Quest for the Magic Forest Part Two - PG [KAT-TUN]
Quest for the Magic Forest
tinyangl, 12,598 words
KAT-TUN, with appearances by Johnny Kitagawa, Yamashita Tomohisa, Nishikido Ryo, Tegoshi Yuya, Takizawa Hideaki, Domoto Tsuyoshi and Yokoyama Yu. KAT-TUN is brought together by King Johnny in order to save the kingdom, but when complete strangers meet for the first time, it's bound to not be easy.
A/N: This... started out as a joke (it kind of still is XD). Something small I wrote after seeing KAT-TUN's Lips PV and couldn't get out of my head as being a fantasy story--mainly because fantasy is my favorite genre--and thanks to anamuan's prodding, I managed to turn it into full blown fic (originally all in comments, I might add) complete with villains and mocking jokes and utter stupidity. So please don't take this seriously at all. At all. I rarely, rarely write all of KAT-TUN in one go, so hopefully the OOC is not in full force. (OOC doesn't strictly apply to just KAT-TUN, by the by.) And I may be a little forceful at the beginning with the characterization, but I hope that doesn't turn anyone off. XD This has been over a year's project so I'm just glad to finally see it done. (Originally posted here and here.)
Thanks so much to anamuan's work on this (and everyone she asked to help as well)--without you, dear, this never would have gotten made. ♥♥
Nakamaru stared at his teacher for a long time before turning to look at the broom in his hands. "I'm doing errands?" he asked, incredulous.
"It's a way of building up discipline!" his teacher insisted, arms crossed. "So get to it."
Nakamaru felt disappointed all over again. Ever since he'd been dragged to this place, a place that was not home, he'd been put through errand after errand. For someone who insisted that he'd never be normal again, he was starting to feel really normal. But he did what he was told, because he wanted to hold out hope that maybe, just maybe his teacher wasn't fooling him this entire time, that he really did have magic.
And just that thought helped him get through everything-all the chores and "lessons" where all he did was sit around and pretend to meditate.
"Light the candle," his teacher commanded him suddenly during a lesson. Nakamaru hadn't been told yet to do something so it startled him for a good long minute.
Nakamaru's eyes were wide with fear and nervousness. "But you never taught me how to!" he exclaimed.
His teacher smiled enigmatically. "Trust me, Nakamaru. Just think about bringing fire to the candle," he instructed.
The words did nothing to squelch the dread settling in Nakamaru's stomach, but he did what his teacher asked. He stared at the candle, trying to imagine in his head what it would look like lit. He wanted it to be lit, but the longer Nakamaru concentrated, the more discouraged he became.
"You can help it along," his teacher whispered. "Is there anything that'll get you to concentrate better? Help you focus your mind more?"
Nakamaru's mind raced with possibilities-most distracting him more than helping him-until he remembered the kids who'd been beat-boxing right outside while he'd been cleaning. He'd listened to them for some time-he didn't really know just how long-but before he knew it, he'd been done with every task he'd been given in no time. He tried to imitate their noises, and although his paled in comparison, it was a start and Nakamaru could feel his concentration coming together.
Something inside of him was coming together too.
He jumped back when in front of him a small puff of fire appeared on the wick of the candle - small, but strong. Nakamaru felt his teacher clap a hand on the small of his back, firm but proud. "I knew you could do it."
Nakamaru gaped at the burning candle, watching as the light flickered from side to side, moving slightly when a slight breeze picked up. He did that, he thought as he held a hand above the candle, feeling the sting of heat against the palm of his hand.
Maybe he could believe in his teacher's words after all.
~*~
A few days later (after Yamapi'd dug up as much dirt as he could on Ryo and Tegoshi's operation-Tegoshi was apparently nice and bubbly for someone who was on the bad side. Ryo wasn't as evil as he seemed; he just acted it more often than not. Tegoshi apparently liked puppies-Koki hadn't exactly been able to remember much else), the group made their way to the next town.
They found out that the town Ryo and Tegoshi stayed in was only about 4 towns away (a bit far, but still closer than they'd expected). Their supposed "X" seemed to keep moving farther and farther from where it was the last time they checked so they never really knew if they were near it or not.
Nights were spent in inns; the six of them huddled over a table, all trying to think of what they could do to get through this. But they were in silence more oft than not.
"Oh, forget it!" Jin cried one night, resting his head against the table. "Why are we thinking when we all know it's not our strong suit?"
"Speak for yourself," Koki retorted.
"Come on guys," Nakamaru prompted, exhausted. "We can think of something. It just takes a little time." He propped his head up on his hand, yawning.
"Because that's worked so well for us before," Ueda snapped.
Nakamaru stared. "I know you're being sarcastic, but I'm too tired to actually figure out why."
"He's making a crack at our intelligence?" Taguchi supplied.
"Exactly." Ueda poked at a sleeping Kame, who had zoned out at some point at the beginning of their conversation, before giving up when the young man didn't even stir, his hat effectively covering his face from the light.
"But we can't just do nothing," Nakamaru insisted.
"Why not?" Koki yawned. "Isn't that how most stories go? The bad guy comes to the good guy?"
"It's not like we live in a story," Jin said. "This is differentt. A haphazardly thrown together group of guys who didn't know each other at the start of this thing ordered to save the world. Doesn't sound like a nice storybook."
Everyone paused. "But..." Taguchi started. "It does."
Jin threw him a dirty look.
"Doesn't it?" He continued a little more excited. "Each person has trouble adjusting, causes trouble. And then one by one they get closer and closer together! And there's the bad guy, who tries to get them to separate. But each thing that happens only gets them closer to each other! And, and..." Taguchi fumbled with his hands, gesturing madly. "The good guys win, of course, because it's a happy story and we save the day!"
Everyone (those awake enough anyway) stared at him before turning back to each other. "I think we should just go to the town Ryo and Tegoshi are in and confront them there," Ueda said.
"With our luck," Koki started, "the magic forest will be right next to them."
"Ooooh," Jin cooed. "Wouldn't that be lucky?"
"Or fate!" Taguchi chimed. Everyone ignored him.
The next morning, they made their way to the next town-which happened to be Nakamaru's hometown. Nakamaru fidgeted all the way down the road.
"Oh my god," Jin moaned. "If you try to make sure there's no lint or dirt on that damn white vest, I will have to take it from you. Throw it on the ground and stomp on it."
Nakamaru glared at Jin, protectively clutching his vest to himself. "I'm nervous, okay? I haven't seen my family for years."
"Most of us haven't," Kame sighed, a little exhausted as he leaned against Ueda's shoulder. "But we weren't that antsy."
"Some of us don't have parents," Koki said dryly. When everyone looked at him warily, Koki rolled his eyes. "I'm fine. It happened. I'm past it." Beside him, Taguchi remained quiet.
Nakamaru noticed, but didn't say a word. "Either ways. When I left, they weren't very positive about me having powers. I don't know if they even think I did." He frowned.
Jin threw an arm around him, "Even if they saw you now, they'd still wonder."
Nakamaru elbowed him, laughing a little. Nakamaru had to admit-he calmed down a little thanks to Jin's nature. He relaxed to the point that he didn't even noticed that they arrived in front of his family's house.
"Maybe they're not here," Nakamaru started, standing frozen at the doorstep. "We shouldn't be here. They won't even recognize me."
The door swung open without anyone even having knocked. Nakamaru stared into the face of one of his sisters, who looked at him curiously. "May I help you?"
"I-Is.. I..." Nakamaru started, swallowing his words.
Kame took over. "Is this the Nakamaru household?"
The girl nodded politely. "Do you need something?"
A male voice from inside spoke. "Who's at the door?"
"Some guys, dad. I think they know us from somewhere!" the girl called, backing away to let her father take her spot.
"Hi, what's th-" The man stopped in his tracks, locking eyes with Nakamaru. "Yuichi?" He murmured, voice low.
Nakamaru swallowed before nodding.
