Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann X: So this is the Heavens.
Chapter Four: The bigger they are, the harder they die when I kill them!
There was a huge town outside the walls of the Seireitei that was in a similar state of depressive disrepair as Skitter's own village but with a more refined feel than the simple huts that Skitter had been raised around. The houses seemed to cluster around the grand walls of the capital as though they sought its protection but upon closer look there was graffiti scrawled across its surface with messages differing between desperate pleas, hatred and gratitude.
The pair had wandered around the town for quite a while. The streets seemed like a system of mazes for Kamina who eventually just picked out a direction and stomped off that way, over fences, through houses and anything else that happened to bar his chosen path.
By the time they had made it through the labyrinth that was the Rukongai they had gone from the eastern side of the capital to the northern sector. They had asked around for information but most of the people scurried out of their way or refused to answer. Eventually they gathered that there were four gates into the Seireitei. The closest was the North gate or Black Ridge Gate, guarded by the fearsome Danzomaru.
"You really think you can take him?" squeaked Skitter as they strode toward the northern gate. Everyone who had spoken to them had told of Danzomaru's strength and how no one had gotten past him for decades.
"Hell yeah! Team Dai-Gurren has never lost a fight and I sure as hell aren't gonna be the first one to break that."
Skitter came to a sudden halt. He stared wide eyed at the end of the street at the vast gate that broke up the endless white of the outer wall. Stood silently before the gate was a giant of a man with dark skin, black robes and a sword that was bigger than Kamina.
"Man that guy is big." observed Kamina as he lifted his shades to get a better look. "You think he's overcompensating for something?"
"H-he's t-t-too big-g to f-fight!"
Kamina walked forward without any sign of fear. "No worries, kid. The bigger they are, the harder they die when I kill them!"
"Kamina!"
Kamina paid no heed, instead walking straight up to the behemoth. "Hey hey hey hey hey hey hey! Step aside you great lummox or prepare to be defeated by the mighty Kamina!" He pointed his sword at the giant Shinigami to emphasize his point.
"Lummox? Watch your tongue little man." growled the gate keeper in a deep voice. His eyes glared beneath bushy white eyebrows and his bald head had a pattern much like fish bones either tattooed or shaved onto it.
"My body might be small, but my spirit burns with a passion that engulfs both heaven and earth! My fighting spirit and determination show my manly badassness to the eyes of the world! You might be big, but my sword is the sword that's gonna kick your giant ass!"
"It's your death, little man."
"The name's Kamina!" roared the ex-pilot as he charged at the giant. He swung but one flick from Danzomaru's blade sent him flying back. Kamina rolled back onto his feet and charged again, this time dodging the initial attack. He swung but the colossus managed to parry then nearly flattened him with his free hand.
Spinning aside, Kamina made a flurry of attacks but none could reach the giant's flesh. As Danzomaru smashed his blade down in an attempt to crush him, Kamina flipped over the inflated weapon and kicked off of the ground, rocketing up to his opponent's chest level. He slashed and was struck by a giant fist at the same instant. He hit the ground hard.
A thin line of scarlet opened upon the Shinigami's chest through a torn section of robe. "Ha! If you can bleed then you can die. My victory is certain now." chuckled Kamina as he pulled himself up off of the ground.
He dashed in again without pause only to be met with another swing from the giant blade. He side stepped then jumped aside to dodge a follow-up attack. With a powerful spring of his legs he leapt up again only to be swatted away with the back of the behemoth's hand.
In a second he was back up and on the attack. He sped forward but as Danzomaru slashed horizontally, Kamina slid under the oversized weapon, passing straight through the shinigami's legs. He slashed up as he emerged on the other side causing a bellow of rage filled agony from his foe. As Kamina flipped himself back onto his feet he was caught with a vicious punch as Danzomaru span around to face him, sending Kamina flying into a wall.
"The games end now, little man. Now you will die!" roared the shinigami. He ran at Kamina, who was still in a heap at the base of the wall. The ground shook with every footstep.
At the last possible moment Kamina rolled out of the way and sprinted back over to Skitter.
"Hey, Skitter. Hold this for me." He passed his cape over to the boy. "It looks cool and it's very important to me but it slows me down. Just make sure it doesn't get dirty."
"But…he's too strong."
"I knew a guy who talked like that once. I proved him wrong every time." Kamina turned his attention back to Danzomaru. "Now I'm ready to fight you seriously."
Danzomaru dashed forward with surprising speed. He smashed down his weapon, carving up the earth beside Kamina. A moment later the wall behind him was destroyed as the shinigami's sword narrowly missed Kamina again.
Kamina span and swung in unison but only managed to make a small cut across the giant's callous hand. He did a flurry of moves that opened several minor wounds but the behemoth didn't seem to notice, instead merely kicking the young pilot across the street.
