Yorodien Samurai Troopers: Another Story

Giggling, Nasuti got up from her seat over by the kitchen table and gently moved him aside. She then cleared the screen and pressed a few buttons. The lights went on and the microwave came to life.

Naza frowned and scratched his head. "Hmph, blasted piece of junk."

"I'll teach you how to use it later," Nasuti replied. "Now, where's Byakuen and Kokuen-Oh?"

"Oooh! Oooh! I know! I know!" Chibi Shin hollered by the kitchen table. He started jumping up and down with his hand waving in the air. "Me! Ask me! Nasuti-san, ask me! Please!"

Nasuti went over to the sink and turned on the water. "Okay, Shin-kun. Where are those two then?" Picking up a few stacked dishes from the sink, she started to run them through the water.

Chibi Shin cleared his throat and said, "Yaku-chan's downstairs with Ryo, Seiji an' Touma are upstairs sleeping, an' Shu and I don't know where Kokuen-Oh-san is."

"Well, did what was the last thing he said to you guys before taking off to wherever he is?"

"He told us to get lost."

Over by the refrigerator, Anubis was digging through the items and eyeing things that might look appetizing. "We don't really need Kokuen-Oh, anyway. That cat's just getting in our way."

"Maybe," Rajura spoke. He was sitting at the table with Chibi Shu and wearily watching the boy as he ate his fourth slice of pie. "But we're nowhere near in finding Sachiriku. We're going to need all the help we can get and unfortunately, it means Kokuen-Oh's too."

Grabbing a piece of cold, left-over meat from the refrigerator, Anubis closed the door shut and leaned against the wall. He regarded the the meat for a few seconds before taking a big bite out of it. "If only we had our armors then this wouldn't be a problem."

"For right now, we'll have to hope that Kayura is doing her best in finding where Sachiriku is," said Nasuti as she started a new stack of dishes, washed and cleaned. Turning off the water, she removed her dish gloves and started to put her hair up in a ponytail. "Can you guys use your mindlink?"

The Masho nodded. Naza frowned and tilted his head as the microwave made a loud *ding* and the lights inside went out. He moved to the front of the microwave and tapped the door with his finger. "Open...? Hey, I want my food. Open up."

"We'll contact her tonight after the Troopers are asleep," Rajura declared.

Chibi Shu swallowed the last of his pie and asked him, "Can I call Kayura on the phone? I wanna talk to her!"

Rajura had a puzzled look on his face. "Phone? What is a phone?"

Uh-oh, Nasuti thought in amuzement. If these guys are going to be staying here for awhile, then I'd better introduce them to today's modern technology. Walking over to the microwave, Nasuti pressed a single button and the door popped open. Naza muttered a "thanks" and took the food out and started eating it hungrily.

Chibi Shin made a face. "Don'tcha want a fork to eat with that?"

Naza paused from his eating. "A... what? Fork? What is that?"

***

"Watch me, Yaku-chan!" Chibi Ryo expressed from the livingroom den. He was running around the room with a soccer ball that once belonged to Jun Yamano. Ryo ran about and kept the ball in front of him like a professional player.

Byakuen had a smile on his face as he watched Ryo from the dining table. He always enjoyed watching Ryo have fun. Even when Ryo was a child (years ago) he and Byakuen would chase after the soccer ball or play some other fun sport. That was the first time he had ever had fun in many centuries.

Suddenly, Byakuen's face fell as he thought, The Troopers seem to retain their powers from their armors, but only to a certain limit. They don't know what's going on. I should tell them. I can't be keeping secrets from them. They don't realize that Sachiriku wants them. It was a stroke of luck that we were able to find Nasuti not too far away after we escaped the park. It's amazing how she got out of that traffic jam but it's a good thing she did.

Standing up, Byakuen clapped. "Very good, Ryo. Would you mind coming over here for a moment? I... want to talk to you."

Chibi Ryo stopped moving the ball and ceased his movement. He gazed over at Byakuen and laughed. "Yosh! Here I come! Catch me!" With that, the boy ran towards Byakuen at lightning speed. Before Byakuen could react, he found himself being thrown off of his chair and onto the ground. Lifting his head from the floor, he found Chibi Ryo with his arms wrapped around his waist and his head pressed against his stomach. Chibi Ryo looked at him and giggled.