The man's face dropped. "I'm sorry," he muttered before he nudged his daughter out of the way, his eyes still locked with Nakamaru's. "I have to do this." Slowly, Nakamaru watched as the door shut in front of him. He felt his heart squeeze and his stomach churn.
"What in the hell?!" Jin yelled, breaking the silence. He turned to Nakamaru. "Want me to blow it down?"
"This isn't 'The Three Little Pigs,'" Koki retorted.
"Yeah. I think lightning'd be more effective anyway," Ueda snapped, eyes blazing.
Kame's hand rested on Nakamaru's shoulder. "Are you okay?" he asked softly.
Nakamaru nodded. "Yeah. Yeah. There... There had to be a good reason. He apologized, right?"
Taguchi smiled, although it was forced. "Definitely a reason. We'll find out."
"We'll find out," Jin vowed. "Definitely."
Nakamaru nodded, then turned around and headed towards the entrance of the walkway. The others followed behind him, quiet.
"Well, well. If it isn't the legendary idiots of King Johnny. I was wondering when I'd get to meet you." Nakamaru looked up, a chill going down his spine as the voice spoke.
"Nishikido Ryo," Jin breathed, and Nakamaru was suddenly acutely aware of Jin's body heat next to his.
Ryo grinned at them - a grin more of malice than anything else - Tegoshi was right next to him, smiling, but his was surprisingly kind. "Living and breathing. Which is more than what I can say for you guys."
~*~
Ueda thought it was the first time he'd seen Kame try not to cry in all the 3 years he’d known him, except he was pretty much failing at it.
Kame was a sight with his cheeks puffed out, his upper teeth biting into the corner of his bottom lip-quivering too-and his eyes so teary that Ueda was sure it'd just start leaking out. Kame sniffled loudly, one hand rubbing furiously at his nose and the other tightly fisted at his side.
"You 'kay?" Ueda asked, eyebrow raised, but he made no move to help the younger kid.
Kame sniffled loudly again, nodding gruffly. "Un. I'm fine," Kame managed to say without bursting into tears.
"Looks like someone's growing up," Ueda complimented, ruffling Kame's hair, a little more than impressed.
"I'm getting older, should stop being a baby," Kame said forcefully. Ueda raised his eyebrow higher.
"Where's this coming from?" Ueda asked, frowning. It wasn't like Kame to care about this sort of thing, Ueda knew. Kame only shook his head, his lips now pursed so thin that they were a line - the tears had seemingly gone away too; but while Ueda was impressed, he knew something else was up. "Are you being bullied by those kids again?" Ueda's eyes flared when he caught the look of fear in Kame's eyes before the little kid shook his head more furiously.
"No!" Kame protested, frowning. "I'm getting older! It's only right." He nodded at Ueda, as though to emphasize his point, except Ueda wasn't buying it.
Ueda huffed before spinning on his heel towards the door. "I'm gonna teach those kids," Ueda mumbled under his breath. Kame's hand yanked on his arm, pulling Ueda back.
"No!" Kame protested, more adamant. "Please don't do it, Ueda-kun. It's fine; it's fine." Kame insisted while Ueda could hear the blood rushing to his ears.
Ueda stopped in his tracks though, still staring at the door just a few feet away. Hoping that Kame would change his mind so that he could go out there and defend the little boy. "Please Ueda-kun," Kame begged, his hand tightly gripping the material of Ueda's shirt. Ueda could feel the younger boy shaking behind him and he hated how suddenly responsible he felt.
"You're sure?" Ueda said, his voice soft but stern.
"Un,” Kame said. His grip got slightly tighter, but Ueda didn't mind.
Instead, he turned around to face Kame, slipping easily out of the kid's grasp. "You'll come to me if you need help, right?"
Kame shook his head as he gave Ueda a watery smile. "There'll be a time when I'll be able to offer you a hand, Ueda-kun. That's what I want."
Ueda felt strangely proud of him.
~*~
A bolt of lightning shot out of the sky and flew towards Ryo and Tegoshi. The lightning hit a clear dome surrounding the two and spread throughout the dome, diffusing once it hit the ground. Tegoshi hadn’t even batted an eye.
Ryo smirked. "Nice try, fish lips. But you'll have to work a little harder than that."
Ueda glared, his staff tightly wrapped in his hand. "That wasn't even my worst," Ueda snapped, his pride a little hurt. Kame's hand gripped his shoulder, whether for security or for reassurance, neither knew.
"I'm sure it wasn't," Ryo mocked. By this point, everyone'd managed to pull out their staffs, holding them tightly to their sides, ready for anything that would happen. "Oh calm down," Ryo snapped. "I'm not going to kill you yet. That'd defeat the entire purpose of me getting you to the forest."
The six exchanged looks. "What's that supposed to mean?" Kame asked, confused.
"So King Johnny didn't tell you anything at all?" Ryo laughed. "Predictable. That old geezer only acts for himself anyway." He smirked again. "You six need to arrive at the forest in order to open it up-with the forest open, the one who is able to take control of the staff inside will have ultimate power."
"It's always ultimate power, isn't it?" Koki complained. "Why can't it be something wittier?" Ryo threw him a dirty look.
"Like unlimited beer," Jin sighed.
"Or world peace!" Taguchi chirped. They looked at him strangely.
"We'd be out of a job if that happened," Ueda said logically.
Nakamaru snorted, "That's what you think about?" Ueda shrugged.
A bolt of lightning hit the spot right between Nakamaru and Ueda, behind him. All eyes snapped back to Ryo and Tegoshi. "Thank you. I'm the one we should be concentrating on," Ryo snapped.
"You know," Jin started, "You're kinda short for a bad guy." The others stifled laughter as Ryo's face started to turn red. "I'd've expected the person who'd be threatening us and taking our lives would be a little taller. I mean..." Jin started to smile a little. "Even your little pet wizard over there seems to be a little taller."
"Ryo-tan's plenty tall!" Tegoshi said cheerfully. "Besides! His personality completely makes up for it!" Everyone snickered, hiding their amusement behind hands, leaving Ryo fuming.
"NEVER MIND THAT," Ryo hissed. "I'm here to issue a challenge. Be at the forest in a month, and the winner will get control of the forest."
Kame raised an eyebrow. "So all of us versus... Him?" he asked, pointing at Tegoshi.
Tegoshi tilted his head to the side, blinking innocently. A second later, a fireball skimmed past Kame's sleeve, setting it on fire. Kame quickly put it out.
"I'm taking that as a yes," Kame muttered.
Ryo smirked again. "You shouldn't underestimate Tegoshi-kun. He has more brains than you all put together and he's more powerful."
Tegoshi beamed brightly. "Ryo-tan, you're the best." Ryo ruffled the younger boy's hair.
"Anyway," Ryo said after he turned back, catching the end of all of KAT-TUN mock gagging. His eyes narrowed. "This is only a courtesy call. It won't happen again."
Ueda rolled his eyes. "Is this just your way of trying to scare us? Make us just bend to the might that is you and that puny wizard over there?"
Another bolt came flying down towards Ueda, but Ueda deflected it with his own, aiming it back at Tegoshi. Just when the lightning bolt hit the clear dome, another one shot down. Already unraveling from the energy drain of withstanding the first lightning bolt, the second bolt pushed through and hit the a spot a mere inch away from Tegoshi’s foot.
Ryo's eyes narrowed while Tegoshi looked thoughtfully at the spot. Ueda sneered, "I told you I hadn't used my full power."
"If you're done taunting us," Nakamaru said quietly - eyes meeting Ryo's. "I'm sure you have other towns that need taking over."
Ryo sneered. "At least you know now how strong we are. Just give us the ability to enter the forest and everything'll be fine." He turned to Tegoshi, before nodding slightly.
"Ah! Well, then!" Tegoshi waved cheerfully to the six. "Bye, bye, koneko-chan!" In a puff of smoke, the two disappeared, leaving KAT-TUN to stare with trepidation at the spot they'd been standing in.
