Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Rei - Daybreak Fight Club
Inspired by the Daybreak PSP OP. A world without the drama and mystery surrounding Hinamizawa, the kids at Hinamizawa's school have a new club: a Fight Club. The light-hearted game of life and death within Hinamizawa begins. But will this war become real? Rated for violence, language and possible character death.
Battle 1 - Daybreak
Keiichi / Natsumi vs. Mion / Shion
Keiichi yawned tiredly while the yells of the younger students of Hinamizawa's school echoed in the air, the sun's warmth lying upon him through the open window. He smiled gently; the day was just as perfect as each since he had arrived in the quaint village. His exhaustion derived from his recent burst in elongated training sessions with the baseball bat he had taken from a locker weeks before. He had to toughen up, the world was a dangerous place, the school was a dangerous place, he had no idea when someone was going to lash out and attack him, when something was going to back him into a corner, when-
"Keiichi!" a young girl's voice bellowed.
Keiichi's eyelids rose gradually, staring up at the girl towering over him. This was no surprised; usually someone was staring at him just inches from his face. He sat up casually, staring drowsily at her. The girl's hair had been tied up into scruffy pigtails, her hair a mustard-blonde, bordering green.
"What, Natsumi?" Keiichi moaned.
"Ohaiyo, Keiichi. You shouldn't be so lazy; you'll get caught off-guard easily. You know how dangerous it is to doze in the day" Natsumi giggled lightly, a single fighting raised knowledgeably.
"For your information, the reason I'm tired is because I've been training to protect myself" Keiichi grumbled, folding his arms behind his head.
"If you say so, but just remember that training at night is just as dangerous as sleeping in the day. If not more".
"I'll bear that in mind. Where are the others?"
"Outside. Working on their battle techniques. They, too, are working hard to defend themselves individually. At this rate, you'll still need someone covering your back; you're going to get left behind and killed".
"If you say so. I'm doing just fine by myself. I have my own way to fight off any threats".
Just as Keiichi finished, glaring infuriatingly at the opposite end of the disserted classroom, the closed door, a knife tore through the air in front of him, shooting between himself and Natsumi and embedding itself in the space Keiichi had been watching. Neither said a word, their eyes fixated on the weapon widely with disbelief.
"What the hell?" Keiichi spat eventually.
"My bad!" another girl's voice came.
The call was followed by an emerald haired girl leaping through the open window after the blade, landing on Keiichi's desk for a second. Her hair fell gracefully behind her, a single canary yellow ribbon at the back of her hair tied neatly within the strands of her hair. She shot forward before either had a moment to mull over her exceptional entrance. Her second leap conveyed her across the classroom, landing by the knife without any difficultly. Removing the knife was a simple task; she performed it as easily as her acrobatics.
"Yo~" she called with a wink.
"Shion!" Keiichi snapped furiously. "Mind where you throw that thing, you almost had my head!"
"Maybe next time I should throw it a little to the right then" Shion giggled teasingly.
"Bitch" Keiichi swore beneath his breath, laying his chin against the palm of his hand.
"Natsumi, are you going to come out with us or waste your time with Keiichi?"
"I'll be out in a minute; I wanted to see if he planned to join us".
"Well, Keiichi-kun, are you going to join us?" Shion inquired, raising an eyebrow slyly.
"Is this an interrogation, trying to force me out? At least Natsumi could play 'Good Cop' and you'd be perfect for 'Bad Cop'" Keiichi mumbled, chuckling mockingly.
Shion growled, raising the knife in her hand violently. At the sight of it, Keiichi felt a drop of sweat slide down out of Shion's sight. Natsumi's eyes shot between the pair silently, interjecting would be fatal. But she appreciated Keiichi's remark, even if it was simply a ploy to get at Shion, payback for her implication that next time, she'd aim for his head.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Shion snarled viciously.
"You have the weapon, you're the ruthless one. It all fits together" Keiichi insisted, folding his arms confidently.
"Yeah, I believe you" Shion mumbled menacingly, she'd have her revenge. It was only a matter of time.
"Shion!" a voice from outside the building bellowed authoritatively.
Without another word of protest to either the voice or to Keiichi; Shion dove forward, mirroring the same moves from her entrance, landing on his desk once again before shooting out, leaving both Keiichi and Natsumi staring mutely, impressed by the elegance within her movements.
