Alright.  I don’t own any of these people.  They belong to someone else.  I 
don’t really care for the specifics.

Also, this is a response to a challenge, so live with it.


	Suitable title not available

	
	Six years after second impact


	Ritsuko tended to do things quietly.  She ate quietly, studied quietly, 
shopped quietly, sat in class quietly, and even had fun in a quiet manner.  As 
this precise moment in time, she was waiting quietly.  She was outside, in the 
humid heat of mid December. She remembered a time, when she was a young girl 
when December was cold.  That changed with the arrival of the second impact.   
When the second impact occurred, many things changed.  The huge explosion that 
had melted most of the polar ice caps and caused earthquakes, flooding, tidal 
waves, and the death of billions of people had also shifted the axis of the 
earth’s rotation so that the islands of Japan spent their days in a perpetual 
summer.  It had also resulted in the flooding and destruction of Tokyo 1.  All 
that remained of the once thriving metropolis was flooded wastelands, with the 
tips of the occasional skyscraper serving as headstones to the dead.
	Ritsuko was currently waiting in the large grassy courtyard that stood in 
the very center of Tokyo 2 University.  The university had been built in Tokyo 
2, the successor of the drowned Tokyo 1.  Tokyo 2 University was a huge complex, 
and the most advanced university in the world.  Because of this, it attracted 
students from all over the world.  Many of these students were enjoying the warm 
weather, and lounged in the green grass of the courtyard.  Most resided under 
the occasional shade providing tree.  In one long stretch of open ground a 
medium sized group of semi-dirty and shabbily dressed people were enjoying a 
game of Frisbee.  The orange disc whirled through the air as it was sent flying 
from one carefree hand to another, and the players laughed as they enjoyed 
themselves.  

	Ritsuko could not understand why.  Why would anyone want to be out here in 
this abominable heat when they could be studying in a cool library?  Ritsuko was 
willing to bet that of the entire lot of them, not one had ever opened their 
textbooks outside of class.  Ritsuko herself would much rather study than engage 
in such a frivolous act as tossing an orange disc through the air. Moreover, she 
was fairly confident she would enjoy studying more than playing “tour guide” to 
whatever manner of gaping idiot that would transfer mid semester to an entirely 
new school.

	Which just happened to be what she was doing out there.

	
A day ago

	Ritsuko was packing her bag quietly after the bell to one of her advanced 
mathematics classes when she saw Professor Saito waving at her.  Professor Saito 
was an aloof man, who lived a private life.  He came in taught his class, 
answered questions, and then left.  The only time he kept a student after was 
for disciplinary purposes.  Ritsuko gulped nervously.  As the crowd of 
chattering students passed her by, she made her way to the center of the lecture 
hall, where her sensei waited for her.  He was an older man, with an appearance 
that suggested absent-mindedness, and a sarcastic wit that quickly abolished 
that image.  He looked her over once shrewdly as she nervously came up to his 
desk, and he began to shuffle his papers around in a manner that made sense only 
to him.


	“Sensei?” Ritsuko asked as she arrived at his desk.  The last of the other 
students were trickling out of the lecture hall as she spoke.  Ritsuko was 
reminded of a graveyard and became even more nervous.  She searched her mind 
quickly for anything she might have done wrong, but drew a blank.  Professor 
Saito looked up at her once more and then turned back to his papers before he 
responded.  The room was entirely empty except for the two of them.


	“Ritsuko,” he began softly, “I have been reading your papers that I 
assigned, and I must say I am impressed.”  Ritsuko heaved a sigh of relief.  The 
professor only wanted to compliment her.  She wasn’t in trouble. The professor 
continued, unaware of her sudden change in mood.  “Your work is very well 
thought and logical.  It is because of this excellent work that I have an extra 
assignment for you.”  

	“For me, sir?” Ritsuko said, slightly surprised.  She had come expecting a 
punishment and was relieved not to receive one. But why would Professor Saito 
assign her extra work?  “What kind of assignment?” 

	“I am an extremely smart man,” said the doctor modestly with his back 
still turned to her.  “I have seen a lot of things, and met a lot of people, 
too.  And so, with my rather considerable influence on this campus, I have come 
to learn of a…situation,” he spoke with the utmost seriousness.  “I learned of 
it just in time, and if it wasn’t for my quick action, this situation might have 
been badly mishandled.”  

