Hey guys sorry about the delay but Tafe has kinda bottle-necked and assignments are due everywhere . very strenuous.

I've also become a bit of a Narutard. I've been reading a bunch of stories with over a thousand reviews and I am shocked at just how good some writers are. Perhaps someday I might be that good... only way to do it is write more stories I suppose. What a shame!

I was thinking that maybe for my next multichapter story I might do a Naruto fic as I've had a pretty interesting idea. What do you guys think? If anyone's interested I'd like to talk over its story line to see what your thoughts on it are.

Anyway, just wana thank 0208 and Megato for their continuing support and to DarkChiyo and Raelax Darkmoon for their extremely positive reviews.

Anyway, enough of that stuff. Here's what you came to read. ENJOY!

Chapter 27

That night, Keitaro and Yoko sank into the warm hot water springs, complete bliss etched into their faces. They simultaneously inhaled deeply and exhaled into the water contentedly, little bubbles popping all over the surface. Yoko looked across foggily at his companion, barely making out the outline of his friend.

"Hey... Keitaro..."

He waited several seconds as Keitaro mustered up the will to say something.

"Yeah, buddy?"

A massive smile stretched lazily onto the taller boys face. "This is the best."

A very drowsy but satisfied hum of agreement reached his ears. Not caring who was listening, he let out a very sharp giggle. Keitaro opened one eye. Due to his poor eyesight, he couldn't make out anything.

"What?"

He waited as another giggle reached his ears. "It's all over... like, over, over. After so much fear and nerves and adrenalin... man... it feels like a dream."

Keitaro just nodded until he realised Yoko probably couldn't see him either. "Yeah... I haven't quite totally grasped it either. Like, I'm still alive, so is everyone I care about and things are actually looking good."

Yoko then remembered something rather pressing that had been a major source of discomfort for the dorms. "Hey Keitaro... you know Shinobu?"

"Yes, I have heard of her from time to time..."

Yoko swallowed as he wondered how to word it to his friend. He heard the water in Keitaro's direction slosh as he sat up a bit straighter. "What?"

Yoko shook his head deciding on his answer. "She actually has something very important to tell you that I can't really say for her. I only just remembered but I'm sure she hasn't forgotten. Please talk with her once we're done here."

Keitaro raised a curious eyebrow. Though it may be a pressing matter, at the moment, just for one time in his seemingly infinite life, he decided to be a bit selfish and stay soak longer. Serious baths in the hot springs like this were few and far between and as such, he wanted to stay and enjoy it as long as possible. Besides, it couldn't be too serious as she didn't confront him as she normally did, in her own little way.

"I'm sure she can wait a short while. I just want to enjoy this moment as long as possible."

Yoko looked at his friend in confusion. Normally he would have run out the door to help any of the girls as soon as he could but... realisation sunk in and Yoko just shrugged his shoulders. Keitaro had had it ridiculously rough the last year they had been here and he deserved this moment. He laughed and swiped a hand across the water, sending a spray across Keitaro's head.

"You heartless prick! Hahaha yeah, I suppose it can wait a bit longer."

Keitaro laughed and sent a splash back, ducking under the water to avoid the returning wave.

OoOoOoOoOo

A good hour later, Yoko and Keitaro emerged from the baths, each only in a set of pants. They laughed and spoke about all sorts of nonsense, towelling their hair dry as they walked into the lounge room. Kitsune was in her usual perch, surprisingly reading a book for a change. She looked up at the two men, whistled and raised an eyebrow.

"Hmmm I was wondering why the room temperature had gone up. You better cover up lest Shinobu comes in and you give her a nose bleed."

She ducked as a towel was launched at her head. She smirked and looked back up at Keitaro.

"Seems you're losing your touch, almighty warrior of the earth."

Keitaro shrugged and laughed. "After everything that's happened, I wouldn't give two damns if I couldn't even pick up a washing basket. Be thankful I can still work for you here."

Kitsune gave him a small smile. "Yeah, we have alot to be thankful for nowadays. Oh, I just remembered too, you have to speak with Shinobu. She kinda has a big decision she's made but she wants to tell you about it."