"She's getting a lot better, I told you that you're going to get left behind" Natsumi muttered, the smile absence from her face replaced with the stare of amazement after Shion's display.
"Don't worry, I have no intentions of losing; especially to a Sonozaki" Keiichi insisted, watching Natsumi in the corner of his eye.
"Sonozaki in general, eh?" Natsumi asked, breaking his attention on Shion, a slight grin growing when her eyes fell upon her companion.
"You heard me right. Shion is only one of many Sonozakis in Hinamizawa and I refuse to fall victim to an attack by any of them" Keiichi answered calmly in the face of her grin, smiling smoothly.
"What about my family?" Natsumi asked, holding her hand over her chest with a sense of apprehension.
"You're fine with me, Natsumi. You know that. I'll do my best not to die at anyone's hands, but I don't mind a Kimiyoshi - more specifically you - to be my assassin, especially over a Sonozaki" Keiichi answered with a wink.
"Keiichi, you're so negative" Natsumi giggled. "Do you not believe in yourself? You're certain you're going to get killed by someone rather than living a full life? Rather than killing them before you become the victim? Then I may as well kill you now".
"If I didn't believe in myself, I wouldn't be training out of your eyes, on my own when I can. I would just give up and let anyone get me. But I'm not, you all see that. I'm working to defend myself against you, the others, the adults; every threat in this village".
"Not everyone is an enemy, you know".
"I know. I just like to be cautious".
"You'll only alienate yourself if you keep that attitude up. I don't want you to end up alone, Keiichi. I know we have a lot of friends, but you can't push them away with that disposition".
Natsumi's brow creased to make her expression of concern. Despite her Hinamizawa roots, much of her life had been spent in the city of Okinomiya. The key origin of her return to Hinamizawa lied in Shion, she had been the girl that had met Natsumi in the city and invited her to return to Hinamizawa when she transferred into the school. Natsumi had insisted she remained in Shion's debt, the Sonozaki shaking it off every opportunity she had, both girls belonged to the Three Great Houses: Sonozaki and Kimiyoshi. The third: Furude.
"Keiichi, I'm going out to join the others. Are you coming?" Natsumi asked, retreating gradually from his desk and towards her own.
Instead of a verbal answer, Keiichi rose from his desk and turned his back to her, proceeding towards the lockers at the back of the classroom, situated beside the door. Recognizing the movement as the answer, Natsumi retrieved her bag, throwing it over shoulder and gripping the handle of the briefcase-style carrier tightly. She sprinted nonchalantly, smiling brightly when Keiichi turned to her, the baseball bat he had turned to retrieve in his hand.
"Don't forget to be careful when you go out. We'll likely get barraged" Natsumi added supportively.
"We'll work as a team. 'The Outsiders Team'" Keiichi called with a wink.
Natsumi's face lit up; usually Keiichi had another partner when teams was the method of combat. To be his partner, she felt overjoyed, Keiichi had only been an enemy in battle; they could finally learn how well their fighting abilities could work alongside each other. The door to the classroom slid shut behind them, Keiichi's grip on the bat tightened, leading Natsumi along the corridor cautiously. Neither exchanged words throughout their venture towards the main entrance into the building, anyone could simply dive in the same as Shion had and ambush them from behind. Natsumi continuously watched over her shoulder in the case that someone had agreed that the tactic was a strategy for this time.
No-one came, much to her relief. The sounds of battle outside the walls slowly grew, they were getting closer, even battle cries could be heard from the charging children towards their friends and enemies. Cheers from the youngest who always observed rather than partaking in the contests. A yell of defeat came to Keiichi's ears, one all too familiar to him. A chill ran down his spine.
"We're really going to have to be careful, something tells me Shion just got another kill" he whispered, raising his voice any louder could be lethal to their route to the outside.
"I think so. If we're caught off-guard once we get out there, she'll add us to the list" Natsumi replied in the same tone of voice.
Adrenaline raced through their veins, every time a battle ensues around them, the thrill of the battle would leave their hearts pounding their chests, their urge to clash building inside of them. But the conflict was only half of the battle, psychology and strategy remained a massive part of hostilities. If they didn't approach the battle cautiously, they wouldn't get out. Keiichi's eyes darted from side to side once the doors came into view. Together, they slipped on their outdoor shoes and readied themselves, Natsumi removing a large kitchen knife from her bag; her weapon.
