An Assassin's Respite

Kazuna's Friends

Kazuna opens his eyes groggily and slowly looks around. The room seemed familiar, but he was so exhausted that he couldn't tell why. He sits up with a pained expression on his face. His body was sore, battered, and bruised. He shakes his head in an attempt to wake himself up. He looks to his right and sees his swords, he goes to reach for them but stops as he feels some movement on the side of his bed. 

He looks over and sees Kagura sitting in a chair, resting her head on the edge of the bed. A surprised look passes over his face, but he changes it in favor of a smile. He reaches over to wake her, but she begins to stir. She yawns and rubs the sleep out of her eyes. She looks in Kazuna's direction, and her face turns bright red.

"Good morning." He says.

Kagura jumps back and lets out a high-pitched shriek.

"K-K-Kazuna, I-It's not what you think. I-I w-was just, uh, resting my eyes." Kagura stutters.

"I see. So, how long have I been out for?" He asks.

Kagura clears her throat before answering. "Right, um, you were sleeping for four days." She answers.

"I see," Kazuna says.

"Honestly, I was starting to worry that you might never wake up," Kagura says.

"I'm sorry I worried you," Kazuna says in response.

"You really are reckless. I couldn't imagine how much I would worry about you in your days as an assassin." Kagura states.

"So, you asked your mother about me?" He asks.

"Yea and your mom added some extra things," Kagura answers a bit somberly.

There was an excruciatingly long silence between them before KAzuna speaks up.

"Then how can you not only worry about me but also go and save me," Kazuna asks. 

"I don't know; I just knew that I had to save you. That's how all of us felt." Kagura answers while sitting back down in her chair.

"You all really are idiots," Kazuna says jokingly.

"Is that how you thank the people that saved you," Kagura says while pouting.

"You're right, thank you." He says.

Kagura starts to laugh.

"What's so funny?" He asks.

"Nothing." She answers while still laughing.

"Really, what is it?" He asks again.

"It's nothing really," Kagura says once more, still laughing.

Kazuna looks at her with a bit of a displeased look on his face.

"Hm, you certainly look livelier." A voice says.

"Huh?" Kagura squeaks in confusion. 

She looks over the side of Kazuna's bed and sees the same dragon from the day Zer attacked.

"Umm, hello?" Kagura says, a bit confused.

"Oh, my apologies, I haven't gotten the chance to introduce myself properly. I am Bahamut, king of the fire dragons." Bahamut says while jumping onto Kazuna's bed. 

As he jumps up, two more dragons appear beside him. Kagura recognized the one on Bahamut's left as Karma, but the other one she was unfamiliar with.

"The one on my left is Karma, king of the wind dragons, and the one on my right is Kirin, king of the lightning dragons," Bahamut explains.

Kirin was a golden yellow color and was a bit larger than the other two, had massive wings, and a tail that forked in two.

"We would like to thank you for saving Kazuna," Bahamut says while lowering his head.

"Oh, don't thank me, you should be thanking everyone else. They did way more than me." She says in an attempt to differ their thanks.

"No, if it weren't for you, nobody would have gone to rescue him." Karma points out.

"You shouldn't have gone to rescue him anyway. It's his fault he got caught for being so selfish." Kirin states.

"But weren't you the one that felt like he let down Kazuna for not being enough to ensure his victory?" Karma asks.

"No, I'm pretty sure I was blaming Kazuna for not being strong enough," Kirin says in his defense.

"So you were worried," Kazuna says.

"Say another word, and I'll fry you." Kirin snaps.

"Like you could." Kazuna teases while shoving him with his finger.

Kagura watches the three of them bicker amongst each other and smiles.

"I thought that you didn't have any friends," Kagura says.

"Friends? With him? Never." Kirin barks.

"More like extra mouths to feed." Kazuna states.

"It would be presumptuous of me to call myself my master's friend," Karma says.

"Well, I never thought of us in that way." Bahamut states.

"You all are so awkward," Kagura says with a laugh.

"Are you making fun of me, the ferocious Kirin?" Kirin asks.

"Ferocious? You're much too adorable for that." Kagura teases.

The comment led to the other two dragons laughing at Kirin. As they were laughing, Kagura can hear a bump in the corner of the room.

"Did, did you hear that?" She asks.

Kazuna sighs.

"Yeah, you gonna show yourself now?" He asks.

A few seconds later, a petite girl with red hair and crimson eyes appeared in the corner of the room.

"How long have you known?" She asks.

"The whole time." Kazuna answers.

The girl pouts in response. "If you knew, then why didn't you say something sooner, Kachi?" She asks.

"Kachi?" Kagura whispers in confusion.

"Ria, how long are you are you going to call me that?" He asks.

"For forever. It's the nickname I gave you, so I'll always call you by that. And you should call me by the nickname you gave me." She replies.

"Kazuna, do you know her?" Kagura asks.

"Yes, he knows me, we've known each other since we were kids." Ria answers.

"Ria, what are you doing here?" Kazuna asks.

"Obviously, I wanted to rescue you and make sure you were alright." She answers.

"I thought I told you that you weren't allowed to go on any dangerous missions," Kazuna responds.

"You made that order as the head of the clan, and last time I checked, you're no longer the head. My question is why you never came to see me after I woke up." Ria asks.

"I have my reasons." Kazuna answers.

"Should I leave, I feel really out of place here," Kagura says.

"No, Ria go home, as you can see I'm fine." He says.

Ria turns and rushes out with tears welling up in her eyes.

"Are you sure that's the way you wanted to handle that?" Kagura asks.

"It's for the best." Kazuna answers.

"That's something I don't like about you, Kazuna. Instead of fixing your relationships with people, you just push them away. If you keep doing that, then you really will end up all alone." Kagura says as she heads out after Ria.

"You know, the girls right," Karma says.

"That's twice now that girl has given it to you," Kirin points out.

"Maybe you should try and reconcile with your mother and Ria," Bahamut suggests.

Kazuna doesn't say anything and just looks down, thinking about what Kagura said before Zer invaded the school.

"Learn to trust people, huh." He says to himself.

Kagura catches up to Ria, who was just about to leave through the front door.

"Wait," Kagura says as she grabs Ria's arm.

"Let go." Ria barks as she snatches her arm away from Kagura.

"Are you going to leave just like that?" Kagura asks.

"What, no. I've been searching for Kazuna ever since I woke up; there's no way I'm going to let him out of my sights so easily." Ria states.

"Oh, then where are you going?" Kagura asks.

"To tell Kazuna's mom that he's awake." Ria answers in an irritated tone.

Kagura stops Ria as she goes for the door once more.

"Before you go, can you tell me what you mean when you say after you woke up?" Kagura asks.

Ria lets out a deep sigh.

"You're really annoying; you know that." She says.

"Sorry, I just want to help," Kagura says in defense.

"Then ask Kazuna, maybe he'll tell you, he seems to like you anyway," Ria says as she finally leaves.

Kagura stands there stunned at the altercation before she heads back to the room that Kazuna was in. Kazuna looks her way as she comes in.

"This room looks oddly familiar, but I can't tell why. Where are we?" Kazuna asks.

"Oh, right, we're at Momo's house." Kagura answers.

"So that's why this room seemed familiar," Kazuna notes.

"Have you been here often?" Kagura asked.

"This makes the fourth time," Kazuna says.

"Have you been severely injured that many times?" Kagura asks in shock.

"I have only been a patient here for myself three of those times. The fourth time was for Ria." Kazuna replies.

"Does that have anything to do with her 'waking up'?" Kagura asks.

Kazuna looks down at the bed and clutches his blanket.

"This is the first step, Kazuna," Bahamut notes.

Kazuna looks between Kagura and Bahamut before taking a deep breath and relaxing.

"Yes, it does." Kazuna answers.

"What happened?" She asks.

"It was during a mission. Ria had followed me when I went on a mission, and by the time I noticed, it was too late to stop the mission and take her home. So I decided to continue the mission with her. She had trained as an assassin, but she had never been on a mission. Despite me knowing that, I didn't proceed with her safety in mind, I just told her to sight still and wait for me. Halfway through the mission, I heard a fight break out and immediately moved to where it was. Once I reached the commotion, I saw Ria on the ground bloodied and battered, and standing above her was my target." Kazuna says.

"So, Ria tried to assassinate your target." Kagura surmises.

Kazuna nods his head.

"But why? Why didn't she just do what you told her to do?" Kagura asks.

"When we were growing up, Ria would always tell me 'Kazuna, one day I'm going to be a better assassin than you so that you won't have to kill anymore and so you can smile again.' I guess she hadn't realized how hard the first kill is. After that, she was in a coma for almost three years." Kazuna answers.

"And she's been searching for you ever since she woke up?" Kagura finalizes.

"It would seem so," Kazuna replies.

They don't say anything for a short time before Kagura speaks up.

"Alright, whenever Ria comes back, you're going to have an actual conversation with her." Kagura states.