Keitaro nodded as Yoko spoke up. "Yeah, I said she did." Turning to his friend, he gave him a shove. "Hop to it then!"

Keitaro laughed and started walking towards the stairs when something soft hit the back of his head. Pulling the shirt from his hair, he heard Yoko say, "You really don't wana be caught in her room by Motoko or Naru dressed like that. Imagine the mayhem!"

Quickly slipping the shirt on, Keitaro shivered. "Quite right. I've had enough punches to last me my whole life. Anyway, best get this over with."

Heading up the stairs, he heard the two residents behind him begin talking as he disappeared around the corner.

OoOoOoOo

Shinobu looked up as she heard three sharp knocks on her door.

"Come in!"

The opening door revealed Keitaro's smiling face. The girl blushed and looked away, trying to control her feelings. Keitaro closed the door behind him and walked over, sitting down in front of the girl.

Before she said anything Keitaro spoke up. "Before I say anything, I just want you to know that I have told Naru and Motoko that I was coming to talk with you about your choice. I was just letting you know so you don't have to worry about us being found. Anyway, you now know the reason I'm here so fire away, I'm listening."

The girl struggled to bring her thoughts to order as she had planned to tell her manager about everything when she was ready. Now that it had all been dumped in her lap at once, she tried to calm herself.

'Ok Shinobu, you gotta tell him. It's not that hard, just tell him and that's it. Just... don't look him in the eyes.'

Sighing, she swallowed nervously before starting to talk.

"O-ok. Well, I guess I'll just say it... it's I've decided... well, that I want to move out."

She then dropped her head, waiting for the following deluge of questions she was certain to come. She scrunched her hands up in her skirt as the moments ticked by, the waiting of seconds seeming like hours. She heard Keitaro sigh and she scrunched her eyes up.

"I suppose I should thank you for staying with us as long as you have."

Her eyes flipped open and she released a breath she didn't realise she'd been holding.

"W-wha...?"

Her heart melted as her eyes met his, a sad smile on his face. "I understand. You don't have to tell me the details because there is only one thing that would cause this. It's because of what I brought back, isn't it?"

The girl fidgeted as she nodded slightly, not trusting her voice. She closed her eyes to prevent the tears she felt building up from falling as Keitaro spoke.

"Well, in that case Shinobu, thank you so much. I realise it has been incredibly difficult for you in a way that I can't understand. That you actually put up with the stress for so long is a testament to your strength. You are the most tender loving girl I have ever known and yet, you are also one of the strongest. To be able to push through the pain you were experiencing for us, especially me... you are simply the best friend I could ever ask for."

She felt the insides of her eyelids begin to itch as they nearly over filled with tears. She sniffed as she absorbed what she heard. Keitaro described everything she had felt to a T, even without actually understanding her pain. Swallowing, she nodded.

"I-I-I thought that it would g-get better but i-it didn't and then you ended up *sniff* in hospital so b-badly hurt and I just couldn't take it anymore... seeing you always hurt h-hurt me and I don't k-know how much more I can take so I thought it best to g-go..."

Her eyes shot open wide as she felt a strong pair of arms wrap around her waist and pull her into an equally strong chest. The tears now fell silently from wide eyes as a hand gently stroked her hair, the body she was connected to now rocking slowly.

"Shh... shhh... there there, it's ok. I know it's been hard but it's over now. There aren't any more monsters or shadows or anything like that anymore. And know that I'll fully support your decision if that's what you really want, no matter what. You're an amazing girl Shinobu. Just know that I am so very proud of you."

That was all it took for Shinobu to then fully break down. Sobbing, she pulled her face into his chest as the tears flowed freely; the whole time Keitaro just sitting and stroking her hair, a sad smile on his face. And that was how they sat for a long while afterwards.