Shakily, Kamina rose to his feet again. His skin was raw and his limbs ached with strain and bruises. He knew that he had to finish the fight and do it quickly. This left him few options since defeat wasn't in the equation.
"You have fought well, little man. As a sign of respect I offer you a final chance at life. Go." boomed the shinigami.
"If you really respect your opponent than you go all out. A real man never backs down from a fight so prepare for pain, colossus." grunted Kamina before he spat a mouthful of blood onto the ground.
"Since I respect you, then I will go all out. Rip them to shreds, Chenso!"
There was a blinding flash of light that emanated from the shinigami's zanpakuto. The light faded to reveal that the weapon had morphed, becoming wider with a series of metal teeth that ran along every edge. The teeth began to move with a high pitched growling sound as they ran along the weapons edge, gaining speed until they were just a blur around the sword.
Danzomaru attacked, shattering the ground where Kamina stood. Kamina rolled backward to avoid it but the flying chunks of rock caused him several cuts.
"So this is the power of a zanpakuto then? Impressive." said the brawler through gritted teeth. "Let's see how it stands up to mine."
The shinigami struck down again with the whirring weapon but this time Kamina didn't move. There was an explosion of dust and rocks. Skitter screamed but the sound was overpowered by the crash and whir of the giant chainsaw.
The dust and smoke cleared with a dramatic gust of wind that revealed a large crater in the ground with Kamina at its centre. He was down on both knees, his sword raised above his head, blocking the far larger weapon. The teeth had stopped spinning, caught on his blade, ever straining but unable to break through the metal.
"But how?" gasped Danzomaru, shock at the feat evident upon his face. "You should be dead, your bones ground to dust!"
"Who the hell do you think I am!" hissed the young man through laboured breaths. "Big-ass weapons don't mean jack against will and determination. By constantly throwing yourself towards death's door is the only way to fight your hardest and use every ounce of your fighting spirit. You might be stronger than me but I have epicness on my side! Now let's finish this!"
Defying all odds, Kamina rose to one knee, then onto both feet. Somehow he pushed against the superior strength that shoved him down and managed to stand up straight. "Flaming spirit that transcends heaven and earth! Drawing strength from those that we left behind! Super mega attack of epic manliness!"
Gurren flashed crimson and a wolfish smile tinged with madness spread across Kamina's face, his canines showing. Danzomaru swung with all of his might. Both roared a wordless battle cry as they leapt at each other.
There was another earth shaking explosion as the two blades clashed. Everything turned white for an instant then as the world returned to its normal colour scheme; Kamina hit the floor, hard. There was an audible sound of his bones breaking and blood spilled from a nasty wound down his shoulder.
Skitter rushed to his side. He franticly shook Kamina but a loud footstep drew his attention back to the shinigami. His zanpakuto growled softly as it span at a gentle pace.
"He fought well. His reiatsu levels are unbelievable. He is like nothing I've ever seen before. Argh." A wound suddenly opened up that sliced across his chest from shoulder to hip. Blood gushed from the wound and after a second of tottering her crashed face first into the ground. As all became silent his zanpakuto returned to its normal state.
When what just happened had sunk into Skitter's mind he shook Kamina again. "Kamina! You won, Kamin-"
"What the hell is going on here?" a voice interrupted the boy.
Skitter turned to see a tall man with spiky black hair stood before them. He wore the black robes of a shinigami but had a white body warmer over the top. His skin was heavily scarred and bore many tattoos, the most prominent being a 69 upon his left cheek.
"It looks to me like an assault upon a shinigami. You know the punishment for that, kid. You'd better explain real quick or I'm obliged to take matters into my own hands." the man said solemnly, sliding his blade an inch from its sheath to further the point.
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AN/ Sorry this chapter was so short; you wouldn't believe the trouble it gave me. My computer managed to delete it after I had finished it so I had to re-write the whole thing again.
Anyway, we have our first meeting with a shinigami. How do you reckon the fight went? This chapter is the start of the Shinigami Arc I suppose so get ready for the main story to begin real soon.
The title for this chapter comes from the Youtube show 'Gurren Lagann The Satire' by TheAzureCrow. If you haven't already seen it then I highly recommend it as it is as epic as the actual show and voiced wonderfully.
Quick question: Do you guys prefer shorter chapters like what I have currently been writing or would you like longer chapters, bearing in mind that longer chapters might mean longer update times though. Please tell me your thoughts so that I can better adapt my writing to your tastes.
Other side note: anyone know how to read Japanese fluently. I'm clutching at straws here I know but I spent lots of money buying the rare Gurren Lagann books 'Basic Drill' and 'Final Drill', with the intention of learning Kana to translate them but it's not working what so ever. If anyone can read Japanese and would like to help me out please say. PS Google translator doesn't count as the translations don't sound accurate.
Man, that was a long Authors Notes, lol. Thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed.