More and more time moved forward, and with it the progress of the fight club. Each day, Ryuko would face a new club, and with its defeat the fight clubs status would be moved even higher. It wasn't long until Mako requested an improved standard of living, which was shortly accepted.
Now they had become 2-stars, and moved into the highest residential area in Honnō City. Giant mansions loomed ominously, stacked atop each other like bricks in sectioned off squares . Much to Y/N's displeasure, he had been requested (though he would more describe it as forced) to move in with the Mankanshoku family, as Mako believed that he could no longer stay any distance from her.
Y/N hated this new lifestyle. The rooms inside were almost chemically clean, and sparkled white, yet they lacked anything that could resemble a homely atmosphere, as if the very soul had been sucked from them, leaving nothing but an empty shell.
Places like this were always uncomfortable for him. It never felt safe to do anything, like the mere act of existing dirtied the pristine home.
And then there was the family. Their eyes once sparkled with life and happiness, but now dulled, as if their very lives had lost any sense of joy they once felt. The once expressive group now wore nothing but neutral faces, as they gazed upon everything with a complete lack of emotion.
Currently, everyone other than Mako was eating dinner. It was completely quiet, until Barazo stood up to leave. "I'll be leaving. I have a doctors association meeting to attend." "I see" Sukuyo said. "Would it be alright if I bought that diamond necklace I showed you the other day?" "Sure. It looked very pretty on you." Barazo said, not a hint of love in his voice. They both left, and soon after were followed by Mataro, leaving the dining room empty, save for Ryuko and Y/N.
Both remained silent, not really sure what to say, until Mako finally arrived. Even she had been touched by this new lifestyle, her once hyper and excited personality now replaced by a cold, business like aura. "Sorry, the meeting ran a little late-Huh? Where'd everyone go?" Ryuko looked up to her, a hint of sadness in her voice. "I guess they all had other things to do." "I get that," Mako said, sitting down. "Well, let's see. Ryuko, after you finish eating, head to the gym and do some training, I've got a full day booked for tomorrow, and the day after. Y/N, I've got some paperwork for you to handle, then there's some forms about the defeated clubs for you." Both Ryuko and Y/N sighed, as Mako leaned back in her chair.
"This sure is the life, huh? A huge mansion, all this stuff. We're living the life of luxury for sure. Everyone's so happy now, so let's work to keep it that way!" Y/N looked up at her, narrowing his eyes. "Happy, huh...."
Ryuko simply nodded. "Welp, I'm off to bed. Goodnight." Mako said, standing up to leave. "Night." Both Ryuko and Y/N responded, quietly. And once again, the room filled with silence.
"This isn't right." Y/N said, pushing his plate away in disgust. Ryuko turned to him, letting out a questioning "hmm?" "They've changed, Ryuko. The whole family, it's like a different bunch of people. I can hardly recognize Mako these days. She used to be so....happy." Y/N slumps his shoulders slightly, saddened. "I used to see light in her eyes, she was determined to make life better for us all. Now all I see in them is greed." Ryuko nodded. She too, was sad to see what had become of them, but she couldn't just quit, right?
Senketsu looked up at her. "He isn't wrong, Ryuko. This can't be what you wanted." She sighed. "It's not. But what can we do?" Without missing a beat, Y/N responded. "We quit." Ryuko's eyes widened. "We can't just quit! They'd lose everything they earned!" Y/N gives her a determined look. "Ryuko, be honest with me. You see how they've changed, just as well as I do. This can't be what's good for them. We can help them, we just have to take the first steps." Ryuko was silent for a moment, thinking. Soon, she looked towards him, and slowly nodded.
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Mako stood on the empty field, looking out towards the school, a cocky grin covering her face. "Today's the day. The day we face the elite four! If we win, we'll have all the luxury we can stand!" She began laughing maniacally, her voice echoing across the empty field. She quickly turned to face Y/N and Ryuko, who had both just approached her. "You guys are late! Come on, we have to-" Before she could finish, she's hit in the face with two small envelopes. "Eh? What are these?" "Our resignation forms." Ryuko said. "We're quitting the club." Y/N added, coldly. "Wha- What do you mean quitting?! You can't just quit, we're so close!" "Sorry Mako. This had to be done." Y/N said. "But if you quit, we'll be sent back to the slums!" "We're fine with that." Ryuko said. "Well I'm not!" Mako yelled, stomping her foot down. "I'll never go back! Never e-" Before she finished, a wardrobe landed right behind her, startling the three. As the dust cleared, a bright light shined from the peak of the school.