"Gotcha!"

Byakuen couldn't help but laugh. He enjoyed listening to Ryo's laugh and to see him happy made him even more so. The two of them were like this for a few minutes, on the ground and laughing. Finally, Yaku remembered what he was suppose to be doing and tediously sat up. Chibi Ryo slid onto his legs and simply sat there staring up at him.

"What is it, Yaku-chan?" he asked. "Am I in trouble?"

The other shook his head. "No, you're not in trouble. I just want to talk to you alone." Taking a deep breath, Byakuen just decided to say what was on his mind and not worry about if it came out silly or not. "Ryo, do you remember anything about armors or strange floating castles in the sky?"

"You're funny, Yaku-chan!" Chibi Ryo giggled and covered his mouth with his hands. "I know about my armors and my friends' armors! But... cool! You said there's a floating castle? Where?!"

Byakuen frowned. "No, Ryo. Do you remember seeing a floating castle before in your life?"

Chibi Ryo thought for a moment before shaking his head. "Nope."

"Hmm, okay. What about the Masho?"

"Ma... sho?"

"I mean Anubis, Naza, Rajura, and Kayura. How did you meet them?"

"I don't know."

Frustration was starting to cloud Byakuen's mind. "What about Kaos? Do you know who he is?"

Again Chibi Ryo didn't know. "Is he a superhero?"

Byakuen sighed in yearning. "Ryo, you must remember something about meeting them! A few years ago, you and I came to Shinjuku to warn the people about the darkness that would fall upon them all." He grabbed Chibi Ryo roughly by the arms and shook him. "This isn't you! You're not--we're not supposed to be like this! Sachiriku and Kaijin! You must remember! The armors, Arago, Youjakai, New York, Luna, Africa, Mukara, Naria, Suzunagi--"

"Let go of me!" Chibi Ryo howled, wriggling out of Byakuen's grasp. He stood up and glowered at him, his tiny chest heaving. "Don't yell at me! Don't hurt me! Just... just don't touch me!"

Byakuen instantly felt a ripple of guilt. He didn't mean to hurt Ryo, just trying to see if he could remember anything about his past, about being a Trooper, about the pain the armors gave him and the others. "Ryo... I-I am sorry. Please." He reached out to Chibi Ryo but gasped as his offer was rejected. Chibi Ryo took a few steps back and screamed, "You're mean! I hate you!"

Whirling around, Chibi Ryo cried as he ran across the room and dashed up the stairs. Thunderous footsteps were heard and then a door slamming shut. Silence filled the air. Byakuen squeezed his eyes shut as he felt tears stinging his eyes. Gritting his teeth, he stood up, with shaking fists at his side. The last thing he had ever wanted to do was hurt Ryo but it was too late now. Ryo may be only a child, thanks to Sachiriku, but to Byakuen, Ryo was his best friend. They truly understood one another, despite the fact that they could not talk to one another. The one chance Byakuen had gotten into communicating with Ryo and it turns out to be a disaster.

"Ryo..." The man-tiger felt his voice cracking. "Gomen nasai... I didn't want to... didn't mean to... ARGH!" Byakuen turned around and slammed his fist into the wall. The wall made a loud *crack* and nearly shook the whole house. Eyes still shut, tears managed to slip through his eyelids and slide down his cheeks. He then fell to his knees, bringing his fist to his side.

Nasuti, the Masho, Chibi Shu, and Chibi Shin rushed out of the kitchen and stared down at Byakuen from the upper walkway. "Yaku-chan! What's wrong?" Chibi Shu asked as he chewed on a piece of chicken.

"Byakuen...?" Nasuti inquired softly. "Nani...?"

Lifting his head up, Byakuen's tear-stained eyes focused upon his friends. "I... I tried to tell him..." he spoke in a tiny voice, barely audible but loud enough for the others to hear. "Tried to tell Ryo... about what's... what he--no! None of this can't be happening! What's taking Kayura so long?!"

"Byakuen!" Nasuti gasped. She nor the others had not expected him to go ballistic like this. Not so soon, at least. They all figured that Byakuen would seem like the calm, resourceful, clear thinking person. Then again, everyone has their limit.

