Now, I know you completed this story a while back but I couldn't help but want to comment on it. I was truly moved by your story; it was adorable, sad, happy and funny all at once. It was very easy to like your characters. Speaking of characters, I myself have trouble with creating intriguing and consistent characters but you seemed to pull off their creation without a hitch and without making them boring. I was very impressed. I must say that this story has become one of my favorite Fiction Press stories, if not one of my favorite stories in general. So, I commend you for creating it. If it's not too much trouble, would you mind giving me a few tips on making consistent characters (by personal message)? It would be very appreciated. All in all, great story!

Well damn, pat yourself on the back. There, now I have a review for every chap ^_^

Mm, Blue Star you say...I must check out this series and see if its as every bit awesome as Kaji o Sagashite.

Irrelevant sidenote: I was taking a shower and was cycling through all the crazy scenes in Kaji o Sagashite. Then I remembered it was over and it made me sad.

(dep breath)

Alright! I finished another story! So few FP writers have full stories from start to finish. Oh man, it ends, but wow, this is one of the best stories I've ever read...like ever. Not even just in FP and not even limited to reading. Hell, this is better than most tv shows, movies, and anime I've ever seen. Of course, it wouldn't be me unless I provided my reasons for thinking so:

First, you had the full circle, the story didn't have any loose ends that I saw and the ending echoed the beginning very well. The characters were top notch, beautifully done. You focused all your effort on three people, Kaji, Shizuka, and Seiya, and in doing so just about exhausted them mentally, physically, and emotionally. The story was really funny, hilarious at times, and was also really exaggerated, but not unreasonable, melodramatic, or unrealistic. I did have some trouble getting the time period down, it felt like it was so...1800ish because of their traveling, but that's what made it all the better. It was strange, and strange stories have a way of captivating their audiences. The images and descriptions were all really good and I had very little, if any trouble, seeing them. The side characters were all memorable and beautifully done. Ojiisan, the boy and girl couple that Shizuka saved (they actually fended for themselves at one point) the little boy and girl with their dogs, the Izumi parents, the lady at the graveyard (forgive me for forgetting names, I'm horrendous at names) but my point is, all those characters, though background in nature, really shined and made the story all the more wonderful. Is there anything you didn't do right!? I think not! Not to mention the serious tension that crept up every now and then, injecting drama and plot at every turn when it came up. So even though this is like, the most light-hearted story I've ever read, it had some serious drama in it too. I'm sure there's tons more I could say, but I can't think of anythign else; my memory fails me! I loved this story! So great! Ah!

Actually, just as a final tidbit, you should check out "Kyou Kara Maou," this story really reminded me of that because they both share the same fantastically amiable characters and situations. It's a really funny anime (not sure if its a manga) but if you get a chance to take a look at it, I swear you'll laugh. A lot.

Ok, so now I sign off and bid you adieu. I'll take a look at the notes page another time, but wow...what an adventure. I'm sorry if I come off as hyped, or exaggerated with my praise or criticism, but I mean all of it! All of you peope reading this review, hit back and read the story instead! You won't be disappointed!

What a fun-filled chapter, I was laughing all the way through it. And no, not quite chuckles (actually they were quite chuckles since I didn't want my roommate to think I was crazy, but if he weren't here I would be so laughing my ** off). But again, this sorta felt like fluff but it did a lot to show off the characters. I really liked the connections between how Kaji always seems to be supernaturally inclined, though you could just chalk it up to Kaji being Kaji. Aww, there was an alone time with Shizuka and Seiya but nothing happened between them. But I did like the crazy misadventure Kaji and Seiya ended up in. And really Kaji always seems to be right; I think you said it best with "When it concerned things that were not about himself, he always was, wasn't he?"

Ohmigod, I love Shizuka's parents! And I think I discovered something unbelievable. You see, I hate angst to death...but all this time, I think it's because it's always been misplaced. There's no doubt in my mind that Seiya was a little angsty at the beginning, hating Ryuu like that and all, but I realized, he had every right to be! In most stories, the angst is always at the beginning! In this story all the angst is at the end! The key difference is that I've had a whole 15 or so chapters to fall in love with the characters! So when they get angsty, I get angsty and totally sympathize with them! Take that all you crappy anime/manga with your uberly dramatic angsty characters!