"Taguchi!" Koki yelped when the male suddenly fell from his spot, clutching his chest tightly. "You still can't do things under pressure, can you?"
Taguchi gulped in as much air as he could. "I can!" he said with a shaky smile. "It's just a little more difficult."
Nakamaru exhaled. "We should find somewhere to stay to recover." His gaze fell on Ueda, who was pale and leaning against Kame for balance. "We're all a little shaky."
Ueda nodded, Kame pulling him forward in the direction of the town's inn.
Jin trailed behind, walking along with Koki and Taguchi. "The weird thing is," he said softly. "Ryo seemed like he was telling the truth." His eyes met Nakamaru's. "Are we being used?"
Nakamaru bit his lip. He didn't know the answer to that. And from the looks of the others, neither did they.
~*~
It wasn't long after Koki had arrived that his teacher brought in another student-a puny little kid with funny hair and even funnier teeth, but still a little adorable ...if you squinted the right way. Koki raised an eyebrow. "Kidnap another one?"
Tsuyoshi gave him a dirty look before pushing the kid forward. "This kid needed rescuing and it was up to me to do it."
"Is rescuing what they call it now?" Koki asked dryly.
The kid looked up at Koki with wide watery eyes and Koki thought that he might just crack under that gaze. "This is Tegoshi-kun," Tsuyoshi introduced, hugging the kid suddenly. "Isn't he cute? He has magic like you!"
Koki stared. "That puny kid? He doesn't even look like he can stand properly."
Tegoshi's eyes only got more watery and Koki thought that if the kid properly built up that "technique," he could use it for so much evil.
Tsuyoshi frowned at Koki. "Don't mind Koki-kun. He's still a little sore that I forbade him to do anything around the house."
Tegoshi looked at Tsuyoshi confused. "Why would he be sore about that?"
"Because he seems to have this idea in his head that the generous me would throw him out." Koki paled at Tsuyoshi's words.
"That's not it, idiot," Koki snapped. "I just wanna make sure I earn my keep."
Tsuyoshi leaned over to smack Koki over the head. "Don't insult your teacher. It's not proper." He turned to Tegoshi, "He's the kind of person you shouldn't be like."
"But he's really cool, Domoto-san! He says what he thinks. I never could."
Koki blinked down at the kid before grudgingly saying, "You're not half bad yourself, kid."
Tegoshi's eyes went wide. "Really?"
Koki flushed. "We'll see for sure at another time, huh? Stick around for a while."
"Un!" Tegoshi chirped, before reaching out and latching onto Koki's arm. "Can you show me around, Koki-kun? I want you to show me around."
Koki scratched the back of his head. "Sure, I don't see anything wrong with that."
Tsuyoshi smiled to himself as he watched the pair walk off. He knew it'd been a good idea to bring Tegoshi home from that horror of a home-the two may just save each other.
~*~
It'd been about two weeks after Ryo's "visit" and the group'd been making their way steadily towards the town Ryo was in. Through the entire journey there, Koki'd been racking his brain to remember anything he could about Tegoshi. "It'd help us figure out how we could defeat him," Ueda'd insisted.
Koki, however, couldn't remember for the life of him just how Tegoshi acted-past how he was always nice-and how their teacher adored the boy-hugging Tegoshi every chance he could get (Koki would kick him whenever he saw it, and then pull Tegoshi to safety - he was a great older brother). But for Tegoshi to turn bad? It was almost incomprehensible.
"I'm telling you," Koki insisted. "Tegoshi isn't a bad person. Not even close to one."
Nakamaru frowned. "Didn't kick puppies or anything?"
Koki stared aghast. "Tegoshi, kick puppies? Not possible."
"But then why is he on the bad side?" Jin whined. "Shouldn't he be on our side if he's such a good person?"
The table remained silent. "Isn't that the question of the day?" Ueda said dryly. "Plus we have to wonder about this King Johnny thing. Do we really open up this magical forest?"
"Won't we know when we get there?" Kame asked. The others looked at him weirdly before he continued. "I mean, if he needs us there to open it. He'll show up."
Murmurs of acknowledgment rose through the air. "So in other words," Nakamaru said. "We'll have to just get there and see how it plays out?"
Koki sighed, leaning against an elbow. "Sounds about right to me."
"Maa-maa," Taguchi chirped. "Will be all right!"
They gave him a weird look as he started humming some upbeat melody. "Either way," Ueda said, pulling their attention back to him. "We'll have to figure it out when we get there instead of earlier." All six got up, heading towards their rooms.
Jin whispered to Koki, "But really, Ryo's pretty short, isn't he?" Koki snickered, trying to hide his laughter behind his hand. "And he was really distracted by it. You think if we just kept insulting his height, we'd win?"
Koki cracked up, hitting Jin on the head. "You're an idiot, you know."
Jin stuck out his tongue. "You're just jealous I came up with a brilliant plan. I'll make sure to thank you in my speech." He sashayed forward; Koki watched amused. Still, he really wondered if things were going to be that easy.
It was two weeks later that they finally arrived at their destination, just under the time limit that Ryo had set for them.
They were met with Ryo and Tegoshi, both smiling in their own personal style. "Took you slowpokes long enough," Ryo snapped, arms crossed against his chest.
"Can't you let us rest for the night or something?" Ueda groaned loudly. "We've been walking for the past few hours."
"And not take advantage of when you're weak? I'm not stupid, thanks," Ryo retorted.
"Weren't you confident that your pet wizard could take us on even at our strongest?" Koki asked.
"Nice try. But I'm not that prideful," Ryo said, smirking. "I'll do whatever it takes to get what I want."
"You shouldn't on pick on those weaker than you, Nishikido," a booming voice said from behind the six. KAT-TUN could feel the dread welling in their stomachs as they turned around to come face to face with the person that'd made them come to the point they were at now.
"King Johnny!" Ryo exclaimed with a flourish, even bowing extravagantly to prove his point. "I was wondering when you'd show up. Come to claim the magic forest for yourself?"
King Johnny glared, then turned to the group. "Now you'll fulfill your purpose," he told them.
Everyone stared before Jin asked, "What's that exactly?"
"To help me become the most powerful man." His eyes gleamed as Ryo rolled his eyes. "The forest can only be opened at this very spot when you six arrive."
"We've been here for over 10 minutes," Nakamaru said dryly. "I see no such forest opening up." As though those were the magic words, the landscape around them started to shift. What once was a town was overtaken by trees and vines. The bright sunlight that'd been beaming down on them half disappeared as trees grew to their full potential.
All stood in awe. Then Ueda snapped, "You just had to open up your big mouth." Nakamaru shrugged helplessly.
~*~
Taguchi always woke up gasping for air-the sheets wrapped tightly around his body, constricting him. But he'd never yell, never cry for help. Just handled it all by himself.
"You're hiding something," Yokoyama complained during breakfast one morning.
"Sensei worries too much," Taguchi said good-naturedly, a smile on his face. Getting up, Taguchi moved around the table to pour his teacher another drink. "More, Sensei?"
Yokoyama grabbed Taguchi's wrist before he poured the liquid into his empty cup, his eyes serious-a look Taguchi wasn't used to seeing on his usually loud, outgoing teacher. "Are you still having nightmares?"
For a brief second, Taguchi could feel his defenses falter before he recovered and beamed at his teacher. "Sensei, you're too kind." With his teeth clenched, Taguchi managed to wrench his wrist out of his teacher's grip. "You really shouldn't worry,” Taguchi said, a little more reassuring as he poured some more alcohol into his teacher's cup
Yokoyama took a gulp of the drink, sighing. Taguchi moved back to his chair, taking a seat and smiling brightly at his teacher. "How much water is in a person's body?" he asked suddenly.
Taguchi blinked before thinking on it for a few minutes. "Depending on the person, around 45 to 75 percent."
"That's good; you've been reading," Yokoyama complimented, taking another swig of his drink.
