10. Jin Past
That day Kenshin niichan and Yui neechan mommy, aunt Yua, told me that my dad won't be coming home anymore but he will keep watching me from the star up in the sky.
At that time I wasn't old enough to understand what really happened but I still understand that my dad won't be going home again, but that only made me confused.
I don't know why but aunt Yua kept hugging me for a long time that day. We went to an unfamiliar place where all the people wore black clothes.
Everyone had a sad face plastered on their face but I don't know why. At that time, all I felt was scared. A lot of people that I don't recognize were looking at me with pity.
Fortunately aunt Yua was holding me so I can hide my face to her. Aunt Yua then took me inside a room and there my mom was sitting on the ground while crying in front of a long rectangular wooden box.
"Haru!! Haru!!" Cried my mom while shouting my dad's name.
The wooden box was decorated with a lot of flowers and on top it was the photo of my smiling dad.
Hearing my mom cry made me cry as well. I kept calling her 'mommy' 'mommy' while being hugged by aunt Yua.
Maybe hearing my cry, my mom stop crying, look back at me, and then brought me to her embrace while saying 'it's alright' 'mommy's here' many times to me.
Then a year passed, although short but living with only one parent made me mature earlier than my peers. I know that our family condition was bad so I never asked my mom to buy me things or to give me money to buy snacks.
One day, aunt Yua and uncle Kenji came to my house together with Kenshin nii and Yui nee. Mom then told me to play as the adults have something to talk about.
"Sakura, we need to talk." (Yua)
When they came out of the room they had their conversation, the face of both my mom and aunt Yua was a bit tense.
That night, my mom was unusually being quiet while holding a photo of our family. When I ask "What's wrong mom?" she only smiled at me and say "Nothing." then went to sleep.
After that day, aunt Yua came everyday to talk with my mom. Sometimes she came with Kenshin nii and Yui nee, and sometimes she came alone.
At first I didn't notice anything wrong about aunt Yua frequent visit as our family have a very close relationship, but after 3 months being visited everyday, of course I bound to realize something.
One day my mom ran out of money and food so we didn't eat all day. She then came to me and say that she was sorry for not being able to be a good mom for me.
When I heard her saying those painful words, I came to hug my mom and said that she was the best mom I ever could have.
After I said that she cried for hours while hugging me and the next day we moved to aunt Yua house.
"Jin, from now on you should call me mommy Yua and call uncle as dad okay."(Yua)
That's was the first thing I heard when I woke up from my sleep. When I look at my surrounding, I already found myself inside an unfamiliar big bedroom.
Aunt Yua was sitting beside the bed, waiting for me to wake up while my mom was gone.
"You don't have to worry about Sakura, she's currently with Kenji and they have something to do with the government." (Yua)
Although I was still 8 years old, my own mentality was mature enough to deduce what was really happening.
I came to realize by my own that my mom will be marrying uncle Kenji, that's why aunt Yua told me to call her as mommy from then on.
Long story short, my mom married uncle Kenji the next week and they hold a small wedding only for close relatives and close friends.
Although I was a little sad for this, I realize that my mom did it so that I have a better life. I also prefer to join this new family than seeing my mom suffer again from overworking.
That's how I start to live as Jin Konoe, leaving my old name as Jin Kazama.
From then on my mom become healthier and happier. Since my mom become step dad second wife, mommy Yua always stick together with my mom.
I also become happy as I have older siblings that I can rely on but our happy days didn't last long.
One day dad Kenji took all of us back to his home to celebrate the Konoe family establish anniversary. All of us went there with a smile on our face as that day was a day for celebration.
But it all went down when the elders of the Konoe family start to ignore my mom and my presence.
"Why did you brought these outsiders to our home, Kenji?" said one of the elder of the Konoe house.
From there, other elders then start to amonish step dad Kenji and try to drive away me and my mom out from their house.
Fortunately step dad kenji then snap out and shouted back at them, saying that he was the head of the house so he have the final say for everything, even if he want to take another wife for him, their opinion doesn't matter.
After that all of the elders became quiet and the day ended with a tense atmosphere around everyone.
Months passed then one day my mom and aunt Yua got pregnant together. A year later, they gave birth to 3 newborn babies. my mom gave birth to a girl that she named Hikari, while mommy Yua gave birth to a twin girls that she named Mirai and Kirari.
Time passed again and two years later my mom and mommy Yua got pregnant again and each of them gave birth to a boy, one named Genji and other named Hiroshi. That's how I got 5 younger siblings within the span of 4 years.