"Katsu dear..." Saori said, smiling. "You just shoved her out of the way so you could ask me where she was."

Like I said, I love her parents already and I've known them for like half a chapter.

Ok, yeah so I didn't see the Seiya/Shizuka combo at first, but as soon as Seiya's name was dramatically shouted, whammy, it hit me and a big smile went across my lips. But ah...I think I'll save my internal thoughts for later. I'm almost done reading, so I can supress my urge to praise you lol. Overall, what a wonderful conclusion. Everything was so light-hearted and fantastic, I really couldn't believe it. Well, I could, but yay! I'll take you up on those fireworks!

Heh, go ahead and pat yourself on the back. You stumped me last chapter. The writing was so well done, despite how I pride myself in throwing up these huge long reviews about all sorts of things that interested me and sometimes pointing out things the author needs to work on or things the author has going for them...I actually was shut up to two single words. I really did mean those two single words as well. So much happened and the chapter was so pointed and well written, that saying anything more would have been inappropriate in my eyes. I mean, really, a ton of stuff happened and a lot could have been said, but who am I to nitpick it?

Back to the review of this chapter, I am absolutely amazed, yet again, at how things transitioned. The flow was staggeringly easy. If that makes sense. There was this gigantic explosion from the culmination of all the romantic tension that got built up between Seiya and Shizuka...that when it did pull a Vesuvius, I thought, how is the author going to fix this. And whadaya know? You fixed it. I mean, everyone was back on the train playing cards and telling jokes, and it was ALMOST as if nothing had happened. But what was best, was that the characters felt content with thier journey. Hell, they felt relieved. And because you are such an awesome writer, you put so much confidence in their resolution, that I felt relieved. In this chapter I came away with a sigh and a smile. As if I was reminiscing with them too.

I think this chapter felt relevant and most of the stuff explained was needed. Like I said, I got a really nice transition from the last chapter into this one, so that alone makes this chapter essential. As for the flow, I cheated. When you wrote this I have no idea how long it took your readers to read from chap to chap. But because this story is done, I get to read all of it back to back lol. So for that, I cheated. All your characters were convincing and I think they acted appropriately. Their highest quality is friendship and redemption and they have really high wills. That means it seems like they can overcome things and then joke about it afterwards. I think its the characters more than anything else that make everything fit together so nicely.

Oh man.

Waah! He was so close! No Seiya damn you for not conclusively telling her your feeling which in turn would have ruined the romance of the story! So, for that, Kudos as well. But oh the drama and realization quickly came back in droves. It's amazing how such a good mood can turn sour, while still keeping things within the bounds of reality. It didn't feel overdone or anything and I appreciate the truth of the matter. Melodrama is bad.

Wow.

Just give me a second while I take in the ending.

I won't say that was completely unexpected...but you handled that really well. There are always two ends to a situation. What we want...and what we always dub "Worst Case Scenerio." Rarely does the worst case scenerio ever come up, and I must say, what made the ending so believable is that there's a reason worst case scenerio exists. Although, it's unlikely, it's a possibility. And because of that, I'm not going to say anything significant about the way this chapter ended. Only, wow.

But it is pretty depressing, though I must say, I was really anticipating something dramatic. I was scrolling one click at a time so I wouldn't accidently read ahead of myself. So I'm happy to say I got the full impact of the last line. Well, not happy, but sad, but you know what I mean. Beautifully written. All of it.

First off, what a great way to lead into the the pillow scene. At first I was a little scared because I hate not knowing things 'cause they usually end up being bad things. Next, after such a lucid and beautiful slide into the said pillow being Seiya, I felt much more relieved and let a chuckle escape my mouth. Now, for the fun part. Plan B is definitely the greatest plan in the world. I was laughing out loud not realizing how quickly it smacked me in the face. It was really funny.