"Ready?" Keiichi asked, glancing over his shoulder at her, the only reply was a nod; she was more than ready. Keiichi's fingers slipped into the handle of the door, throwing it open and allowing them both to shoot out. Warriors flew at each other, weapons clashed, eyes turned to the two of them.
"There he is!" Shion's voice yelled.
"Crap" Keiichi hissed, batting away one of the younger students who had leapt at him with a large plank of wood.
The board flew from the child's hands; he hit the ground, unharmed other than a couple of scratches he had picked up from falling. He glared at Keiichi with a grin, hard feelings weren't a part of the war; he was out of the game.
"Shion-san will take care of you. She said you would come to fight, we just had to wait for you" he laughed.
"So, that was it, Shion" Keiichi called, facing towards Shion. "You threw that knife in as a way to lure me out. You knew Natsumi would want to join in and that I wouldn't let her go alone".
"Got it in one, Keiichi" Shion answered, her arms folded her chest her stood her twin; Mion.
Her hair was tied in a large ponytail falling beyond her waist, the same level as Shion's. In her hands laid two pistols rather than the combat knives that Shion possessed. Around them, the other fighters had halted, watching the confrontation between Keiichi and the Sonozaki twins. Amongst them stood Rika Furude, the only Furude in Hinamizawa, in her hands she held a hoe. Beside her, Satoko Houjou was also the last of her clan, her weapons ranged from whatever she could find to relying on traps she had set, she rubbed her head, her short blonde hair ruffled as she did so. On the other side of Rika, a short girl much like her with lilac locks with two horns stemming from her head; Hanyuu, some labelled her a Furude without comprehension that her true identity was that of Oyashiro, the Shrine God. By her side stood Keiichi's usual partner, baring her signature hatchet: Rena Ryuuguu. Her sapphire eyes fixed onto Natsumi and Keiichi, recognizing the prospect of a tag-team battle before them.
"So Kei-chan, feeling strong enough to take us both on?" Mion challenged, pointing to both her sister and herself.
"A tag-team battle, eh? Outsiders verses Twin Sisters. Fine by me" Keiichi called back. "Natsumi?"
"I agree to fight by your side, Keiichi".
Rika clapped her hands hearing the teams set, Rena cupped her hands around her mouth, leaning forward when she began to shout to the battle.
"Ganbatte, Keiichi-kun!"
Keiichi's gripped the baseball bat in his hands tightly, Natsumi throwing her bag to the crowd. Around them, a clear rectangle had been set for their battlefield. Mion and Shion readied their own weapons, glaring playfully at their opponents.
"Ready?" Rena called from the side, standing midway between each team. "San. Ni. Ichi. Battle!"
Maebara Keiichi / Kimiyoshi Natsumi vs. Sonozaki Mion / Sonozaki Shion
Outsiders Team vs. Twin Sisters Team
- START -
Keiichi leapt forward, the first move, bat raised over his head. The sisters shot away in opposite directions. Leaving Keiichi's bat to crash to the ground, all he could do was whip around and he could see them already ambushing him. Mion hit the ground before she could dive upon him, Natsumi stood over her triumphantly.
"Natsumi!" Keiichi called gratefully.
"Watch out!" Natsumi commanded, pointing her knife in the direction of Shion.
Keiichi's head turned in Shion's direction; she was falling towards him, knives first. He leapt back, smacking away one of the blades with his bat. Shion growled frustratingly, lunging at Keiichi with her other weapon. At the same time, Mion shot her pistols at Natsumi, who was forced to leap out of the bullets' path, narrowly dodging several of the shots. On the sidelines, Satoko turned to Rika, seemingly concerned.
"Rika, are you sure no-one's going to get hurt?"
"Don't worry, Satoko. Because of my role, I'll heal anyone who is hurt. No-one will die, I won't allow it".
Various cheers for each team roared around them, the thrill of the battle had engulfed everyone around. Keiichi dodged another attempted attack from Shion, swinging his bat at her once again; she slid out of the way. Neither team seemed to be landing a hit; their training had been paying off. Shion lunged at Keiichi again, he leapt up to dodge the blow; his jump boosted him onto the pile of logs facing the front of the school building. He flashed a smirk; his reply from his discussion with Natsumi over his training, Shion's glared narrowed.
"Why don't you come down from there and fight instead of dodging?" she snapped.
"Why don't you come up here and fight instead of dodging?" Keiichi teased, sticking his tongue out.
Shion stepped back, whether she was planning to accept his challenge or she was retreating, he didn't know. But he wouldn't lose his dominant position. Shion turned from him, racing towards Mion and Natsumi, she knew he wouldn't leave her outnumbered, just as he had stated before the battle began.
"Shit!" he hissed. "Natsumi!"
His comrade looked over her shoulder to his call, Shion came into her sight. Her eyes widened and narrowed in an instant, leaping up into the air to avoid the ambush. Shion's knives seemed more of a threat than Mion's pistols; she had to be the focus now. Keiichi watched the pair clashing furiously, an anxious feeling took over him, his stomach tied in a knot. He wanted to help Natsumi, to not abandon her like this, but his position was too advantageous to give away to the Sonozaki sisters. Sisters. But only Shion battled Natsumi, where had Mion vanished to? Natsumi glanced at Keiichi over Shion's shoulder, recognizing the imminent threat behind him, the other half.
"Keiichi!" she yelled alarmingly. "Behind you!"
Keiichi's eyes widened, that was when it hit him, the clash between Natsumi and Shion was a diversion, so Mion could bombard him from behind! He whipped around, unable to get himself into a defensive position before the sight of Mion stunned him, his eyes remained wide. Her finger pulled the trigger towards her, a bullet shooting out of her gun barely seconds after Keiichi had turned to face her. He forced his body to lean right, the bullet ripped through his shirt, grazing the skin of his shoulder. Blood seeped out, his only possible response was a sharp hiss of pain, if he didn't react to her attack; she'd shoot him down for good. Another bullet raced from the pistol, he was ready. Raising the bat, he used it as his only shield, transferring the burden largely to his right arm. The bullets collided with the bat, unable to neither drive their way in nor avoid it. There was only one option after that, a deciding offensive. Shuffling his feet apart further, Keiichi bent himself down to height the leap he took, levelling with Mion in the air. Gasps and cheers of awe ceased the air; the tension had reached its pinnacle. Keiichi brought the bat up, knocking the pistol in Mion's left hand away with ease. The problem was that her right hand was the stronger. Her finger tightened on the trigger once again, a dark grin coming upon her face. Keiichi recognized it in the corner of his eye, rather than bringing the second blow to her armaments from above like she anticipated, he had another intention. Gathering all the strength he could, the momentum for his attack flooded his right arm. Just as Mion realized what he was doing, the bat swung towards her last pistol, knocking it clear of her hand and striking her hand. She shouted in discomfort, falling to the ground ahead of him.
Being the selfless individual he was, Keiichi grabbed Mion's wrist with his own, pushing himself as close to her as possible and laying his left hand over her head. All in the mere seconds before they hit the ground, and remained still. Both Natsumi and Shion noticed the plunge to the ground, yet both were reluctant to let their guard down to check their partner, untrusting of the other. Keiichi lifted himself off the ground slightly, groaning in agony, his entire body ached. Mion stared up at him, aware of what he had done, that he had protected her and with his bleeding arm.
"You can't fight back" he chuckled, wincing through the grin.
"But Shion can still finish you both off" Mion teased.
Natsumi's eyes registered both Keiichi and Mion slowly rising in the corner of her eye, without any hostilities between them, it was clear that one had been removed from the fight, hoping that the one was Mion. Or could both have been eliminated? Rika inched closer to the pair on the sidelines, staring innocently at them both; she hadn't completely grasped what had happened.
"Keiichi, Mion, what happened?" she asked sweetly, tilting her head slightly.
"Mion lost both of her weapons. But I didn't want her to be incapacitated, so I protected her. I've gotten a few battle scars from it, but I'm fine" Keiichi explained with a smile. "I have to help Natsumi".