OoOoOoOoOo

Fluttering her eyes, Shinobu slowly started to wake up. She looked around dopily, trying to work out what was happening. It was then she remembered that she had told Keitaro about her moving out. She sighed and rolled slightly. Who knew that telling him everything would have had such a reaction? Even the girl herself had no idea just how much emotional stress she had stored up. Shifting again, she looked across and saw her manager in the corner. Her breath hitched a second, wondering why he was still here. She then realised that he was sleeping silently, and that he had distanced himself significantly between them. Sitting up, she yawned and looked out the window. It was well into the night and it surprised her that Keitaro hadn't been kicked out by Naru or Motoko yet. Rubbing some sleep from her eye, it was then Keitaro's still form rustled.

"Hey sleepy, you awake now hey?"

Shinobu blushed slightly and nodded.

"I had you fall asleep on my chest after a while and so I put you to bed. Naru and Motoko wanted me out but seeming it was me that caused you to be in such a state, I made it clear I wanted to stay." He chuckled. "I even called on my manager powers to let me stay!"

Shinobu smiled a bit and relaxed. So that explained it. Shifting around, she swung her legs over the side of the bed and checked the clock.

3:30am.

Stretching, she felt the cool air tickle her tummy as the skin was exposed. She also pushed against the fabric that had recently become tighter around her chest area. It was then she noticed Keitaro make a pointed attempt to look away. She quickly stopped, both embarrassed that he had seen what he had and strangely excited that he reacted in such a way. Blushing a bit more, the two of them fell into an awkward silence before Shinobu spoke up.

"Umm... if you wanted, we could go down and grab something to eat? I n-never got tea so..."

Keitaro smiled. "Sure! I never got to eat either so that sounds great."

Keitaro stretched and quickly walked to the door. Opening it in front of Shinobu, he bowed slightly.

"After you..."

She giggled and blushed, not used to having him make this kind of fuss over her. Tripping through the door, she waited for Keitaro to emerge and then they walked silently down the stairs.

OoOoOoOoOo

Keitaro could hardly understand Shinobu's ability. Even a quick, small meal of hers was still far and away better than anything he could have ever cooked in triple the time. Taking another bite of the delicious snack, he looked across at the girl. She had hardly touched her own meal. Sighing, Keitaro put his spoon down.

"So when were you planning to leave?"

Shinobu's eyes looked further down. "I was originally planning to move out the first week you were in the hospital, but Kitsune convinced me to stay."

Keitaro looked up. "Really? How did she manage to do that?"

Shinobu instantly looked decidedly uncomfortable. "I-I'd... rather... umm, I wouldn't wana hurt your feelings..."

Keitaro shot her another of his all inclusive smiles. "Trust me, I can almost guarantee that anything you say won't even nearly be the worst thing said to me."

Shinobu swallowed and looked away. "O-ok... well, Kitsune said that I can stay because... seeming everything that had happened was because you brought those things back... while you're in hospital, we wouldn't be attacked or stressed. It was because all the monsters were after you mainly." She sniffed. "It was fair reasoning... and true."

Keitaro's smile faltered slightly. While he kept a mostly happy face, sadness entered his eyes. "Yeah, she was right. I was the target for all those things so it only made sense. I'm just sorry you had to put up with it."

An enormous part of the girl instantly screamed out that it was never his fault, that it was something else that had happened, another of his accidents, anything else but his fault. But she stayed silent, head dipped so her manager couldn't see the turmoil in her eyes. She heard him sigh and she cringed.

"Well, could I maybe make a wager with you then?"

Shinobu looked up, confused. It was not the answer she expected. "Y-yeah...?"

Keitaro had his hands clasped before him resting on the table. "Kitsune said those monsters wouldn't come back here because I wasn't here. That was fair enough. Now, I'm wondering if I can step that up a fraction. I'll say that no more creatures will attack us BECAUSE I got rid of them all. So could you please stay atleast one more month? Rent free. I want to prove to you that nothing more will happen simply because there is nothing more to happen. It is your call in the end though. I just don't want to lose you because you are a valued tenant," Shinobu blushed furiously, "and an incredibly valued friend."