Man...they way you've done the romance is amazing. I can't believe how well it was portrayed, well I can, but I was being dramatic. Actually, just a breakdown on why I think you've won the Best Romance genre in my eye (or did I already tell you that earlier...or did I already nominate someone else? Man I hate how terrible my memory):

Every good romance needs tenions. Because of your vibrant portrayal of Shizuka's voice in which the narration is almost always in Shizuka's voice, not only do we get insight into her head, but we also get all the bias and tension it brings as well. And because the voice is almost always (maybe it always) is limited to Shizuka, we get no idea what Seiya is thinking or what his reasons are for his actions unless he specifically says so in dialogue. Next, Shizuka is very dramatic and through your flawless narration, easily slides thought processes, decisions, and actions, without little to no resistance. THIS, is a achievement of magnificent fortitude. I don't know anyone else that can balance voice, internal thought, dialogue, and actions all at once. Exaggeration? I think not. With all those in mind, readers are easily empathetic to to Shizuka and feel her troubles like they would be our own. Hell, the narration is so good I'd swear I would do the exact same thing in her place. So when any bit of anger and malice comes between Shizuka and Seiya (keeping in mind Seiya is pretty oblivious to it all (not to be confused with dense (cause he isn't) we understand Shizuka is pretty much the root of the problem. So it's up to Seiya to try and fix the problem (while we as readers are snickering because we know it wasn't his fault in the first place) until the glorious climax of the said romantic tension gets resolved. And then we're like "Aww, poor Seiya, aww, poor Shizuka. They look so cute together, they should be together." But of course, as the author you're like "No, not yet, cause that would kill the mood," and so you continue to expertly draw out their romantic dilemma, throwing hints that they should be together, but can't quite put them together...just yet. And that is why I think you should win Best Romance in my eye.

lol I'm only halfway through this chap.

And my God, what a great second half of the chapter. I can see why you would think this might be a useless chapter, but really it isn't. If a story had a main plot that went all the way through, it would God-awful boring story. Side stories, charater arcs, diverging plot lines; those are what make novels fun to read. And this is the perfect example of that. It's great to just sit back and relax to some nonsense. And really, this chapter was a nuke in the department of characterization. You did a great job showing sides of Kaji that we've never seen before. And what makes it so great, is damn! we're this far into the story and now the guy is having fun the way Shizuka would!? (which I thought was hilarious. The way Shizuka exploded in horror was not expected. I really didn't see that one coming. Why? Cause Kaji wouldn't never do that!) That is great characterization. It took a while for Kaji to really warm up to them, but it was all worth it. Ever. Single. Word.

Oh, it's so good to read this story again! Boy, I'll tell ya, there are some upstart writers who still need a lot of practice. The problem with writers nowadays is their style still needs a lot of work. So it's a bit of a pain to try and sift through their jokes (which aren't funny) or their weird analogies or convoluted thought processes. This is a breath of fresh air. I still can't believe how great your written voice is. I tend to shy away from really voicey type narratives because I can't seem to connect to the narrator, but this, oh wow, my God I love it so much! Like I said, breath of fresh air, I missed this story so much. I hope none of my reviewees sees this post, but in case they do (Dude, I totally wasn't talking about you, I meant the other guy).

Ok! All joking aside, I did enjoy the long narration. It was done with Kaji's voice in mind and it felt like I could really hear Kaji talking. I'm not a fan of flashbacks because it really breaks the flow of the story, and seems so fake. Like, you can't do a flashback in relief (ala Wayne's World) so I do like narration better. Shizuka is still a magnificent character and if I'll walk away with anything it'll be "This is unjust!" I love the way she thinks. And Seiya wasn't being dense at all; if I were in his place I would just be really confused. So I think you handled him well. It's not like Shizuka is throwing him hints...rather, she seems to be accidently flashing hints in front of him but then dramatically denies all traces of it.

Yeay for stories! :D :D :D

Wow. And so it ends...

I love the ending!! So, so, incredibly sweet... I love this story so much that I don't know where to start.

I really love extra episode too, it was hilarious and so cute at the same time, and I couldn't help grinning when Kaji mentioned the flying part and seiya was like 'who says you can fly?' Ha. If only he knew. Anyway, what is the 'training facility'?

Oh yeah, Shizuka's cousins are hilarious. But why am I surprised though? Haha.

And about the last ep, really love what shizuka told kaji, the 'that's just *it*'. How true, how very true. Oh and the gift!! It'd be so cool if there's an actual copy of that in real life! Just imagine!

And kaji blushed!! Ha!

And the very last part...

"You're back..."
"I'm home."

COOL!! If only you wrote what happened after... hehe.

