"Life" After Death

[Kaosu]

Yuuji had just gotten stabbed by the two people. Suddenly, they went through his pockets. He tried to resist, but his body could not find the strength. All he could do was watch, while the pain from the stabs shot through his body. They went through his wallet and grabbed his money. He did not have much, but they seemed to think he had enough to justify stabbing him. After they grabbed his money, they shoved him into the shadows and ran away. He knew that he was going to die; there was no chance that someone would find him and help him. Soon, he could only see darkness. It started getting harder to breath. He took one last breath and knew no more.

[Kaosu]

Yuuji awoke very suddenly. He was back in his bed. What the hell!?, he thought, was that all a dream?. He took a few breaths and looked at the places where he had been stabbed. There were no marks, but he still had an uneasy feeling. That couldn't have been a dream, he thought to himself as he sat up in his bed, It was too real to be a dream. He knew that he really had been stabbed, but he could not find any explanation as to why he was still alive. He got up when it hit him, he was still in his jogging clothes. Well, even if I was killed, I'm not complaining, being alive again works for me. He changed into some jeans and a T-shirt. After that, he packed his clothes for kendo, grabbed his bokuto, and head off for the dojo. Right before he stepped out the door, he remembered to get his wallet from his pants. He looked and looked, but his wallet was nowhere to be found. This was another thing that led him to believe that what had taken place yesterday was real. It took him ten minutes to walk there, and though he was flinching at every movement, he arrived at the dojo safely.

He entered the dojo, and there were three people already there. He recognized them, their names were Mie Terada, Kanae Nijima, and Shouko Sayama. Mie and Kanae were both girls and also two of the highest ranking people in the dojo. The third was a guy was like Yuuji, mid-ranked. Kanae was twenty years old, Mie was seventeen, and Shouko was sixteen. "Hey you guys, how you all doing?" he asked, walking up to them.
"Hey Yuuji!" ((Mie))
"We're okay, Yuuji, you?" ((Kanae))
"Yo, Yuuji." ((Shouko))
They responded at the same time. As far as Yuuji knew, there were twenty other members of the dojo, but there was only them and one other that didn't use formalities with each other. He did not know the others enough to do the same. He noticed that they were not dressed for in their usual kendo clothes. "You guys just finish up?" he asked.

"Nope, we just got here," Kanae replied for the group.
"Okay, good, because I wanted to practice with someone today." He walked with Shouko over to the men's changing room while Kanae and Mie went to the other. Everyone changed and soon they were all out in the sparring room. They did not go directly into sparring, instead, they started out by doing twenty-five downward strikes. With every strike they let out a "Hiyaa!" to release their energy. They soon finished with this, and when they were, Yuuji asked Mie for a spar. Mie agreed and they got ready, with Kanae and Shouko watching. They stood in their places and faced each other. "Ready?" Mie asked. "We'll find out," Yuuji responded.

Mie took the first strike, intending to end it with a quick hit to the head. Yuuji was fast enough to block the attack. Their swords collided with a loud CLACK. Yuuji swung his sword sideways, but Mie jumped back and tried a sideways swing as well. He blocked it, but there was so much force put into the swing that he got knocked sideways. He stumbled a bit, but he was not knocked down. Unfortunately, Mie took advantage of his stumble and swung down. Yuuji blocked it and tried to counter with a downwards swing. Mie sidestepped the swing, but Yuuji swung the sword in her direction, aiming for her head. Mie blocked it and ducked under his sword. She swung her sword the same way he did, but he also went under the swing. They both popped back up. "You're getting better," Mie said under her mask. "Thanks," Yuuji responded. Yuuji lowered his guard while he responded, and Mie took advantage of that. She swung her sword in a downwards fashion. Yuuji had fast enough reflexes to jump out of the way, but he accidentally dropped his sword in the process. So, there he was, Mie held her sword at his chest. "I win !," she said, taking off her mask. Yuuji did the same and Mie stuck out a hand. She helped him up. He heard some clapping coming from Shouko and Kanae. "Good job, you two!" yelled Kanae. They walked over to Shouko and Kanae. "Quick as ever, Yuuji," said Shouko. "Too bad he's a butterfingers, though," said Mie.

They practiced for an hour, when they decided to go get something to eat. They went over to the local sushi restaurant, where they had some tea and, obviously, sushi. Over dinner, they talked about kendo. They went over tactics and swings while they ate and drank. This is what Yuuji loved the most, talking with his friends and having a good time. He had been thinking about telling them what had happened, they had always talked to each other about their problems. But Yuuji still had a feeling deep down that this was not something he should talk about with them.

[Kaosu]

They started to finish up with their food, and Yuuji told them that he did not have any money right now. When questioned, he told them that he got mugged the day before and they took all his money.
"Omigosh! Did they hurt you?," asked Mie
"Just a little, nothing serious," he responded.

He knew that "nothing serious" was a major understatement, but he did not want them to worry about him. So, they all decided to split his bill and pay it. He promised to pay them back as soon as he got the money, though they refused at first. He said goodbye and took a walk home, his eyes still watching his surroundings.