"Well, Sensei," Taguchi half-laughed. "I had to book it when you threw the book at me!" Yokoyama only raised an eyebrow. "Anyway," Taguchi continued after the failed attempt at a joke, "I needed some type of reading material."
"Do you know why I haven't been teaching you much magic?" Yokoyama asked nonchalantly, playing with his spoon.
And again, despite his best efforts, because he didn’t want his teacher thinking any less of him, Taguchi faltered. But he did worry that maybe Yokoyama had made a mistake. He gathered his thoughts together and shook his head vigorously. "People move at their own pace! I thought you'd get around to it eventually,” Taguchi said, in a tone that made him almost believe his own words.
"Your power isn't always as tangible as others," Yokoyama told him. "You have power over water, remember that." Yokoyama took the last gulp of his drink before slamming the cup on the table, grinning cheekily at Taguchi. "Now, why don't we put this power to the test?"
Taguchi watched as his teacher got up and headed towards the door, his words still weighing heavily on Taguchi's mind. "Taguchi, get out here already!" Yokoyama complained from outside and Taguchi sighed as he slid out of his seat.
"Sensei, can we not conjure water over the town girls again? I'm pretty sure none of them like me anymore," Taguchi complained as he met his teacher at the door.
Yokoyama threw his arm over Taguchi's shoulders. "Nonsense! In the heat of summer, everyone wants to be cooled down by your water."
"It's the end of fall," Taguchi said grudgingly.
"Same difference."
~*~
It took a few minutes before both Johnny and Ryo started moving towards the center of the forest - the point from which all could see a bright light originating.
Tegoshi looked at the six, grinned, shrugged, and then followed after. KAT-TUN looked at each other, sighing a little-a groan here and there-before they followed too. Jin got there the fastest, using his winds to help him along; he arrived at the center even before Johnny and Ryo did, despite their lead. He created a wind barrier around the center, making sure no one could get through. The others came to a halt right behind Jin, Tegoshi standing beside them, looking thoughtful.
"Now," Jin said, growling a little. "The time for answers should've come when we started this damn thing. But since we didn't get it then, I'm asking now."
Ryo threw Johnny a smirk. "They're waiting, King Johnny."
"Nishikido, you're annoying," Johnny growled before he waved his hand towards Ryo - a gust of wind flew out and knocked Ryo into Kame who helped him back to his feet.
"You asshole!" Ryo hissed, starting to walk towards Johnny. Another gust of wind and suddenly the ring around Jin vanished. Jin's eyes went wide.
"I'm not as weak as you all think," Johnny snapped.
A stone suddenly shot out and hit Ryo on the head - he crumpled immediately to the ground. Tegoshi gasped loudly while KAT-TUN stared in a mixture of horror and helplessness. "He's okay!" Tegoshi exclaimed, relieved. He looked back, eyes blazing before Kame held out his hand to stop him.
"We'll take care of him," Kame assured him. Tegoshi nodded before another lightning bolt flew down from the sky, missing Johnny by an inch.
"Damn," Ueda cursed, before Johnny started moving. Jin was pushed out of the way by Johnny's wind, even though he'd tried to combat it with his own.
Tegoshi pulled back, shielding a prone Ryo. A dome appeared in the air around them as the others struggled to keep Johnny away from the center. But his own powers kept them away, stones flying towards them at the same time. And then all motion stopped.
Johnny grabbed the staff, holding it up in the air - everything becoming disturbed around them. "It's taken years to get to this point," he breathed. "Ever since I heard Oracle Koichi say that I needed six certain wizards to lead me to this point of ultimate power." He stared at him in awe.
Koki elbowed Nakamaru gently. "What is this, the obligatory bad guy speech?" he muttered. Nakamaru stifled a laugh.
Johnny leveled his glare on them. "And now, to eliminate the only obstacles in my path," Johnny said, making the ground under them shake.
In an instant, a combination of elements and noises exploded into the air. Accompanied by Nakamaru’s beatboxing, fires that both Nakamaru and Kame pulled together fell upon Johnny from above. Koki's rapping ("ore wa JOKER Dope na Rhyme de naki dasu jou chan machi ni matta kore ga ore no Show Time") disturbed the ground below them all as he tried to keep both Johnny's power away and attack him at the same time. Jin's winds surrounded Johnny's figure in the middle, trying to keep him in place. Taguchi's staff glowed blue as he lent his power to Ueda-helping out the only way he could, despite the shaky feeling gripping his entire body.
"Enough!" Ueda hissed, and all of them stopped suddenly and Ueda’s staff glowed a brighter yellow than they'd ever seen before.
They watched in horror as Ueda's lightning shot down from the sky and struck King Johnny's staff, electrocuting both it and Johnny before the staff exploded, unable to handle so many elements bombarding it in such a small span of time. Johnny's screams pierced their ears before the explosion knocked them off their feet. All, except Ryo, shielded their eyes from the bright light, before it dimmed, allowing them to get a good look at the empty spot in the middle. Not a single thing had been left behind and the forest around them was coming back down to a calm.
"Did we actually.... win?" Jin asked, stunned.
"How'd that even work?" Nakamaru stared at the spot in awe.
"Because we're the good guys!" Taguchi said as cheerfully as he could manage.
Koki snorted. "Maybe we shouldn't even bother questioning it. I don't think even Ueda knows how he did it."
Ueda groaned in his agreement as he slumped against his staff. Kame tried to help him up, his eyes tired. "Did we do what we were meant to?"
"Un!" Tegoshi said happily, sighing to himself before looking at the six. "Your goal's been done, for now anyways, I think."
KAT-TUN looked at him strangely, confused, but didn't press it. He got up, dusting himself off and pulling his staff close. "Are you... still going to work for Ryo?" Koki asked shakily, getting back onto his feet.
"Un! Ryo has been kind to me for years; I would never desert him. He has good intentions, you know." Tegoshi gave Ryo a sideways glance, smiling. "He just acts the way he does because it's what gets things done."
"Sure. Being a general ass always gets people to do what is needed," Ueda said dryly. Tegoshi only shrugged.
Kame moved forward, sticking out a hand. "I hope we won't ever have to fight, then."
Tegoshi took it pleasantly before pulling back. He waved cheerfully, yanking an unconscious Ryo closer to him. "Bye bye! Hope we'll meet again. In better terms, of course!" In another puff of smoke, he was gone. The others just stared at the empty spot before the crackling noise of flames caught their attention.
Belatedly, everyone noticed the burning forest, and whipped their heads towards Kame. "You had to use your strongest spell?" Koki asked, exasperated.
Kame frowned defensively. "We would've died if I hadn't!"
"Weren't we supposed to save the forest?" Nakamaru sighed, as he stared at the fire get worse and worse.
Kame crossed his arms. "I help save you guys and this is what I get in return?"
Koki snorted. "Don't you mean Ueda saved us?"
Jin stood off to the side, looking exhausted and obviously not wanting to fight anymore. Ueda gave Taguchi a look before the male smiled brightly, pulling out his staff. "Ireguchi, Deguchi, Taguchi desu!" he chimed before it glowed a bright blue and the entire forest was covered in a heavy rain, the flames extinguishing within seconds. The rain slowly turned into a drizzle.
The six stopped everything for a moment and just relished in the feel of water against their skin.
"What now?" Kame asked them, his voice strangely hollow.
"We're alive?" Koki said, slumping against his staff for balance.
"Right wrongs and fight evil?" Taguchi said helpfully.
"Go home and see the people we love," Nakamaru sighed.
"Sleep," Jin said. Everyone looked at him. "Sleep," he repeated. "Lots and lots of sleep."
Grins grew on their face as Ueda sighed, "That sounds good about now."
KAT-TUN nodded collectively before starting off. The direction didn’t matter. No goal in mind. No worry to panic about. Just them. Just like it should be.
("Does anyone even know how to get out of here?" Koki asked, an eyebrow raised.
