For Now And Forever Chapter 7: The Stories of Sahashi, a sekirei fanfic

The Stories Of Sahashi

Wow, this is bound to look strange to anyone who may happen to see us, Minato thought as he was walking home with one beautiful woman in each arm, and a third one walking just behind him.

If I run into my sister or mother, I must be sure to have one hell of a good explanation ready, or else I might find myself in a real hellhole. He tried to think up one for a minute, but had to conclude bemusedly that he had squat. I actually have less than squat, he corrected himself. I wish I had squat.

Meh, I probably won't see either of them for a while. Yukari is busy with her studies and mom is busy with her work. And if I meet them, I can just wing it. I can tell them I have become a Mormon and that I practice my right to live in polygamy. He snorted at that, knowing that telling his mom that he had become religious would most likely make her forget the polygamy thing; science had always been her god.

He shifted his interest to the blonde woman currently clinging to his arm. Tsukiumi was obviously of the possessive type, and he had been afraid at first that she would react badly when she learned that he already had four other Sekirei. For a second he had feared another attempt at his life.

Luckily she had adapted pretty quickly; only a small vein popping dangerously on her forehead when he told her, but she quickly set out to mark her territory. In a badly attempt at being inconspicuous, she had grabbed a hold of his arm, but he had refrained from commenting, in fact he did not object.

This had of course caused Musubi's winner instinct to flare, and she had not been slow to grab a hold of his other arm. The two women had sent each other a barely concealed glare, and Minato had been too surprised to say something. Only Akizu seemed unperturbed, but her emotions were always hard to discern due to her stoic mask.

Kagari had given him a wide grin and a thumbs up before he took off, leaving Minato behind in what seemed like a pretty messy situation. Obviously Musubi hadn't been entirely correct when she had said that there wouldn't be any problems that he winged more Sekirei.

Well, technically she didn't say that, he righted himself after reminiscing back to that night he had met Akizu. She had said that she would love whoever he loved because of their bond, but that didn't mean she would love them like he did.

I guess that's right. After all, there are different kinds of love. As long as they get along, I guess I should call myself a lucky bastard. I am living in one of almost every man's fantasies.

--XxoO--

When they arrived back at the Inn, he had to explain the rules of Izumo to Tsukiumi. She had then insisted that she would share a room with him, and he didn't exactly protest; after all, both Musubi and Akizu slept in the same room as him, why shouldn't she?

He had gone to talk to Miya and tell her about Tsukiumi and what had happened that day, and she had seemed a little hesitant when he told her that his room would get a new tenant, but in the end she hadn't prohibited it.

Instead she had asked him if they all had come back unharmed, and she seemed relieved when he told her that except for some few cuts and burns, they had all walked away without any casualties. In fact the only one who had gained any significant damage was him, as his back had been burned by the laser and his shirt was in tatters.

He excused himself to get his back treated, and as he walked towards his room where he kept his medical kit, he received a text message on his phone that said:

"To oni-chan. I have been intending to call you to talk about certain things, but due to some unforeseen circumstances, we cannot talk for some time, but I am fine. Please take care of yourself."

He stared at this cryptic message, and he recalled how the last conversation with his sister had ended rather abruptly. He realized now that due to all that had happened to him, he had never remembered to call back. Now it had gone over a month since he talked to her, and the guilt over how their discussion had ended finally caught up with him. She must have been pretty hurt over how I treated her, he thought guiltily. I wonder how she is doing now?

Interlude: Three weeks before present time

In another part of the capital, Sahashi Yukari was wandering about aimlessly, not really in the mood for anything. She had considered go visiting her brother, but had decided against it, as she really had no good reason for seeing him.

She had always loved him and looked up to him, as he had always been there for her when she needed help, but when he moved out and joined the army, she had felt that she had lost a pillar in her life. He had been gone for two years, and even though she had missed him a lot, she was a too stubborn teenager to ever admit that when he finally had time to call home.

She had been in her senior year at high school when she was informed that her brother was coming home, and she felt that she had matured a lot during the time he had been away. She had stopped being a small girl with no self-esteem and become a confident young woman.

When he came home, she thought that he had not changed at all during his time away. He was still a caring and compassionate man that could seem harmless at first sight, yet he carried himself in a way that spoke of a great hidden strength. At first sight, she had thought that he was still the same brother she had grown up with.

Soon after his arrival, she started to notice that something was amiss in him. Most of the time, he seemed like he was the same he had always been, but sometimes there was a hardness in his eyes that had not been there before. It was obvious that his time in the army had done something to him, but he always avoided her questions when she tried to ask him about it. Whatever had happened to him, he wasn't comfortable enough to talk about it with her.

He also started going more out; meeting up with many people he had never acquainted himself with before, like that pretty boy host named Kagari. Some part of her realized that this was just her brother acting like any young male, but mostly she just became irritated that he was flirting with different women every night.

Then she had learned that he had failed his University entrance exam, and she had surprisingly felt extremely angry once she heard. She was sure that it was a consequence of his excessive partying and his intense focus on his training, and she was angered by the fact that her brother was wasting his extraordinary intelligence.

And the worst part was that he didn't really seem troubled by it, almost like it was of no importance to him. She had called him on the phone the day after her mom had told her the news and demanded an explanation, but he just had told her that it was unexpected, but that he would take it as fate's intervention.