The girl took several deep breaths to try and slow her racing heart. She desperately wanted to believe that everything was alright but she was still scared out of her wits that something just as horrific would happen again. But then, she only had to stay another month... she could manage that... couldn't she? Looking up into the big brown eyes of her treasured manager, she swallowed. He didn't say anything as she considered his proposal. Eventually, she sighed, nodded and mouthed a silent ok.

She didn't even see Keitaro react when he suddenly had her wrapped up in a massive hug. Her eyes widened exponentially as she felt the warmth of the man against her.

"Thankyou so much! I'll show you that everything will be fine. I really didn't wana see you leave..."

He pulled back sheepishly. "Sorry about this too but I'm just really happy."

To his surprise, he felt the girl pull herself back into his chest. Shinobu had quickly taken advantage of the moment to savour having Keitaro all to herself, no other girls around to distract him. "It's ok. I didn't really want to leave. It was more of a thing I had to do to keep myself sane. Just promise me that nothing will happen in this month because I honestly don't think I could take a single more thing."

Keitaro smiled warmly and wrapped his arms around her waist and shoulders, pulling her in tighter. "I promise. Thankyou for the chance to prove it."

OoOoOoOo

A week later, Keitaro was sitting in the lounge room, chores for the day completed. He was reading a rather boring book till he heard a knock at the door. Smiling, he realised who it probably was. Jumping up, he quickly ran over and opened the front door. As predicted, there before him stood his doctor.

Ah, Miss Keiko Kanji! How pleasant of you to remember our date. Please, come in!"

She smiled graciously and slipped off her small shoes. "A date now is it? My goodness, soon enough everyone will think we're a couple!"

Keitaro's mouth started flapping in shock as the beautiful woman raised a hand to her mouth and giggled. She wandered into the lounge room and saw Kitsune lying in her usual spot, watching the ponies. She sighed and flipped off the TV, having no luck with her horses. Turning, she looked up and sent the doctor a devious smile.

"Good afternoon! I heard you at the door just then. You sure have a knack for leaving guys speechless don't you? I think we could become good drinking buddies!"

Keiko laughed again and shook her head. "No, sorry but I don't drink. If you would substitute vodka for lemonade though you would have me hooked."

Kitsune shrugged her shoulders. "Nah, I'll be right. Nothing quite beats the warm inviting tingle of that glorious master fluid."

Keitaro at that stage had managed to recover enough to follow his guest in. He motioned for the doctor to sit, a soft blush still on his face. "Can I get you anything? A coffee? Tea?"

Kitsune smirked. "Lemonade?"

Her new friend shot the fox an amused look. "If you insist, yes, a lemonade would be great."

Keitaro nodded and left, quickly returning with a cup. Sitting down before the woman, he smiled. "Well, I suppose we can start talking about what you've discovered. Where would you like to start?"

"Well..."

Kitsune interrupted Keiko with a rude wave. "Wait, wait, wait! I know a few of the girls would be interested in this."

She turned and then bellowed out in a well practiced manner. "OI, KEITARO'S GONA START TALKIN' ABOUT HIS STUFF TO KEIKO! GET DOWN HERE!"

The dirty blond then looked back down at two deafened people. "Sorry, it's just we're all pretty curious about this stuff too. We never actually heard you talk about it personally you know?"

Keitaro just nodded, still amazed as the decibels the woman achieved. The pounding of feet then filled the room as several tenants descended the staircase rapidly. Su instantly sent Keiko a massive smile and in a loud 'whoop!' launched herself into the woman's lap and gave her a crushing hug. Shinobu, Mutsumi, Yoko and Naru were quickly in tow, Motoko gracefully descending the stairs a distance behind the other girls. They quickly found themselves seats, with Kaolla content with perching herself in Keiko's lap.

Looking around at the interested faces, Keitaro sighed. "Ok, well, you do the questions and I'll do the answers ok?"

Keiko smiled and nodded. "Ok, so, I suppose we should start with what I discovered. The main thing I found out was your immunity and blood's oxygen carrying capacity. What is that?"