Realizing a future controversy would soon erupt, Anubis, Naza, and Rajura leapt down from where they were and quickly went over to where Byakuen stood. Anubis tried to calm Byakuen down but received a swift punch in the jaw. Enraged, Anubis side-stepped the next swing and brought the man-tiger down with one kick in the gut. Byakuen doubled over and fell onto his hands and knees. From up above, Chibi Shu and Chibi Shin were crying out for them to stop fighting but it did no good. Nasuti closed her eyes and turned away. She bit onto her lower lip as he heard Byakuen struggling and yelling for the others to let him go.

Naza held Byauken down face first onto the ground, with a knee on his back while Anubis held down his legs. Rajura knelt before Byakuen, who had his face lifted from the ground, and cautiously placed a fingertip on his forehead. He closed his eye and his whole body started to glow within a purplish-pink aura. Byakuen continued to struggle against the Masho. Everyone was suprised that he was able to even move; the Masho were very strong and even with the three of them holding him down, they themselves toiled to keep him settled. Of course, Byakuen may look like a man but this might be a hint of his tiger strength gradually coming back.

Tension filled the house as Rajura kept his finger on Byakuen's forehead. Unexpectedly, Byakuen started to relax, letting his body calm down. His face, once twisted in torment, turned nonchalant. His breathing, once harsh, turned normal. Rajura mouthed the words, "Close your eyes" and Byakuen obeyed. Once doing so, he rested his head on the floor and seconds later, was asleep.

"Amazing," was all Naza could muster up as he and Anubis discreetly got off of Byakuen. "How did you do that?"

"Since I no longer am under any type of control, I can further explore my powers that were bestowed upon me when I was given my yoroi," Rajura explained with a touch of uncertainty in his voice. "I've been doing this for some time, you know."

"What'd ya do to him, Rajura-san?" Chibi Shu asked as he, Chibi Shin, and Nasuti came down and joined their friends. He glanced down at Byakuen and titled his head to the side as if trying to understand something.

"I showed him visions of peace and tranquility," the other replied. "It should calm him down for a little bit."

"Neato," said Chibi Shin. "If I have a bad dream, I'll call you, okay, Rajura-san? Then you can give me good dreams again!"

Rajura chuckled lightly. "Yes, I suppose you're right, Suiko-kun."

Nasuti kneeled down beside Byakuen and said, "Poor Yaku. I heard him and Ryo talking." She sighed and added, "He was trying to tell him things that might jog his memories of his former--true existance."

Chibi Shu and Chibi Shin exchanged quizzical looks with one another before shrugging. The Masho, though, understood what she was saying. He and Rekka are so close to one another, Anubis thought sadly. Almost like brothers in a sense. He was only trying to help the boy but something slipped out. Hmm? Turning his head, Anubis narrowed his eyes as he gazed out at the window. The sun was beginning to set finally. Good. He really disliked the light. But that wasn't what was bothering him. He felt someone... something out there lerking about, waiting for its prey.

They'd better realize who they're dealing with.

***

The sound of a door slamming shut caused Chibi Seiji to bolt up straight from bed and cry out. "Ah! What was that?! Who's there?!"

Rubbing his eyes, he threw off the covers and carefully made his way down the bed. He had a problem of where his feet should touch (being so small and all) but felt relieved once he made a tiny jump and landed on the ground. The room was dark. The curtains were closed, preventing any of the afternoon light from shining through.

Walking to the edge, he gasped as he found Chibi Ryo sitting against the door with his knees drawn to his chest and his head buried in his arms.

"Ne? Ryo? Hey, Ryo." Chibi Seiji made his way to Chibi Ryo's side. On his knees, he rested his chin on Ryo's knees and made their heads touch. "Rrryyyooo! Moshi moshi! Wake up!" he chirped happily.

He heard a hiccup from Ryo and then some sobs. Drawing his head back, Chibi Seiji patted Chibi Ryo's head affectionately. "What's wrong? Are you cryin'? Didja fall and hurt yourself? Y'know what helps me when I'm upset? Well, Grandpa said that you can just do bonzai an' play the flute and that'll make ya feel better in no time! I... think that's what he said..."

"Yaku-chan hates me," Chibi Ryo said in between sobs.

Chibi Seiji reeled in stupefaction. "Nani? Yaku-chan hates you? Why? What'd you do, huh? Did you walk into his room and get him mad like I did with my sister? Yayoi was screamin' and she chased me around the house 'til mama and papa made her stop."