She had snorted disbelievingly at that, as she knew that he had never been a spiritual person, and was about to yell at him some more when she was sure that she heard a woman's voice in the background. Before she managed to ask her brother about it, he had told her that he was busy with work and moving out, so he had to go. He had then hanged up, leaving her more angry and bewildered than she had been before she had called.

Almost a week had passed since she had last spoken to him, as she had decided to punish him for hanging up on her. Unfortunately he hadn't called back, and she was too stubborn to call him.

Damn you oni-chan, you didn't even give me your new address. I can't even stop by unannounced and check up on you.

She was so lost in her angry thoughts, that she didn't notice the sound of running footsteps before it was too late, and she felt herself become knocked over by a silver-haired boy who was about her height. She was about to vent her anger at him, but then she noticed his silky white skin and his wheat-colored eyes, and all anger left her instantly. He was the most beautiful boy she had ever seen.

For a second they just stared at each other, before she noticed the trickle of blood that ran down from his right knee.

"Are you all right?" she asked both with concern and fascination. "You're bleeding. If you let me help, I can take care of it."

"Ah, it's okay, I'm…"

"Take it easy will you!" a woman's voice called. "You keep running around, but you know that I will take you back to my master. One way or another"

Yukari looked at the newcomer with malice in her eyes, how did she dare ruin this moment?

"I will never go with you," the boy yelled back. "Especially not to the person who tried to be so mean to Kuu."

Yukari couldn't sit still any longer, not only did this despicable woman ruin her moment with this boy, she also had the gall to threaten him in front of her. She put her hand lightly on the boy's shoulder and told him with certainty:

"Don't worry, I'll help you."

She then turned to the blonde woman and directed all her anger towards her before she yelled out: "Can you shut up and get your ugly face out of here? You are annoying both me and this boy just by being this close."

Yukari got a sick satisfaction from how the blonde woman's face screwed up in fury from her barb, and to add injury to the insult, she smiled at her with her most taunting smile.

"Damn you," the blonde hissed in anger. "Now that you have made me mad, I won't let you leave here alive, even though you are a normal human."

With those menacing words, she drew out a long whip which seemed to be lined with small spikes. Yukari took a step back when she saw this strange weapon, and she turned to look at the boy, considering if she should just grab him and run. He seemed like he was shocked out of his mind from the situation, as he just stared at her with a strange look in his eye.

Suddenly she heard a shriek of pain from behind her, and she whipped herself around to face the woman whose hand now was unmistakably burnt almost black. To her even bigger surprise, a man clad in black stood between her and the blonde woman.

Before she could even ask him who he where and where he had appeared from, he turned to her and said intently from behind the mask that hid his face: "Take the boy with you and run! You can't stay here."

Yukari felt that she somehow recognized the man, but she knew that she should do as the man had ordered, so she grabbed the silver haired boy and ran away as fast as she could, unconsciously steering towards her apartment. She noticed detachedly how light the boy felt in her arms, but she didn't put much thought into it, putting it off as the result of all the adrenaline that was rushing through her body.

--XxoO--

Before she knew it, her legs had carried them both back to her apartment. She dropped down at her knees, her fatigue finally catching up with her.

What the hell was I thinking?, she thought fervently as her heart beat at a breakneck pace, both from her extreme run through the capital and from the insane situation she had somehow gotten herself into.

Why did I grab a beautiful boy I don't know under my arm and run away with him; I even brought him to my room? Have I gone insane?

She looked up at the boy and was again stricken by his beautiful features. She gave him an embarrassed smile, as she was completely clueless to what she should say to him in this situation. The boy was most likely scared to death by her, and she couldn't find any words to put him at ease.

"Um, excuse me," the boy started, and Yukari was shocked by his melodious voice. It made her insides warm up, and she felt that she would give anything to have him continue speaking to her with that voice.

"I think," he continued hesitantly, leaning slowly towards her as he took a small pause; "I think I am your Sekirei," he finished as a blush started spreading rapidly up his neck.

Yukari could only stare at him in amazement and confusion. What did he just say he was?

Interlude out: Present time

As dawn came, Minato woke up feeling terribly hot and with the sensation that he was being restrained from every possible angle. For a second he wondered if he had been shackled to the bed, but when he opened his eyes, he realized that the weights that were holding him down were of the much more pleasant type.

Tucked in under his arm at each side, lay Musubi and Tsukiumi, both using a part of his chest as their pillow. It was a wonder that they hadn't somehow bumped their heads into each other sometime during the night, as their hair was intertwined so precisely that it was difficult to see where the blond hair started, and the brown hair ended.

Judging from the cool touch that rested against the top of his head and the cooling fingers along his neck, he concluded that Akizu must lay nestled against his head.

I guess that means that it must be Matsu that is using my thigh as her pillow. Well, I guess I am lucky she didn't choose someplace further up, seeing as she has displayed some perverted tendencies in the past.

Even though he knew that he shouldn't complain in this situation, he couldn't help noticing the small pains that shot up from the places on his body that had been deprived of enough blood during the night.

He tried to carefully shift a little to relieve his body without waking the sleeping beauties, but obviously just a small motion was enough to rouse them from their sleep, as they were slowly waking up just a few seconds after he had adjusted himself.

The first to wake was Tsukiumi, and as she opened her blue eyes she turned her head a little and fixed her sleepy gaze upon him. As he gave her a little smile, she immediately started to blush and stuttered embarrassedly: "G-good morning Minato."

"The same to you, Tsukiumi," he said lovingly. "I'm sorry that I woke you so early. Want me to make it up to you with a good morning kiss?"

She reddened even further at his playful suggestion, and before she could make any coherent response, Musubi stirred and said with a voice that was obviously half-asleep: "Yes please, Minato-sama." She then proceeded to grab blindly what she evidently thought was Minato's face and kissed it while her eyes remained closed.

Minato had to suppress an amused snort when he saw the look on Tsukiumi's face when Musubi kissed her unexpectedly. Her eyes went wide open with surprise, and her face became so red that she seemed like she had been sleeping in the sun for hours. To his surprise, it actually took a few seconds before his male mind caught up with the situation, but when it did, he quickly had to stifle the groan that wanted to escape his throat at this sexy sight in front of him.

"Huh, you're not Minato," Musubi said sleepily as she opened her eyes after ending the kiss. She sat up and rubbed her eyes cutely. "Good morning, Tsukiumi-san. I thought you were Minato." Tsukiumi gave no reply, as she seemed too stunned to even say something, and Minato could practically see how her brain tried to make a decision to what it should do in this situation. Inwardly, he anticipated that when the reaction finally came, it would be a grand one.

Before Tsukiumi could make up her mind however, a small chuckle from the foot of the bed told them that Matsu had observed the situation and was beside herself with perverted glee; "I wonder that would happen if two Sekirei have a sexual union," she said while barely containing her snickering. "I look forward to seeing the continuation of this romance."

That caused Tsukiumi's anger to quell her surprise over the kiss, and she proceeded to beat Matsu with her pillow while she shouted something about perverted demons. The situation was so funny that even Akizu let a small giggle escape her lips, but she quickly tried to revert to her normal stoic mask when Minato turned to her with surprised amusement, but she couldn't quite manage to wipe the smile of her face, and she blushed when she saw his amused eyes.

Suddenly Minato couldn't keep himself any longer, and he burst out laughing, causing all of his Sekirei to focus their eyes on him. His laughter turned to be quite infectious, soon after they were all laughing together.

"Haha, that must have been one of the most interesting ways I have ever woken up," Minato said merrily as he finally collected himself.

"Come here girls," he said as he stood up and opened his arms, beckoning them closer. "Let's make this a perfect morning." As they all came over, he collected them all in a group hug and gave them each a short kiss, lighting up the room with their wings of light.

--XxoO--

The day had started unlike any other for Tsukiumi. She had woken with a warm feeling in her chest, and a strange smell informed her that she was not alone in her room. Since her release into the capital about two months ago she had lived together with her tuner, but she had still felt a little lonely, and only now did she realized why. The sensation of waking in the arms of her fated one was indescribable, and she reveled in the sound of his heartbeat as she rested her head on his chest.

She didn't know how long she just laid their after having woken up, just listening to his slow breathing, but it still felt way to soon when he started to stir, obviously in the process of waking up. Suddenly she felt slightly embarrassed by the way she was clinging to him, but it had felt so natural last night after the welcoming dinner.

Minato had excused himself early, as he quite obviously was almost exhausted after the day's events. She had noticed how Musubi looked concernedly after him, and when she asked her why, the brunette had solemnly told her how Minato could somehow surpass his human physical limits for a short while, but the repercussion of doing so left him exhausted and in pain. Tsukiumi had then jolted, suddenly realizing how Minato had been able to show her out of the way of the laser, and the realization made her feel a mixture of both fear for his wellbeing, but also a warm glow in her heart from how he had risked everything to save her.

When she and the girls were finally done eating and was getting ready for bed, Minato had already fallen asleep. Without a second thought, she had lain down next to her Ashikabi, a man she had met only just today, but who she already knew would be the only man she would ever love. Soon after she too had fallen asleep, drifting into the darkness in his embrace.

Funny if you consider how I originally intended to kill him, she added humorously to herself. Now, on the contrary, he is the most important thing in my life. It's amusing how thing can change in a single day.

As Minato now was fully awake, she turned towards him, and to her embarrassment she stammered a little when she said good morning. Why do I suddenly behave so meekly? This is not like me at all, she thought furiously. To her chagrin she acted even more embarrassedly when he playfully offered her a kiss. Even though she wanted it, she could make any coherent response, and when she thought she finally should be able to utter something, she found herself dragged into a kiss, not by Minato, but by who she originally had thought would be her rival in love, namely nr. 88 Musubi. What surprised her even more was that she actually enjoyed that kiss. Was that how it was supposed to be?

--XxoO--

Early in the afternoon the next day they were ready to head out into the city. Last day had been used to resting and letting everybody get to know each other better. Minato had told her of how they were patrolling the northern sector of the capital and protecting the Sekirei there. Before the day she had met Minato, she would have scoffed at the idea of protecting those who were too weak to defend themselves, but after facing the terror of almost being winged by Higa Uzumi and listening to Minato reasons, she now felt much more certain that it was the right thing to do.

"Funny how you suddenly feel so motivated to protect those you before called weak, Tsukiumi," her rival Homura asked her playfully when she met him in the hallway just before they were heading out. "I recollect trying to talk you into helping me numerous times before, but you always told me that I was a fool."

Tsukiumi fought back the urge to wash the cheeky grin of his face with a gush of water, but instead she settled into answering with the same coin.

"Maybe you overestimate your own charm, Homura. Maybe Minato was just more charming and persuasive than you ever were."

She took great satisfaction in how her rival's face fell for a second after her retort, but to her chagrin he got the last word as he burst out laughing and said while laughing: "Haha, you're damn right that I should never underestimate Minato's skill with the ladies, seeing as he managed to make you of all people fall for him. It was only yesterday that you wanted to kill all Ashikabis who only wanted to ravish your body and make you their slave, and now I guess it is you who want to jump him and let him make you scream his name in pleasure."

Tsukiumi felt her cheeks redden at his crude and unseemly joke, and the anger she had been restraining until now flooded through her and made her feel like killing the man for even considering something so perverted, but he was wise enough to flee before she recovered from the shock.

When she made her way to the garden, she found that the bastard had already taken off in a hurry, obviously fearing her payback. She seethed over that for a second before Minato's voice put her out of her grumbling.

"I'm sorry that I can't go with you today, but I think it should be fine for today, as I don't expect you to meet any difficulties. Just focus on getting to know each other today, as the most important thing to have in a fight, is a comrade that watches your back. I know that you think that Sekirei battles are just one-on-one, but that is not written in stone. If you only think that you need to focus on a single opponent, it will be way too easy to catch you unawares. Remember, true strength always comes through the help of others; no one becomes great on their own. It is when you protect the ones you love, that you will find yourself at your strongest"

Tsukiumi became a little startled at his words, as they were completely opposing how she had viewed the world until now. She had staunchly believed in the sanctity of the Sekirei battles and that only she mattered in her dream of becoming the strongest. Now Minato had basically told her that she needed to completely review her word view. This would be something she definitely had to think through thoroughly.

--XxoO--

Minato stood alone in the empty garden, focusing intently on his own breathing. With fluid and graceful motions, he worked his way through a complex kata, feeling how his body responded to the familiar movements. With the smoothness born after years of practice, he flowed through the kicks and punches, feeling how his muscles loosened and became ready for action. The kata he was executing was meant to help the performer build up his chi, or inner energy. He would need that for the training he had in mind.

Three times now he had felt an inexplicable power course through his muscles, making him accomplish feats he knew should be impossible for normal humans. He had moved at least hundred meters in what seemed to be just a few heartbeats, and he had felt like he could kill a human being with just a single punch. Miya had referred to it as his latent power as an Ashikabi, but she couldn't explain how and why it worked.

The powers came with a downside however, as usage of this force caused him both great physical and mental fatigue. If he prolonged the usage for more than a few seconds, the stress on his muscles caused him to pass out from exhaustion when his will could not carry him upright anymore.

Therefore he had decided to try and train this ability; to find out if he could activate it at will, if he could extend the time of usage, and whether or not there was a way to avoid the painful convalescence period.

There is only one problem, Minato thought wryly to himself. How did I actually manage to bring forth that sensation in the first place? Is the deciding factor something so simple as the high amount of adrenaline that was running through my veins, or was it something else? Think Minato, what could it be, what those three situations have in common?

He racked his brain as he looked back at the three events in question. All of them had definitely been life and death situations, but only once had actually his own life been in danger, the two other times it had been respectively Kusano and Tsukiumi that were at risk.

So that counts it out as a self-defense mechanism, what other common denominators could there be? Did I make a conscious choice when I activated it, or was it just an autonomous reaction my brain made?

Suddenly the realization hit him; He had never actually feared for his own life in those situations, but rather for the lives of those he loved. In all those situations his body had reacted to his resolve to keep them safe. The first time he unwittingly drew on that power, was when he needed to save Kusano from her assailant.

My resolve, that's got to be it. I desperately needed to save them, and my body complied. That means that the release for this technique comes from my brain.

He knew of course of how a adrenaline rush released from the adrenal glands could make a normal human being perform feats that normally were impossible for him, but he instinctively knew that what he had done was beyond the limits of a normal human body.

Somehow the process of becoming an Ashikabi must have altered my body somehow, he concluded. Apparently my muscles can create a maximum power output comparable to that of a Sekirei, at least for a short while. Does that mean that I somehow have absorbed some of Musubi's power? No, that can't be it, as she should have been weakened by the process. My best guess would be that my body has responded to the bonds I have made with my Sekirei. Miya said that her husband had been working on creating a list of potential Ashikabis, so I suppose that means that the people on that list are different somehow.

He pondered that implication for a few minutes; if that hypothesis was true, then he needed to find out what separated those who became Ashikabis from normal humans. Was it something they were born with, some result of some genetic tinkering, or just a totally random occurrence? He remembered that the strange CEO of MBI had said that he had been chosen to be a partner of a Sekirei. That could of course mean a lot, as it could be interpreted to validate all his theories. So if he wanted any answers, that meant that he needed to find some information.

But how?

No answer came to him easily, so he decided to shift his focus back to his training. He had finished his kata unconsciously while he was contemplating his theories, and he knew that his body was now loose enough to try what he had intended. He took several deep breaths, mentally preparing himself for anything. He then tried to recollect that sensation he had felt when he knew that Kuu was in trouble and that she needed his help. He willed the power to well up in him.

And nothing happened…

Well, that was anticlimactic, he thought dryly to himself. I guess it won't be that easy.

For the next hour he simply practiced his forms against a makiwara, while at the same time trying to recapture the resolve that had allowed him to unleash this strange power in the first place, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't do it.

As time continued to fly by, a surge of frustration started to build in him, and it wasn't until he almost broke his makiwara in two that he realized that he needed to rein in his emotions. The warrior who lost his head in a fight was the one most likely to lose.

