Tenchi was sweeping the front of the shrine office. Every now and then a few people came by to worship the shrine, mostly old and grey and weak, of which he had to help up the stairs. After concluding his sweeping he had his martial arts lessons with his Grandfather, Yosho, also known as Katsuhito to others. It went rather well, but Yosho outwitted him a several times and he fell on his butt on a few, too. He went to eat lunch afterward.
He had a few rice balls and some fried vegetables for lunch, specially made for him by Sasami. He ate underneath a shady willow. Tenchi didn’t realize Hiroki was sitting in the tree listening to Tenchi’s conversation with himself.
"Man, am I exited about going to Tokyo University," he said to himself. "I’m so anxious to find out what awaits me there, who I’ll meet, what I’ll learn, where I’ll go, it’ll be so exciting. But I’m going to miss everyone else so much. I don’t know what I’ll do if I don’t make friends. Washu will probably come up with some kind of way to get everyone over here without the use of the train." He laughed. "I wonder what job I can take…Maybe I’ll go with a shrine job like here. Or maybe, maybe something different…" His words trailed off as he thought, finishing off his last rice ball.
"Well, better get back to work. I only have a little bit left to do, and then I have to pack. Phew, what a day!"
Once all his chores were completed, he set off to his room to pack his suitcase. Only once he got there, he couldn’t find his suitcase. He looked everywhere, from inside his closet to the tiny space between his bed and the floor. Nowhere. Suddenly, it hit him. He left his room, looking very angry and went down the stairs.
"Ayeka!" he shouted when he entered the living room. "Where did you hide my suitcase?" Ayeka looked at him, looking quite innocent and offended.
"Why would I do something like that? I can’t believe you think I would do such a thing." She looked at him pityingly. Tenchi just tapped his foot impatiently.
"Ayeka, if you don’t tell me where you put it I’ll never talk to you again…"
Ayeka was instantly apologetic. "I’m sorry, Tenchi, very sorry. I hid it under my dresser." She seemed on the verge of tears, and Tenchi was almost expecting her to grovel at his feet. He was surprised that she didn’t. He walked over to her and put his hand on her shoulder.
"It’s okay, Ayeka," he said warmly. "I know you don’t want me to go, but I have to, if I ever want to get a decent job." He smiled down at her, and went to retrieve his suitcase. As he packed, the rest of the day sped by, and soon the light outside was completely dissipated. Dinner was soon called.
Tenchi’s leaving was the main discussion of that night’s dinner. I went by fairly quickly because he was explaining to everyone how his schedule would work. Afterwards, he helped Sasami clean up and gathered everyone in the living room.
"I wanted to take a picture of everyone so I could hang it up in my apartment," he said, clutching a camera in has hand. As everyone clustered together, Tenchi positioned the camera. "Smile everyone!’ he said, and then the bright flash came. Immediately the smiles faded and the group dispersed to their sleeping quarters. After hearing several good nights Tenchi found himself standing in the living room all alone, grasping his camera. Remembering all they’d been through together, he felt as if he could cry. But he maintained himself, and stepped steadily up to his room.
As he lay down on his bed, he thought about all the things that could happen in Tokyo. All the possibilities…There were innumerable amounts. He couldn't wait to get there and meet some new friends, yet he was reluctant to go because he knew he'd miss everybody here at the Masaki Shrine...
Hiroki had devised the perfect plan. While he was spying on Tenchi talking to himself while doing chores, he found that Tenchi was going to Tokyo University. Perfect. He was to wait for Tenchi to come to Tokyo. Then he would go to Tenchi’s house in Okoyama-ken while Tenchi was out, and win Ryoko over. Then he would get help from his dear mother Washu to build him a spaceship so they would be married and live somewhere deep in space. Tenchi would never know until he returned. It would work perfectly. Of course, it probably would have worked even if Tenchi WAS there, but it was more fun to do it secretly, and he probably wouldn’t have to fight Tenchi, either, if he would have when Tenchi was there. He smiled slyly to himself as he sat in a tree, near sleep, near the Masaki shrine.
Back to Chapter 1
On to Chapter 3: No Need for New Friends
