KOF School

Karuta in Karuta

Iori heaved a sigh of relief when Kay texted him to say that he couldn't make it for tea. At least now they could take a breather before dinnertime at Karuta.
"Let me guess, the Sakazakis and Kyo gang will be there too?" Iori asked as he put his phone down on the coffee table.
Masaomi nodded gleefully. "Yep!"
Iori and Aiko both groaned.
"You don't like them?" Masaomi said in surprise.
Iori sighed. "Nah, we're fine with them. But seeing them twice a day drains some energy."
"I need a social recharge!" Aiko dramatically added, leaning against the sofa's armrest.
"Same..." Kazuhiro sighed. "You guys left me with Chizuru. She's nice to talk to, but..."
"But?" The other three piped up in unison.
Kazuhiro hid his face. "I have no idea."
Masaomi smirked as he nudged him. "Just admit it, idiot. You have a crush on her, don't you?"
Kazuhiro sighed. "Fine. I do."
"Did you find out who that 'Poor Sap' is yet?" Aiko asked, sitting up to grin at him.
Kazuhiro frowned thoughtfully, then shrugged. "Who knows."
"Just try, it's someone very close to us," Iori urged.
"Someone she spoke to only today," Masaomi added.
"Someone close to us and someone she only spoke to today?" Kazuhiro said thoughtfully, then got an idea. "Could it be me?" He snorted and shook his head. "Nah. It couldn't be. I'm way out of her league."
The rest groaned, much to his surprise.
"Hiro." Masaomi began. "Who is it that went through the same circumstances that she went through?"
Kazuhiro shrugged, expecting a reply.
"It's you! You've been in a situation just as bad as her!"
Kazuhiro frowned. "I actually didn't have it as bad as she did. Poor her, she had to care for her sister like her mother."
Masaomi sighed. "Hiro. You didn't have it any better. If anything, you had it worse."
Kazuhiro frowned slightly as he remembered the things he went through when Masaomi refused to get the help he needed. He shuddered to think of those times and turned his gaze down. He suddenly felt a hand on his back and turned to see his brother, giving him a small smile.
"It is you, Hiro," Masaomi pointed out. "Go ask her about it. She's coming to Karuta later."
Kazuhiro shook his head. "No. Not now. I'll... I'll see her this weekend."
"Uncle!" His niece and nephew exclaimed in unison, just as his brother shouted his name.
"Uncle, go see her later at Karuta," Iori urged. "I'm sure she's waiting for you to notice with bated breath."
"Yeah, like didn't you see how she brightened up at the literal sight of you?" Aiko added. "Go talk to her later!"
Kazuhiro's face flushed at their words as he nodded slightly. "Okay... I'll try."
"You don't have to rush if you don't want to," Masaomi added. "Take your time, okay?"
He turned to his children who gave him shocked looks, which he responded with a slight nod. The teenagers exchanged glances and shrugged.

The four of them dressed up nice and made their way to Karuta. They were still dressed in kimonos, but in darker colours since it was an evening event.
Ryuhaku Todoh welcomed them warmly, dressed in a noble kimono to fit the scene as well. Takuma and his family were already there, with the father wearing a wide grin as he waved at them.
"I'm surprised that Saisyu isn't here yet," Takuma remarked when Masaomi was near enough. "He's always first when it comes to food."
"I even made preparations for the curry udon for him since he's always first when it comes to food," Ryuhaku added, serving a tea set on the table the Yagamis were supposed to sit. "But he's not here yet."
"Surprising, but unsurprising at the same time," Masaomi smirked as he shrugged his shoulders, making his way towards the table reserved for them. "Let's sit down first and wait for them."
Chizuru and Maki arrived, both dressed in silk kimonos fit for noblewomen. But Kazuhiro thought that Chizuru looked ten times more beautiful than her sister, despite both of them being identical twins with their haircuts being the only thing different.
"Sorry, we're late," Chizuru said when they came over, bowing slightly as she apologised.
"Did we miss anything?" Maki asked, smirking.
Ryuhaku shook his head, grinning. "Nope. The Kusanagis aren't here yet. That's where the real fun starts."
Masaomi raised his head from his teacup. "Are you sure? He isn't the one who brought his Tengu-masked 'friend' named Mr. Karate."
Takuma spat his tea out in shock when he heard that, much to the others' amusement. "Hey, just because he's eccentric like that, doesn't mean it's my fault."
"He's still denying it, this guy," Ryuhaku frowned playfully as he shook his head. "Anyway, I'm gonna go give this Saisyu a call. He should've been here ages ago."
"No need," Takuma shook his head. "He could be driving. He'll be here in a while."
"I'll text Kyo," Iori offered. "He told me that he was leaving the house just now."
The Kaguras joined the Yagamis' table since there were only the two of them and the table could hold six. The Kusanagis finally arrived and were surprised to see Chizuru seated beside Kazuhiro. Saisyu gave Masaomi a knowing grin as he went over to his table, satisfied with the success of their plan.

A game of Karuta was then announced, where everyone spilt into teams of three. Kazuhiro, for some reason, was thrown out of the Yagami group and was forced to team up with the Kaguras.
"Maki!" Shizuko, Ryuhaku's wife, called. "Come join us!"
Maki grinned and waved at her sister before going over to join Shizuko and Yuri for their game. Kazuhiro nervously looked at Chizuru, who just smiled at him in return.
"Guys, we're one person short," Kazuhiro remarked, raising his hand for attention. "We can't play Karuta with two people."
Ryuhaku smirked as he handed him a box of cards. "You can do something. Maybe you can remove a few cards and play something else instead?"
"Play something else?" Kazuhiro groaned. "Like what?"
"I don't know, there's bluff, poker, solitaire?" Maki suggested with a smirk. "Just try something, guys."
Chizuru chuckled as she pointed to the box he was holding. "I don't think we need to improvise much. That's Uta-Garuta. We can make it do with two people."
Kazuhiro looked at it and nodded. "Oh yeah, we can."
The Yagamis exchanged grins as they started laying the cards out on the ground, turning back to their games to leave the two to play together.