When my mom gave birth to Hikari, although I don't know what they were talking about at that time, the Konoe household found out that Hikari was very talented and have a lot of potential.
From that day, they accepted my mom as part of the Konoe family, but they kept calling me as outsider since I didn't carry any of Konoe blood inside of me.
Aunt Yua then one day asked my mom to join her show and somehow her popularity skyrocketed in the span of 6 months. My mom then became the same as aunt Yua, one of the most popular celebrity in Japan.
It was the same for Kenshin nii and Yui nee as they already debuted as a child actor when they still 5 years old.
Years passed then one by one my younger siblings also got related in the show business from their childhood.
The only exception was me. While all of my siblings were busy with their work as celebrity, I am busy at keeping my own life afloat.
The first time I almost lose my life was when I was 11 years old. That day all of my family was out to the Konoe house except for me as they didn't want to see me.
It was at night when I somehow heard a noise from outside of my house. Being scared of it, I decided to hide inside a small cabinet in my parents room.
Then I start to hear a lot of man voices but the thing that I focused on was when they said, 'where is the boy?'. It was then that I realized they are searching for me.
Fortunately, after hiding for 2 hours, they didn't manage to find me and went out from my house. The next day, my family came back and when I heard the familiar car engine outside of my house, I came out from my hiding and went back to my room.
I was mature enough to know that someone is targeting me and the biggest culprit would be the people from the Konoe house.
after that day, I decided to learn various martial arts to increase my own survival. I didn't tell any of my family members about the assassination.
I know how hard my mom life was when we were living only with the two of us and I don't want her to go back to that life anymore. I don't want to make her worry for me.
Another 2 years then passed with my schedule full of training martial arts. At that point, there were already more than 20 assassination attempt targeting me. my step dad saved me from 12 of those attempts and I was able to save my life for the other 8 attempts.
but being affected by the good morals of the society, I didn't kill those assassins and choose to tell my step dad about them. My step dad then will take care of the rest and I went home to sleep.
I was still 13 years old when I met my first best friend, Garou Shida. We met by coincidence when I try to defend myself from the 21 assassination attempt at me.
Without saying anything, Garou moved to help me and with his help, we were able to take down the assassins.
It was also that day when I have my first blood. Garou taught me that it was necessary for me to learn how to kill if I want to survive.
From that day, I become friends with Garou as he also had his own share of assassination attempts for his head.
He also told me that he was the son of the mighty dark organization, Shelter that has terrorized the whole Japan a few times.
He then brought me to one of his family dojo and I learn various martial arts specializing for killing there.
Almost all of their tests also involve killing others. I also learned how to use fire arms together with Garou when he have his firearms class putted by his own father.
We become sworn brother and promise to help each other out. Whenever there's an assassination attempt whether at him or at me, we ran to each other back and fought together.
Although we become sworn brothers, I never brought him to my home and I was the one who always play to his house.
No one inside my family know that I was friend with the heir of the notorious 'Shelter'.
The Konoe family being one of the few prestigious family in Japan also have a close ties with the governments.
If my step dad found out that I have relation with 'Shelter', the Konoe family don't have to sent any more assassins as I know that my own step dad will punish me to the point killing me as he loathe the existences of dark organizations itself.
To be honest, I already know that my so called family didn't really care about me at all. There were times where I didn't go home and stay at Garou house but none of my family members even realize it.
Perhaps they were to busy with their work, or maybe something else. We never eat with a full family members on the table as each of us has their own busy schedule to do, or so I forced myself to believe.
If I have to be honest, I already seen some mysterious cards inside Garou's room before.
When I asked him about those cards, he only answered vaguely and even made an oath that he will tell me in the future when he have better spare cards.
I don't know what he meant that day but now that I already involved within this game, I know now.
I still remember that the back of the cards have the word 'Skull something' which now I know that it was Skulldrow.
At least now I felt better for realizing that I at least have someone by my side. I still remember that most of his cards outlines were bronze colored and few of it were silver, but non of them were gold.
The day I saw Garou cards inside his room was only 4 weeks before I got inside this game, that's why I still remember it vividly.
The fact that Garou even made an oath to tell me about and give better cards proved that he really cares for me.
The oath between us sworn brothers is something we decided to kept sacred between us, that's why when he made that oath, I was so shocked as I didn't understand why did that.
Rather than my so called family who kept me in the dark for my whole life, Garou felt like a real family to me.
I can't believe even my own birth mother did this to me. Perhaps, after living with the Konoes she realize how hard her life was when she married my dad so she decided to be a real Konoe.
Well, I don't give a fuck anymore.