"Aren't you working hard Minato-kun," the voice of Miya came unexpectedly from behind, once again managing elude his senses and take him completely by surprise. She had refused to share any information regarding herself during their previous talk apart from what he already knew, so he still had no idea of what she truly was. He wanted to assume that she was a Sekirei, but something about her felt so… off. Having been around both unwinged and winged Sekirei, he had developed an ability to sense what they truly were. To him it was almost like a sixth sense, as he instinctively knew when a Sekirei was close, but Miya did not give off the same sensation. To his senses, it was like she was there, yet not there at the same time, and it confused him till no end.

For a second he considered whether or not he could trust her when she obviously didn't trust him, but he dismissed the thought quickly; For one thing, he had already told her of his strange power, and secondly, he knew that he couldn't just expect her to trust him with her deepest secrets, they were hers to share if she wanted. So he settled for telling her everything he was trying to accomplish:

"Miya-dono, the girls are out patrolling without me for today, so I decided to do some training. I've been trying to figure out how to control this so-called 'Ashikabi power', but until now I've had no progress."

"Aren't you a forthcoming man, Minato-kun, I didn't see you as a person who would reveal his hand so easily," she said with an amused tone while cocking an eyebrow. "Is there any reason for you to tell me this?

"Not really, no," he said with a shrug. "But seeing as you took interest in what I was doing, I found no reason to hide it from you. Take it as a token of trust, if you will."

"Oh, are you implying something?" she asked in the same playful tone, but he noticed how she seemingly put more power into her words, making her appear much more intimidating than the normal, calm landlady he was used to. His basic instincts told him to bow down to her cowing, like a dog would bow down before an alpha, but he fought back the urge. Instead he weighted his words carefully, taking a neutral and honest route between submission and replying with equal force. Be

"No, I'm not one to mince words. If I want to say something, I will. I've found that the direct route is often the most convenient."

"I see," she said with a smile, but Minato noticed the flash of sadness that crossed her eyes when she continued. "That sounds like an interesting philosophy. My husband was of the same opinion while he was still alive."

"What happened to him? Was it an accident?"

Miya flinched at his question, and this time she couldn't conceal her sorrow at all. The sudden change took Minato completely by surprise, and it shook him when he realized how carefully the woman in front of him hid her true feelings beneath a mask of cheerfulness and calm. The mask had been so perfect that he hadn't noticed anything off about it, and he normally noticed when people were acting in front of him. When it then suddenly came off, he stood frozen and didn't know what to reply when she said in a voice barely above a whisper:

"That… is not something I prefer to talk about. As you can see, it brings me great pain only thinking about it."

She then turned and went back into the house, leaving him stunned behind. His shock only lasted for a few seconds however, until he regained his senses and his manners. He ran after her, catching up to her and bowing his head apologetically:

"I'm sorry Miya-dono, I hope you didn't take my question the wrong way, as I was simply curious."

"There's no need to apologize, so please raise your head Minato-kun." With a sad smile, she continued: "What has happened has happened, so I try to not dwell in the past, but what you said was identical to what my husband once told me the first time we met, and I just… regressed."

She sighed before she turned and said as she walked away. "Do not worry about, it won't happen again. I've already buried my past."

"That is not true," he said lowly, but she still froze in place like he had yelled it at her. "You cannot expect to just bury your past and expect it to stay buried, no matter what you do, it will come back to haunt you. Believe me, I know."

Seemingly against her will, she turned around slowly. He looked her squarely in the eyes as he continued: "It's obvious that haven't properly reconciled yourself with your past, and that you still try to deny that anything is wrong. I will not claim to know anything about your past, nor will I pry into it without your permission, but you need to know that nothing good will ever come from wallowing in guilt and regret. I went through something similar over a year ago and I thought that I never could go back to being the same person I had been again. "

He paused as the dark memories of that harsh period in his life came to life; the guilt and how he had tried to hide it beneath a mask of apathy. Unconsciously his hand clenched themselves into fists and he looked down at the floor as he continued: "It was a hard time for me, but thankfully a friend of mine understood what I went through me and helped get back on track. He convinced me to face my fears and guilt, and then he helped me get rid of them. If it hadn't been for him, I doubt that I never would have been able to snap out of my state of self-loathing and lethargy."

He sighed and looked back into Miya's eyes. "I guess what I'm trying to say, is that if you ever need to talk to someone about anything, do not hesitate about coming to me. I am a good listener, and I know how relieving it is to finally be able to talk about your troubles."

After hearing his offer, Miya stood silent for a second, but Minato couldn't catch any indications about what she was thinking about. But when she opened her mouth, it was clear from her tone what her answer would be.

"Minato-kun, I appreciate your offer, but…" she trailed off, letting him intervene:

"I understand what you're trying to say, and I apologize if you felt that I put you into a tight situation, Miya-san. I only extended the offer, and it is an open one; you can come and speak with anytime."

With those words he left, knowing that she needed time to ponder his words, without any pressure from him; only if she came on her own would she ever be able to reconcile herself with her past.

"Akizu," Minato said surprised, after having ventured back to his apartment to relax, only to find Akizu sitting there with a distant expression. "I didn't expect to find you here."

She snapped out of her dreamy state and said apologetically: "I'm so sorry Minato, but when Tsukiumi and Musubi went out together, I expected to be teamed up with Kagari-san, but when I went looking for him he had already left. As you said that we should always go out in pairs, I didn't know what to do, as Kusano-chan was napping with Uzume."

"Ah, there's no need to apologize, I was just surprised, that's all," Minato said quickly, as Akizu looked deeply flustered for some reason.

