to talk to a customer.” Matt states.

“What can I help you with, sir?” She growls through gritted teeth.

“Yes, my friend here needs to purchase a cellphone. Do you have any recommendations?” He asks.

“I need two actually.” Kazuna corrects.

“Why do you need two?” Mia asks.

“One for me and one for Kari.” He answers.

“Oh, you mean that cute little girl you had with you that one time?” She guesses.

“Yeah. We’re going to be on the GA island for the next couple of weeks and I would like to keep in touch with her while I'm gone.” He states.

“Oh, I see. You know, you’re sweeter than you look.” Mia notes.

“If you say so,” Kazuna says.

“Well, since you’re looking for a phone for a kid, why don’t you get this.” She suggests as she picks out a pink phone.

“I see.” Kazuna mumbles.

“And for you how about this.” She says while pointing towards a black one.

“That’ll do.” He replies.

“I’m not sure if you’re actually looking at them or just going with a smile and wave approach.” She says.

“I trust your judgment on things like this much more than my own. I apologize if it appeared differently.” Kazuna assures her.

“O-Oh, I see. Thank you for the compliment.” She says while slightly blushing.

“You know, you’re actually kind of cute when you’re not being annoying,” Matt notes.

“Say another word and I'll burn you alive.” She warns, silencing Matt.

She leads them to the checkout and Kazuna buys the phones and leaves.

“But really, how many jobs does that girl have?” He wonders as he looks back at the store.

The girls had finally picked their swimsuits and were heading for another store.

“I can’t believe we spent so long looking at swimsuits,” Kagura complains.

“I think it went pretty quickly considering how many of us there are,” Yua says.

“Really?!” Kagura exclaims in shock.

“Yes, how long do you normally take?” Yua asks.

“Well, my mom usually helps me pick out my clothes, so not very long,” Kagura says a little embarrassed. 

“Makes sense for someone as stiff as you,” Yua notes.

“What is that supposed to mean?” She asks.

“You’re so uptight that I always wondered what you did for clothing. But it makes sense that you wouldn’t have a clue as to what good fashion was and would need the help of someone else. It’s not an insult, just an observation." Yua elaborates.

“It may be true, but it still feels like an insult,” Kagura growls.

“I could help you out if you’d like.” Yua offers with a sly smile.

“Thanks but no thanks. I feel like it would lead to you holding a favor over my head.” Kagura says.

“Your loss.” Yua shrugs.

“Don’t worry Kagura, I’ll help you out free of charge,” Chiyo says with a smile.

“Thank you, Chiyo. I’ll gladly accept your offer” Kagura replies.

“You would think that a girl as pretty as you would have a good sense of fashion,” Akeno notes.

“Oh, I’m not that pretty. If anything you’re prettier than me, Akeno.” She deflects.

“Although I appreciate the compliment, I think that you're undervaluing your beauty.” Akeno states.

“Yea Kagura you’re super cute and have an awesome body,” Emiko exclaims.

“You… You really think so?” Kagura asks while blushing.

“Totally. Plus, you’re smart and responsible and super nice.” Emiko adds.

Kagura’s face begins to turn red at the compliments. They arrive at an open area with a water fountain at the center surrounded by shops.

“Hey, why don’t we take a picture together?” Chiyo asks.

“That sounds like a great idea,” Emiko exclaims.

“I’ll pass,” Haruka says coldly.

“Aw, don't be like that.” Chiyo pouts while looking at her with puppy dog eyes.

“Ahh, fine.” She relents.

Ria starts to make her way from the group but Kagura was already on to her and grabs her arm.

“Where do you think you’re going?” She asks.

“Anywhere that isn’t here,” Ria replies.

“I don’t think so. You're going to take a picture with us.” She says.

“Why should I?” Ria asks.

“Well, because we’re friends.” She answers.

The response caught her somewhat by surprise.

“We're friends?” She repeats as a question.

“Well yeah, I mean, I at least think we are.” She says.

Ria stood there in a daze caught off by what she said.

“Now, come one. Why don’t we take a picture?” Kagura asks as she pulls her along.

Ria nods and follows her towards the fountain. Yua had a passerby take the picture and they were getting ready. 

“Alright on 3, we say cheese. 1...2...3!” Yua counts as the girls smile as the camera light flashes.

 The guy's group was walking around looking for something else to do until they were to meet up with the girls.

“So, what now?” Kazuna asks.

“How about we talk about something that’s been on my mind for a while now?” Shiba asks.

“And what’s that?” Kazuna asks.

“What’s your type?” He asks.

“Huh?” Kazuna asks.

“What’s your type? Is it the stern and serious Kagura? The pompous, curvy, and beautiful Yua? The petit childhood friend Ria? Or is it going to be a curveball like the unanimated Ayame?” He elaborates.

“Mhmm, a very good question,” Matt says.

“That’s a very good question?” Kazuna questions.

“It is for guy talk and something friends should know about each other,” Matt says. 

He said it in a way that almost made it sound serious, almost.

“I don’t know if that’s really true. But speaking of knowing about each other, I don’t know much about you two.” Kazuna says in an attempt to dodge the question.

“Now that you mention it we really haven’t talked about ourselves. So, what do you want to know?” Shiba asks.

“Why do you two want to be special agents?” He asks.

“My dad was a special agent so it was kind of like me talking up the family business.” Shiba answers,

“And you?” Kazuna asks as he looks over to Matt.

Matt looks towards his feet with a sad expression. A look that Kazuna had never seen on his face.

“My mom is really sick and her medical bills are really expensive. If I become a great special agent, then I can pay for those and get her the treatment she needs. Also, she’s proud of me for choosing this career.” Matt answers.

“I see. I’m sorry if I brought up something that you didn't want to talk about.” Kazuna apologizes.

“Don’t apologize. I've wanted to tell you anyway, especially since I know about your past.” He assures him.

Despite Matt telling him he did nothing wrong, he wished he hadn’t tried to change the subject. The girls had gone to various stores and had grabbed some useful things for their trip and some things that were more whimsical things while boys kept engaging in small talk to learn more about one another until they met back up with the girl's group.

“You guys get any good shopping done?” Yua asks.

“Yes, although I don’t think we needed that much time.” Kazuna answers.

“Really? I feel like we needed every second of it.” Yua replies.

“Of course you did, girls always take forever.” Matt jokes.

“What can I say, it takes a lot to look this good.” Yua states.

The comment draws laughs from everyone leaving an embarrassed look on Yua’s face.

“So where do you all want to eat?” Kagura asks.

Unsure of where to eat, they all decided to go to the food court and just grab whatever they wanted. The mix of foods showed how different they all were despite them being friends. While everyone was laughing and eating, Kazuna’s mind was still stuck on what Matt had said and what he could do to help.