	Ritsuko stood calm on the outside, but internally casting about.  She 
silently wondered what this “situation” could be. From the build up, Ritsuko was 
suddenly sure that the professor was going to ask her to handle this problem, a 
problem of extreme importance that must be taken care of in the most delicate of 
fashions.  It sounded like a challenge.  She couldn’t wait to hear what it 
was.  Perhaps finding some kind of proof, or maybe some interesting research.  
She leaned forward eagerly.  

	Professor Saito continued after a momentary pause.  “I remembered your 
papers, and the serious fashion in which you conduct yourself, and decided that 
you would be the perfect one to handle this situation.” He turned slowly as he 
withdrew from one of his pockets a picture.  He gave it to her as he continued, 
turning back to his paper shuffling.  She took it and glanced at it curiously.  
“This is a new transfer student.”  

	‘Huh?’ Ritsuko thought to herself.  ‘What’s that got to do with anything?’

	“He is an extremely dangerous person, and was transferred to this school 
because of that.   He has one purpose for being here…” the professor trailed 
off.  Ritsuko gulped nervously.

	Then suddenly, he turned on her with lightning speed.  Shaking his fists 
at the air as he bellowed.  “To lead our martial art team to victory!” he 
proclaimed loudly.  Ritsuko face faulted.  The professor continued unabated.  
“For the longest time I have been an avid follower of the martial arts, and I 
have grown ashamed at the state of the martial arts team at this campus.  This 
boy that has been transferred to out school will single handedly lead us to 
utter victory.”  The professor then turned a once more penetrating glare at 
Ritsuko, who by then had peeled her face off the ground.  “It is up to you to 
lead this new student around out school.  If anyone else were to do it, god 
himself knows what those untrustworthy fiends might do to this fragile man.  You 
alone do I trust to safely guide this man, and not take this martial artist to 
any party, where heaven knows what drug or disease might slip into him.  He must 
be strong, so that our victory is assured.”  The professor turned his back 
slowly on Ritsuko.  Ritsuko grew a sweat drop.  “He will be here tomorrow at 
noon in the courtyard.  See to him,” the sensei finished slowly.  Ritsuko began 
to cry.


	And that is why Ritsuko Akagi was dressed in a modest skirt and blouse was 
waiting in the cool shade of a small tree, and not studying for the very 
important exam she knew her chemistry instructor was going to spring on his 
class the next day.  Ritsuko honestly did not know what to think about this 
situation. While she would rather be studying, she knew better than to judge 
someone before she had met him or her had even met.  That would be small minded 
and childish.  She glanced at her watch impatiently as a slow trickle of sweat 
formed on her forehead and began to work its way down the side of her face.  She 
was just quick enough to catch the digital numbers change to exactly noon.  
‘There,’ she thought to herself as she looked up from her wrist.  She fished 
into the pocket of her blouse and brought up a slightly creased picture.  It had 
the picture of the young man she was supposed to meet, and the time he was 
supposed to be there.  Noon.  She put the picture back into her pocket and began 
to look around for the new student.  

	After several moments of quick searching, she spied him.  He was wearing a 
loose black T-shirt, khaki pants, and enormous dirt smeared boots.  Over his 
right shoulder was a rather large pack that he balanced on his shoulder with 
ease, and in his left hand was a small suitcase.  He was just crossing onto the 
green grass, coming from the direction of the bus stop two blocks down. He moved 
at a slow and confident pace, showing no exertion despite the luggage he carried 
and the heat.  His face was rough and unshaven, showing at least two days 
stubble on it, and his hair drawn back into a medium sized ponytail.  He was 
smiling confidently.  

	‘There he is.  At least he was punctual,’ Ritsuko thought to herself.  She 
crossed her arms over her chest and continued to lean against the tree.  She 
decided that she might have to be outside, but that didn’t mean she had to get 
under the bright sun too.  She would just wait where she was until the new 
student was closer before she called his attention to herself.

	The man, seemingly unaware of her scrutiny continued at an unhurried pace, 
heading in the direction of the offices that lay on the other end of the 
courtyard. His progress was brought to a halt with the sudden entrance of a UFO.

	A member of the scruffy students that were playing Frisbee had the 
unfortunate luck of being tackled from behind in a playful manner by one of his 
friends.  As he fell, the orange disc was sent flying in a wild fashion.  It 
wobbled through the air in an uncontrollable fashion, soaring over the head of 
the intended recipient.  Ritsuko watched as the erratic projectile flew towards 
the new student she was waiting for.  The transfer student looked at the 
incoming ballistic, and reached out with his right hand to catch it easily.  
He held it up and his look became bemused for a moment.


