Yumi and Fu chatted away. Fu was determined to win over the conversation and Yumi was determined to get information Kojima might have been hiding. Both were strong in their speaking, Fu more aggressive and Yumi more skilled. They were equally matched.

          “Complete morons,” Saruwatari commented.

          Matsuo raised his eyebrow. “Like you?”

          Saruwatari growled under his breath.

          Kojima had fallen asleep on the back of their cart only a few minutes ago. She was curled up in a ball, her arms drawn up close against her chest. They hadn’t left the village’s outer wall yet. They had to wait for Fu’s younger brother. He had gone to meet with somebody.

          While waiting, Matsuo and Saruwatari had gone to fetch all of their belongings. They would no longer be staying here. They would be off on an adventure of unknown kinds.

          In fact, that was what the argument had turned into after about an hour.

          “What will we be searching for?” Yumi asked for the fifth time. Fu had not yet answered, and Yumi was longing to know.

          Fu sighed.

          “How do you know we’re looking for something?”

          Yumi looked at him like he was crazy.

          “What type of adventure would it be if we weren’t looking for something? Everyone’s looking for something!”

          Fu rubbed his head.

          “If you must know, annoying one, we’re looking for a someone.”

          It was Saruwatari’s turn to raise his eyebrow.

          “A girl someone?” he asked.

          “No way!” Yumi shouted. “He’s Kojima’s man!”

          Fu went a series of bright reds in about a half a second.

          “W-what?!”

          Yumi grinned and leaned toward him. “You know…Fu and Kojima sitting in a tree. K-I-S-S-I-N-G!”

          Fu pushed her roughly away.

          “Never!” he defended. “I’m twenty one. She’s only sixteen!”

          “Not a big difference.” Yumi crossed her arms and shook her head. “But hey, if you don’t want to admit it, that’s fine by me. Later on Koji-Kun will tell me everything I need to know.”

          Fu’s eyes narrowed.

          “She already told you everything she felt like. She won’t say any more.”

          Yumi’s wide grin returned.

          “So there is something you’re hiding! I knew it! I knew it! I KNEW IT!!! Fu-San, you naughty boy!”

          Fu’s heart was pounding. This conversation was starting to turn in Yumi’s favor. She seemed good at taking one little thing and making it into something like a missile of words. Fu didn’t like her already.

          “Liar!” was all he could say. “It’s not like that, I swear!”

          Yumi shrigged.

          “Say what you will. I know everything I need to know!”

          Fu growled.

          Matsuo looked at him for a while. Fu glared.

          “What?” Fu asked finally.

          Matsuo tapped his fingers on the ground. “Since you’re Kojima’s boyfriend you have to be nice to us.”

          “What?!” Fu clenched his large fists. “I’m not her—”

          Kojima stirred. The she stretched and put her glasses on. After jumping down from the cart and making sure her ankles were okay, she turned her attention to fixing her kimono. After she was done with that, she looked at everyone. They were staring at her.

          Kojima narrowed her eyes.

          “What?” she asked with a tone. “What are you staring at?”

          “Nothing,” Fu said quickly.

          Yumi followed him up quickly with, “So, Koji, anyone special in your life?”

          Saruwatari giggled. Kojima yawned.

          “Screw off, Yumi.”

          She sat down and began stretching her back out of boredom.

          Yumi sighed.

          “He’s back!” Fu said, relieved.

          The attention went to a figure coming out of the village gates. It wasn’t a very tall figure, about a few inches taller than Yumi. It was a guy with black hair cut in a way Yumi hadn’t seen before—covering the right eye with bangs longer than the rest of the hair. He wasn’t the most masculine of guys, but he wasn’t as skinny as Saruwatari. There were deep bags under his blue eyes. His pants were tight and his jacket was open to reveal a bare chest. He looked nothing like Fu.

          He looked a little warily at the new members of the party. He only got within a few meter of them. Then he just stood, looking from Kojima to Fu.

          “Rai-Kun!” Kojima broke the silence. “We have new friends. See?”

          She hurried over to him with a smile. Kojima pointed to each of her friends in turn.

          “Yumi. Saruwatari. Matsuo. The ones I talked about. Remember?”

          Rai nodded. His gaze went to Yumi. Yumi blushed.

          “Yumi,” Kojima said in a teasing voice. “This is Rai. Isn’t he cute?”

          Rai blushed, still not saying a word. He looked down at the ground and shuffled his feet. Then he looked back at Yumi, his eyes wide.

          “H-Hi…” he muttered to her in a low, shaky voice.

          Yumi could tell he didn’t speak often.

          “Hello…” Yumi began to blush some more. When she realized what she was doing, she huffed and looked away like he wasn’t even there.

          Rai looked at Kojima like Yumi had just hurt him. She only gave him a small smile before going over to Yumi.

          “Retard,” she hissed to Yumi under her breath.

          “Dumbass,” Yumi whispered back.

          “Skank.”

          “Slut.”

          “Hoe.”

          “Super hoe.”

          Kojima looked suddenly at Yumi. Then she frowned. Yumi did the same. As Fu began leading the horse-driven cart away, the boys following behind, the two girls grinned at each other.

          “Isn’t he HOT?!” Kojima whispered to Yumi, careful so that the guys couldn’t hear her.

          “Hell yes!” Yumi whispered back.

          “I knew you’d like him. Go for it!”

          Yumi looked surprised. “But…”

          “Don’t worry. He’s not with anyone! Plus, he’s not some superficial pervert. I bet he’d go out with you.”

          “Yeah, well Ms. Hookup, how old is he?!”

          Kojima grinned slyly. “Eighteen.”

          “Eigh-Eighteen!!” It was getting hard for Yumi to hold her whisper, but she tried. “I’m only fifteen!”

          “So?” Kojima asked with a blank expression on her face.

          “Well…” Yumi thought back to her discussion with Fu. “I guess it can’t be worse than your five year difference with Fu.”

          Kojima blushed.

          “It…it’s not like that!”

          “Sure…” Yumi teased.