A small blush spread on her neck as she turned her head away from embarrassedly, making him ask in a playfully curious tone: "So what were you doing up here anyway, Akizu? You seemed like your mind were entirely somewhere else."

That made the blush spread to her face, an unusual color on her normally so pale skin, but it only made her even more beautiful in Minato's eyes. She still refused to meet his eye and muttered something incoherently that he didn't quite grasp.

"I didn't catch that, what did you say gorgeous?" he asked in the same teasing tone as he sat down next her, feeling how her skin was much warmer than normal, making the temperature almost like his own, but yet still cool to touch.

"I was watching you train but I didn't want to disturb so I hid in here," she said in one quick sentence, still avoiding his eyes.

"I see, but why would you want to watch me train, it can't be very interesting to you." As he asked this he gently made her face him, and her blush returned with full force at his next mischievous remark: "It can't be you that you were hoping that I would exercise bare-chested, was it Akizu?"

"Ye-no, I mean no, I would never" she denied frantically, but then she noticed his mock hurt expression and she turned even redder when she said: "wait, I didn't mean it that way, it's not like I wouldn't want that, but…" she trailed off, obviously too embarrassed to say anything more.

At this he couldn't contain himself anymore, and he leaned forward while smiling to kiss her passionately. "Relax, Akizu, I was only teasing you. You are just so adorable when you are flustered that I couldn't help myself."

"Oh" was the only sound that escaped her lips, as her mind was too occupied by the intense kiss he had just given her. The fact was that her mind had been constantly lagging behind since she had been woken from her delighting daydream and realized that she was currently all alone with Minato, something that had not happened in a long time.

That made her answers come on auto-pilot, and it wasn't until the words escaped her lips that she realized how idiotic they sounded. She had always held pride in her ability to keep a cool head in every situation, but when she were around him that fortitude always seemed to be conspicuously absent.

Her body also felt so hot, another thing she were not used to. Due to her powers, her skin always felt cool to touch, but now she felt like her blood was literally boiling. When he had kissed her, it was almost like a fire had spread from his mouth and that it was now threatening to burn her up from the inside. She had never felt anything like it. Is this how it feels to be winged? She wondered at the back of her mind, but she knew that was impossible. Well, I doubt it can be better than this.

"What are you thinking about, Akizu?" her master's soft voice asked, and a small shiver went down her spine by the way he spoke her name. It awoke something in her that she didn't know what was; a feeling she had never felt before.

"About winging," she answered automatically, even though that was not the complete whole of what she was thinking about; she was just so distracted by the fire running through her veins. Unfortunately, it seemed like he mistook her absentmindedness with distraught as he quickly asked her if something was wrong.

"What?" she said and snapped her attention to him, not wanting him to worry about her. "No, no, it's not like that. It's just that when you kissed me, I felt so…" she trailed off, not knowing how to explain her body's reaction without saying anything embarrassing.

"Felt so what, Akizu. Good? Bad?" he asked, a little concernedly when he reached the last word.

"Definitely good," she said quickly. "It's just that I felt so hot when you kissed me and I know that's how it feels during a winging but I know that I can't be winged so I didn't understand what were happening with my body so I was distracted so I'm sorry if I distressed you but…"

He put a finger on her lips, effectively stopping her frenzied raving. "Take a breath or you'll turn blue," he said with a smile. "And I think I know what's happening with your body."

Her eyes widened in surprise, but she didn't say a word as his finger was still on her lips. When he removed it however, she didn't have any time to ask anything before he once more pressed his lips to hers with renewed vigor. She gasped slightly as she felt his tongue slip into her mouth and gently stroke along hers, but she didn't fight it, instead she quickly turned her head to allow him better access.

A small whine of disappointment escaped her throat when his lips left her, as it happened way too soon in her opinion. She had no idea how long the kiss had lasted, but for her it had taken both a millisecond and yet it also had felt like an eternity.

"So, does your body still feel the same?" he asked in what to her sounded like a deadly serious tone.

She considered it for a second, before she answered him in the same serious manner as him: "Yes, if anything I feel even more strange right now." She paused, fearing the answer when she asked a little hesitantly: "Do you know why?"

To her surprise, Minato face split into a devious grin as he lifted her body into his embrace, giving her an even more passionate kiss than before.

"Yes, I know exactly what you're experiencing," he said as he grinned wider and wider. "And I have the perfect solution."

He smirked as he started to plant gentle kisses down her pale neck, enjoying how her breath became heavier and heavier the further down he progressed. It never ceased to amaze him how innocent and easy to please his Sekirei were when it came to physical manifestations of love. In fact, their love was so pure that he guessed they would have been satisfied by simply being near him.

Yet they are eager for so much more when given the right stimulation, they just don't know how to interpret the signals their bodies send them.

This was perfectly pictured by the panting woman in sitting in his lap. He had barely started, yet she was already so aroused that he could actually smell it. As he started to kiss down her cleavage, she seemed at first a little unsure of what to do, but when he slowly pulled her robe off and gently licked one of her hardening nipples, she moaned loudly and let her instincts take over control of her body.

She wound her fingers into his hair started to stroke through it fervently. As he started to kiss into the valley of her breast and started moving towards her the till now ignored twin, she arched towards him, eager for more of his touch. She bucked her hips into his rapidly growing erection, and a small groan escaped his lips as she did so.