	“Hey,” one of the girls in the group that had been playing with the 
Frisbee shouted.  The young man holding the Frisbee looked up as she waved her 
arms to get his attention.  “You want to toss that back, man?” she continued.

	“You want to come over here and get it, beautiful?” he responded, even as 
he tossed the disc back to her.  She smiled as she caught it, and then gave him 
one last appraising look before turning away.  The young man shifted his pack on 
his shoulder again, before turning back towards the offices.  

	Ritsuko snorted softly to her self, a little amused at the proceedings.  
Five minutes at a new school and the student was already hitting on a lady. 
‘Typical agenda of the male gender,’ she thought to herself.  ‘First: sex.  
Second: everything else.’  Ritsuko placed a private wager with herself on how 
long it would take the new student to start hitting on her.  Twenty-three 
seconds.  She was just about to call his attention to her so she could get this 
task over with and see how accurate her estimate was, when he looked right at 
her.  She blinked as his smile widened and he altered his course directly 
towards her, without changing his speed.  A minute later Ritsuko had the dubious 
pleasure of meeting the new student.  

	“Hello,” he said pleasantly as he shrugged out of the strap of his pack, 
placing it and his suitcase on the ground.  He fished into his back pocket to 
pull out a handkerchief.  He wiped his face with it and then put it back in his 
back pocket.  “Are you the one they sent to meet me?” he asked pleasantly. 

	“Yes.  I’m glad to see you’re on time,” she said a bit cooly.  It wasn’t 
anything personal, she just did most things in a cool and quiet fashion. “My 
name is Ritsuko.  I’m here to show you around our school.”  She began counting 
down in her head, ‘one, two, three…’

	The man looked at her and suddenly threw back his head as he chuckled.  “I 
was about to complain about the heat, but I have suddenly detected a cold front.  
A shame,” he said, as his laughter subsided, “to have one so beautiful turn me 
down before the question is even out.”  

	‘I was off, he didn’t even make it past ten seconds,’ Ritsuko smirked to 
herself.  

	 “But I forget my self.  Greetings Ritsuko,” he said as he extended his 
hand and continued salutation.  “My name is Kaji.”  
When Ritsuko disdained to shake his hand, so he let it drop down to his luggage.  
He spoke again as he re-shouldered his luggage and picked up his placed 
suitcase.  “I see you obviously have someplace else you’d rather be.  Since it’s 
a weekend, and classes don’t start again until Monday, why don’t you just show 
me where the dojo is, and then my dorm?  I’ll explore the place on my own.  Even 
though I’m sure it will pain me to be without your beautiful presence, I think 
I’ll be able to pull through the suffering.”  

	Ritsuko hmmed as she led Kaji out of the courtyard, and in the direction 
of the university dojo.  It seemed that Kaji 
thought she didn’t want to lead him around, so he was politely offering her a 
way out. While she appreciated that, it wouldn’t be right 
to just dump, a stranger in a new place, on the street without a guide.  In 
addition, she also appreciated his giving her a chance out of it.  
“No, I’ll show you around.  It’s not that much of a bother,” said as she looked 
over her shoulder at him.  He kept up easily as she began 
up the street towards their destination.  

	“So I do get the guided tour?” Kaji asked.

	“This street right here pretty much the center of the university.  It 
loops around in one big circle.  If you get on it and follow it long enough you 
should get top all the major centers.  The sciences are on the north, 
mathematics in the east, and languages, both foreign and domestic, in the south.  
The west side has the arts, as well as the stores and recreational facilities.  
The game fields are in the center of the university, as well as the offices and 
dorms.  Shuttles stop pretty much every ten minutes at the signs.  Like over 
there,” she explained as she pointed.  A medium sized bus stopped at a light 
post with a sign and small three walled shelter.  Five students were entering at 
the front of the bus, while two were disembarking from the back.  Ritsuko 
continued.  “Have you got your pass yet?” she asked.  Kaji nodded, his attention 
focused on her as she gave him the quick description of the university’s layout.  
“If you have one of those on your, it only costs a dime to ride.  Forget it and 
it goes up to fifty cents.”

	Kaji seemed to conclude that he had been too silent for to long.  “And 
where might we find a bar?  I would be most honored if you would do me the favor 
of showing them to me some time tonight,” he smiled a slippery smile at her as 
he cocked his head.  Ritsuko was certain that he was doing that to get a 
reaction out of her.  She decided not to give him that pleasure, so she ignored 
both his innuendo and his smile.

