126 SSj5: The Tragic Princess 2 in 1 (1/2)
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Note: Should be the last SS? ...or is it?
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Kanade and her staff members gathered around Kazuya to make sure that everything was perfect. They were at one of the locations where a major scene was about to be filmed. It was the fight scene between Ayame and Kaguya which was one of the highlights of their characters in the drama.
There were major changes these couple of weeks that even shook the carefree nature of Kanade. Kazuno Mei, the mischievous guardian of Kazuya who she found a strange affinity with, was recently being portrayed as an ambitious person who had betrayed her mentor which was Kazuya's mother.
Only after Kazuya explained to her that it had all been a ruse with the Kuroganes fanning the flames from behind the scenes did she understand what was going on and calmed down. It would have been the end of this project if Kyouko suddenly pulled Kazuya out of filming because she was still this boy's primary guardian after all.
Though Kazuya and the rest wanted to keep everything to themselves, the scale of their plans exceeded their initial expectations. There were too many parties involved and a whole lot of things to be considered. Kanade was involved in the collaboration project with Kazuno Tech's public relations so she was made an exception.
”How long do you think this will last for?” Kanade asked when the rest of her staff made themselves scarce while preparing for the next scene.
”I'm not too sure. I still don't know what Kurogane Shishio's intentions are for being interested in me but what I am sure about is that it is nothing good” Kanade was a little surprised because he said it like it didn't concern him at all.
Her son Takaya had already warned her mother not to be too offended by the way Kazuya speaks because he barely knows how to hold anything back. This was also one indication that he has lowered his guard around you so it's really not that bad considering the kind of person Kazuya was. One should even be more afraid if he didn't say what you'd expect him to.
”I see” Kanade smiled. ”So what are your plans with Kuronuma Ayame? Are you going to tell her who you really are?”
”I'd rather not” Kazuya sighed. He checked himself once more in the mirror because of what Takaya's mother said since he felt like her smile gave off a different meaning.
”Please take your place, Kaguya-san” one of the staff members called their attention. He led them to the scene where the director and everyone else were waiting.
Because of their proposal, multiple cameras had been set up to capture every moment of their bout. They were also handed prop weapons that looked like real swords except that these were blunt.
”(They may be blunt but these toys would still be weapons in the hands of that girl)” Kazuya thought as he felt Ayame's gaze on him as soon as he entered wearing his costume.
The director came with the stunt coordinator they had for the drama. Both of them were reminded of the key points of the area and where the cameras were placed. He didn't have many expectations when he heard the suggestion but agreed to it since the director wanted to give it a try because of Ayame's reputation. They still didn't know if both these rookies were going to perform well since they were new to the business so this was going to be the first test.
”Alright! Everyone to your places!” The director grinned showing his anticipation. He had done his homework and looked up some of Ayame's footage so he was aware of how much this girl's popularity was deserved.
”I hope you won't be foolish enough to try and test the waters with me” Ayame stated before she went to her position. Kazuya turned and went to his with a smile. Just how long ago was it when the same kind of words were said to him?
Kazuya or the clan princess Kaguya was surrounded with her clansmen as she was being escorted through the mountains so that she could meet with the people that would help her clan. It was here that they came across the group led by Ayumu, the clan they wanted help against. They were unexpectedly hunting in the area. Ayumu's character didn't like her brother's engagement to Kaguya so she saw this as a chance to get her to back off from the engagement.
Kaguya didn't have many lines since his character was supposed to be a boy in the guise of a girl. Due to Kanade and her team's techniques, however, no one even suspected him being a boy and assumed that an actual girl was cast. He didn't have many lines to say because of this but Kazuya already modified his voice because he would need to let out a few sounds in this mock battle.
This was also one of the talents Kanade was very fond of. The ability to change his tone on a whim made it more convincing that he was indeed a girl. She was glad that she didn't reveal much about Kazuya's identity even to the director who just knew that he was really a boy.
They were in a real bamboo forest so if one were to look at the camera views, the scene looked very promising. Kaguya stepped up to face Ayumu's challenge because he couldn't risk this girl making things harder for his clan already.
”Let's see if this clan princess is as talented with a sword as she is talented with keeping silent” Ayumu loudly declared as she drew her sword and launched an attack against Kaguya.
To be honest, Ayame didn't expect much when she heard about this Kaguya girl's suggestion. There has been far too many people who have been saying that they will beat her or they have set her as their targets in interviews but none of them even got close. This especially unknown girl that came out of nowhere and was the same as her in the industry so how good could she actually be?
”(Looks like this girl is taking it pretty easy huh?)” There was nothing wrong with Ayame's strike per se, but it was showy more than it was for battle. ”(So if it's a battle of showy techniques then…)” Kaguya lowered his stance and clenched the sword's hilt tightly.
”(Drawing technique!?)” Ayumu was a bit surprised at the stance. This was not a style that could be pulled off by kendo practitioners as wooden swords or bamboo swords had no scabbards.
