Mirage of Blaze: Chapter Three

[tammaiya]

In which Morino is an truly obsessive, Takaya thinks Naoe is a freak, Naoe IS a freak, and Kousaka's beauty is emphasised. Repeatedly. Oh, and there are lots of sound effects.

Chapter 3: Reunion

That day, the morning silence of the Morino household was destroyed at 7.50.

With a sound so loud it sounded like the fall of thunder, Saori runs down the stairs like she's falling down them.

"Morning. Did you break the stairs?"

"Ah, maybe. Morning, mum."

"Today's Saturday, so will I make toast? Do I do your eggs sunny-side-up? Scrambled?"

"That's okay, I'm in a hurry! Cook some bread quickly, bread! Eeeee! I have no tiiiiiiiime!"

"Honestly…"

Her mother picked up the coffee pot.

"If I think you've been strangely happy since you got back yesterday-"

"Don't say it. It's because Narita-kun's voice came back yesterday."

"Ara. You went to see how he was? To Narita-kun's house?"

"Yep! But he seemed fine!"

"I see. So, I wonder if that girl he saw the day before yesterday has gone home from hospital."

"Anyway, yesterday he was wearing a grey tracksuit, and his hair…"

"As much as I'd love to hear your report, weren't you in a hurry?"

"I'm in a hurry, but… listen!"

Saori's voice rose in demand.

"More importantly, has your bike's puncture been fixed? If you're going by bus, you have even less time."

"Ayaya."

I'm going, came her father's voice from the front door. With a patter patter, her mother went to see him off. With no one to listen, Saori reluctantly fixed her eyes on the turned on television.

"Next, from Enzan city, Yamanashi prefecture. They're saying that at the shrine of Warring Clans' military commander Takeda Shingen in the grounds of the famous Erin Temple, there has been an enormous meteorite crash."

"Huh…?"

With a ching sound, the bread popped out of the toaster. On the television screen, the scene itself is reflected, and the strangely cheerful morning reporter chatters. In the grounds, there are a lot of people milling around, and behind that there is a large hole.

"… At a width of twenty metres and a depth of five metres it is a considerably large crater, and its appearance suggests that it was a direct hit to the Shingen shrine. Visible fragments of the fallen meteor haven't been found yet, but… Let's try asking some of the people there about the current state of the shrine."

(If only nothing had fallen on those grounds particularly…)

She thought, and the display of her watch caught her eyes.

"Hya, is it already that time? Damn it!"

Swallowing her coffee with a chibi and holding her toast in her mouth, Saori jumped up from her chair.

"Thanks for the foooood!"

Having done so, she ran. The bell on the knob cover of the closed door sways. In the empty dining room, the television continued talking to itself.

"… Now, though this visible falling star has been called a meteor by many people in the heart of Enzan city reported as eyewitnesses, the weather bureau and the astronomical observatory say that at that time last night no falling bodies like that were observed…"

*

Just a little late, the bus with students packed like sardines finally arrived at the stop in front of the school. One female student forced her way out from amongst the students pouring out like an avalanche, and, staggering, stumbled to the edge of the path.

"Watch out! Don't shove!"

It's Saori. She thought she had yelled as loud as she could, but the students on the verge of being late avert their eyes and keep running as if they hadn't heard at all.

Saori sits down on the path in mute amazement. Her hair and the ribbon on her uniform are completely messed up. She sniffled.

"… horrible…"

Saori always goes to school by bike. (Incidentally, Matsumoto is an area where an usually large number of people ride bikes, and appears to have earned the nickname of "Japan's China".)

Her bike had been punctured, and for the past few days, she's been walking to school, but today she overslept. She had jumped onto the bus that had arrived unexpectedly just after she'd thought, I don't have time!

"Morino-san?"

Abruptly, she straightened her posture. That voice…

Resigned, she turns her head and looks up. Her face burned with misery. Bending his knees, there is a male student studying her.

"Did you fall over? Are you okay?"

It was Narita Yuzuru.

(N-no way…!)

Fist over her mouth, Saori's face is bright red.