"Wha-?" Kazuna says before choking on the water he was drinking.

"You heard me. You're going to talk with Ria and makeup." Kagura says once more.

"I got her hurt, stole nearly three years of her life from her, and didn't confront her when she woke up. I wouldn't even know where to start." Kazuna says.

"It would be better than avoiding her and saying nothing." Kagura states.

"Hmm, I guess I can give it a shot," He responds.

"Good," Kagura says while she heads to the door.

"Where are you going?" He asks.

"To get Ria, of course." She answers.

"But, but you said-" Kazuna stutters, but Kagura raises her hand to silence him.

"I know what I said, but why wait when I can go get her now?" Kagura asks rhetorically, and she leaves the room and heads to Kazuna's house, where Ria and Ms. Katsuchi were.

"Well, at least you have some time to prepare yourself," Bahamut notes.

"This'll be rich," Kirin says with a laugh.

Kagura has Momo drive her to Kazuna's house and arrives after a few short minutes. She knocks on the door and is greeted by Ria, who opens the door.

"What are you doing here?" She asks.

"I'm here to get you." Kagura answers.

"Is that Kagura?" Ms. Katsuchi asks.

"Yes." Ria answers.

"Let her in I want to talk with her." Ms. Katsuchi states.

Ria sighs and opens the door fully for Kagura, who enters and heads to the living room where Ms. Katsuchi was.

"It's good to see you again." Ms. Katsuchi says as she gestures for Kagura to take a seat across from her. Ria sits next to Ms. Katsuchi.

"How are you doing?" Kagura asks.

"I'm doing well." She answers.

"What did you want to talk about?" Kagura asks.

"Right, I just wanted to thank you once again for saving Kazuna." She answers.

"You don't need to thank me. I was just going to save a friend." Kagura replies.

"No, I do. You went beyond what a normal friend would do, and I'm glad you're friends with my son." She states.

"I'm glad to be friends with Kazuna as well," Kagura says.

"I'm glad you came over; I wanted to say goodbye to you before I left." Ms. Katsuchi says.

"Wait, are you going back to America?" Kagura asks in shock.

"Yes." Ms. Katsuchi answers.

"Are you not going to go see Kazuna?" Ria asks.

Ms. Katsuchi shakes her head.

"That can wait for another day, after all, he's got plenty on his plate as is." She answers.

"What does that mean?" Kagura asks.

"Why are you here?" Ms. Katsuchi asks as she looks over at Ria.

"What?" Ria asks, confused.

"You're right. Ria, let's go back to Momo's right away." Kagura says as she grabs Ria's arm.

"What's with you and grabbing me?" Ria asks as Kagura pulls her into Momo's car.

"Kazuna, you've found yourself some good friends and have grown quite a bit. Although, you still have a ways to go." Ms. Katsuchi says to herself.

Kazuna was sitting in his bed, staring out the window when Ria enters his room.

"Kagura said you wanted to talk with me?" Ria says a bit nervously as she enters the room.

Kazuna nods his head as Ria takes a seat. He takes a deep breath and gathers his thought before speaking.

"You were there when Kagura and the others were escaping Zer's base, weren't you?" Kazuna asks.

Ria nods her head.

"I know you told me not to go on missions, but there was no way I could do nothing while you were in danger." Ria states.

"Do you know why I didn't want you to go on any missions?" Kazuna asks.

"Because I'm no good at assassination." Ria answers.

"No, I didn't want you to go on missions because I wanted to keep you away from danger. I failed at protecting people while on missions, so I thought I could protect you by keeping you away from the danger. I also didn't want you to get swallowed by darkness as I did." Kazuna says, correcting her.

Ria blushes and is silent for a brief second before she shakes her head and speaks up.

"But it's not fair that you have to put yourself in danger alone. You want to protect me, but I want to protect you. If you would just trust me, we could protect each other." Ria snaps back.

"So, we come back to me not trusting people, huh," Kazuna says seemingly to himself.

"Remember when we were kids, and we made that promise.?" Ria asks.

"To always stay together and to protect one another." Kazuna answers.

"You broke our promise and that hurt, it really, really hurt. You left me alone and pushed me away for so, so long. I was so scared, and I felt like you had abandoned me." Ria says while clutching her chest and crying a little.

"I'm sorry," Kazuna says while reaching out and wiping her tears from her eyes.

"I've done a lot of things that I regret, more than I can count. But I want to try and fix some of those regrets, starting with you, Rimi." Kazuna says.

