Chapter 2: Fire against Fire
It was late that night, Takeru sat on his high throne with his eyes closed and arms crossed, obviously in deep thought about the earlier events that transpired, and the sudden revival of the Gedoushu. With Hikoma kneeling on a knee rest right beside Takeru's throne, he too had his arms crossed and echoing the same thoughts in his mind. Neither opened their eyes or moved when 2 kurokos entered the main hall bringing tables of snacks; Sencha tea and some Wagashi sweets. They placed the tables carefully before Takeru and Hikoma and quietly retreated back to the kitchen.
Suddenly the familiar rings from Takeru's shodophone interrupted his thoughts, he opened his eyes, took out the phone from his pocket and flipped it open…however he was surprised upon seeing the name on the caller ID "Kotoha?" he gasped, he quickly put the phone to his ear and answered "Kotoha, osashiburi" he greeted Kotoha over the phone, however there was a obvious trace of concern in his voice
"Tono-sama! Osashiburi-desu!' Kotoha exclaimed excitedly, she was so delighted to hear her Tono-sama's voice again "Genki?" she asked eagerly
"I've been fine, and you?" Takeru asked warmly, although Kotoha could not see his face however she can almost sense his smile and delight from his voice.
"I'm fine…" but then her tone suddenly changed "Tono-sama, I need to speak with you about something important…it's about the Gedoushu" she replied, almost murmuring that resented name
Suddenly the smile and warmth washed away from Takeru's face replaced by shock and seriousness, and his mind was in full alert upon hearing that name 'Gedoushu', he could feel that wave of concern overwhelming him once again "Kotoha, are you alright? What happened?"
"Tono-sama I will speak with you about it when I arrive, I am currently on my way to the Shiba mansion…"
"Where are you now?"
"I'm still on the train arriving in Sakura-han from Chiba city, I should be there soon…"
"Kotoha, I don't want you traveling here alone, I'll send the kurokos to the train station to pick you up" with that said, he quickly summoned 2 kurokos into the main hall and gave them the orders to pick up Kotoha at the train station. They bowed in acknowledgment and hurried to the station carrying the Shiba family's Kago (traditional Japanese palanquin popular during the Edo period) baring the Shiba family crest on it.
Early the next morning, Takeru, Hikoma and Kotoha were sitting in their respective positions with Hikoma and Kotoha sitting on either side of Takeru, in the main hall discussing the events that happened yesterday involving the Gedoushu. That previous night when Kotoha arrived at the Shiba mansion, the reunion with her and Takeru was slightly bittersweet…the pair was delighted to see each other again, however, Takeru could sense that something bad has happened that led to this urgent visit from Kotoha.
"Sou ka…the Nanashis attacked you too…" Takeru replied thoughtfully with his arms crossed
"Too? Tono-sama…did the Nanashis attacked Sakura-han also?" Kotoha asked as she looked up at Takeru, stunned at what Takeru had said
"I'm afraid so…" Hikoma replied with his arms also crossed "they attacked Kyojin-tohou yesterday"
"Yabari…the Gedoushu is revived…" Kotoha murmured as she shifted her gaze away from Takeru and onto the floor "just as I feared…" Kotoha thought to herself silently, they were all obviously deeply bothered by the revelations.
"How is your sister now? Is she safe?" Hikoma asked, abruptly interrupting Kotoha's thoughts
Kotoha shifted her gaze back to Takeru and Hikoma "she was very scared yesterday, I dread leaving her…before I left, I set up a barrier of mojikara around the house, so she should be safe now…de mo…I'm still very worried…I'm concerned that the Nanashi-renjyu had attacked me and my sister outside our home…how do they know where I live?"
"Mmm…this is puzzling indeed…" Hikoma replied thoughtfully "the Gedoushu has never appeared in Kyoto in decades…however there has been recorded data of previous battles with the Gedoushu in Kyoto dating back more than a century ago. Perhaps it is just a coincidence that the Nanashi-renjyu has attacked Kyoto once again, and they just so happened to have appeared at your home?"
