Saiki K PeePee

Ch. 40: Be Human

"Relax and breathe."

"In, out. In, out. In, out. One, two. One, two."

Out in the training area, whose features and atmosphere had changed as much as Namek's, the Invincible Couple were undertaking a rigorous training session. Under Saiki's tutelage, Teruhashi's golden glow receded little by little. He never imagined he'd be teaching someone anything, especially in relation to powers; so he felt more than a bit out of his depth. Perched atop a nearby boulder, he pulled one of his legs into his chest with his arm and knit his brow.

She laid her arms flush to her sides, closed her eyes, and balled her fists as if in intense concentration. The fact that she was teasing him didn't help at all. He had told her to relax as much as possible, yet she looked like she was ready to take flight a la Dragon Ball Z.

"You're a great teacher, Saiki-kun. Try to relax a bit, too." While he was at it, he needed to fix her telepathy, too. He sighed and let go of his leg. Her gaze was soft and light, and she giggled when her eyes met his. She flattered him, but he knew better. Still, her aura's baseline had been decreasing steadily over the last few sessions.

"If you have trouble relaxing, I will, too." Ugh. He was getting nowhere himself.

"Let's continue later. I think I'll take my turn now." He drifted down next to her, picked up a nearby rock, and tested it by tossing it from hand to hand; as she watched him patiently.

"You know, graduation is coming soon," she said gently.

His expression tightened to a grimace. "Don't remind me."

"Whatever happens, we'll figure it out. I promise." She approached him and grabbed the back of his palm, stopping him from testing the rock and quieting his mind a bit. He took a deep breath, as she finished lacing her palm around his hand. Touch had become much more common and much less incidental as of late. She still tried to show restraint, though not all of it was conscious.

"I don't understand how you can be so blasé about it," he grumbled.

"Because you can teleport to me whenever you want! ...Or are you afraid of being away from me?" She giggled coquettishly and raised her fist to hide her mouth.

His eyes snapped to meet hers; he shot her a dour look before averting his gaze. "The world doesn't revolve around you," he said to the ground.

She eyed him pityingly, clicked her tongue, and shook her head, which caused him to look away from her. Tch. And she had the audacity to call him a brat.

"Is something on your mind?" she asked, peering into his face with her shimmering blue eyes. As much as he didn't want to answer, she wasn't playing fair.

He sighed heavily. "We've known each other for a long time. Unnaturally long."

Her eyes focused, and her expression became determined. She had more than enough experience to have a good idea of what was coming.

"We've known each other for six years, though to you it only felt like one. I stopped a volcanic eruption that was going to destroy Japan, but I failed and had to rewind time five times."

"Oshimai, right?" she responded almost immediately.

Quick on the uptake as ever. He nodded slowly, an uncomfortable feeling tightening in his chest. "Moving on from high school after eight years is weird."

"Personally, I'm excited to move on to the rest of our lives. Think of all the things we can do, the places we can go..." she took his hand and spun under it in an underarm turn which caused him to blow air out of his nose.