Keitaro frowned. "It's hard to say as I never really worked it out. To tell you the truth, I have no idea why my body is like it is. I have studied for many, many years to try and work out why I am as I am but I have never really come to a conclusion."

Keiko frowned too. "Ok... well, does that mean you couldn't shed any light on the reason your bloods unique qualities dispersed within days of being drawn from you?"

Keitaro nodded unhappily. "Yeah, sorry but unfortunately. I'm not really any help in any regard to that."

Keiko sighed. Smiling none the less, she took a different track. "Ok then, well, how about we try another question. Ummm... ok then, how old are you exactly?"

Keitaro paled slightly as he looked around at the expectant faces. His eyes met with Yoko and he saw the boy was just as uncomfortable as he was. 'Man, I duno... only Motoko and Yoko know my true age and that made Motoko pass out for the rest of the day! Who knows how everyone else will react...'

Swallowing, looked at them all. "I don't think you would believe me if I told you..."

Keiko grinned. "Try me. What I saw in your blood was unlike anything I had ever seen ever. Technically, what you have shouldn't even exist."

Keitaro looked at her for a few seconds before sighing. "Ok. Well, I am, at this very moment in time... 19 years old."

Everyone gave him a strange look. "What?"

Naru gave him a dirty look. "Honestly where is your head at? You were 19 a year ago. Remember?"

Keitaro instantly went red. He had totally mucked up his maths."Uh, yeah, sorry..."

He saw Yoko slap a palm to his forehead. Sighing, he looked at Keiko guiltily. She just stared back at him in amusement. "Ok, I'm 20 then. This is where things start getting complex and REALLY hard to believe."

He saw the group lean in, even the ones who had heard it before. Keiko's eyes widened in excitement. "Go on..."

"Well... I'm actually from the 'future', so to speak. If anything, where I am now is the 'past' of my 'present'."

Keiko instantly put a hand to her chin and thought it over. "So, you're saying everything that is happening now has already happened by your timeline. That you have lived through it and that you decided to come back by some method. Correct?"

Keitaro nodded happily. "Yep. It's good you can grasp it."

She nodded at his approval. "Time travel, parallel universes, alternate dimensions, all those things really interest me. So, if that's the case, which future do you come from? This current timeline or a previous one? Have things changed since you came back or is everything following a pre-ordained path that cannot be altered?"

Keitaro sat back in mild shock. Not only was she handling it, she was throwing questions at him at the same level Su would. "No, everything is interchangeable. There is nothing set in concrete until it has actually been done. There for, from every moment there is another alternate future. Some decisions hardly affect the future; others change it to be totally unrecognisable. You must remember also that every decision invokes a whole new list of decisions from a singular person and as such the entire future can turn out totally different from what's predicted. Now, combine a nearly limitless amount of choices one person can make, multiply that by 6 billion people and you have a lot that can change in a life time. If you wanted to talk really big numbers, think about all the children born and raised to make their own decisions in the time the 6 billion people will make their choices. If you think about it too hard, it will send you insane."

Despite what Keitaro then expected, Keiko continued on, totally enthralled. "SO, if that's the case then that means you cannot return to the future you came back here from?"

Keitaro nodded in surprise.

"So then that means you talking to me now probably never happened and what we will discover has never been realised. But then... that also means that the doctors that caused you to be so cautious about us never got a hold of you... yeah?"

Keitaro sat silent for a moment as he absorbed what was just spilled to him. It hasn't happened yet... the despicable scientists... the blue-x-ray... he had never thought of it like that...

After a time, Keitaro slowly nodded. "Yes... I suppose you're right."

Needless to say, the rest of the group were completely confused. All this theory on time travel was totally above them, and not even a single calculation had been made yet! These complex hypotheses were enough to make even Naru's brain fade out. Kaolla though was the one exception. She sat with a small frown on her face, nodding every now and then to comments she found particularly relevant. Her mind was rapidly formulating new ideas and possibilities about time travel and intra-dimensional jumps. When Keitaro came back from his brief flash back, she spoke up.