*CLANG* Kaguya drew the sword swiftly and caused Ayumu to get thrown back. This made everyone behind the cameras to feel goosebumps on their bodies. They all expected the middle school kendo champion to effortlessly make this look one-sided but in their initial clash, she lost just after Kaguya drew her sword.
”…” Kaguya silently used his expression as if saying 'have you had enough?' which everyone thought he did perfectly. This simple act made Ayame forget what she was supposed to do. She felt that she had only been caught off guard because she underestimated her enemy and they were using props that emulated actual swords.
”So you do have some skill” Ayame regained her composure and took another stance.
This wasn't part of the script but the director didn't mind. This was already more than he expected, the single shot from earlier was well worth allowing them to do it their own way. He signaled the staff members to stay quiet and continue to observe as he was hoping to get more of what happened earlier after Ayame finally showed some ferocity.
”(This girl shouldn't be in this kind of drama)” Kazuya sighed internally. He felt the blaze in Ayame's fighting spirit as she took a more serious stance. Their spar resumed when Ayame once again launched her attack.
”(Has this girl really been that lacking of capable opponents?)” he thought as he continued to defend against Ayame's attacks. His character couldn't win and it was supposed to end in a draw where both parties deemed that it was useless to continue but in Ayame's current state, Kazuya couldn't see that happening any time soon.
This girl was a talented person with an affinity to mana so her stamina was stronger than even most athletes. There was also no one from the crew stopping them and the director could be seen grinning from ear to ear as he watched the different angles of their skirmish.
Ayame was getting even more fired up. Her usual opponents, aside from that persistent Akabane girl wouldn't last very long yet this unknown girl in front of her was fending off her attacks as if they were nothing. She didn't even break a sweat and Ayame couldn't tell if she was just trying to stay in character or she was that confident in herself.
Ayame's next strike was done swiftly but it was once again parried. This time, she decided to test this mysterious Kaguya's response to the strike she had been practicing in case Shiroyuki Tomoyo or Kouzuki Kazuya faced her again. It was a thrust that used her mana to make the weapon stronger and a lot faster.
”!!” Kazuya immediately felt the changes and knew that the girl was going too far. ”(So unprofessional…)” he thought as he once again sheathed his sword and hid a sliver of his mana on the edge of the blade inside the scabbard to hide it from Ayame's keens senses.
”HAAAH!!” Their weapons clashed as a loud sound entered everyone's ears.
”CUT!” The director who was one of the few who just saw what happened stood up and clapped his hands. ”Bravo girls! Bravo! I knew I felt something when I met the both of you!” He continued clapping and everyone who was clueless as to what just happened saw the prop swords in their hands.
One had been cleanly cut in half while the other one was cracked and unusable. Despite the setback, it went as it was supposed to, a draw. Ayame only realized the situation after the director and everyone else started congratulating them. The scene was not yet over but everyone thought that they should say something after a stunning performance the two rookies just showed them.
Ayame glanced at Kaguya who looked like she hadn't done anything out of the ordinary and was intrigued. She felt puzzled at how that last strike got stopped when she didn't feel any mana coming from the other side. Was this Kaguya really that skilled at using real swords? She wondered.
”Remember what you came here to do” Kazuya whispered to Ayame as if scolding her.
With his words, she felt a little embarrassed. She indeed lost her cool because she found an unexpected and worthy opponent in the oddest of places. She was here to make a name for herself that was big enough to intimidate the boy who dared ignore her. Ayame couldn't help but feel a little guilt and gratitude towards this girl who hadn't lost her cool despite her actions.
”Sorry… and thanks” Ayame politely bowed which caught Kazuya off guard. Was this girl really capable of being humble?
The hardest part of the day was already over and because of Kazuya's reminder, Ayame pretty much concentrated on her role. To Ayame, this day was quite fruitful, not only had she found a worthy opponent, she was even reminded of her own mistake which was a refreshing feeling because she had been spoiled by the people around her.
”Hey, what should I call you?” Kazuya and Ayame were given a rest because most of their scenes in the area were already over. It was the other actors' turn so Ayame wasted no time to talk to this interesting person she had found.
”Just call me Kaguya, that is my name after all” Kazuya tried to stay as calm as he could after Ayame approached him out of the blue. ”(Did she notice something?)” he nervously thought.
”So, the name of the character turned out to be your name as well…” she paused as if realizing something, ”The Aoki group sure know their way around making stars. Maybe I should sign with them?” she smiled as she considered it.
Kazuya didn't know what her purpose was for making small talk like this. Why didn't she just ask whatever she wanted to like the Ayame he knew would? He really couldn't tell what she was up to but before he could ask, Kanade stepped in.
”Our group would welcome you with open arms if you're seriously saying that Kuronuma-san. It would be an honor to represent the rising star of the kendo world after all” Kaname smiled at Ayame whilst taking the opportunity to keep Kazuya silent. Anyone who knew him could tell that he was about to shoo away this potential client.