"Mmm…that could be a possibility…" Takeru replied as he nodded his head, he turned to Kotoha who was obviously still very worried "daijoubu, I'm sure your sister will be fine…" he flashed Kotoha a warm and caring smile as he reassured her. Kotoha was quite startled by his smile, but nevertheless, she welcomed it wholeheartedly. It's been so long since she last saw Takeru, that familiar handsome face, those serious and beady eyes. Her Tono-sama is always serious and doesn't usually smile very much, but when he does, the warmth of his smile is always so prominent. Even when Kotoha was in a sad or depressing mood, Takeru's smile is like a ray of sunshine, piercing through that cloudy sky in her mind, it could brighten her mood instantly.
In response, Kotoha could only flash a sweet smile and nodded her head, unaware that her cheeks were flushing in a pretty shade of pink, and slowly tilted her head down, breaking the pair's eye contact.
But unknown to Kotoha, her infectious sweet smile also has the same affect on Takeru, at that moment deep inside, Takeru's heart was pounding rapidly, he quickly peeled his eyes away from that adorable sweet face before him "bakka Takeru! Why are you so nervous?" Takeru scolded at himself in his mind.
At that moment, it seemed like the pair were in their own little world, neither looked at each other nor talked to each other, but unknown to the other, they were silently thinking about each other.
Just then, the familiar rings of the Sukima sensor ringed out across the main hall, awakening the pair from their thoughts. That instant, Takeru, Kotoha and Hikoma looked up at the sensor in alert. Hikoma walked over to the Sukima sensor and picked up the stick that the sensor had tipped out "No.102, Mikan-jo" he exclaimed as he looked at the number and location printed on the stick and turned to face Takeru. Takeru nodded in acknowledgment and stood up with the look of determination plastered on his face, the same expression that he makes whenever there's a Gedou alert.
Takeru then turned to Kotoha "Let's go, Kotoha" he said with the usual tenderness in his voice whenever he calls out her name
"Hai!" Kotoha replied firmly as she nodded her head, with that said the pair hurried out the mansion towards the designated location, with the group of kurokos following closely behind carrying the usual Shiba flags and screens.
While Hikoma stayed at the Shiba manor "Ganbatte, Tono" he silently prayed as he watched his Tono, Kotoha and the kurokos rushing out towards their destination.
As it usually is when the Gedoushu appear in the human world, the scene was chaotic with terrified people screaming and running away from the intimidating Nanashi-renjyu who were chasing and terrorizing them.
Then, a strange looking blue yoma (monster) appeared out of no where "Kill these worthless humans!" he commanded, instructing the Nanashi-renjyu to kill the many terrified humans who were trying to flee the scene.
Apparently the yoma is an Ayakashi, all the more evident that the Gedoushu are well and truly revived with the leadership of Doukoku himself once again…as unbelievable as it may sound…or perhaps an heir of Doukoku's.
Suddenly the sound of Taiko drums ringed out across the vast promenade, catching the attention of the Gedoushu, they stopped chasing the humans and looked around frantically trying to find the source of the sound, giving all the humans nearby the chance to flee the scene safely.
Then the drumming sound stopped replaced by a deep strong voice "That's enough, Gedoushu!", the Gedoushu quickly turned their attention to the direction of the voice and saw the kurokos standing in their respective positions, with the flags and screens already held up.
2 kurokos then pulled the screens away revealing Takeru and Kotoha already changed into their white kimono, with Takeru wearing his navy blue hakama, and Kotoha wearing the beige colored hakama. The pair then took out their Shodophones "IPPITSU SOUJO!" the pair exclaimed simultaneously and wrote the kanji of their respective mojikaras, and henshin into ShinkenRed and ShinkenYellow, they both took out their Kyotsu disks and slotted them into place on their katanas Shinkenmaru.
"ShinkenRed, Shiba Takeru!" Takeru exclaimed as he did his signature stance, soon followed by Kotoha
"Likewise, yellow, Hanaori Kotoha!" she said as she did her signature stance
"The Samurai Sentai authorized by Providence!" Takeru added
"SHINKENGER, GOING FORTH!" the pair finished their signature roll call
"Hmph! So you are the pesty known Shinkengers" the Ayakashi snickered "but today will be your last day! Nanashi-renjyu, attack!" with that command, the Nanashi-renjyu immediately dashed towards ShinkenRed and ShinkenYellow ready to attack, and likewise the pair charged towards the Nanashi-renjyu holding up their Shinkenmarus.
