*****

~ Ryonan High School : Changing Room, 02:01:12 ~

Drip.

Drip.

Drip.

When was the last time the cursed tap in his bathroom leaked? His eyebrow furrowed in irritation, and when was the last time his bed felt so cold and hard? Annoyed, he shifted, turned around……

Thud.

~ Ryonan High School : Staff Room, 02:12:08 ~

The darkened room was faintly illuminated by the only source of light; the 15' computer screen. Soft humming of the electricity could be heard as it surged through the wires in the computer motherboard periodically. Quick typing of an experienced typist added to the sound as a pair of slender gloved hands whipped up a storm on the keyboard.

Anon, the screen flashed a complex display of charts and graphs. Deftly fingers paused. A ghost of a smile passed intruder's face as she pulled out a mini-disk from one of the hidden pockets in her leather bodysuit. She pushed the disk in the floppy drive before hitting a rapid succession of keys and hit Enter. Another click from the mouse immediately dissolved the display, showing yet another screen of complex scrambled icons, presumably machine code; the natural yet primitive language of the computer.

Another quick consecution of the keys was heard before the Enter key was pressed again. This time, the random icons were rearranged. Further click of the mouse suddenly revealed a document with a wealth of information; it contained details about the correspondence between the owner of this machine and another mysterious person nicknamed: the Cigar Man. Satisfied, she proceeded to make a copy of the decoded data and waited.

Copying Status:-

50% completed.

Sounds of footsteps echoing down the corridor caught her attention. She froze. Nine o'clock to her left.

60% completed.

She quickly did a mental estimation; approximately 25 seconds per ten percent. She promptly reached out and switched off the monitor.

70%.

80%.

Silence. The unknown one had suddenly stopped. Meanwhile, her right forefinger rested upon the floppy drive, ready to eject the disk in any second. She knew he was near, very near.

90%.

She cursed silently for she had no intention of injuring or killing anyone unnecessarily in this operation……but if the need arises…..

100%.

In a single movement, the computer was silenced with a flick of switch with the disk ejected. She stuffed it securely in her pocket, silently mounted the table, crouched and waited.

Her sharp ears picked up the sounds of human contact with the metal doorknob. Her body tensed.

Suddenly, the door creaked open…….

……and at that very moment, she leapt upwards towards the wooden beams that were built across the ceiling.

*****

~ Ryonan High School : Staff Room, 02:16:13 ~

The spiky teen was baffled.

He swore that he heard someone inside. Okay, maybe the sounds weren't that distinct but then again, he trusted his alert ears.

They were the sounds of someone using the keyboard.

He entered the room and scanned the premises.

Sendoh halted abruptly in his tracks; he felt it.

The subtle change in the temperature was a testimony that someone was indeed here. His keen senses quickly accessed the heat emitted from the computer and concluded that the intruder was still around, somewhere in this room.

His face slightly broke into a smile; he was going to damn well teach him a good lesson.

*****

~ Ryonan High School : Staff Room, 02:20:13 ~

The unexpected guest was a male, she observed.

Even in the dark shadows, the signature sign of a man's outline; broad shoulders and muscled arms was unmistakable.

He had came and left, all in all in a matter of minutes. However, she chose to remain in the shadows for another full 2 minutes before emerging from her hiding spot.

Nimbly, she did a back flip and landed on her feet quietly; her soft leather boots had served her well. She opened the door silently with a quick practiced twist on the knob.

The unlit corridor was empty.

~ Ryonan High School : Corridor, 02:21:53 ~

Sendoh waited patiently.

He knew that the intruder would have to pass this hallway if he wanted to leave by the back gates; it was the most sensible and safest way out.

And he wasn't disappointed.

Within minutes, soft footfalls were heard towards his general direction. Something in his demeanor told Sendoh that he was no ordinary man. After suspecting that something bad was going to happen to his school, no way was he going to let him pass easily. Instincts told him that the trespasser was somehow involved and he was prepared to beat the crap out of him to get to the bottom of this matter.