(I'm so lucky!)

Perhaps it is an injury of great accomplishment.

Yuzuru held out his hand.

"Can you stand?"

Yuzuru's hand. This hand she had dreamed of until now, would it really be okay to place her own hand on it? While Saori was hesitating, Yuzuru took her hand.

"Great, let's go!"

He pulls Saori to her feet. She is practically staring at Yuzuru in mute shock.

(… Wow. This hand. I can't wash it.)

"Thank you for visiting me when I was sick yesterday, Morino-san. I'm sorry for putting you out of your way."

"Eh? Ah, no…"

Sorry was way out of the question. She'd like to say something more along the lines of thank you for getting sick. In any case, Saori laughed.

"Not at all. More importantly, are you sure you're okay already? To come to school."

"Yeah."

So saying, Yuzuru showed her his usual bright smile.

"Since nothing strange happened last night, and I was able to get here okay this morning, too. I'm fine."

"I'm glad. So, you've already gotten over it?"

"? What?"

"The start of term depression."

Yuzuru faltered suddenly.

Saori looks back at him restlessly.

"Oh, speaking of which, what about Ougi-kun? Let's see, don't you two usually come to school together?"

"He overslept, probably. When he's late, he gets here by bike. So he'll come soon."

Saori is fascinated by Yuzuru's profile. The fresh green leaves of the poplar trees along the fence are dazzling to her eyes. However, now is not the time to be moved by such things. Yuzuru's glassy eyes are right near her.

(Ah, his eyelashes are so long…)

This minor discovery made Saori happy.

The bell had rung a long time ago, but Yuzuru didn't seem to care, and so far as Saori was concerned it was certainly fine with her either way.

"?"

She had the feeling that Yuzuru's eyes were fixed on something far, far away.

"What's wrong?"

"Eh? … Aah, sorry."

It looks as though something was on his mind.

"There's something I wanted to ask you, but… Morino-san, you're a Japanese History major, aren't you?"

"Yep."

"In that case, maybe you'd know."

"What?"

"Um, about the symbol on a flag that appeared in my dream, but…"

"A dream? I spoke to Ougi-kun yesterday, and he said that you'd been having them recently…"

"A dream like a period drama. I thought about that and wondered if the symbol on that flag couldn't be some kind of clue? I thought that it could be a family crest or something, but…"

"What kind of symbol?"

"Diamond shaped… hm, how to explain it?"

While saying that, he retrieved notepaper and a ballpoint pen from his bag and, in front of Saori, with a rustle, drew the symbol and showed it to her.

It's a diamond divided into four small diamonds.

"Huh? This is…"

"You know what it is?"

"Isn't this thing the Takeda diamond?"

"The Takeda diamond?"

"Yeah. The Takeda family crest. I think it's definitely something like this."

"Takeda, huh?"

Yuzuru leaned forward.

"No way, you mean Takeda Shingen?"

"Exactly. I know quite a bit about it from having watched all of the Ooka drama. The 'Wind-Forest-Fire-Mountain' flag is also famous, but it looks like this one was used too."

"Takeda…?"

If you know that, he's such a terrible person it would scare you.

That man from yesterday-- Naoe, that's what he was called-- those were the words he'd left behind.

If the flag that had been in his dream was the flag of Takeda Shingen of the Warring Clans period, then were the warrior spirits from yesterday also the warriors of Takeda? And if so…

(The "he" who is possessing me really is Takeda Shingen?)

The warriors were calling for the awakening of "him". And yet, if they were the warriors of Takeda, was "he" their master Takeda?

No way, someone like Shingen…

(… But, why again…?)

"Narita-kun--"

Abruptly, Yuzuru lifted his head.

There are male students in navy uniforms hanging around near the white school gates. Navy blazers, grey pants; they aren't from Yuzuru's school. From their hairstyles and their postures, they have a bizarrely scary air about them, and maybe they're planning an ambush? While they were smoking cigarettes, one of the boys hanging around in the circle noticed Yuzuru and Saori.

"… Oi."