"Hey, Keitaros... how exactly DO you time travel? I can only think up one possible way but you have surprised me before. So how? Huh?"

Keiko nodded vigorously, just as keen for the answer as the little prodigy in her lap.

Keitaro smiled. He knew from experience she had something planning. "I do it the sixth and seventh senses." He nodded at Keiko. "These have yet to be discovered because the technology doesn't exist yet."

Keiko looked up in surprise. "Two more senses you say? What are they exactly?"

Keitaro mentally sighed. This could take a while. "Ok, the sixth is what you would expect. Telepathy and telekinesis."

To mostly everyone's surprise, Keitaro and the chair he was sitting on lifted several feet in the air before setting itself back down. He held up a hand as questions started firing.

"The seventh is something called reality shift or re-shift. It involves creating an illusion around something to make it look like something totally different. If used well enough, it is able to create objects from the dust in the air"

He held his left hand up and concentrated. It oozed into a replica of his right hand for a second before his hand seemingly slipped from the image like a glove, leaving the copy floating for a moment. Grabbing it, he chucked it to Su who instantly lavished all her possible attention over it.

"While it may feel real, it will break if you're not careful. Let everyone have a feel ok?"

He looked at the girls surrounding him. While Motoko, Naru and Mutsumi were keen, Yoko, Kitsune and Shinobu were looking rather ill after seeing a dismembered hand chucked to their young friend. He chuckled and continued.

"So for the eighth sense, time travel, I combined both abilities and freeze time. I then use telekinesis to alter the speed of time, either backwards or forwards. Don't ask how I actually do it or locate the correct time because I don't know the gritty details. I just 'feel' the date and know when it is. It's tricky to explain. But yeah, that's about it!"

He then fell quiet as the group had a feel of the hand, soft murmurs coming from the girls as they tried out the fingers and so on. Keiko and Kaolla however were now deep in thought, running over what had just been said. Keiko then spoke while Kaolla still mused over things.

"Well, if that's so, how far away is this technology from being created?"

Keitaro wriggled around uncomfortably. "I duno if you'll believe me..."

Keiko shook her head stubbornly. "Na-ah you're telling me everything. I mean, how much harder to believe is it than a hand appearing in mid air?"

Keitaro shrugged. She had a point. "Ok then. Well... if I can remember correctly it is... oh, roughly about five million years in the making."

Keiko's eyes bulged when she heard that. "Five Million years! Wha... just how old are you?"

Keitaro looked away sheepishly. "About Five Million Two Hundred Thousand. Give or take."

Keiko dropped back into her chair, eyes wide and mouth gaping. "I never would have believed it... you are something real special, aren't you?"

Keitaro shifted unhappily. "I wouldn't really call it special..."

Su then piped up, having processed the information and continuing the conversation. "So, that re-shift thing was what I accidentally made you do, back when I experimented on you? And the room?"

Keiko looked down at the girl in confusion. Seeing no response, she glanced at Keitaro. He made a gesture that said just leave it. Keitaro then had to have a quick think to try and remember what she was talking about. "Uhhh... yeah, yeah that's right. Everything looked weird, but in reality it wasn't."

Yoko and Su shook their heads. "Nah that was very real. Dude you nearly killed us both! Twice!"

Keitaro blushed and looked away. "Oh... yeah, sorry about that."

Su laughed and Yoko just gave him a look. "Mate we forgave you ages ago. Don't fret about it."

Eager to change the subject, Keitaro then looked at Kaolla. "You said you had another theory for time travel. What was it?"

The eccentric blond instantly lit up. "Oh, mine was more theorising the possibility of breaking the dimensional barrier between this universe and the opposite one, of antimatter."

Keiko looked down in surprise. Who could have guessed such an immature girl was host to such a complex mind!