	“The bars are all on the west side, and are open about five to midnight.”  
As they walked, she continued with her lecture. “As well as instructional halls 
there are independent buildings were private studies and independently financed 
projects are taking place.  We have the distinction of having one of the largest 
laboratories in the world for studying human anatomy and diseases.”

	“What kind of sports facilities do you have here?” Kaji questioned her, 
without innuendo or greasy smile.

	‘It figures he would ask something like that,’ Ritsuko thought to herself.  
Aloud she answered, “We have an American Football field, a soccer field, an 
Olympic sized pool, and a large gym that can be used for tennis, volleyball, and 
martial arts competitions.”  Kaji grinned at the last part.  Ritsuko continued, 
pointing out structures and giving various histories as the two walked around.

	Kaji appeared to be listening intently to everything she said, but Ritsuko 
also noticed that his eyes were continuously studying his surroundings.  She 
surmised that he was fixing everything in his memory.  She noticed how unusually 
attentive he was to the environment around him.  She also noticed that despite 
his attempts to hit on her, his eyes spent very little time on her actual body.  
She surmised that most of the way he acted was exactly that.  An act.  

	“So how much longer until we arrive at the dojo?  We are on the west side, 
and I wouldn’t mind a chance to rest my arms,” said Kaji with a grin, even 
though he showed no perceptible strain at carrying his luggage. 

	“We’re almost there,” Ritsuko responded, as she pointed. Two blocks down a 
wide building with a low roof was visible, tucked away between a Laundromat and 
a video rental store.  

	“Great.  I wonder if there’s anyone there.  I could use a workout,” Kaji 
exclaimed.

	“I thought your arms were tired,” Ritsuko pointed out in a sly tone.

	“Of course they are.  But the thought of being able to impress you with my 
awesome physical prowess is enough to get me through a quick match or three,” 
Kaji returned with his greasy grin again. Rather then take offense, Ritsuko 
laughed. Kaji grinned along with her.

	“So I understand that you are pretty good at martial arts,” commented 
Ritsuko.

	“How’d you here that?  Has the fame of my great skills spread so far?” 
Kaji asked while still grinning.

	Ritsuko shook her head.  “I’ve never even heard of you before,” she 
admitted.  She noticed that Kaji’s grin only became larger at that comment.  ‘I 
wonder why,’ she thought to herself as she continued.  “But the way that 
Professor Saito was carrying on about you ‘leading the team to victory’ or 
something like that, you must be pretty good.”

	“The best,” Kaji agreed.  “How good is the martial arts team around here?”

	“They’re all very skilled.  It’s just that the other schools are better.  
I believe the team at the college in Kyoto has some kind of super powered 
martial artist,” Ritsuko responded.  “He’s the one that causes the most trouble.  
No matter how hard our team or any of the others train, no one can really beat 
him.”


	“Super powered martial artist?” Kaji asked with a bit of a frown.

	“Able to jump over buildings, and to move super fast.  Yes, people exist 
who can do that,” Ritsuko told him.  “Some people find it hard to believe.  
Those people never visited Nerima before second impact.  There were all manners 
of hyper-powered martial artists living around there.  A guy with a bandana, 
some Chinese people, some lady with a spatula and such.”  Ritsuko didn’t 
really expect him to believe her.  Most people laughed off her old stories about 
the martial artists that could blow up rocks with a touch, or shoot balls of 
chi, or whatnot.  .

	“How do you know about them?” Kaji asked, apparently interested.

	“I use to live around there,” she told him.  “I was only in Junior High at 
the time,” she continued sadly,” and most of the super powered fighters were in 
high school, so I never really got to meet any of them.  It’s too bad.  I think 
for the most part they all died.”

	“How could a-what did you call it? Super powered martial artist?-just up 
and die?” Kaji asked skeptically.  

	Ritsuko looked at him.  She thought for a moment that he was teasing her, 
but rather than a goofy grin he had what appeared to be a genuine curious 
expression.  She turned back to the path in front of them, as she answered.  
“Second impact.”

	Kaji made an understanding noise.  He didn’t say another word until they 
reached the dojo.

End of part 1.

There you go.  You have no idea how hard it is to write Ritsuko in what appears 
to be an accurate manner. I don’t have a homepage and my email address is 
gabrielblessing@aol.com I wouldn’t mind and criticism or critics.  All advice 
will be laughed at, then spat upon.  Unless its advice on how to write a 
reasonable Ritsuko.  Then it will be considered before the aforementioned 
procedures is performed.