Jin groaned. "Magical forest, my ass.")
THE END.
tinyangl, 12,598 words
KAT-TUN, with appearances by Johnny Kitagawa, Yamashita Tomohisa, Nishikido Ryo, Tegoshi Yuya, Takizawa Hideaki, Domoto Tsuyoshi and Yokoyama Yu. KAT-TUN is brought together by King Johnny in order to save the kingdom, but when complete strangers meet for the first time, it's bound to not be easy.
A/N: This... started out as a joke (it kind of still is XD). Something small I wrote after seeing KAT-TUN's Lips PV and couldn't get out of my head as being a fantasy story--mainly because fantasy is my favorite genre--and thanks to anamuan's prodding, I managed to turn it into full blown fic (originally all in comments, I might add) complete with villains and mocking jokes and utter stupidity. So please don't take this seriously at all. At all. I rarely, rarely write all of KAT-TUN in one go, so hopefully the OOC is not in full force. (OOC doesn't strictly apply to just KAT-TUN, by the by.) And I may be a little forceful at the beginning with the characterization, but I hope that doesn't turn anyone off. XD This has been over a year's project so I'm just glad to finally see it done. (Originally posted here and here.)
Thanks so much to anamuan's work on this (and everyone she asked to help as well)--without you, dear, this never would have gotten made. ♥♥
Nakamaru stared at his teacher for a long time before turning to look at the broom in his hands. "I'm doing errands?" he asked, incredulous.
"It's a way of building up discipline!" his teacher insisted, arms crossed. "So get to it."
Nakamaru felt disappointed all over again. Ever since he'd been dragged to this place, a place that was not home, he'd been put through errand after errand. For someone who insisted that he'd never be normal again, he was starting to feel really normal. But he did what he was told, because he wanted to hold out hope that maybe, just maybe his teacher wasn't fooling him this entire time, that he really did have magic.
And just that thought helped him get through everything-all the chores and "lessons" where all he did was sit around and pretend to meditate.
"Light the candle," his teacher commanded him suddenly during a lesson. Nakamaru hadn't been told yet to do something so it startled him for a good long minute.
Nakamaru's eyes were wide with fear and nervousness. "But you never taught me how to!" he exclaimed.
His teacher smiled enigmatically. "Trust me, Nakamaru. Just think about bringing fire to the candle," he instructed.
The words did nothing to squelch the dread settling in Nakamaru's stomach, but he did what his teacher asked. He stared at the candle, trying to imagine in his head what it would look like lit. He wanted it to be lit, but the longer Nakamaru concentrated, the more discouraged he became.
"You can help it along," his teacher whispered. "Is there anything that'll get you to concentrate better? Help you focus your mind more?"
Nakamaru's mind raced with possibilities-most distracting him more than helping him-until he remembered the kids who'd been beat-boxing right outside while he'd been cleaning. He'd listened to them for some time-he didn't really know just how long-but before he knew it, he'd been done with every task he'd been given in no time. He tried to imitate their noises, and although his paled in comparison, it was a start and Nakamaru could feel his concentration coming together.
Something inside of him was coming together too.
He jumped back when in front of him a small puff of fire appeared on the wick of the candle - small, but strong. Nakamaru felt his teacher clap a hand on the small of his back, firm but proud. "I knew you could do it."
Nakamaru gaped at the burning candle, watching as the light flickered from side to side, moving slightly when a slight breeze picked up. He did that, he thought as he held a hand above the candle, feeling the sting of heat against the palm of his hand.
Maybe he could believe in his teacher's words after all.
~*~
A few days later (after Yamapi'd dug up as much dirt as he could on Ryo and Tegoshi's operation-Tegoshi was apparently nice and bubbly for someone who was on the bad side. Ryo wasn't as evil as he seemed; he just acted it more often than not. Tegoshi apparently liked puppies-Koki hadn't exactly been able to remember much else), the group made their way to the next town.
They found out that the town Ryo and Tegoshi stayed in was only about 4 towns away (a bit far, but still closer than they'd expected). Their supposed "X" seemed to keep moving farther and farther from where it was the last time they checked so they never really knew if they were near it or not.
Nights were spent in inns; the six of them huddled over a table, all trying to think of what they could do to get through this. But they were in silence more oft than not.
"Oh, forget it!" Jin cried one night, resting his head against the table. "Why are we thinking when we all know it's not our strong suit?"
"Speak for yourself," Koki retorted.
"Come on guys," Nakamaru prompted, exhausted. "We can think of something. It just takes a little time." He propped his head up on his hand, yawning.
"Because that's worked so well for us before," Ueda snapped.
Nakamaru stared. "I know you're being sarcastic, but I'm too tired to actually figure out why."
"He's making a crack at our intelligence?" Taguchi supplied.
"Exactly." Ueda poked at a sleeping Kame, who had zoned out at some point at the beginning of their conversation, before giving up when the young man didn't even stir, his hat effectively covering his face from the light.
"But we can't just do nothing," Nakamaru insisted.
"Why not?" Koki yawned. "Isn't that how most stories go? The bad guy comes to the good guy?"
"It's not like we live in a story," Jin said. "This is differentt. A haphazardly thrown together group of guys who didn't know each other at the start of this thing ordered to save the world. Doesn't sound like a nice storybook."
Everyone paused. "But..." Taguchi started. "It does."
Jin threw him a dirty look.
"Doesn't it?" He continued a little more excited. "Each person has trouble adjusting, causes trouble. And then one by one they get closer and closer together! And there's the bad guy, who tries to get them to separate. But each thing that happens only gets them closer to each other! And, and..." Taguchi fumbled with his hands, gesturing madly. "The good guys win, of course, because it's a happy story and we save the day!"
Everyone (those awake enough anyway) stared at him before turning back to each other. "I think we should just go to the town Ryo and Tegoshi are in and confront them there," Ueda said.
"With our luck," Koki started, "the magic forest will be right next to them."
"Ooooh," Jin cooed. "Wouldn't that be lucky?"
"Or fate!" Taguchi chimed. Everyone ignored him.
The next morning, they made their way to the next town-which happened to be Nakamaru's hometown. Nakamaru fidgeted all the way down the road.
"Oh my god," Jin moaned. "If you try to make sure there's no lint or dirt on that damn white vest, I will have to take it from you. Throw it on the ground and stomp on it."
Nakamaru glared at Jin, protectively clutching his vest to himself. "I'm nervous, okay? I haven't seen my family for years."
"Most of us haven't," Kame sighed, a little exhausted as he leaned against Ueda's shoulder. "But we weren't that antsy."
"Some of us don't have parents," Koki said dryly. When everyone looked at him warily, Koki rolled his eyes. "I'm fine. It happened. I'm past it." Beside him, Taguchi remained quiet.
Nakamaru noticed, but didn't say a word. "Either ways. When I left, they weren't very positive about me having powers. I don't know if they even think I did." He frowned.
Jin threw an arm around him, "Even if they saw you now, they'd still wonder."
Nakamaru elbowed him, laughing a little. Nakamaru had to admit-he calmed down a little thanks to Jin's nature. He relaxed to the point that he didn't even noticed that they arrived in front of his family's house.
"Maybe they're not here," Nakamaru started, standing frozen at the doorstep. "We shouldn't be here. They won't even recognize me."
The door swung open without anyone even having knocked. Nakamaru stared into the face of one of his sisters, who looked at him curiously. "May I help you?"
"I-Is.. I..." Nakamaru started, swallowing his words.
Kame took over. "Is this the Nakamaru household?"
The girl nodded politely. "Do you need something?"
A male voice from inside spoke. "Who's at the door?"
"Some guys, dad. I think they know us from somewhere!" the girl called, backing away to let her father take her spot.
"Hi, what's th-" The man stopped in his tracks, locking eyes with Nakamaru. "Yuichi?" He murmured, voice low.
Nakamaru swallowed before nodding.