Anyway, this is an incredible story. (Blue Star is as well) You wouldn't guess how many times after a bad day and then opening the mail box and seeing the update alert, the day just seemed to brighten. (Well, most of the time it's night already, but still) It just takes me away to this brand new cool world with flying and justice and so many things. And I love the fact that you write long chapters, hehe, I can get into the story and not come up for a long time.

Overall, I hope you keep on writing! Money I don't have, nor tomatoes, but praises there're tons.

::shower FuyuSarah with praises and sparkles::

Yeay for you! :P

Whew, man, so much happens in all these chapters. I guess that's a good thing right?

Nice move with the passage of time. I always hated the whole "1 month later/3 months later/2 weeks later" thing, but I really felt like a lot of time had passed. It was really good that you picked up with the most important even in any passage of time, and for this it would be Ojiisan's confession that he had nothing else for the lot of them. So on to Niigata they should go. The old man is mysteriuos as ever, but I'm willing to go out on a limb and say the old man is Kaji's granpda. Am I right!? No, you don't have to tell me, hell, maybe he's Shizuka's grandpa lol. The guy is so crazy wise he could be just about any body that would make you go "Zomg! It was that guy!"

The spar between Kaji and Seiya was pretty intense and served some important purposes imo. The first was showing how well Seiya has come along in terms of protecting dear Shizuka. And he hit Kaji! Woot lol! And I was the person who said Seiya wasn't as cool as Kaji. But when Shizuka walked in lol, poor Seiya, he went into the huge monolgue with himself reaffirming how much he like Shizuka.

Anyway, lol, when I started reading this chapter I was like, damn you know what has happened in like, forever? Any mention of those guys that Shizuka coined...now what was it...the men up to no good! And then that's where the laughs stopped. At first the fights with the men up to no good were intense, but ok 'cause Shizuka the Cat was strong and could never be defeated. But this time around, she totally got defeated. This is important in lots o ways imo. You want to talk about characterization, Kaji is slowly becoming more open to his two companions, Seiya is learning how to fight and be more of a man if you will, but poor Shizuka, she's finding out that she isn't the great defender of justice she had meant to be. She isn't the unbreakable stealth cat that could do it all. And for that, she is just so cute and adorable, but not when the men up to no good are beating the tar out of her. Anyway, I mean characters can evolve and develope in more ways than one. For Shizuka and her fans, its finding out that as the forces of evil close in on her, her good luck dwindles. So its important that Seiya and Kaji are with her. She's not weak by all means, its just that I think we as readers are slowly finding out she's just as human as the rest of us. And I think alot of that has been played out in the last few chapters. Or, am I stating the downright obvious? Maybe I should stop saying "we" lol.

Good drama at the end. I believe Shizuka is still willfully strong enough to emotionally hold her own, but it doesn't hurt that Seiya gets some more onscreen time with her alone. Ooh, the seriousness of the drama is slowly showing its head. This story totally has the ability to become a tear-jerker.

Is it just me or are my reviews more like conversations with myself? Honestly, what am I talking about half the time anyway? Lol, I wish you kept those A/N questions at the end so I know how to better critique you. Sure, I've critqued short stories before and all that, but most of the time its when I know what happens from start to finish. The hard thing is that I can't do that because I haven't read the whole thing. So I'm sorry that all of my reviews are postive in nature and not negative. Sure when people point out problems it helps you (I use you but refer to people in general) fix them easier, but I don't want to do that because I would look pretty stupid if I say something and then read a chapter later to find out you resolved it.

I liked what I just said so much, I'm going to copy and paste it in me profile lol. Break time! I'll read more of this story later.

Let me take a moment to gather up my thoughts, spilt across the expanse of what has happened. Nice beginning, you really hit the nail on the head with Shizuka and Seiya. They've become much more friendly with each other. And ya know what, after reading this chapter, Seiya ain't so bad I guess. Kaji is so...somewhere else, Shizuka and Seiya seem to be much close to the same wavelength. Little by little, they're really connecting, or finding out what the other really means to them.

The arguments:
Good. The characterization and sympathy to characters was awesome. The little arguments seem lighthearted while the heavier ones (Kaji's gf, parents, Shizuka saying too much) are intense in themselves.

The Old Wise Guy:
Ojiisan is just Ojiisan. He does seem like the wise type and he does seem to be really mature and wise. The only thing I can't figure out is how he managed to get Kaji and Seiya to do more work after that little tussle.

