Disclaimer: I do not own Shaman King.
Remember Me Not — Chapter 3
"Fight me," the Chinese shaman commanded with a final poke at the Ainu. Ren wanted Horohoro to focus all his concentration into a battle with him; it would be something that would keep both of them occupied, an outlet to freedom from the constant worry that had plagued them since two days ago. Ren's amber eyes took in the vague expression on Horohoro's face, and fought the urge to just yell at him to respond. They were at the bottom of a sea cliff, and since it was currently low tide, the wave-cut platform, as well as the shingle beach could be seen. There were rocks jutting randomly out of the ground, and due to the uneven and rocky surface of this part of the beach, few trespasses into this area, leaving the place the perfect grounds for an unofficial shaman fight.
Focusing his attention momentarily to fuse Bason's spirit into his Kwan Dao, Ren pointed the weapon at the Ainu, who looked irately at the Chinese as he prepared his Oversoul. They knew what the other was thinking: it would be all out war once they started. The past couple of days had left them strained, and pent up energy and tension was just waiting to be unleashed. Ren lowered his Kwan Dao, and told, or rather commanded, Horohoro that no large Oversouls were to be used. They couldn't afford to attract too much attention. As Kororo melded into Horohoro's Ikupasui in a swirl of blue-white light, the battle began.
Swinging his blade in a downward clockwise motion, Ren took on the offensive, only to have his attack stopped by a shield made by ice. Jumping lithely backwards continuously, the Chinese managed to dodge a whole range of ice attacks, and feinting right before aiming for the center, Ren brought his weapon down hard on yet another defensive ice structure. He channeled more Furyoku into his Kwan Dao, and feeling Bason's might merge as one with his own, swung the blade the upwards with both hands to take a blow from Horohoro's Ikupasui, which had been added on, by means of ice and snow, to look like a glittery sword with razor-sharp edges.
The force that erupted from the clash of both weapons forced Ren to take an unsteady step backwards, and he wasn't surprised to see Horohoro doing the same. A sudden gust of wind came and left, leaving the sand swirling around their feet. Seawater came up in a spray and wetted them slightly as well. It stung Ren's eyes, and he blinked once, furiously, to get the droplets of salty liquid out. A low rumble of distant thunder could be heard, and glancing up briefly, Ren could see gathering darkness far out in the North. It was unlikely the storm would reach them, even if it ever did, they still a few hours before they would need to seek shelter. Looking back at Horohoro to continue their subtly interrupted fight, Ren didn't miss the expression of anxiety on the Ainu's face. It was there for only a second, and could easily pass off as a trick of the light. But Ren wholly trusted his senses; his eyes would never show him false information. It was plainly obvious to Ren that Horohoro was afraid, even for a moment, of the thunder that heralded the possibility of a fierce storm.
Since Horohoro didn't mention anything about the temporary lull in their battle, Ren decided to let whatever he had just seen pass. He supposed he would think about it a little later; but not now. There was a Shaman fight he had to win at this moment. Slicing through Horohoro's Imperial Ice formation attack, Ren was surprised to find himself backed into a corner made with three walls of ice. After all, they were near the sea, where water, the liquid state of ice is in abundance. It would be relatively easier for Horohoro to construct his icy structures in this area than the usual arena. Ren saw a small smirk grace the lips of the Ainu as Horohoro advanced with yet another aggressive attack involving icicles, and Ren disengaged the Oversoul from his Kwan Dao, choosing to fuse Bason's spirit with Horaiken instead.
Stabbing his sword down hard into the yielding sand, Ren aimed for the lines of weaknesses in the tall blocks of ice and split them cleanly along those faults with a single Sea of Swords attack. Moving backwards to dodge a another blow from Horohoro, Ren once again found himself cornered. He had moved very close to the shoreline without realizing it, and Ren kicked himself mentally for that dear mistake. The sea was now Horohoro's main source of power, and by moving towards it, he had just given that Ainu an advantage against him. Not that it'll matter; the best will always win.
A wall rose in front of him, shutting him out from the rest of the world. Looking first left and then right, he noticed that the ice walls that had been there a moment ago had turned into granite. Smooth stone slabs worn out and polished by the constantly incoming waves. Turning around so that his back was to the newly formed wall, he could see the open sea. The water was eerily calm, and emanated a feeling of immense and powerful menace that reminded him unnervingly of old Doomsday prophesies. He could not quite pin down the mixed feelings he was experiencing, and through it all he could hear the waves, the song of the sea playing constantly in his mind in a seemingly mocking way.
Ren blinked yet again, shaking off the powerfully vivid images flashing in his mind. In frustration, he destroyed the ice walls that Horohoro had formed around him, as if blaming them for the confusion that had settled deep within his soul. Letting pure instinct take over, Ren slashed continuously in a refined form of the Golden Slash Dance, striking with renewed vigor each time Horohoro parried the last blow. He could tell that likewise, the Ainu was doing the same thing, letting the pump of adrenaline do their work while their minds try to work out more complex methods to take each other down. Taking martial arts lessons from young gave Ren a huge advantage when it came down to this, and it's common knowledge among their group of Shaman friends that Horohoro wasn't well known for his thinking prowess. The fight will be over soon.
It was a test of stamina and willpower as both chose, over their common sense, to just fight it out with nothing but a single weapon each blazing with Furyoku. It doesn't matter much if this was going to be tiring; both wanted to make themselves tired for the night so sleep would come to them faster even with all their problems. Ren threw aside the many different probabilities of Horohoro's next move and ways to intercept them, and just tried to embrace the feeling of exhilaration and thrill that came with the hand-to-hand combat. It had been awhile since they have last fought without the weight of the pressure coming from the Shaman Tournament, and this was when Ren realized how good it felt actually. Never had he fought 'for fun'. Even thinking of this suggestion made him feel sinful. Smiling inwardly to himself, Ren raised Horaiken and jumped up for an aerial attack in a single fluid motion that would end the fight with him as the victor.
Author's Note: So here's the update finally. I've to apologize for the lateness and quality of this chapter, though I've got no excuses for them. now has that new function for me to reply to my reviews personally, so I'll use that method if the review written by someone who's logged in. For those that I'm not… I'm sorry. I'll try to find out if replying in my chapters is still allowed. Until then, please do continue to read and review this fanfict. xD