The man's face dropped. "I'm sorry," he muttered before he nudged his daughter out of the way, his eyes still locked with Nakamaru's. "I have to do this." Slowly, Nakamaru watched as the door shut in front of him. He felt his heart squeeze and his stomach churn.
"What in the hell?!" Jin yelled, breaking the silence. He turned to Nakamaru. "Want me to blow it down?"
"This isn't 'The Three Little Pigs,'" Koki retorted.
"Yeah. I think lightning'd be more effective anyway," Ueda snapped, eyes blazing.
Kame's hand rested on Nakamaru's shoulder. "Are you okay?" he asked softly.
Nakamaru nodded. "Yeah. Yeah. There... There had to be a good reason. He apologized, right?"
Taguchi smiled, although it was forced. "Definitely a reason. We'll find out."
"We'll find out," Jin vowed. "Definitely."
Nakamaru nodded, then turned around and headed towards the entrance of the walkway. The others followed behind him, quiet.
"Well, well. If it isn't the legendary idiots of King Johnny. I was wondering when I'd get to meet you." Nakamaru looked up, a chill going down his spine as the voice spoke.
"Nishikido Ryo," Jin breathed, and Nakamaru was suddenly acutely aware of Jin's body heat next to his.
Ryo grinned at them - a grin more of malice than anything else - Tegoshi was right next to him, smiling, but his was surprisingly kind. "Living and breathing. Which is more than what I can say for you guys."
~*~
Ueda thought it was the first time he'd seen Kame try not to cry in all the 3 years he’d known him, except he was pretty much failing at it.
Kame was a sight with his cheeks puffed out, his upper teeth biting into the corner of his bottom lip-quivering too-and his eyes so teary that Ueda was sure it'd just start leaking out. Kame sniffled loudly, one hand rubbing furiously at his nose and the other tightly fisted at his side.
"You 'kay?" Ueda asked, eyebrow raised, but he made no move to help the younger kid.
Kame sniffled loudly again, nodding gruffly. "Un. I'm fine," Kame managed to say without bursting into tears.
"Looks like someone's growing up," Ueda complimented, ruffling Kame's hair, a little more than impressed.
"I'm getting older, should stop being a baby," Kame said forcefully. Ueda raised his eyebrow higher.
"Where's this coming from?" Ueda asked, frowning. It wasn't like Kame to care about this sort of thing, Ueda knew. Kame only shook his head, his lips now pursed so thin that they were a line - the tears had seemingly gone away too; but while Ueda was impressed, he knew something else was up. "Are you being bullied by those kids again?" Ueda's eyes flared when he caught the look of fear in Kame's eyes before the little kid shook his head more furiously.
"No!" Kame protested, frowning. "I'm getting older! It's only right." He nodded at Ueda, as though to emphasize his point, except Ueda wasn't buying it.
Ueda huffed before spinning on his heel towards the door. "I'm gonna teach those kids," Ueda mumbled under his breath. Kame's hand yanked on his arm, pulling Ueda back.
"No!" Kame protested, more adamant. "Please don't do it, Ueda-kun. It's fine; it's fine." Kame insisted while Ueda could hear the blood rushing to his ears.
Ueda stopped in his tracks though, still staring at the door just a few feet away. Hoping that Kame would change his mind so that he could go out there and defend the little boy. "Please Ueda-kun," Kame begged, his hand tightly gripping the material of Ueda's shirt. Ueda could feel the younger boy shaking behind him and he hated how suddenly responsible he felt.
"You're sure?" Ueda said, his voice soft but stern.
"Un,” Kame said. His grip got slightly tighter, but Ueda didn't mind.
Instead, he turned around to face Kame, slipping easily out of the kid's grasp. "You'll come to me if you need help, right?"
Kame shook his head as he gave Ueda a watery smile. "There'll be a time when I'll be able to offer you a hand, Ueda-kun. That's what I want."
Ueda felt strangely proud of him.
~*~
A bolt of lightning shot out of the sky and flew towards Ryo and Tegoshi. The lightning hit a clear dome surrounding the two and spread throughout the dome, diffusing once it hit the ground. Tegoshi hadn’t even batted an eye.
Ryo smirked. "Nice try, fish lips. But you'll have to work a little harder than that."
Ueda glared, his staff tightly wrapped in his hand. "That wasn't even my worst," Ueda snapped, his pride a little hurt. Kame's hand gripped his shoulder, whether for security or for reassurance, neither knew.
"I'm sure it wasn't," Ryo mocked. By this point, everyone'd managed to pull out their staffs, holding them tightly to their sides, ready for anything that would happen. "Oh calm down," Ryo snapped. "I'm not going to kill you yet. That'd defeat the entire purpose of me getting you to the forest."
The six exchanged looks. "What's that supposed to mean?" Kame asked, confused.
"So King Johnny didn't tell you anything at all?" Ryo laughed. "Predictable. That old geezer only acts for himself anyway." He smirked again. "You six need to arrive at the forest in order to open it up-with the forest open, the one who is able to take control of the staff inside will have ultimate power."
"It's always ultimate power, isn't it?" Koki complained. "Why can't it be something wittier?" Ryo threw him a dirty look.
"Like unlimited beer," Jin sighed.
"Or world peace!" Taguchi chirped. They looked at him strangely.
"We'd be out of a job if that happened," Ueda said logically.
Nakamaru snorted, "That's what you think about?" Ueda shrugged.
A bolt of lightning hit the spot right between Nakamaru and Ueda, behind him. All eyes snapped back to Ryo and Tegoshi. "Thank you. I'm the one we should be concentrating on," Ryo snapped.
"You know," Jin started, "You're kinda short for a bad guy." The others stifled laughter as Ryo's face started to turn red. "I'd've expected the person who'd be threatening us and taking our lives would be a little taller. I mean..." Jin started to smile a little. "Even your little pet wizard over there seems to be a little taller."
"Ryo-tan's plenty tall!" Tegoshi said cheerfully. "Besides! His personality completely makes up for it!" Everyone snickered, hiding their amusement behind hands, leaving Ryo fuming.
"NEVER MIND THAT," Ryo hissed. "I'm here to issue a challenge. Be at the forest in a month, and the winner will get control of the forest."
Kame raised an eyebrow. "So all of us versus... Him?" he asked, pointing at Tegoshi.
Tegoshi tilted his head to the side, blinking innocently. A second later, a fireball skimmed past Kame's sleeve, setting it on fire. Kame quickly put it out.
"I'm taking that as a yes," Kame muttered.
Ryo smirked again. "You shouldn't underestimate Tegoshi-kun. He has more brains than you all put together and he's more powerful."
Tegoshi beamed brightly. "Ryo-tan, you're the best." Ryo ruffled the younger boy's hair.
"Anyway," Ryo said after he turned back, catching the end of all of KAT-TUN mock gagging. His eyes narrowed. "This is only a courtesy call. It won't happen again."
Ueda rolled his eyes. "Is this just your way of trying to scare us? Make us just bend to the might that is you and that puny wizard over there?"
Another bolt came flying down towards Ueda, but Ueda deflected it with his own, aiming it back at Tegoshi. Just when the lightning bolt hit the clear dome, another one shot down. Already unraveling from the energy drain of withstanding the first lightning bolt, the second bolt pushed through and hit the a spot a mere inch away from Tegoshi’s foot.
Ryo's eyes narrowed while Tegoshi looked thoughtfully at the spot. Ueda sneered, "I told you I hadn't used my full power."
"If you're done taunting us," Nakamaru said quietly - eyes meeting Ryo's. "I'm sure you have other towns that need taking over."
Ryo sneered. "At least you know now how strong we are. Just give us the ability to enter the forest and everything'll be fine." He turned to Tegoshi, before nodding slightly.
"Ah! Well, then!" Tegoshi waved cheerfully to the six. "Bye, bye, koneko-chan!" In a puff of smoke, the two disappeared, leaving KAT-TUN to stare with trepidation at the spot they'd been standing in.