However there were risks, the hallway was dark and he had nothing with him that could serve as weapons; only his bare hands.

Resolved, he clenched his right hand into a fist.

Oh hell, no matter what, he was prepared to use these bare hands to protect this school; even if it meant he might die doing it.

~ Ryonan High School : Corridor, 02:22:03 ~

*****

~ Ryonan High School : Corridor, 02:22:07 ~

The youth leveled himself against the wall, waiting for the unsuspecting man to turn into the corner he was in.

Without warning, Sendoh struck out in anticipation of hitting him squarely in the jaw.

However he only pounded empty air.

The man in black had ducked away just in time. Undeterred, Sendoh turned around and took a good measure of his opponent; slightly built and shorter. Good, at least he had an advantage in terms of physique.

Unlike basketball, Sendoh preferred to lead an attack and his style was to hit hard and fast before the opponent even had time to react.

Thus he instantaneously reached out to seize him by the shoulder, with the intention of throwing him bodily against the wall but the man had foreseen this move and he ducked swiftly away to his right again.

Sendoh advanced again, this time faking a move. He fell for it and within seconds, his fists blurred as he socked him in his abdomen.

The man received the impact full in his stomach and crouched onto the floor with his left palm outstretched against the wall for support.

Suddenly, the man grabbed his arm and instantly twisted it. The pain jabbed at him but he refused to let go. Sensing his stubbornness, the trespasser shot his right leg out, tacking him roughly and sending him violently out of balance. At the same time, he slipped easily out of his grasp.

He fell and struck the dirt floor with full force, knocking his breath out of him. Seeing this, the man in black decided to make a quick getaway.

Of course Sendoh would not give up this easily, his left hand shot out, gripped his right ankle and pulled harshly.

Well, the spiky teen was right, this man was a professional.

The moment the intruder fell, he turned around and pulled himself up into a sitting position. When he finally neared his arm, he knuckled his wrist in a flash.

His movements were so fast that Sendoh didn't even know what hit him.

He knew that he had lost.

However this time, the man only stood up and scrutinized him silently.

Sendoh stared at him in surprise.

Agonizingly, he struggled into a sitting position before picking himself up. At least the pain was subsiding.

The man before him slowly readied himself into an attack stance.

Sendoh knew that he had to think fast, or else he would never stand a chance of winning. But before he could react, the opponent attacked, lighting fast.

He delivered a few blows on his right and left torso and Sendoh managed to dodge the last few ones; he was after all a seasoned fighter.

However, the first few hits were enough to inflict damage on him. He staggered backwards, momentary blinded by the excruciating pain that numbed his body.

Fighting is very much like basketball, one has to rely on reading his opponent's moves and this was exactly what he was doing now.

Sendoh knew that this man had speed and his liquid moves made him a harder opponent than he had expected. So, he had to at least match his speed.

Thus he also quickened his assault, his brunched fists blurring as he attacked, blocked and evaded. He did succeed in injuring him here and there; while in exchange, he was hit in certain places. Thus, It was hard to tell who was better in this grim dance of Death.

He managed to narrowly avoid another assault at his shin. Then he saw an opening in the opponent's attack.

In a blur, Sendoh bent low, lung forth and cuffed him hard across the face. The smaller man floundered backwards. Wasting no time, he seized by him first by his left arm, then his right and subsequently immobilized him by throwing his arm across the intruder's chest.

"Now tell me why you are here?!"

His opponent stilled his movements. Suddenly Sendoh sensed that something wasn't right.

The soft, yielding flesh beneath his arm felt like……like……

Skidding away, he took this opportunity to distance himself from Sendoh. Then suddenly, with an unbelievable speed, he charged forth, leapt up and rammed the youth straight in his right shoulder with the back of his front leg, flooring him real hard with this final blow.

The spiky teen closed his eyes, feeling the sting of swift hot tears beneath his lids as he stuck the floor, with this recurring thought in his mind:

He had been fighting with a girl.

*****