"Fight Club president Mankanshoku. You're 2-star uniform is in that wardrobe. If you wish to keep all you've earned, then you must defeat
L/N and Matoi. If you succeed, you will be granted a three star uniform." Y/N glared at her, and Ryuko shouted. "Typical bitch! All you do is play dirty!" Satsuki smirked, and Ryuko began to pull the pin on her glove, but Y/N stopped her. "Don't worry. I can do this." She looked to him, worried. "Are you sure? You don't have to-" "Ryuko." Y/N looked deep into her blue eyes. He gave her a quick peck on the forehead. "Trust me." Slowly, she backed away, as Y/N approached Mako, who had just put on her uniform.
Fight Club President
Mako Mankanshoku
Y/N quickly pulled his pin, gaining the familiar feeling of the black substance seep over his body, then harden into its shape. He readied his weapon as Mako charged at him, stopping just short to deliver a powerful drop kick, which was promptly blocked. She quickly stood up, hitting him with a series of powerful punches, which Y/N had a hard time blocking. Wasting no time, she pulled a spiked bat from her cloak and attempted to strike him with it. He sidestepped and narrowly avoided the weapon, then delivered his own powerful kick to her midsection, sending her flying back.
"Auugh!!" She screamed as she hit the ground. And it was that noise, the sound of Mako being in pain, that made him freeze. He looked down towards his hammer, then back at Mako, who was rising up from the ground. As she ran at him, he realized something. He couldn't hurt her. Even if she was a little lost, she was still his friend. With a sigh, he dropped his hammer as she continued running towards him. With a mighty punch, she launched him towards the wall, which he hit with enough force to leave a crater.
Ryuko looked on, shocked, then heard a car behind her. She turned to see Mako's family exit and enter the stands near her. She quickly ran over to them. "Guys, you need to stop Mako, she's gonna kill Y/N!" She pleaded. Barazo, looked at her, then back towards Mako, who was currently pummeling Y/N even further into the ground. "Beat his ass Mako!" He shouted, much to the surprise of Ryuko. "You're supporting this!?" "Sorry Ryuko, but we just can't give up this life which we've become accustomed to." He said with a laugh. "We'll be sure to live on for both of you!" Sukuyo added.
Satsuki looked on to the one-sided beatdown occurring below her with a smile. "Behold you two, the true nature of humans! Prosperity leads to avarice, and avarice leads to their doom! One taste of luxury and they become enslaved, enslaved to a system I created! They're nothing more than pigs in human clothing. And pigs must be tamed!" She then looked towards Y/N. "Now, be a good little pig and give us a squeal while you're slaughtered."
Ryuko looked on in horror as Mako continued beating Y/N into the ground with her fists. Every strike dented the earth around them even further, and sent a twang of guilt through Ryuko.
"Kuro..." Y/N thought, barely able to do so from the pain of Mako's fists. "Power down the suit." "WHAT!?" She screamed in his head, making him wince. "You're insane! She'll kill you!" "Just....do it." "But-" "NOW!" Y/N yelled, and she finally relented, release of a massive cloud of steam, which forced Mako backwards. After it cleared, she saw Y/N standing there, his kamui in its dormant state. She walked toward him slowly, staring him in the eyes as she did so, like she was trying to understand his intentions. "I'm what's standing between you and a life of luxury, right?" Y/N asked. "Well, come on then. You'll have to beat that life outta me." She quickly fired off a punch square in his jaw, that sent him sailing backwards into the ground, digging a short trench as he fell. She continued walking to him, as he stood back up, leaning on his hammer for support. "Well damn....You must not want that life very badly, huh?" "SHUT UP!" Mako screamed, sending a flurry of punches toward him once again, though this time, each punch was having a far more drastic effect, as blood splattered behind him and bones snapped on impact.