"Taguchi!" Koki yelped when the male suddenly fell from his spot, clutching his chest tightly. "You still can't do things under pressure, can you?"
Taguchi gulped in as much air as he could. "I can!" he said with a shaky smile. "It's just a little more difficult."
Nakamaru exhaled. "We should find somewhere to stay to recover." His gaze fell on Ueda, who was pale and leaning against Kame for balance. "We're all a little shaky."
Ueda nodded, Kame pulling him forward in the direction of the town's inn.
Jin trailed behind, walking along with Koki and Taguchi. "The weird thing is," he said softly. "Ryo seemed like he was telling the truth." His eyes met Nakamaru's. "Are we being used?"
Nakamaru bit his lip. He didn't know the answer to that. And from the looks of the others, neither did they.
~*~
It wasn't long after Koki had arrived that his teacher brought in another student-a puny little kid with funny hair and even funnier teeth, but still a little adorable ...if you squinted the right way. Koki raised an eyebrow. "Kidnap another one?"
Tsuyoshi gave him a dirty look before pushing the kid forward. "This kid needed rescuing and it was up to me to do it."
"Is rescuing what they call it now?" Koki asked dryly.
The kid looked up at Koki with wide watery eyes and Koki thought that he might just crack under that gaze. "This is Tegoshi-kun," Tsuyoshi introduced, hugging the kid suddenly. "Isn't he cute? He has magic like you!"
Koki stared. "That puny kid? He doesn't even look like he can stand properly."
Tegoshi's eyes only got more watery and Koki thought that if the kid properly built up that "technique," he could use it for so much evil.
Tsuyoshi frowned at Koki. "Don't mind Koki-kun. He's still a little sore that I forbade him to do anything around the house."
Tegoshi looked at Tsuyoshi confused. "Why would he be sore about that?"
"Because he seems to have this idea in his head that the generous me would throw him out." Koki paled at Tsuyoshi's words.
"That's not it, idiot," Koki snapped. "I just wanna make sure I earn my keep."
Tsuyoshi leaned over to smack Koki over the head. "Don't insult your teacher. It's not proper." He turned to Tegoshi, "He's the kind of person you shouldn't be like."
"But he's really cool, Domoto-san! He says what he thinks. I never could."
Koki blinked down at the kid before grudgingly saying, "You're not half bad yourself, kid."
Tegoshi's eyes went wide. "Really?"
Koki flushed. "We'll see for sure at another time, huh? Stick around for a while."
"Un!" Tegoshi chirped, before reaching out and latching onto Koki's arm. "Can you show me around, Koki-kun? I want you to show me around."
Koki scratched the back of his head. "Sure, I don't see anything wrong with that."
Tsuyoshi smiled to himself as he watched the pair walk off. He knew it'd been a good idea to bring Tegoshi home from that horror of a home-the two may just save each other.
~*~
It'd been about two weeks after Ryo's "visit" and the group'd been making their way steadily towards the town Ryo was in. Through the entire journey there, Koki'd been racking his brain to remember anything he could about Tegoshi. "It'd help us figure out how we could defeat him," Ueda'd insisted.
Koki, however, couldn't remember for the life of him just how Tegoshi acted-past how he was always nice-and how their teacher adored the boy-hugging Tegoshi every chance he could get (Koki would kick him whenever he saw it, and then pull Tegoshi to safety - he was a great older brother). But for Tegoshi to turn bad? It was almost incomprehensible.
"I'm telling you," Koki insisted. "Tegoshi isn't a bad person. Not even close to one."
Nakamaru frowned. "Didn't kick puppies or anything?"
Koki stared aghast. "Tegoshi, kick puppies? Not possible."
"But then why is he on the bad side?" Jin whined. "Shouldn't he be on our side if he's such a good person?"
The table remained silent. "Isn't that the question of the day?" Ueda said dryly. "Plus we have to wonder about this King Johnny thing. Do we really open up this magical forest?"
"Won't we know when we get there?" Kame asked. The others looked at him weirdly before he continued. "I mean, if he needs us there to open it. He'll show up."
Murmurs of acknowledgment rose through the air. "So in other words," Nakamaru said. "We'll have to just get there and see how it plays out?"
Koki sighed, leaning against an elbow. "Sounds about right to me."
"Maa-maa," Taguchi chirped. "Will be all right!"
They gave him a weird look as he started humming some upbeat melody. "Either way," Ueda said, pulling their attention back to him. "We'll have to figure it out when we get there instead of earlier." All six got up, heading towards their rooms.
Jin whispered to Koki, "But really, Ryo's pretty short, isn't he?" Koki snickered, trying to hide his laughter behind his hand. "And he was really distracted by it. You think if we just kept insulting his height, we'd win?"
Koki cracked up, hitting Jin on the head. "You're an idiot, you know."
Jin stuck out his tongue. "You're just jealous I came up with a brilliant plan. I'll make sure to thank you in my speech." He sashayed forward; Koki watched amused. Still, he really wondered if things were going to be that easy.
It was two weeks later that they finally arrived at their destination, just under the time limit that Ryo had set for them.
They were met with Ryo and Tegoshi, both smiling in their own personal style. "Took you slowpokes long enough," Ryo snapped, arms crossed against his chest.
"Can't you let us rest for the night or something?" Ueda groaned loudly. "We've been walking for the past few hours."
"And not take advantage of when you're weak? I'm not stupid, thanks," Ryo retorted.
"Weren't you confident that your pet wizard could take us on even at our strongest?" Koki asked.
"Nice try. But I'm not that prideful," Ryo said, smirking. "I'll do whatever it takes to get what I want."
"You shouldn't on pick on those weaker than you, Nishikido," a booming voice said from behind the six. KAT-TUN could feel the dread welling in their stomachs as they turned around to come face to face with the person that'd made them come to the point they were at now.
"King Johnny!" Ryo exclaimed with a flourish, even bowing extravagantly to prove his point. "I was wondering when you'd show up. Come to claim the magic forest for yourself?"
King Johnny glared, then turned to the group. "Now you'll fulfill your purpose," he told them.
Everyone stared before Jin asked, "What's that exactly?"
"To help me become the most powerful man." His eyes gleamed as Ryo rolled his eyes. "The forest can only be opened at this very spot when you six arrive."
"We've been here for over 10 minutes," Nakamaru said dryly. "I see no such forest opening up." As though those were the magic words, the landscape around them started to shift. What once was a town was overtaken by trees and vines. The bright sunlight that'd been beaming down on them half disappeared as trees grew to their full potential.
All stood in awe. Then Ueda snapped, "You just had to open up your big mouth." Nakamaru shrugged helplessly.
~*~
Taguchi always woke up gasping for air-the sheets wrapped tightly around his body, constricting him. But he'd never yell, never cry for help. Just handled it all by himself.
"You're hiding something," Yokoyama complained during breakfast one morning.
"Sensei worries too much," Taguchi said good-naturedly, a smile on his face. Getting up, Taguchi moved around the table to pour his teacher another drink. "More, Sensei?"
Yokoyama grabbed Taguchi's wrist before he poured the liquid into his empty cup, his eyes serious-a look Taguchi wasn't used to seeing on his usually loud, outgoing teacher. "Are you still having nightmares?"
For a brief second, Taguchi could feel his defenses falter before he recovered and beamed at his teacher. "Sensei, you're too kind." With his teeth clenched, Taguchi managed to wrench his wrist out of his teacher's grip. "You really shouldn't worry,” Taguchi said, a little more reassuring as he poured some more alcohol into his teacher's cup
Yokoyama took a gulp of the drink, sighing. Taguchi moved back to his chair, taking a seat and smiling brightly at his teacher. "How much water is in a person's body?" he asked suddenly.
Taguchi blinked before thinking on it for a few minutes. "Depending on the person, around 45 to 75 percent."
"That's good; you've been reading," Yokoyama complimented, taking another swig of his drink.