Seeing the battle had begun, the kurokos quickly retreated to a safer place behind a nearby building and watched the fighting unfold intently. Deep inside, they all prayed for the safety and victory of the Shinkengers.
As ShinkenRed and ShinkenYellow were too preoccupied with the fight at hand, slashing and kicking at the swarm of Nanashis, with the Ayakashi watching on impatiently…they were all unaware of a mysterious dark figure that had suddenly appeared in the distance. On the roof of a tall building several meters away from the fight, a figure wearing black worn out loose pants and an old Edo-style commoner shirt, he has long black hair tied up with a red bandana and deep dark eyes, he was watching the fight intently.
Turning back to the attention of the battle, Takeru took out his red Shishi disk and slotted it in place on his katana and spun the disk "Shinkenmaru, Kaen no Mai!" soon bright orange flames engulfed the sharp blade, with a swift slashing movement with his katana, unleashed the intimidating flames towards a group of Nanashis, killing them instantly, they dissipated in a cloud of smoke.
In the near distance, Kotoha was fighting the other group of Nanashis, she quickly took out her Saru disk and slotted in place on her Shinkenmaru and spun the disk "Shinkenmaru, Tsuchikemuri no Mai!" the sharp blade of her Shinkenmaru suddenly glowed bright yellow with dust particles circulating the blade. With a sharp wave of her katana, a cloud of raging dust blasted towards the Nanashi-renjyu, killing them instantly.
By then the Ayakashi had become increasingly annoyed and frustrated upon seeing the easy defeat of the Nanashi-renjyu, he quickly charged at ShinkenRed, ready to take a slash at him with his extended arm, but ShinkenRed's good instincts kicked in and he swiftly ducked away from the Ayakashi's attack. He quickly spun his Shishi disk again, and once again bright orange flames engulfed the blade of his katana, he unleashed the flames towards the Ayakashi hoping to inflict damage to the enemy. But unexpectedly, the flames of Kaen no Mai had no effect, as a swirl of blue flames clashed with the orange flames, before both flame attacks dissipated.
"Na ni?" both Takeru and Kotoha gasped in shock and disbelief as they witnessed the clashing of both fire attacks.
The Ayakashi let out an arrogant laugh "You see, ShinkenRed's mojikara is fire, my powers are also fire based. Fire against fire, it's a even playing field, you can't kill me that easily!" the Ayakashi snickered
"I see…" Takeru murmured, but underneath his red helmet, he was grinning, "If that's the case, then that makes the battle all the more interesting!" he sneered
"Hmph! ShinkenYellow, get out of the way, this battle is between me and ShinkenRed!" the Ayakashi hissed
"I wouldn't have it any other way" Takeru smirked.
As Takeru was about to charge at the Ayakashi for another attack, the familiar voice suddenly stopped him in his tracks "Tono-sama! No!" Kotoha rushed over to Takeru and grabbed hold of his arms. Kotoha was worried upon what Takeru was contemplating at that moment, it brought back painful memories of the past when they had to battle that Ayakashi Yomotsuguri who had access to the Onibidama fire bullets…Takeru almost died in that battle. Like last time, this felt like another suicide battle for Takeru, and Kotoha would never allow her Tono-sama to make such irrational moves ever again. "Tono-sama! You can't! I can't let you take such irrational move! I don't want you to die! I won't let you!" Kotoha tried to plead with her Tono-sama to not accept the Ayakashi's challenge of a one-on-one duel.
Suddenly a rush of warm tender feeling overwhelmed Takeru, he didn't understand why he felt this way when Kotoha pleaded to him, but in any case her concerns and love for him touched Takeru deeply. He suddenly felt the urge to pull her into a tight embrace, instead he smiled at her under his helmet "daijoubu…" Takeru said tenderly and placed a careful hand on hers "I won't die, trust me, Kotoha…"
After a brief silence, Kotoha finally agreed "I trust you, Tono-sama" Kotoha replied softly and reluctantly and watched on helplessly as Takeru and the Ayakashi embarked on a fierce one-on-one duel. Deep down, Kotoha wanted so much to help Takeru in the fight, and she knew that she could help him…but she also understood that the duel was between ShinkenRed and the Ayakashi alone, Takeru did not want Kotoha to get involved in the duel…no matter how much she wanted to help him. And she understood her Tono-sama enough to also understand that once Takeru sets his mind to something, no one can stop him. Another lingering thought was telling Kotoha that she should not get involved, and that she would just be getting in the way.