He nudged his companions, and made them turn around.

Timidly, Saori hides herself behind Yuzuru. From amongst the loitering boys, a student with a lots of bandaids on his face steps forward in front of Yuzuru and Saori. Curling his bruised, blue lips into a sneer, the male student spoke.

"… Morning."

Yuzuru answers with a stiff face.

"Morning."

The other students, in front of the school gates. They were the students from West High that "he" had provoked into a quarrel the day before yesterday.

*

At the same time, within two hundred metres from the school, a black GSX250R rode up to a parking zone for bikes opposite a gasoline stand that had been left behind. Halting against the wall while lightly revving up the accelerator, he put the gear into neutral and cut the engine.

Taking of the full-face helmet, Takaya lightly shook his head. Straddling his bike as he is, he looks at his watch. 8.35. Okay, but he was going to be late.

"Can't be helped."

In that case, he'd have to go and get his breakfast quickly. He was regretting that, when-

"?"

Suddenly he felt the aura of a person behind him and turned his head. Then, his eyes widen slightly.

Behind and to the diagonal of him, the man in black clothes is standing there.

"……"

With wakened eyes, Takaya returned the gaze of the man watching him. That guy over there- the man who'd passed by him yesterday, in front of Yuzuru's house.

Slowly, Takaya dismounts his bike.

"You want something?"

Takaya asked in a low voice.

Without answering, Naoe simply stares at Takaya with shrewd eyes.

Takaya narrowed his pupils to slits.

"Don't you have anything you want to say?"

Instead of an answer-

Above his head, a branch of the roadside tree abruptly broke.

"…!…"

Reflexively, Takaya looks up.

Naoe is staring at Takaya silently.

"!"

Takaya widened his eyes.

Vin…

With a sound like the twang of a bowstring, gravel from underfoot floats up into the air.

"Wha…!"

Intending to raise his voice, he broke off.

The gravel floated to a height of two metres as though drawn up by a magnet, and stopped between the two of them.

Naoe's eyebrow quirked purposefully.

Byu!

"!"

Suddenly, the shards of gravel cut through the air, and flew towards Takaya.

Bishii-.

"Ku…!"

The arrow-like gravel grazes the cheek of Takaya, whose face is turned away. The rock shards rained incessantly to the ground to strike him like that.

Takaya stared at Naoe in shock. Without changing his expression either, Naoe glares back with his arms crossed. Takaya swallowed his breath.

(This guy… what the hell…!)

"How about trying to use your powers."

It was the first time Naoe had spoken.

"Next time I won't spare you."

"!"

Once more, the gravel floated into the air. Naoe's eyes were filled with the intent to kill, reflecting Takaya standing frozen still.

"Saa!"

Takaya covered his face with his hands. The gravel swoops down upon him.

I'll be hit head-on!

He thought, but.

The gravel didn't swoop down on Takaya's body at all.

(……?)

He half-opens his eyes, and looks at the situation. The gravel is completely frozen several centimetres in front of Takaya's face.

(Eh--)

With a rough sound, the gravel dropped spontaneously.

"Why did you call out to me yesterday."

At odds with what he had just done, Naoe's tone was calm. Takaya glared back at him. Then, careful, deep, low-

"Because you smelled of Yuzuru."

"…..."

Naoe smiled slightly.

"I see."

"Were the magic tricks you were using just now the way you dealt with the warriors that attacked Yuzuru?"

"Did you ask? About what happened yesterday."

"------"

"… If so, we'll talk quickly."

"What the…"

"There is something I definitely want you to see."

"? Me?"

Takaya was openly suspicious.

"Not Yuzuru…?"

"You."

"What… that-"

"If you come, you'll understand."

Naoe turned elegantly on his heel.

"Yuzuru-san has a right to know, but… Ougi Takaya."

"……!"

"You have an obligation to know."

A tense atmosphere rises between the two of them.

"You'll accompany me, won't you."

"……"

Takaya answered in a low voice.

"Aa."

*

"We owe you a lot, for the past few days."

