Eclipsing Emotions
Chapter One

Nothing ever seemed to change for Enari Urukosaki. A sigh escaped his lips as he looked out a nearby window. A breath of wind touched the slightly pink petals of the trees, welcoming sakura of the future. School, to him, was exceptionally mind-numbing that day.

The teacher’s voice echoed in his head, and any information worth listening to was deposited in a small bank of his memory. It didn’t really matter; Enari was fairly decent with school.

“Nari-kun!” A familiar whisper sounded from beside the boy. His gentle crystal blue eyes glanced in its direction. The glimpse was met with radiant green orbs and hazel brown hair put up in a ponytail.

Enari smiled. “Hello, Hanako-chan.” He greeted.

The girl called Hanako grinned cutely. “Nari-kun, don’t forget, you promised to take me shopping in the Mise District this afternoon.”

“Of course.” Enari replied with a small peck on her forehead. Hanako’s face turned scarlet.

Sighing, Enari changed his attention to outside the stuffy classroom again. In all honesty, he was still getting used to having a girlfriend, but Hanako was cute and seemed to really like him. She was everything he wanted in a lover: gentle, loving, a bit shy, and adorable to boot. The two of them began going out about a week before, and Enari, being single all his life, hadn’t the slightest idea of what to do next. When it came down to it, Hanako was pulling the strings to their relationship.

The bell to announce the end of the school day interrupted his thoughts. Happily, he stood up and gathered his books. Hanako waited for him at the classroom entrance, shifting her slender weight from one foot to the other.

“Thanks for waiting.” Enari said with a slight bow.

“No problem, Nari-kun. So, I was thinking maybe we could go and get some takoyaki…”

“Oh my god…Hanako-chan! I totally forgot…I have a karate match today! I’m really sorry!”

The girl seemed crestfallen. “But, Nari-kun…”

“Wait!” Enari cried, grabbing her small shoulders. “I have an idea. Why don’t you watch me? And we can do something together tonight. How’s that sound?”

Hanako blushed and clasped his hand in hers. “Okay, Nari-kun. That’s fine. Do we need to stop at your house, or…?”

“No, we can head to the dojo now. Kannagi-sensei is waiting for me. He says I may be losing my touch.” Enari laughed at the thought. His school was partnered with a local karate club, and he was named his school’s greatest fighter.

Hanako joined in his laughter. “You’re kidding me, right? There’s no way! Nari-kun, do you know why I began to like you so much? I saw you spar. Your body moves in ways that are so fascinating.”

Enari’s face flushed. No one had ever complimented him in that fashion. “T…thanks, Hanako-chan.” he replied, rewarding her with an awkward hug.

After exchanging shy smiles, the two began to walk towards the school’s dojo. It was located right down the street from the campus, easily three minutes walking distance. He swung the door to the dojo open, and was instantly greeted by a couple of his friends.

“Oi, Urukosaki! You’re late!” A particularly tall boy called out.

Enari simply smiled nervously and nodded his apologies.

“Urukosaki, who’s this? She your girl?” Another boy, this one seeming close to Enari’s height, asked while drinking a bottle of water.

Enari nodded. “This is my girlfriend, Hanako Furumai.”

“Heh! Enari finally got a girlfriend!”

“Urukosaki got himself a girl!”

“Way to go, man!”

“Not sexy, but very cute! A nice choice!”

Hanako blushed a little. “Nari-kun…don’t be late because of me. I’ll be watching, okay? So do your best.” She giggled and kissed him on the cheek timidly.

Those words seemed to recharge Enari, and he was ready to beat down any opponent in his path. He flashed a quick grin her way and ran into the very back of the dojo, into the men’s locker room, to change. His uniform was all white; baggy pants and a baggier jacket hung limply from his pale skin. On his waist lay a single black belt, wrapped around tightly without any hope of loosening.

Smiling brightly, he made his way to the center room of the dojo. Gasping a breath of fresh air, he began to stretch. Today, he would achieve even more fame in the dojo after defeating a newcomer from another school. This student was rumored to be unstoppable; however, Enari knew he could defeat him.

The thought of victory energized him as he made his way to the center of the dojo’s sparring room. All he had to do was knock his opponent unconscious; a violent victory, but he was used to playing rough.

It wasn’t long before his challenger made his way to the opposite end of the room. Enari gasped. In place of the brutish slob foe his mind had imagined was a slender, dark boy a little taller than him. On his face, an evil glare was plastered.

Enari had to take a step back. Never, in his three years of high school, had he encountered someone as intimidating as him. If looks could kill, Enari knew he would already be chopped up and served as a side dish. A trembling sensation took over his body.

W…what’s wrong with me…?! I’ve beaten down guys bigger than him. All I have to do is hit him hard, and fast.. He’ll topple over like a fallen tree. Yes, I can do this. Let’s go.

At the sound of a sudden yell to begin the match, everything came back to reality for the karate star. A small crowd had formed around the room’s center, Hanako in the front row with a positive expression on her face.

Enari glared bullets back at his foe. Sliding his feet forward, he prepared to perform a swift punch. Thrusting his fist towards the other boy’s body, he felt his heart almost stop at the feeling of his attack being blocked.

“Damn!” he cursed under his breath, jumping back to prepare for another move. But the enemy was quicker. He drove his fist straight into Enari’s stomach, causing all the air to drain out of his lungs for a brief moment. Coughing as he regained oxygen, Enari desperately tried to land a powerful kick to the head. However, his worst fears were realized as a free hand swiped his foot away. Consequently, Enari found himself falling to the ground. This newcomer had already pinned him!

Fury shot through the shorter boy as his foe stood over him, a look of pure triumph on his face.

Forcing himself to stand, Enari threw a punch at the stranger, grazing his face. The crowd watching them roared for him. Screw fame. He thought angrily, huffing as he regained his breath. This is for honor.

Leaping into the air, he attempted to perform his final, yet highly effective, kick to the neck. This would both choke and knock his enemy unconscious; clearly only used as a last resort. His bare foot slammed into the boy’s throat, causing a hacking fit to rupture. In his gasps, he managed to somehow grab Enari’s foot, draw him in close, and punch the side of his face as hard as he could.

After Enari was knocked away, flying through the air, the foe somehow recovered the ability to breathe, and followed up with some vigorous strikes to the chest and stomach area. The smaller boy was sent flying into the ground, banging his head off the floor.

N…no…t-this can’t be…how…could I lose? Enari thought as blackness gripped his world. The last thing he saw was the gleam of satisfaction on the victor’s jade eyes.