"Basically, I was thinking of creating a spherical capsule to travel back in time with. Seeming antimatter is totally opposite of everything in this universe, it's not impossible to say time also flows backwards there! So, to break into that plane would mean that, travelling near that universes speed of light would take us into that universes future, but therefore into our past! To return would simply be a matter of travelling near the speed of light in our universe. Or linking the entrance and exit portals together with a wormhole of sorts so it's easier to return. The hardest part though would be accurately pinpointing a specific time to land at. Travelling in antimatter would mean that nothing would be visible to our eyes and as such, finding the correct portal, so to say, to exit at would be near impossible. Some form of landmark would be needed to pinpoint a specific time, such as an atomic blast or something that would create a flux in time great enough to be discovered. From there, it would be theoretically possible to calculate the distance travelled between the now and the then, and therefore calculate how to make the time jump to that point or others. Or, if I could get you to come along, maybe you could learn to 'feel' the time we're at! It would serve as a super easy way to avoid a whole list of near innumerable equations."

She then stuck her tongue out and rubbed the back of her head. "It's all only theory for the moment though!"

When she finished, the room descended into gobsmacked silence. She had actually worded it in a way that everyone understood... mostly... but the thing that got everyone was that it sounded totally possible! Naru and Mutsumi were wide eyed and whispering between themselves, sharing ideas on possible calculations. Down the back was Shinobu and Motoko with Yoko, clarifying some of the more foggy details but Kitsune had all but zoned out from the word go. This was not her area of expertise and as such found it unnecessary to listen in. Keiko on the other hand gaped down at the young girl in wonder and ruffled her hair.

"Well aren't you a box of surprises! That is incredible sweetie!"

Kaolla just gave her a big smile and giggled. As everyone settled, it was then Shinobu that spoke up from the back.

"W-well... if you can really time travel, why didn't you just go back and change things so we didn't have to go through all this? Why didn't you stop it so you didn't have to hurt?"

The rest of the girls and even Yoko began mumbling in agreement. Why didn't he?

Keitaro then sent them an incredibly warm gaze that totally encompassed them all. "Believe me, I tried. I thought that I could, but after I tried a few tries I realised that every other option ended up in a similar or worse scenario. As such, I came to realise the way I had to beat this thing. Even if it meant that you all had to endure some form of pain, I would prefer that than seeing you dead..." He saw tears beginning to emerge from some of the more caring eyes. "Besides, for you guys, I would really do anything to keep you safe. Even if it meant going through this all over again, I would. That's just how much you mean to me."

It was then that everyone in the room was given a glimpse of just how deep the heart of their manager went. Instantly Keitaro was swamped by all the girls, some crying, some laughing and others thanking him repeatedly for his sacrifice. Keiko looked across and smiled when she saw Yoko wiping a tear from his eye as he considered this amazing friend he had. His eyes met Keiko's and he laughed, from what, he could not tell but he just had to. The doctor watched as the boy giggled silently to himself, her smile softening further.

'You cannot even begin to classify this kind of friend. You all are so lucky to know him.'

And amongst the noise of the girls, Keitaro's merry laughter carried around the room and into the halls.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOo

A/N – well, that seemed like a good spot to stop. There was more I could write but, yeah, good spot n' all =) I hope you liked this chapter anyway. The first bit was a bit of a struggle to write but that last hypothetical bit came easily. Can you tell I'm a sucker for time travel theories, antimatter and parallel universes? I'm such a tragic hahahaha XD

Surprisingly though, I'm not sure how many chapters I have left to write... it just occurred to me then that I have summed up most of everything I wanted said in the final chapters... wow, it is a strangely satisfying feeling knowing that all this is nearly done.

There will be one more chapter I think, possibly two, depending on how I write it (plus the epilogue).

On that note, I shall leave you good readers for the moment. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it! Let me know what you think anyway, it's always good to get readers opinions.

See you in the next chapter =)

Lanky Nathan.

P.S. – The theory on antimatter time travel was actually leached from this amazing story I read a while ago by 'Doctor-T' called 'Love Hina: Doomsday'. Please do yourself a favour and read it. You'll find it in my favourites if you're too lazy to search for it. It is far and away one of the greatest sci/fi stories on this site (and also complete so you don't have to worry about updates). So to that fantastic writer, I give my thanks for the inspiration to this chapter.