The six West High students walked forward to close around Yuzuru and Saori in a tight circle.

Saori asks in a small voice next to his ear.

"Narita-kun. These people, what's going on?"

Yuzuru bites his lip lightly. It hadn't taken long before he had a fair idea of why they were here … Apparently, their intention is ambushing him to settle the score. The number of people is increasing. It seems they definitely don't intend to lose this time. Their attitude is awfully high-handed, and he can see they are clearly composed. The West High students surrounded the two and called out in overly-familiar voices.

"Oh? You brought your girlfriend, huh?"

"Don't show her such shameful things."

Sweat beaded on Yuzuru's brow.

They are all taller and tougher than Yuzuru. One versus six is not good odds. The reason they are his opponents…

"What, are you scared? Where's the authority from a few days ago?"

Jiri…

The space between the male students is shortening. Shielding Saori, Yuzuru's glance races in every direction.

(… What do I do?)

At least here, if Takaya is here for him…

"Let's settle it! From the other day!"

"!"

"This is our thanks! Do it!"

Shit…!

A fist swings up. Yuzuru's hand covers the bracelet on his wrist. That time!

The male students turn their heads all at once to a raised voice behind them. Yuzuru and Saori also turn their gazes in that direction.

Over there is standing a young, jean-clad man wearing a trench coat.

He has black sunglasses and hair that is glossy, as though it's wet. On his upper half he wears a tank top under the light grey half trench coat. His figure is thin, slender, and his age is 20… no, maybe a bit more than that. He's such a pale, beautiful youth that it sends chills down Yuzuru's neck.

For a moment, everyone stopped breathing.

"What do you want, jerk!"

"You're interrupting!"

Riled up, they gaze coldly at him, and the youth laughed, kuku, from inside his throat.

"Small fry. If they try to look smart, they get hurt."

"What was that!"

"Fuck you! Bastard!"

Behind his sunglasses, the youth's eyes glitter at the West High students springing to attack.

"Do not lay a hand on that person! Know your place!"

Goki goki goki…!

"Gyaaa!"

Simultaneously there were screams and the sound of breaking bones.

The students of West High fall to the ground with a gaku and writhe about.

"I-it hurts! It hurts!"

There are people seizing their arms, their shoulders, legs, and writhing around on the ground. They complain of their intense pain and roll around recklessly. That person watches, and, frozen where he stands, Yuzuru's face turns pale.

(Their bones… broke?)

Yuzuru swallowed, gokuri, and stared at the youth. The youth is watching the writhing boys with cold eyes. He doesn't lift one eyebrow at their screams, so loud that Yuzuru covers his ears.

"Hiiiiiiiiii…!"

"F, forgive us…"

The students' faces are forcibly contorted by fear, backing away so they are crawling, a long way from the youth, and-

"UWAAAAAH------!"

Lured by the one who had run away so they snapped, the whole lot of them ran, rolling over as they did so.

"Weaklings."

The youth inhaled to spit it out, and turned around to face Yuzuru. Yuzuru's face stiffens. Saori is frightened, hiding at his back. The youth stared at him intently for a bit and slowly removed his sunglasses.

His beauty is such that Yuzuru openly gasps.

In front of Yuzuru, whose eyes were wide, he dropped to one knee.

"… Wha…"

"My lord."

So the youth called Yuzuru, saying it like that in a beautiful voice.

"I am Kousaka Danjyou Nosuke Masanobu. From the bottom of my heart, I have humbly awaited this day."

"!"

Kousaka Danjyou? Yuzuru turned his head slightly to the whispering Saori, and then looked at the youth again.

"U, um…"

Yuzuru is terribly worried.

"I don't really know what's going on, but please raise your face anyway. Even if something like that is done towards me…"

"……?"

"Are you maybe friends with that person called "Naoe-san" from yesterday?"

"…Naoe…?"

The youth raised his face, and, abruptly taken aback, grabbed Yuzuru's right wrist.

"Ah!"

"! … This is!"

The << amulet bracelet >> that encircled his wrist. The youth's expression completely changes.

"That person has been sealed."