"No..." Lifting his head from his arms, Chibi Ryo stared at Chibi Seiji with red eyes. Tears trickled down his face but he didn't bother washing them away. Instead, he said, "He was yelling at me and making try to remember stuff I don't know about."

"Honto? Yaku-chan really did that to you?"

Chibi Ryo nodded stiffly. "Uh-huh. H-He then shook me hard and it hurted me."

"Whoa... Then what?"

"I don't wanna talk about it."

"Demo--"

"Leave me alone."

Getting to his feet, Chibi Ryo ran past Chibi Seiji and climbed onto the bed. Once on top, he crawled into the blankets and started crying softly. Chibi Seiji just stood there gawking after his friend, not knowing exactly what to do.

"Seiji...?" a tired voice whispered from behind.

Chibi Seiji's eyes bugged out and he fell over. "Eaaauuuggghhh!" He got back up and glared at Chibi Touma, who was standing behind him with an innocent look on his face. "What'd you do that for?!"

"Ack! Gomen!" Chibi Touma replied with a sweatdrop. "Didn't mean to scare ya!"

The blonde boy snorted and threw him a derisive grin. "Hah! You didn't scare me! ... Just caught me off guard, that's all."

"Sure, Seiji," Chibi Touma chortled. "Whatever." His face grew serious as he glanced past Seiji's shoulder. "What's wrong with Ryo? Is he crying?"

"Hai. He's crying. Yaku-chan yelled at him."

"Oh boy. That's not good... So what can we do about it?"

The two boys gazed at one another, anticipating as to if the other had an answer to their problem. A minute flew by and neither of them knew what to say. At last, Chibi Touma lowered his head and mumbled, "I don't know."

Chibi Seiji nodded in agreement. "Same here. Maybe they'll make up later. Wanna go downstairs and see Nasuti-san?"

"Ne, you always wanna hang around Nasuti-san," Chibi Touma pointed out with a snicker. "If ya like her so much, why don'tcha marry her?"

"I-I would!" Chibi Seiji admitted shyly, his whole face turning red. "But I have to buy a ring an' then ask her. I'm broke and can't get her a ring. It has to be a pretty ring too, worth lots of money."

Scratching his head, Chibi Touma said, "Well, Chibi Shu has some clay. Let's ask him to make a ring for you."

"Awright."

Padding across the dark room, the two boys made their way to the bedroom door. On tip-toes, Chibi Seiji wrapped his fingers around the doorknob and turned it. Once the door opened, he and Chibi Touma started to make their way out when they stopped and turned to face the beds once more. They could still hear Chibi Ryo's cries from under the blankets. A twitch of guilt was felt inside each of them.

"Ryo," Chibi Seiji called out daintily. "Hey, Ryo, we're gonna play downstairs. Wanna come?"

Chibi Ryo didn't answer them. Chibi Seiji gave Chibi Touma a distressed look. Touma could only shrug in response.

***

"I AM COOL! I AM COOL! LA LA LA LA LA LA!" Chibi Shu hollered as he paraded around the study wearing a pot over his head and holding out a pan and banging it with a spoon.

Over by the computer, Nasuti was cringing at the sound as she typed on the keyboard. Byakuen, who's senses were much more sensitive than hers, covered his ears and bit his tongue. He had just recently awoken from Rajura's spell and found him and the others in this room. He wasn't angry at Rajura because he understood what happened. He still felt terrible about what occurred not that long ago but Anubis told him to concentrate on helping them with their search. Byakuen was hesitant about his; he wanted to apologize to Ryo but also knew that Anubis was right.

"Anything yet on those Gates Kiyemon guards?" Byakuen shouted as loud as he could over the sounds of Chibi Shu's pot banging.

Nasuti shook her head. "Not yet! I have a few more files to look through and then I'll just have to do some reaseach in Sengokou University! They might have information available there!"

"That's great! Really, really great! ...What did you say?!"

Behind them outside on the balcony, Anubis and Rajura were covering their ears as well. Out of all the rooms in the house, that spot was the one place where Shu's constant yelling wasn't as loud, strangely enough.

::Better just stick with the mindlink,:: Rajura advised with a touch of aggravation in his mental voice.