Before either Mion or Rika could say another word, Keiichi threw himself into the battle once again, dashing towards the combatants. The throbbing in his shoulder faded from his mind, his focus was finishing off the battle alongside Natsumi. He raced behind Shion, raising his bat and throwing himself into the air. Natsumi leapt back, well aware of the strategy, she could mislead Shion in believing she was merely going to get herself together again standing back. Shion's concentration fell to the ground, Keiichi's shadow grew: their tactics were exposed. She leapt out of his path, readying her combat knife. Keiichi slammed the bat into the ground, landing on his feet and using the momentum to throw his bat around, striking Shion before she could dodge further. She pressed her knife hand against the beaten hand, Keiichi's tactics came at a cost, his arms were exhausted, his hands loose around the bat. Just when she readied herself for another assault, she felt something against her back; a blade. Natsumi.
"We've gotten you surrounded now, you can't win" Natsumi declared. "Surrender".
Shion narrowed her eyes and turned them to Keiichi, despite his fatigue; he pulled the bat from the ground and held it over his shoulder. He hadn't recovered, but he was forcing himself, drawing out his stamina. Shion sighed; dropping her head slightly, fringe falling over her eyes. Keiichi smirked in victory, Shion was accepting her defeat.
And then she lunged forward, a furious battle cry to match her piercing glare. Her knife plunged into his stomach; her hand abandoned it and leapt past. He wouldn't allow it; he swung the bat around, striking her leg. Shion cried in shock and fell to the ground. Without her other knife, she couldn't fight back against both Keiichi and Natsumi while they both had their own weapons.
"It's over" Keiichi panted heavily.
Shion growled, glaring away from him. It was true, there was no way she could fight back, the Twin Sisters had failed. A roar of cheering broke the silence of the battle's conclusion.
- Battle End -
Winner: Outsiders Team - Maebara Keiichi / Kimiyoshi Natsumi
Rena, Rika, Hanyuu, Mion and Satoko raced towards the trio, all having been caught in the battle since their positions on the sidelines had been taken. Keiichi's fingers around the bat loosened, his body falling back. Natsumi dropped her knife, catching Keiichi when he fell back towards her, blood stained his shirt, the knife still embedded in his stomach.
"Rika!" she yelled
"Mii~ Looks like Keiichi picked up an injury" Rika muttered.
"Save him, Rika-chan. You have to save him" Rena whined, every time someone was injured on a level such as Keiichi's she would echo her plea.
"Natsumi, hold Keiichi still. I'll use my role to help him" Rika instructed.
Keiichi's eyes remained tightly shut, sweat running down his forehead, panting heavily. The impact of the stab was beginning to take its toll on him. Rika stood before them, wrapping her tiny fingers around the knife and wrenching it from Keiichi's stomach, he gave a weak cry. There was nothing to do with the blade outside returning it to Shion; Rika threw it onto the ground aimlessly. She stretched her hands wide in front of the wound, as if there was an invisible wall between the two of them; a pale purple light began to shine from her palms. The same glow appeared around Keiichi's abdomen, warmth joined it. Keiichi's face relaxed; this was Rika's power, the reincarnation of Oyashiro - of Hanyuu - that could heal the wounds of her fellow villagers. Keiichi gave a sigh, one of relief when the glow faded from his stomach, reaching for the grazed shoulder and restarted its purpose, repairing his it. All that remained of his wounds were the bloodstains on his shirt, the loss of the crimson internal compensated for with a replica merged with his original. The warm glow returned to Rika's hands, she smiled harmoniously. Keiichi sat straight, wearing a pleasant smile.
"Thanks for that, Rika-chan".
"Mii~ It was no problem, it's my job" Rika stated warmly.
"Shion, you got beaten by abandoning your weapon? That's pathetic" Mion laughed teasingly.
"Didn't he protect you when he beat you?" Shion asked in the same manner, sticking her tongue out, she could taunt Mion being helped by Keiichi far more than merely being defeated.
"Shion!" Mion roared.
The others laughed at the warring sisters, occasionally their disputes could erupt into battles between the two of them. Keiichi looked over his shoulder at Natsumi who remained towering over him, she mirrored the smile; glad she could fight alongside him. The village was their battlefield; adults were partaking in the game. And within the enemies laid allies.
Maebara Keiichi - + 1 victory
Kimiyoshi Natsumi - + 1 victory
Next Time:
Rika finds a small box whilst cleaning outside the Furude Shrine. The time comes to drag the reluctant Satoko for her usual check-up at the Irie Institute where things take an unexpected turn. Chapter 2: "Magatama".