Her fingers were clawing into his back, desperately gripping his shirt to steady herself against the shocks of pleasure that ran up her spine and seemed to threaten to overcome her. He was amazed that she came this close to the edge from only some small ministrations from him to her beautiful flesh, but it definitely was so. The woman in front of her was gasping heavily for air, and it was no way of denying how close she was to giving into the bliss.

He flipped her suddenly over at her back, making her cry out in surprise before he restarted his trail of kisses downwards. He slowly unwound the band holding her robe together, and soon after she lay completely naked beneath him. He paused for a second to enjoy the sight of her white skin and the perfect body that were glistening with sweat and pheromones, and it was then that he realized that she obviously hadn't been wearing any panties, as she already lay completely nude. He smirked at this, and dove down between her legs and restarted his trail.

A whine came from her unconsciously as he skipped past her most sensitive area and instead started to wound his way down her thigh, slowly caressing her delicate body. He ignored this, knowing exactly how to bring her to the furthest height before flinging her off the edge.

Akizu's heart was beating faster and faster when he finally started to wound his way back upwards her leg. The coil inside her was wound together so tightly that every kiss he administered to her skin felt like a branding iron. Delicious warmth spread from the place he placed his lips before it spread outwards rapidly, engulfing her whole body in fire before it reached her brain and tightened her coil even further.

If it hadn't been for the fact that she trusted him completely, she would have become afraid of how strongly her body reacted to his attentions. As it were now, she could only revel in the experience, feeling how her body felt like it was out of her control, completely attuned to the man who was making love to her.

As he finally reached her womanhood, pleasure was coursing through her in white-hot waves, making every second feel like an eternity of blind pleasure. He then delved deeper, pushing her folds apart with his tongue and reaching into her center. She cried out in ecstasy and clamped his head between her legs. Suddenly he shifted his focus to the top of her slit, and he used his tongue to press apart her folds and reach the hood of flesh he found there.

Akizu's eyes widened as the coil which had been winded so agonizingly tight inside her suddenly snapped, causing debilitating pleasure of unprecedented magnitude soak through her nerves at the speed of light, making her body go rigid as the waves of bliss coursed through her. Her mind shut down, content to ride out the waves of heavenly euphoria in ignorant ecstasy, unrepentantly bucking her hips to prolong the stay in paradise.

Minato looked on with satisfaction as his pale beauty shuddered in the throes of her orgasm, her mouth hanging open in a wordless scream of ecstasy and her body flushed in contentment. As her final convulsions died down, he unwound himself from her legs and climbed up her body to capture her lips once more. She seemed a little dazed at first, but slowly it seemed like she returned to her senses and started to respond with more and more passion.

Slowly her hands started to work down his back, before she removed his sweaty shirt in one quick motion. Without further ado, her hands went to his belt, and he helped her gets his remaining garments off, leaving him as nude as her.

Her eyes flickered to the proof of his arousement, and he could see a small blush creep up her neck before she reached forward and grabbed hold of it lightly. Her cool hands around his manhood sent shivers of pleasure up his mind, and it almost felt like he was going to lose control there and then when she slowly started to stroke the engorged flesh.

"Oh god!" he whispered at her divine ministrations, before he went back to her lips. Even as they were kissing passionately, she continued to slowly stroke his pulsating erection.

Suddenly he couldn't contain himself any longer, and he positioned himself directly between her legs, letting his tip stroke against her outer lips, feeling how wet she were.

"Are you ready?" He whispered, and when she wordlessly nodded her agreement, he slowly slipped into her wet folds and penetrated her slowly and deeply. The sensation was almost indescribable, absolutely unlike from anything he had never felt before. Her inside were a mixture of both hot and cold, at one second he felt like he was plunging into an inferno, while at the next second a debilitating coolness surrounded his flesh like a forest stream.

She gasped as he started to move in her, and he assaulted her sex with vigor making them both pant heavily as pleasure coursed through their bodies. At this point he was only dimly aware of his surroundings; the only thing he was truly focused on was the woman writhing beneath him; how her bountiful breast bounced deliciously everytime he plunged into her. He moved one hand to gently stroke her breast, feeling the weight and feel of it his hands. With his fingers he carefully stroked her rock-hard nipple, and was rewarded with a small moan from the blonde.

"Minato," she gasped. "More,more."

He understood her request completely and started to strengthen his assault; every stroke became harder, and the speed of their lovemaking increased drastically. Emptiness and completion, fire through ice, contradictions and opposites coming at her from every angle intensified the numbing euphoria that shocked him every time they connected and every time he pulled out. With her legs still securely in his hold, they could both thrust into each other with as much force as their bodies allowed.

Wordlessly demanding more, Minato wasn't about to deny her. He felt like he was floating on air, the pleasure running through his body made even breathing difficult. Her physical prowess was displayed doubtlessly as she spurned to meet him, effortlessly keeping herself up while the hard muscles of her stomach defined themselves with each roll of her hips.

Her mouth gaped wide when his hands slipped and he fell onto her with the force of his whole weight behind him, but it wasn't the fall that had her gasping for air. When he landed fully on top of her, he had achieved his deepest penetration he thought possible, as she had arched her hips into his as he fell. He paused a second as the unexpected motion caused a pleasurable jolt to run up his spine.

He then continued and pushed into her almost brutally, but she just egged him on harder. He could feel the peak approaching, and he knew instinctively that she was close as well. His efforts was getting erratic, growing in strength each time, and he knew that he only needed a slight push to lose his control completely.