"Well, Sensei," Taguchi half-laughed. "I had to book it when you threw the book at me!" Yokoyama only raised an eyebrow. "Anyway," Taguchi continued after the failed attempt at a joke, "I needed some type of reading material."
"Do you know why I haven't been teaching you much magic?" Yokoyama asked nonchalantly, playing with his spoon.
And again, despite his best efforts, because he didn’t want his teacher thinking any less of him, Taguchi faltered. But he did worry that maybe Yokoyama had made a mistake. He gathered his thoughts together and shook his head vigorously. "People move at their own pace! I thought you'd get around to it eventually,” Taguchi said, in a tone that made him almost believe his own words.
"Your power isn't always as tangible as others," Yokoyama told him. "You have power over water, remember that." Yokoyama took the last gulp of his drink before slamming the cup on the table, grinning cheekily at Taguchi. "Now, why don't we put this power to the test?"
Taguchi watched as his teacher got up and headed towards the door, his words still weighing heavily on Taguchi's mind. "Taguchi, get out here already!" Yokoyama complained from outside and Taguchi sighed as he slid out of his seat.
"Sensei, can we not conjure water over the town girls again? I'm pretty sure none of them like me anymore," Taguchi complained as he met his teacher at the door.
Yokoyama threw his arm over Taguchi's shoulders. "Nonsense! In the heat of summer, everyone wants to be cooled down by your water."
"It's the end of fall," Taguchi said grudgingly.
"Same difference."
~*~
It took a few minutes before both Johnny and Ryo started moving towards the center of the forest - the point from which all could see a bright light originating.
Tegoshi looked at the six, grinned, shrugged, and then followed after. KAT-TUN looked at each other, sighing a little-a groan here and there-before they followed too. Jin got there the fastest, using his winds to help him along; he arrived at the center even before Johnny and Ryo did, despite their lead. He created a wind barrier around the center, making sure no one could get through. The others came to a halt right behind Jin, Tegoshi standing beside them, looking thoughtful.
"Now," Jin said, growling a little. "The time for answers should've come when we started this damn thing. But since we didn't get it then, I'm asking now."
Ryo threw Johnny a smirk. "They're waiting, King Johnny."
"Nishikido, you're annoying," Johnny growled before he waved his hand towards Ryo - a gust of wind flew out and knocked Ryo into Kame who helped him back to his feet.
"You asshole!" Ryo hissed, starting to walk towards Johnny. Another gust of wind and suddenly the ring around Jin vanished. Jin's eyes went wide.
"I'm not as weak as you all think," Johnny snapped.
A stone suddenly shot out and hit Ryo on the head - he crumpled immediately to the ground. Tegoshi gasped loudly while KAT-TUN stared in a mixture of horror and helplessness. "He's okay!" Tegoshi exclaimed, relieved. He looked back, eyes blazing before Kame held out his hand to stop him.
"We'll take care of him," Kame assured him. Tegoshi nodded before another lightning bolt flew down from the sky, missing Johnny by an inch.
"Damn," Ueda cursed, before Johnny started moving. Jin was pushed out of the way by Johnny's wind, even though he'd tried to combat it with his own.
Tegoshi pulled back, shielding a prone Ryo. A dome appeared in the air around them as the others struggled to keep Johnny away from the center. But his own powers kept them away, stones flying towards them at the same time. And then all motion stopped.
Johnny grabbed the staff, holding it up in the air - everything becoming disturbed around them. "It's taken years to get to this point," he breathed. "Ever since I heard Oracle Koichi say that I needed six certain wizards to lead me to this point of ultimate power." He stared at him in awe.
Koki elbowed Nakamaru gently. "What is this, the obligatory bad guy speech?" he muttered. Nakamaru stifled a laugh.
Johnny leveled his glare on them. "And now, to eliminate the only obstacles in my path," Johnny said, making the ground under them shake.
In an instant, a combination of elements and noises exploded into the air. Accompanied by Nakamaru’s beatboxing, fires that both Nakamaru and Kame pulled together fell upon Johnny from above. Koki's rapping ("ore wa JOKER Dope na Rhyme de naki dasu jou chan machi ni matta kore ga ore no Show Time") disturbed the ground below them all as he tried to keep both Johnny's power away and attack him at the same time. Jin's winds surrounded Johnny's figure in the middle, trying to keep him in place. Taguchi's staff glowed blue as he lent his power to Ueda-helping out the only way he could, despite the shaky feeling gripping his entire body.
"Enough!" Ueda hissed, and all of them stopped suddenly and Ueda’s staff glowed a brighter yellow than they'd ever seen before.
They watched in horror as Ueda's lightning shot down from the sky and struck King Johnny's staff, electrocuting both it and Johnny before the staff exploded, unable to handle so many elements bombarding it in such a small span of time. Johnny's screams pierced their ears before the explosion knocked them off their feet. All, except Ryo, shielded their eyes from the bright light, before it dimmed, allowing them to get a good look at the empty spot in the middle. Not a single thing had been left behind and the forest around them was coming back down to a calm.
"Did we actually.... win?" Jin asked, stunned.
"How'd that even work?" Nakamaru stared at the spot in awe.
"Because we're the good guys!" Taguchi said as cheerfully as he could manage.
Koki snorted. "Maybe we shouldn't even bother questioning it. I don't think even Ueda knows how he did it."
Ueda groaned in his agreement as he slumped against his staff. Kame tried to help him up, his eyes tired. "Did we do what we were meant to?"
"Un!" Tegoshi said happily, sighing to himself before looking at the six. "Your goal's been done, for now anyways, I think."
KAT-TUN looked at him strangely, confused, but didn't press it. He got up, dusting himself off and pulling his staff close. "Are you... still going to work for Ryo?" Koki asked shakily, getting back onto his feet.
"Un! Ryo has been kind to me for years; I would never desert him. He has good intentions, you know." Tegoshi gave Ryo a sideways glance, smiling. "He just acts the way he does because it's what gets things done."
"Sure. Being a general ass always gets people to do what is needed," Ueda said dryly. Tegoshi only shrugged.
Kame moved forward, sticking out a hand. "I hope we won't ever have to fight, then."
Tegoshi took it pleasantly before pulling back. He waved cheerfully, yanking an unconscious Ryo closer to him. "Bye bye! Hope we'll meet again. In better terms, of course!" In another puff of smoke, he was gone. The others just stared at the empty spot before the crackling noise of flames caught their attention.
Belatedly, everyone noticed the burning forest, and whipped their heads towards Kame. "You had to use your strongest spell?" Koki asked, exasperated.
Kame frowned defensively. "We would've died if I hadn't!"
"Weren't we supposed to save the forest?" Nakamaru sighed, as he stared at the fire get worse and worse.
Kame crossed his arms. "I help save you guys and this is what I get in return?"
Koki snorted. "Don't you mean Ueda saved us?"
Jin stood off to the side, looking exhausted and obviously not wanting to fight anymore. Ueda gave Taguchi a look before the male smiled brightly, pulling out his staff. "Ireguchi, Deguchi, Taguchi desu!" he chimed before it glowed a bright blue and the entire forest was covered in a heavy rain, the flames extinguishing within seconds. The rain slowly turned into a drizzle.
The six stopped everything for a moment and just relished in the feel of water against their skin.
"What now?" Kame asked them, his voice strangely hollow.
"We're alive?" Koki said, slumping against his staff for balance.
"Right wrongs and fight evil?" Taguchi said helpfully.
"Go home and see the people we love," Nakamaru sighed.
"Sleep," Jin said. Everyone looked at him. "Sleep," he repeated. "Lots and lots of sleep."
Grins grew on their face as Ueda sighed, "That sounds good about now."
KAT-TUN nodded collectively before starting off. The direction didn’t matter. No goal in mind. No worry to panic about. Just them. Just like it should be.
("Does anyone even know how to get out of here?" Koki asked, an eyebrow raised.
Jin groaned. "Magical forest, my ass.")
THE END.