"Wa-… ow!"

"Please let go of him! Doing something like this, all of a sudden…!"

"Let go!"

Pan!

Brushing off Kousaka's hand, Yuzuru cried out.

"Who on Earth are you!"

"……"

After glancing at Yuzuru coldly, Kousaka's gaze settles in the air and he speaks in a voice stifled to death.

"Is this their doing?"

"……?"

Kousaka's face was slightly strained, and Yuzuru had a hunch as though the smile was thin.

(Uu…)

A chill went down his spine.

"C-class is starting. Let's go, Morino-san."

"Y-yeah."

Yuzuru and Saori walk away. Kousaka stared after them, a mysterious laugh floating in his mouth.

*

"Narita-kun. That person is still there."

It was the break time between the second and third hours. The noisy voices of students fill the school building. Saori had looked down at the school gates from the third floor corridor window from which the peaks of the blue northern Alps could be seen and spoken.

"……"

Yuzuru is also staring at that.

"I wonder what was up with that guy. Kousaka, or something…"

"That's it!"

Saori, in a shrill voice to the nearby Yuzuru,

"That person from earlier, he gave his name as Kousaka Danjyou Nosuke Masanobu."

"Danjyou No… yeah. It was definitely something like that… Do you know something?"

"Kousaka Danjyou, he's one of Takeda's twenty-four generals. He was a vassal well trusted by Shingen Takeda, he excelled at both the literary and military arts, and was the most handsome of all of Takeda! That's what they say about him. He was originally the child of a country samurai and not a Takeda samurai, but his successful career was acknowledged by Shingen. That's the kind of person he was, but I wonder why that guy would give his name as Kousaka Danjyou."

Yuzuru stands there frozen, not breathing.

"Besides, this morning I heard on the news, a falling star fell on the Takeda Shingen shrine."

"A falling star?"

"Yeah. And something like the Takeda Diamond apparently appeared in your dream, Narita-kun… something's up. I wonder what's going on."

Saori looks up at Yuzuru.

"Speaking of which, that guy from before, why did he call you "My lord"? That is, his master, meaning Takeda Shingen. Why would Narita-kun be Shingen? What is this supposed to mean?"

(Is that it, then?)

Yuzuru looked down at Kousaka, standing at the school gates.

From beneath the leaves of the green poplar trees, Kousaka is looking up at him steadily.

The May wind blew through the corridor. Yuzuru was protected by the bracelet on his right wrist. He is sealed and he doesn't come out, but is definitely the "him" inside his body.

"So that you definitely do not remove it."

Power was inside Yuzuru's right wrist.

The wind blows.

Somehow, the rustle of the trees doesn't stop the uneasiness from rising.


Translation notes: Kousaka's name charges by the hour, clearly. Wasn't sure if it was supposed to be Danjyou no Suke, or Danjyou Nosuke; research was not particularly illuminating, because I had to do it in Japanese (as there WERE no sites in English) and there were no spaces. Obviously. And very little furigana, for that matter. I did, however, learn that he joined Takeda age 16, died of sickness at the age of 52, and had 2 sons. Uh. Yeah. I also know the names of his father and the sons. Helpful, huh? XD

Comments

[saintoctober.livejournal.com]

ONE word for it..WOW!!!!!

U did good!I didn't know chrysan had such interesting friends.Wish I could read more..can U add me as ur buddy!Pretty please...and please do read my journal..okie?
Take care for now

[link621.livejournal.com]

...><;;

Naoe: There's something I want you to see...
Takaya: Not Yuzuru?
Naoe: Not Yuzuru.
Takaya: (Gee, that's a bit suspicious)

...He's either the smartest or stupidest uke in the history of the world.

[tammaiya.livejournal.com]

... Both, maybe. XD But as much as I love Takaya (as opposed to his Kagetora persona, who mostly I just wanna smack), if I were to choose one I'd go with "stupidest". *g*

[link621.livejournal.com]

I donno. He takes to being attacked with a treebranch and gravel a little too easily. Maybe it isn't stupidity so much as he is entirely too trusting... (though his algebra problem does not make me confident...)