"Okay." Ria says as her face goes a little red, and she starts to cry once more.

Kazuna pulls her to his chest and lets her cry. They stayed like that for a few minutes before Ria stops crying. She wipes her eyes and sniffles for a little bit longer.

"You still cry like a baby, I see." Kazuna teases.

"I can't help it. We don't talk for years, and you say something like that." Ria responds while still sniffling.

"Is there any way I can make up for that?" Kazuna asks.

"Yea, just promise you'll never leave me alone again." Ria answers.

"Mhm, I promise that I will never leave you alone again." Kazuna answers.

Kazuna and Ria catch up for a few minutes before they're interrupted by Matt, who comes bursting through the door.

"Dude, you're finally awake?" Matt shouts as he rushes Kazuna.

"Not one for subtlety as always," Kazuna notes.

"What does that mean? And who's the cute girl?" Matt asks while looking Ria up and down.

"A friend." Kazuna answers.

"Oh, I see, A 'friend'" Matt emphasizes as he backs away only for Yua to push him down as she blitzes Kazuna.

"You had me so worried." She says as she crushes him with a hug.

"You know, I'm still not fully recovered, so this kinda hurts." Kazuna states.

"Oh, right, sorry," Yua says as she releases Kazuna.

"You sure seem friendly with a lot of girls." Ria scuffs.

Kazuna ignores this remark and looks past Yua and sees the entirety of class 1-A, Ayanami, and Ms. Saugoma. 

"Good to see you alive and well." Juro states.

"Even though you didn't go to save him?" Emiko prodes.

"You did keep us out of the loop." Natsuki points out.

"Only because you all didn't come to Kagura's to hear about Kazuna." Haruna retorts.

"It felt wrong to dig into someone's past without them being present." Masahiro states.

"You could have at least told us that he had been kidn*pped," Vincent adds.

"Would that have changed whether you came or not?" Haruka asks coldly.

The group stands silent, unable to give a definitive answer.

Kazuna begins to quell the argument before he notices Usagi and Mia.

"What are you two doing here?" Kazuna asks.

"To see how you're doing." Usagi answers.

"I'm only here because Usagi's here." Mia snaps.

"Don't listen to her. Mia spent the whole ride here, hoping that you were okay." Usagi states.

Mia lets out a squeak as she starts to blush.

"We may have been adversaries at the Coalition Festival, but I see you as a friend, and so does Mia," Usagi adds.

"Thank you," Kazuna says in response.

"So Kazuna, when will you be making your return to school?" Ayanami asks.

"Hmm, those four days I spent sleeping along with the treatment from Momo healed me enough to where I can go back to school tomorrow, it's just that I'll ache a little." Kazuna answers.

"If you weren't so weak, you would only feel a little stiff." Kirin barks.

"Umm, what's with the dragon?" Matt asks.

"Oh, right, you all don't know. They are the dragons that resid in my swords Kirin, Bahamut, and Karma," Kazuna answers.

"They resid in your swords?" Usagi asks.

"Why didn't you tell me about this Kagura!?" Matt exclains.

"Because I didn't even fully understand it." She replies.

"Then I guess I'll explain. My power comes from them. All of you assumed that my power allowed me to control lightning, but that isn't quite right. My power allows me to tap into the power of these three dragons. So, in all technicality, I can control fire, lightning, and wind." Kazuna answers.

"So, you were holding back in our fight," Usagi notes as he places a hand on his head.

"I have my reasons for not using my other swords," Kazuna says.

"Well, in any case, why don't we all leave for now and allow Kazuna to rest." Ms. Saugoma suggests.

"Yes, he's probably pretty tired from the sudden commotion after being asleep for so long," Akeno says in agreement.

"I guess it can't be helped," Yua says as she reluctantly heads out.

"Take care, man," Shiba says as he leaves.

"Oh, I wanted to hear more about these dragons." Matt groans.

"If you need anything, just call," Kagura says on the way out, leaving Kazuna and Ria alone.

"They're such a rambunctious group," Kazuna says with a sigh.

"Mhm, but I guess I can tolerate them," Ria says.

"Really?" Kazuna asks.

"They seem to make you happy, and as much as I would love to have you all to myself, I would much rather see you happy," Ria adds.

"Ria," Kazuna says, astonished by the maturity of her comment.

"Anyway, why don't you get some rest," Ria says as she gets up and leaves.

Kazuna was alone in the room once again.

"I know I complain about how noisy they are, but it's almost too quiet when they're gone," He says under his breath.