Rainy Weather (Kazurei)

Tears Fall like the Rain

April 23rd, 2013

"I hope you learned something today. You've not been yourself lately and I'm worried you're not into my lessons anymore." Kaji-san sits next to me on a bench. "I know enough. I don't need you to teach me anymore. I know how to fight and use a plethora of weapons. What more could I possibly learn from you?" I asked slightly annoyed. "You don't need me? I'll believe that when you can finally beat me in a fight. Besides, your father is the one pushing for these lessons. His wish is for you to become an unstoppable and precise killing machine." I do honestly enjoy spending time with this guy, it's better than being locked in my room all day until my dad wants me to do something...but recently I've been feeling strange. It's like I'm becoming numb to everything and everyone around me. I think that's something caused by my dad and the way he treats me. I lack the definitive answer to my theory. I have no perception of what the normal mind of a teenage boy my age is like. I'm turning sixteen this year and I still have no idea what the world is like outside these gates. During times when my father forces me along to see how his business is conducted, I get to see the common people go on about their lives...all I can feel is jealousy. Why can't I be like them? I don't want the life I was given...I feel...I feel. My understanding of emotions is very limited. All I know are the negative ones like sadness, anger, and jealously. "I don't wish that for me." Killing brings me no joy yet I'm told that I should take pride in my work. "Why should I be proud of taking lives?" I thought I experienced happiness when I had my flowers, but I didn't get to have them long enough to know the answer for sure. I think it was happy. "You should be careful with the things you say, Rei. Anyone could be listening. That's my number one rule. Save your words till you know for sure that you're not being watched." Kaji is always reminding me of his rules, they're helpful, but it's just annoying. "You spent a lot of your life outside the organisation right?" "What about it, Rei? Curious?" Kaji softly smiles at me. "What do people my age usually do?" It appears he wasn't expecting such a question from me so he sits quietly for a few moments to gather his response. "I don't see any teens other than you on a regular basis, but they attend high school, constantly hound the malls with their friends, and be really loud and obnoxious." he laughs thinking about the little bits he knows about kids. "They sound...carefree." The life Kaji described that those kids live, I can't imagine what it's like. "I'm too old to give you proper insight, you'd be better off finding someone else to ask. For now, we need to get back. Today is a big day for you." he switches the topic. "What do you mean?" "We got a new girl in today, I threw out the suggestion that you should train her already impressive skills to see if what you know is better than what she's already capable of." "Why does she need training if she knows how to fight as it is?" I question his logic. "Your father only accepts the best of the best. No room for any potential failure. You do this, I'll buy you some candy during my next trip into the city." "Fine, but I don't believe I could be any good. You're overestimating me." I'm personally confident in my abilities, not many people can say that. Training someone however, I'm not up to that calibre yet. I'm not allowed to refuse, the last thing I want is to face punishment due to not following orders. I have enough bruises and scars, to allow more would be unnecessary. "I'm not, you're actually underestimating yourself. Rei, you are an impressive kid. It's astonishing what you're able to accomplish at such a young age." There it is again. Be proud. Every time I close my eyes, I see the faces of the men I've murdered in the name of the organisation. They refuse to tell me why my targets need to be silenced, so I sometimes wonder if there really is a purpose behind the deaths or if it's just senseless violence. I follow Kaji back to the mansion electing to not say anything else. I just stare at the ground studying the intricacies of the swirly designs in the pavement beneath my feet.
"You see that young lady with the red hair? That's her." Kaji grabs my attention. I see a girl who doesn't look much older than me. Her skin is pale, a stark contrast from the vividness of her hair which she wears in a neat tight bun. I've never seen anything like it. How is hair like that possible? "Impressed by her? Well, don't be falling in love with her now." Kaji chuckled as we approached the mystery girl. "Kaji-san! Good evening, lovely to see you again." the girl bowed in respect. "Good evening, Yuri-chan. I brought someone special for you to meet." Kaji pats me on the shoulder. "This is Suwa Rei, the son of Shigeki." I'm always awkward when meeting someone new, especially when said someone is a woman. I'm not certain as to why that is, but in this case I have no option but to suck it up. "It's nice to meet you, I've heard great things about you, Suwa-kun. My name is Isaka Yuri." This woman gives off the scent of a little too much lychee perfume. It makes wonder if she was nervous about this meeting too. "You can just call me Rei." Based on her body language alone I can tell that she's a mix of excited and  fearful. I suppose the fear would make sense, I'm definitely not the type you'd want to cross...and maybe it's a little intimidating to be in the presence of a mob boss's only son. "You'll have to forgive him. Rei doesn't meet new people very often, he doesn't know how to conduct himself too well." what Kaji said piqued Isaka's interest as her face lights up. "In that case, our relationship can work symbiotically!" I look at her uncertain of her intentions. "What do you mean by that, Yuri-chan?" Kaji speaks for me. "I think I understand what's happening here. He wasn't given proper socialisation growing up was he? I have kids of my own and have a decent understanding on how they work, perhaps I can work with him on his social skills while he also fine tunes my combat skills. It's a win for us both."