::Agreed,:: Anubis replied. ::Where's Naza?::

Rajura grinned. ::He and Suiko are in the living room watching television.::

Anubis fixed his brows in mystification. ::Television?::

::Yes, it's a magic box which has people inside doing things.::

::People inside a box? Oh, right... whatever you say.::

::It's true! Ask Nasuti about it! I must say it is very interesting to watch.::

The Yami Masho chuckled to himself. ::We've been gone from this place far too long.::

Inside the study, Chibi Shu stopped banging the pan and stood perfectly still in the middle of the room. His mouth opened wide and he dropped his pan and spoon onto the ground and made his way over to the suits of armors which stood on their stands. "Cool!" he whispered in awe. Turning his head over to Nasuti, he asked, "Can I try it on, Nasuti-san?"

Nasuti smiled sadly and shook her head. "No, Shu-kun. Those stay up. They're not toys."

Chibi Shu frowned. "Awww, gee whiz! I wasn't gonna play with it. Just wanted to see what I'd look like as a samurai... Oh! I know how!" Reaching into his pocket, the boy drew out his orange armor orb. Before a blink of an eye, Chibi Shu cried out, "Buso... Kongo!"

***

Naza was seated on the couch with Chibi Shin on his lap. The two of them were in the living room watching television. Naza's eyes nearly widened in interest. He had never seen such an invention in all of his life! Moving pictures within a box! So this was why people prefered to stay home sometimes.

He allowed Chibi Shin to take control of the remote control and flip through the channels. On one channel, a bunch of teenagers were screaming in fright as they were running through a dark, desolated forest. Behind them, a hideous monster of some sort was slauntering its way after them. Tall, blotchy gray flesh, tattered clothes, empty eye sockets, stringy hair...

"A youja! And those people are trapped inside that magic box!!" Naza proclaimed as he stood up, forgetting that Chibi Shin was on his lap. "I'll save them!"

Chibi Shin fell onto the floor and he glared up at Naza. "How're you gonna do that?! That monster's gonna gobble 'em all up and make 'em zombies too."

Naza frowned at the boy. "Zombie? You mean mind control?"

"Uh... no, I don't think so. It's not real, Naza-san. Just fake stuff but it's sure real, ain't it? That's way my mama doesn't let me watch scary movies 'cause it'll give me nightmares."

Suddenly Chibi Shin's face fell and he focused his eyes upon the flowers which were in a vase over by a bookshelf. A bunch of red roses, all beautiful and arranged perfectly. "Mama... Sayoki..."

Getting over his confusion, Naza watched as Chibi Shin stood up and walked over to the flowers. It was sitting on an empty shelf in the bookshelf. Reaching out, he gently stroked one of the rose petals with the tip of his fingers. "You know what?"

"What, Suiko?"

Chibi Shin sighed, his eyes growing watery. "My mama likes flowers. She likes it when I give her flowers so she can feel better. She's alway sick."

Forgetting about the television, Naza fixed his eyes upon Chibi Shin. The boy lifted a flower from the vase and held it gingerly in his little hands. Unexpectedly, the conception of peace filled Naza's mind. Seeing Suiko-chan and the flower reminded him of when himself was a child of that age. Before the existance of the Youjakai was known to him, Naza was a scared little boy. People used to fear and despise him because of his heritage and looks. In today's world, looks were not much of a concern as it was centuries ago; he was glad of that.

He secretly envied the Troopers, and maybe the other Masho did as well. These boys grew up in a world of innocence and knowing what it was liked to have been loved: Ryo had his father and Byakuen; Touma had his mother and father (even though they were divorced); Shu had his large family consisting of many siblings; Seiji had his own large, loving family; and Shin of course, had his mother and older sister.

Naza smiled inward. Perhaps one day when he had a son or daughter, he would unquestionably give them the love and attention they needed. He was no expert in that department but maybe by staying the Ningenkai and with the Troopers, he would eventually learn.

"Do you miss your mama?" Chibi Shin asked, his voice cutting through Naza's thoughts.

Taking a seat back down onto the couch, Naza shrugged. "I don't know. It's been a long time since I've seen her. I suppose I do."

Chibi Shin smiled, his dimples lighting up his face. "That's good. Um, can I ask you something?"

"Fine, what?"

"Can I go home now?"

***end of chapter seven

Chapter Eight