[tammaiya.livejournal.com]

HEE! I think he's just like... wtf, explain this now! Also having spent part of his life as a street kid he may be used to being attacked. Or something. XD

[link621.livejournal.com]

Also having spent part of his life as a street kid he may be used to being attacked. Or something

Yes, but with flying gravel?

Naoe: I really thought he'd be more upset.
Yuzuru: Actually, flying gravel chases him around all the time. :D
Naoe: ...I beg your pardon?
Yuzuru: Yeah, we can't get him within five feet of a sandbox without him being attacked. He had a hard childhood. (It's no wonder he can't do math).
Naoe: ...>>; *note to self: gravel technique frighteningly chilched!*

[tammaiya.livejournal.com]

*DIES OF LAUGHTER*

I bet he was the kind of kid who flung sand.

[thorny-rose.livejournal.com]

Kousaka's beauty is emphasised

IMPOSSIBLE.

[tammaiya.livejournal.com]

Well, apparently he WASN'T a freaky refugee from the 80s in the books. I mean, blindingly shiny pants have not been mentioned once yet.

[sargraf.livejournal.com]

Great job! ^^ I had to add this to my memories, in case it helps other fans find it. *hugs*

[tammaiya.livejournal.com]

Thank you! *glomp* I should probably add thanks to my girlfriend here, since she speaks japanese first language and knows useful, useful things like where "二枚目" comes from. There would have been some untranslatable sentences in this without her. ^^;

[sargraf.livejournal.com]

*hi to your friend!* ^^

I know how you feel; I come across sentences at times where my mind just shuts down and refuses to come up with a coherent translation. ^^; It drives me crazy, too, 'cause I used to be fluent as a kid. *weeps*

[tammaiya.livejournal.com]

Really? Wow. I've never been fluent. That is my future goal, distant as it is. It's just... things like that, the dictionary gives the translation as "actor in a love scene" and I'm like "that's all very well but WTF does that mean in context?"

[sargraf.livejournal.com]

Have you tried ALC (http://www.alc.co.jp/)? It's got a good dictionary, which will usually give you tons of examples. Not as flexible as WWWJDIC (http://www.csse.monash.edu.au/~jwb/wwwjdic.html), and unlike that site, you have to be able to type in Japanese to find the English definition of a Japanese word. Romaji and even pure hiragana won't do; it has to be in kanji, as much as possible. Still, it's very thorough. ^^

All the same... there are some phrases that dictionaries just can't seem to explain any better than, say, Babel Fish. =__=; And Mirage of Blaze is full of those phrases.

[tammaiya.livejournal.com]

Sometimes I suspect that Kuwabara MAKES WORDS UP. *is possibly paranoid* JWPCE is generally pretty good, though.

[sargraf.livejournal.com]

It's possible; sensei is very creative. ^^;

[tammaiya.livejournal.com]

... Reminder to self: it's not paranoia if it's founded in fact. XD

[wildelamassu.livejournal.com]

Yay! Kousaka! The introduction of my favorite "If only I hadn't been a dead gay samurai I woulda been a jrock star" character EVAR.

Thanks again for the translation~!

[tammaiya.livejournal.com]

*dies! repeatedly!* It looks like he got gypped in the animation, beauty-wise. XD

Thank you!

[himekawarie.livejournal.com]

thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you... More, please?

[tammaiya.livejournal.com]

Almost done with 4-- it's a little more difficult becuase it involves a lot of research and metaphor and complicated expressions, but nearly there. And of course, just in case you haven't seen them already prologue-2 are up already.

[himekawarie.livejournal.com]

Yup, I've read it. I go to net-cafe everyday to see whether I can read something mirage...

THR

[mscongeniality.livejournal.com]

Found you through wildelamassu and "Lj user="lcseifhoan">...these are wonderful, thank you so much for posting them.

[tammaiya.livejournal.com]

No problem. ^^

[xxlovelyxhatxx.livejournal.com]

Kousaka's sparklypoo. =3