The duel with ShinkenRed and the Ayakashi was intense, whenever one of them unleashes an attack, the other counter-attacks, resulting in an even fight every time. At several times, ShinkenRed managed to cut the Ayakashi with his Shinkenmaru, and at several other times, the Ayakashi also inflicted injuries to ShinkenRed.
After a while of dueling, both parties were becoming increasingly frustrated by the lack of a clear winner…just then, Takeru heard Kotoha calling out to him "Tono-sama! Use this!" with that said, Kotoha quickly threw her Shinkenmaru towards Takeru, he grabbed it and swiftly swung the blade at the Ayakashi, successfully slashing it causing the Ayakashi to fall backwards. He noticed that Kotoha had already removed her Saru disk from her Shinkenmaru before she handed it to him, so he thrusted the blades of both his own Shinkenmaru and Kotoha's into the ground barely deep enough for the katanas to stand upright. Takeru quickly took out his Lightning mojikara disk and inserted it into place onto Kotoha's katana. He spun the disk swiftly along with his Shishi disk on his own katana simultaneously. Then lifted both katanas from the ground with the blades pointing upwards…again bright orange flames engulfed the blade of Takeru's Shinkenmaru, whereas roaring continuous bolts of lightning surrounded the blade of Kotoha's Shinkenmaru.
"Kaen Raiden no Mai!" Takeru exclaimed as he summoned his powerful Fire & Thunder duel attack; Kaen Raiden no Mai (Dance of Blazing Lightning). With a fast slashing movement of both katanas simultaneously, unleashed the intimidating flames and bolts of lightning raging towards the injured Ayakashi.
The Ayakashi tried to counterattack using one of his own fire attacks, but he was unable to block the lightning bolts from the Kaen Raiden no Mai attack and shrieked in pain as every limb in his body was being electrocuted by the raging lightning bolts, it wasn't long before the Ayakashi collapsed onto the ground with smoke penetrating from his body. "Why you…" he managed to gasp those 2 words, but he had acquired considerable amount of damage
As Takeru was about to move in for another attack with the intent of finishing the Ayakashi altogether then and there, he was suddenly hit with an unexpected force that had thankfully only grazed him, surprised, he took a step back in alert.
"Tono-sama!" Kotoha called out to him, concerned, she rushed over to Takeru, the pair turned their attention back to the Ayakashi and was startled but alerted to see the dark figure from before standing before them, his dark piercing eyes glaring at ShinkenRed in particular. For a slight moment Takeru could feel the element of intimidation in the dark figure's eyes, and felt a sudden chill down his back
"This will be enough for today" the dark figure said firmly, with his eyes still fixated on ShinkenRed
"You…" the Ayakashi gasped as he tried to stand up, it was obvious he recognized the dark figure standing before them
"Who are you?" Takeru asked, though it sounded more like a demand
"When the time comes, you'll know…" with that said, the dark figure disappeared out of sight, taking the Ayakashi with him, before Takeru and Kotoha could catch up to them.
Authors note:
Hi! Gomen for the late update, I've been really busy lately...
Anyway, here's chapter 2, hope you guys like it :) So, Kotoha was the first to come back (who didn't see that coming?), and who is this dark figure? His identity will be revealed eventually :)
And as a reference, the historical Hotta household that was used as the setting for the Shiba mansion in Shinkenger is actually located in Sakura-han in Chiba prefecture...that's why I had implicated in this chapter that the Shiba mansion is located in Chiba :)
And please also note that I don't know all the endless list of different districts and cities across Japan, and I really do NOT have the time to do the research, so I just make up some names myself for the different locations where the Gedoushu attacks! So please don't expect these places to exist, or try to understand these names, because I just make them up as I go along! XP
And don't worry, the other Shinkengers will appear eventually in the next chapter, and all the Shinkengers will be reunited finally! :)