This beating continued until the sun was almost down, turning the sky from its blue to a deep orange. Patches of dried blood littered the field, and yet somehow, Y/N still stood before Mako. He was forced to lean heavily on his hammer, as one of his legs was clearly broken, being snapped and bent in an unnatural manner. Panting, he once again looked towards Mako with a smile, showing his missing teeth. "That.....all you got?" With a cry of anger, she sprinted towards him, her fist raised. "You're finished!" She shouted, quickly approaching him. But he just stood there, looking at her with a smile.
As she ran, she got slower and slower, until she had stopped just in front of him, staring into his eyes. Slowly, she lowered her fist and dropped to her knees. "Why...." she muttered. "Why didn't any of you stop me?!" She shouted. "How can you just sit there and watch as I try to kill him!?" Tears began to fall from her eyes, turning the dry earth below her into a muddy mess. "When I was president, I thought that having luxury brought our family closer. I thought our eyes were glowing with happiness, but it was just greed!" She continued sobbing, as Y/N looked down to her. Suddenly, he dropped to his knees as well, earning a resounding crack as his broken leg hit the ground. He slowly wrapped his arms around her, and pulled her into a hug. She sobbed even harder. "It's alright." He whispered, just barely loud enough for her to hear. "You could've easily killed me, but I knew you wouldn't. You'd never go that far." She gripped his shirt, and cradled her head into his shoulder. "I'm sorry.....I'm so sorry Y/N." "It's ok. You fought against your greed, and overcame it. You did good." He released her from the hug and gripped her shoulders. "Now, you know what you need to do, right?" She wiped her tears, and gave a "mmhm." As she stood up, she turned towards an extremely relieved Ryuko and the rest of the crowd.
"From this point forward, I am disbanding the Fight Club! I, Mako Mankanshoku, will go back to being a no-star!" Ryuko, who had just joined them, turned towards Satsuki, who was looking on with displeasure, and yelled, "See Satsuki?! Humans can be good when they want to be!" "Ryuko!" Mako yelled, as she threw her uniform up into the air. "Right!" Ryuko pulled her sword out, and cleaved the uniform in two, which somehow exploded into fireworks. The three watched them go off for a moment, until they heard yelling coming towards them.
They saw the Mankanshoku family, running towards them, crying and stripping off their clothes as they did so. "We're so sorry!" They all shouted. "I've been a bastard, I hate myself!" Barazo shouted. "I behaved horribly, it'll never happen again!" Sukuyo yelled. "I've been a petty son of a bitch! No offense mom!" Mataro screamed. "GUTS!" Guts barked. They all approached the three and quickly bowed in front of them, which was joined by Mako as well. "WE'RE SORRY!!!" They all yelled in unison. Ryuko and Y/N looked at each other and smiled. "It's fine, just....Don't do it again, please?" Y/N said. "You got it!" Was their reply.
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Finally, everyone was back in their home, as Sukuyo served another of her probably-not-safe-but-pretty-good croquettes. Y/N had finally requested Kuro to fix him, which she immediately complied with, though he was too weak to walk anywhere, meaning that Ryuko had to carry him from the school grounds to where Barazo had parked the car. Even if it was for such a short distance, she'd probably never let him live that down. Fortunately, he was fine by the time they arrived home, and they quickly began to eat. It was also at this time Ryuko decided to ask a question she had been nervous about for awhile.
"Hey Y/N?" "What's up?" She looked down, a red blush covering her face. "I know I already stay over a lot, but I was wondering...." She took a deep breath, then looked him dead in the eyes. "Would it be ok if I lived with you?" "Sure." Y/N said with no hesitation. She was right, she stayed over quite a lot, so it kind of just made sense. So, after eating, Ryuko gathered up all her things, gave a heartfelt goodbye to Mako, Sukuyo promising to send over croquettes, and went with Y/N back home.
Mr. Benson happily accepted them back, saying it "Hadn't been the same without his favorite couple." And the two quickly headed towards Y/N's home. Both were extremely tired, so once they entered, Ryuko simply threw her stuff down at the wall, then fell face first onto Y/N's bed. With a laugh, Y/N quickly joined her, and drifted off to a deep sleep in the company of his lover.
Little did he know, in the upcoming weeks he would face one of the greatest trials in his life. Something that could either tear his bond with Ryuko apart, or forge it together even stronger.
What happens? Well, I guess you'll have to wait and see....
2569 words. I think this has been one of my favorite chapters to write.