Her second orgasm obviously took her completely by surprise, as a wail unexpectedly escaped her lips, but was soon drowned by his lips. They lay so tightly embraced, that all his weight was supported by her, but it didn't seem like she minded, in fact she only held him tighter to her the harder he plunged into her.

As her inner walls convulsed around his shaft, he found himself not lightly pushed off the edge, but rather thrown headfirst into the abyss. With a groan, fire spread throughout his nervous system, soaking every nerve in incapacitating pleasure. When the fire reached his brain, his body went rigid, and an even louder groan came from his lips.

Even after the throes of climax had left them both, they continued to lie completely still in each other's embrace, both panting heavily for breath and basking in the afterglow of their lovemaking.

"I love you so much, Minato," she whispered after a while, to which he replied in the same manner: "I love you too, Akizu."

--XxoO--

"Musubi, do you also feel a strange sensation in your heart?" Tsukiumi asked the brunette who was standing right next to her.

"Yeah, I guess I do. I think it has something to do what Minato is feeling at the moment. It reverberates through our bond when either of us is feeling strong emotions."

Tsukiumi pondered this for a moment, but she expected that Musubi was right in what she said. After all, she had been with Minato for over a month, and would therefore know much more about him than her, even though that hurt to admit.

"So what do you think he's doing right now?" Tsukiumi asked. "I can't really make anything out of this sensation."

"Well, it feels like a good sensation, so I would guess that Minato is 'getting lucky'."

At this Tsukiumi wheeled around to face Musubi so fast she almost twisted her neck. "Do you even know what that means?" she sputtered. It seemed ludicrous that Musubi of all people should use such a crude expression.

"Eh, no," Musubi said innocently. "But Kagari-san said that a man feels best when he is getting lucky, so I assumed that it was so with Minato."

This answer caused Tsukiumi to palm her face in frustration and anger; of course that pervert would be the one teaching her those expressions. I will kill Kagari the next time I see him, she swore inwardly. I will drown him like a…

"Do you know what it means, Tsukiumi?"

"Yes I do, and no I won't tell you," she answered forcefully. "In fact, you should forget you ever heard that expression, are we clear?"

"No fair, now I'm just more curious," Musubi pouted. "Come on, tell me, tell me."

Tsukiumi ignored her childish rant and started to scan the streets below them instead. She was looking for someone, but she didn't know what to look for. Matsu had told them about an unknown Sekirei that attacked other Sekirei indiscriminately and left them for dead without revealing her identity. This went against everything Tsukiumi stood for, and she had vowed to herself to take this person down. Whoever it was, she would make that person pay for breaking the rules of a Sekirei fight.

After patrolling around for maybe thirty minutes, a high-pitched cry resonated through the streets and made both her and Musubi cringe by the intensity of the sound. From what she could judge, the sound originated from somewhere in front of them, so she motioned for Musubi to follow her and started to run.

They arrived just in time to see a white-clad and veiled Sekirei in the progress of attacking a boy and a girl who obviously was trying to run away. Remembering Minato's orders about protecting those who didn't want to fight, Tsukiumi stopped the lethal attack against the girl with a wall of water. She then turned against the veiled Sekirei and bellowed menacingly:

"I am number nine, Tsukiumi. Are you the infamous veiled Sekirei that attacks other Sekirei and leaves them behind to die? If you are, I will take you down."

When her opponent didn't answer, Tsukiumi felt her fury rising to extreme levels. This person was violating the sanctity of the Sekirei Plan and she was even such a coward that she wouldn't admit it. She was about to attack in anger, when Musubi put a soothing hand on her shoulder and said calmly:

"Don't strike in anger, Tsukiumi. Both Minato and Miya-sama has told me that if you lose control of yourself in a fight, then you have already lost."

Tsukiumi shot a glance of surprise at her brown-haired compatriot after hearing her wise words before she nodded her head in agreement. "You're right, Musubi," she said with a calm voice. "Thank you for looking out for me." The brunette only flashed a smile in response before they both shifted their attention back to their enigmatic opponent, who for some reason seemed frozen in place.

Huh, seems like she's not so tough when she is facing someone who is actually willing to fight back, Tsukiumi thought darkly.

"If you don't want to tell me your name then I guess I'll have to rip of your veil and find out for myself," Tsukiumi said with cold fury and started to prepare for battle.

Author's note:

Another chapter with increasing length churned out, thought this one was not that much longer than the previous, stopping at around 20 pages. It took over a month before I managed to release the next chapter, but now it is finally here. I took a small break after finishing the last chapter to play Mass Effect 2, and when I had finished that game (An extraordinary experience btw), I had suddenly got a new idea for a Mass Effect fan fic. I wrote the first chapter in just two days, but I want to work a little more on the following chapters before I decide whether or not I will publish them. I feel that I have a great idea in my head, but it is damn difficult to get it down on paper.

Well back to this story, as it is still my main priority. When I finally manage to get a writing flow going, the pages gush out of me like a stream, but then I reach an obstacle, and everything falls dead in its track. That is such a frustrating experience that I have to pause writing for some time before I manage to start again. I reached such a point when I tried to write the scene with Minato and Miya, but it didn't turn out quite the way I wanted it. I don't know, I just feel like it is missing something. Well, at least I managed to break through that wall.

As always, please leave a review with your thoughts on this chapter, especially if you have something on the aforementioned scene, I really like to know what missed/what was good with that scene, as it might be pretty important later in the story. I always read every review, and I reply to those who ask questions or write something more than the regular oneliner.