Kaji:
I completely understood where Kaji was coming from. It was expected when Shizuka said his patience was probably being tried. And when he did explode, it seemed suden, but appropriate. But what made it really great was that after that explosion, it's not like it was said and done. Slowly, the talk with Seiya later led into his personality, and then the fact he did have a loved one elsewhere. Which was a perfect setup for Shizuka's part.

Shizuka: Her role was spot on. Perfecto. Uber. Anyway, it was really nice to see her playful manner pester Kaji until he spilled his guts. And then she started stepping on that line with Kaji still trying to figure out what to say. Kaji was in character imo. He got mad a few hours before or something like that I think, so it would make sense that his personality was still a little raw. And it would make sense that he would divulge that information to Shizuka. She crossed the line by loudly proffessing her dismay to Kaji's disregard to his supposed gf, but she didn't leap over it. I thought that entire scene was so perfect. Normally when I read things they're always so melodramatic in my eye, or things are said and actions are done that aren't that realistic. But this was just so perfect!

Seiya:
I've become a Seiya fan lol. Maybe it's because Kaji admitted to a gf, or Shizuka and Seiya would be great together, but Seiya has been elevated in my eyes from "suspicious" to "pretty damn good." I actually did forget that he didn't like people making a fuss over him, but when he snapped at Shizuka, I was like oh. Pre-chap I would have been like, "Hah! You don't deserve her anyway!" but after reading the whole chapter I was like "Quick! Take it back! No! Don't make her feel bad!" I think showing that side of him (cranky, upset, when he wasn't normally) was the possible choice. It was the perfect set up for us to get another view of him, one that wasn't the happy-do-everything-Shizuka-says. And it was awesome how he stood up to her like that. Well, awesome is relative, but you know what I mean. I just thought everything that happened in this chapter was perfectly executed.

There are so many great writers in Fictionpress (and just as many that have a long way to go) but I just wanted to say, you've got some of the best characterization I've seen so far. I know a person who has prose and style like none other and I know another person who can create some of the best dialogue I've ever read, but you're tied for characterization. (Stealth Addict by bluebutterflydays is the other) But bluebutterflydays is much more serious than you, and I hope he/she doesn't see this, but I like humor a twinge more than seriousness. Oh, what I would give to be able to create characters like you.

Oh, damn that old man, he's such an **! How dare he mentally crush Shizuka's exagerated happiness with a simple problem of the natural understanding of how to use nature to one's advantage! But Shizuka did get that awesome idea to use the magnifying glass; it was a nice try on her part. This was a really cool short side story thing, since it focused all of its energy on Shizuka and her inability to overcome the caveman's greatest dilemma. Kaji's little thing in there was nice to see, but it's really hard to read the guy, so I haven't got the slightest clue what goes through his head when he's with her. And so far Shizuka is much more emotionally attached to Seiya than Kaji. Of course, because the pov never shifts to Kaji directly, the readers are led to that assumption. But Shizuka already seems to be much more embarassed with her thoughts on Seiya as opposed to Kaji. But seriously, what was the deal with that fire? Stupid ojiisan. I'm totally missing something important aren't I? I be it was some great evident truth that jumped out to everyone else but lied curled and dead to me.

Kaji! Faito!

PS. That's a a really interesting question. I'm a Keji/Shizuka fan actually, an almost hardcore Kaji/Shizuka fan...but I'm a guy, and I have this sneaky suspicion that girls are more likely to gravitate to Seiya/Shizuka instead. Can you confirm this for me lol? I'm kinda interested to know what everyone else thought.

So I didn't review this for whatever reason, but I did read it. I guess I just forgot?

The parent thing sounds really good. I have to admit, I've got a story of mine where two kids are looking for their parents, and I haven't even really got into it yet. They way you've been giving just enough to advance the story, but not enough for even the readers to make a guess is frustrating! but really good! And Shizuka seems to have supressed feelings for a certain friend, mhmm, I'm sure that'll never come up again. The fight scene was true to your other fight scenes, only this time, the victims actually did something! And that guy looked so cool fighting, even if he didn't really know how to. I'm glad Shizuka stayed true to her personality too. The end was a nice cliff.