Oda Hideyoshi stepped into the cool air outside of school. Sanda Yuko was right there, waiting for him. A crowd gathered around the two, students whispering amongst themselves.
“Are they going to fight or something?”
“They’re the best and the former best students here. If there’s anyone who should be rivals, it’s them.”
“I can imagine the grudge Oda-san has against Sanda-sama.”
“This is where they’ll settle things, right? At the very least, they’re going to have a challenge.”
Tension filled the air as the students held their breath in anticipation.
Yuko said, “Oda-san? Can you walk me home?”
“Sure,” he replied. “I was planning on meeting you anyway.”
“Oh, come on!” a student groaned.
Another sighed, “What a disappointment!”
The two of them walked along, strolling with an air of unease between them.
“There’s an unease between Sanda-san and me,” Hideyoshi thought. “It wasn’t like that this morning. Did those idiots at school mess it up? I’ve got to say something.”
“Did you make your shrine to Heracles yet, Sanda-san?” he asked.
Yuko answered while shaking, “I…did. I put…a bunch of rocks in the woods…and burnt some food in front of them.”
“That should be good enough, but you’re shaking. Are you sick or have you finally realized how dire a situation you’re in?”
She thought, “I know how much danger I’m in. I always did. Just…I’m worried that I’ll mess this up.”
“Oda-san,” Yuko took a deep breath and talked without emotion. “I’m sorry about this morning. And yesterday. And the day before that.”
“Oh, well…I don’t know how to reply to that,” Hideyoshi admitted.
“I’m taking this seriously, even if it doesn’t seem like it, and I know that I didn’t treat you as well as I should have. So, I got you a present to make up for it.”
She gave him a pair of chopsticks.
“Oh, thanks Sanda-san,” he said. “I really appreciate this.”
Yuko added, “They’re really sturdy chopsticks too. So, you can poke horses with them to get them to fight each other.”
Confusion flowed through Hideyoshi, “W-What?”
“Do you not like them?” she asked.
“I like them, but why would I want to make horses fight each other?”
“Don’t boys like hestavíg?”
“Hestavíg? You mean Medieval Icelandic horse fighting?” he wondered.
“I’m confused,” Yuko said.
Hideyoshi replied, “So am I. Well, I forgive you, so let’s move on to keeping you safe from Hera. Did you pray to Heracles when you made your offering?”
“Yes. I said that I wouldn’t give him any more free food if Hera killed me.”
“Good grief, idiot. Did you mention that you were his sister?”
“No,” she stated.
He sighed, “Next time you make a sacrifice to him, say everything in your prayer. Give Heracles everything he needs to know. I’m not sure if this will work, but it’s your best shot.”
Yuko said without emotion, “Then either it’ll work or you’re useless?”
“Pretty much,” Hideyoshi nodded.
“There’s something else,” she stated. “Can we call each other by our personal names?”
“That’s a bit intimate.”
“Alright, then let’s fight. If I win, we’ll call each other by our personal names,” Yuko got in a boxing stance.
Hideyoshi jumped back, “Are you still on about that?”
“No, I was joking. We’ll call each other by our personal names if you win.”
“Please tell me you’re joking now too,” he said.
Yuko stated, “I’m not. If we don’t fight, how can we become friends?”
“It’s good to know you’re still an idiot, Sand…Yuko-chan,” Hideyoshi replied. “We’re already friends. If we weren’t, I wouldn’t put up with you.”
“Oh, good. That’s a…” the slightest of smiles crossed her face before she realized something. “You said you wouldn’t put up with me? Aren’t you the useless one?”
“This has nothing to do with being useless. Your personality is horrible, but that’s somehow what I like about you.”
“I see,” Yuko nodded. “Should I kill you now or when you get home?”
“You’re supposed to ask me if I’m joking,” Hideyoshi took a step back.
She took a step forward and spoke without emotion, “No. I think I’m just going to kick your ass.”
“Then let’s make a deal,” he met her step forward.
Yuko asked, “Like a bet?”
“Not exactly,” Hideyoshi turned around. “I have no interest in being your rival, so go ahead and kick my ass. For an insult like mine, I think you should get five kicks. Does that sound reasonable?”
“It deserves more than five kicks,” she said. “At least ten.”
“Come on, it wasn’t that bad. It can’t be worth more than six kicks.”
“Nine kicks,” Yuko stated.
Hideyoshi replied, “Seven kicks, take it or leave it.”
She spoke, “I’ll leave it. That insult isn’t worth seven kicks.”
Hera peeked out of a nearby bush.
“What kind of conversation are those two having?” the goddess thought. “Well, it doesn’t matter. I can clear my conscious now and focus on ruining Thora’s life tomorrow.”
“Pathetic,” she stepped out in her disguise as Nakamura Haruto. “Are you really going to let her walk over you like that?”
“That’s none of your business,” Hideyoshi told her.
Yuko looked between them and got worried.
“If he really is Hera, we could be in big trouble. I need to get Hideyoshi-kun out of here without giving us away,” she thought.
Hera asked, “Do you really call yourself a man? How can you back down from a challenge?”
Hideyoshi got suspicious, “Why do you care?”
“Because you’re a disgrace to our school. How was someone like you ever the best among us?”
“I had to live up to your expectations. They were all on me,” he said.
“Is that so?” Hera smirked. “You saw the people at school today. They’re all expecting you to have a showdown with Sanda-san. It’ll be one hell of a fight, and you don’t want to disappoint them, do you?”
“Oh, no…” guilt flowed through Hideyoshi as he thought. “What can I do? I don’t want to be Yuko-chan’s rival, but I have to live up to everyone’s expectations. Come to think of it, this is what Yuko wants too. Shouldn’t I give her it?”
Yuko talked without emotion, “Don’t worry about what they think, Hideyoshi-kun.”
He asked, “How can I not?”
“You don’t owe those people anything. Live your life the way you want to. That’s your goal, right?” she answered.
“It is, but…I don’t think I can bring myself to disappoint people. It feels wrong,” Hideyoshi stated.
Hera was confused, “Why is she trying to talk him out of this? Doesn’t Yuko want him to be her rival?”
“You don’t want to disappoint them, no matter what?” Yuko wondered.
“I shouldn’t be so unwilling,” he replied. “But I am. I’ll have to go back to living my life the old way too…give up on my…”
She narrowed her eyes ever so slight, “Then let’s make a bet, Hideyoshi-kun. We’ll fight tomorrow. If I win, you’ll do what you want. If you win, you’ll do what everyone else wants.”
“They want us to fight anyway,” pain overtook Hideyoshi’s face. “So, I accept.”
Yuko grabbed his hand and shook it. Hideyoshi felt her pressing something into his hand.
“Then I’ll get ready to fight. You had better do the same,” she stated.
As she walked off, Hideyoshi looked at the thing in his hand.
It was a piece of paper that read, “I think Nakamura Haruto is Hera.”
Ved'ma Story 