Foreword: Well, here's my new chapter! Hope you guys like it! And please, review, I'm begging you all!
Disclaimer: I don't own s-CRY-ed. I do own this story though.
Flooding Fury
Both people flinched visibly as the buzzing of Mimori's doorbell broke the romantic atmosphere that they had been enveloped by.
Kazuma sighed out a very audible, "Damn it… We were so close." He could feel Mimori wiggling out of his grasp.
"Hold that thought, will you? I'll be right back." Mimori trudged to the door. She was apparently agitated that such a special moment was screwed up by a door bell, and whoever was on the other side of the door. She pulled the door open, and said, "Yes? Did you need something?" Though she sounded polite, there was definitely a brusque undertone to her voice.
"Did I… interrupt something?" A cool voice filtered into the room, reaching Kazuma's ears.
The fiery fist fighter strode up to the door, and slung an arm around Mimori's shoulder. He gently massaged her shoulder, and smiled at their guest, nodding.
Though startled by her new-found love's actions, Mimori stayed focused and managed to say, "Well… yes, a little bit."
"I see…" Ryuho folded his arms tighter and pursed his lips in anger. "Mimori, may I speak with you outside alone?"
"What are you doing with him?" the new commander of HOLY said, accusingly. His sharp eyes seemed to impale Mimori, as he asserted his dominance in the situation.
The doctor raised an eyebrow, and stated as though it were completely obvious, "Uh… He's staying with me, remember? He just got finished with surgeries, and I've been running tests on him almost non-stop."
'That lying little… Kazuma… I knew Mimori would never do what you had said she had!' Ryuho very stiffly said, "Then if he is finished, I would like him gone. He poses a threat to this facility."
"A threat?" she cried, "Kazuma's as gentle as a lamb, when he wants to be! He doesn't pose any sort of threat to anybody!" Mimori thought back to many of her fond memories… Kazuma wasn't just a brute… Deep down, he was really a pleasant person.
Ryuho scratched angrily at his scalp, and his eyes widened as he snarled, "And what about what he did to the climbing wall? You call that gentle? It was almost completely obliterated! Just because he is your current…" He seemed to spit out the next words, "lover does not mean that he can simply destroy HOLY property!"
"That's… not the reason. It was a miscommunication between Kazuma and myself. You say current as though I've dated everyone on the Island! Also, there is a distinct difference between being 'lovers' and being 'in love' with somebody… Look, Ryuho, I know you don't like Kazuma, but just deal with it… because I do."
Anger, confusion, sadness, a sense of being betrayed… They were all reflected in his eyes. "You used to have the same feelings for me, Mimori! How can you… How could you do something like this to me?"
"They… They're not the same feelings, Ryuho… I don't think I ever truly loved you as I love Kazuma… I was just enamored with you… ever since we were children… You were a childhood crush… an infatuation… I'm sorry, but I must be honest." Mimori looked sad and torn apart… She felt as though she was being too harsh on the man, but she also felt that it was important that he learned the truth…
Her words hit hard, like a sledge hammer straight to the face. "An infatuation?" he growled, stepping closer to Mimori "What do you mean infatuation!"
"You just… weren't there for me when I needed you… You weren't there for me in the way I wanted you to be… How could you do that to me? You made me feel so worthless… like a simple pawn, or bargaining chip… But Kazuma is always there for me… He's always worried about how I'm doing, or how I'm feeling… I'm… I'm in love with him, Ryuho… Can't you understand that?" She smiled, thinking of Kazuma and his quirky attitude… he may not have been the brightest, or most perceptive person, or even the nicest at times, but he was always dependable… She could always count on him. Mimori was in love with all of Kazuma…
"But what about me?" he hissed, his eyes blazing with frustration.
Mimori folded her arms and glared at him in a complete one-eighty mood swing, "… So what about you?"
Ryuho was left completely speechless, and he simply stood there, stunned.
-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-
Kazuma stood in the middle of the kitchen, chewing through an apple. He silently regarded the little box on the wall, and looked around shiftily, before playing with the switches.
Countless minutes later, he heard the door shut, and immediately jumped away from the thermostat. Mimori trudged in slowly, looking very tired, and more annoyed than usual. She looked around confused, and shivers assailed her body. "Why is it so cold in here?"
Kazuma shifted uncomfortably, like a little kid with his hand in a cookie jar. "Well… um… I was sorta playin' with that thing on the wall over there." He waved an arm towards the thermostat, and stuffed his hands into his pockets.
She appraised the small box, and looked over at the man. "Kazuma… you set it to the coldest setting…"
"Sorry… didn't know what it did, so I just started playin' with it," Kazuma said, shrugging and frowning apologetically.
The black haired doctor smiled gently at him, and patted him on the shoulder, "That's alright, Kazuma… I was just wondering why I was getting so cold." She pivoted at the hips and reset the thermostat to where it would create a comfortable environment in the room.
Taking a few steps forward, Kazuma placed his arms around Mimori's waist and smiled down at her, giving a quick, reassuring squeeze.
She seemingly melted within his grasps. Mimori braced her head against his shoulder and closed her eyes, letting her tension escape her. All of her worries vanished, including those involving a certain Commander of HOLY. Though greatly appreciative, she had to question Kazuma's motives. "So what was that for?"
"Nothin'. You looked like you needed it, that's all." The normally explosive man caressed her cheek and winked before walking off to dig in the refrigerator for food.
As she watched the young man root through her food, she whispered under her breath, keeping her words for only herself, "Kazuma… You truly care about me… I know you do… I can tell by all of your actions, and just by the way you look at me…" Grinning slightly, she spoke aloud and chuckled, "Well… it's a couple hundred steps up from my last relationship."
-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-
Sweat dripped off of his lean body in droplets, as he continued throwing attack after savage attack at the punching bag. His green hair was matted down to his head, as he continued fighting against the inanimate leather bag.
He heard a rustling noise, and looked over to his left, catching sight of a duffel bag being tossed against the wall. "Ah…" The young man who had entered the room quickly pulled off his shirt and began to stretch his arms out.
"Kazuma…" Ryuho growled as he lashed out with his leg towards the punching bag, viciously rattling the inanimate object.
The fist fighter had healed almost completely, with only a tiny bit of discomfort within his shoulder and arm. He let out a massive yawn and scratched at his face. Instead of his usual clothes, he was given clothes that he could use in the gym. He appraised the sleek, black pants, and snowy white sleeveless shirt that he had received.
Snorting, Kazuma tossed the shirt off to the side. "Ain't gonna need that. Just gonna get all sweaty." The young man plunked down on the floor and quickly began to stretch his whole body out.
Carefully calculating and formulating a plan, Ryuho stared at the man who had taken Mimori from him. 'There are so many ways I could defeat him… I must choose one, and adhere to it.'
Rolling onto his upper back, Kazuma flicked his legs out, springing himself into the air, and to his feet. The young fighter cracked his neck, and then his knuckles, before dropping himself into a plausible fighting stance.
He stepped up towards another of the myriad of punching bags, and reeled his arm back. The blow was as fast as lightning, and powerful like a raging hurricane. It was so quick, that even Ryuho had trouble tracking the punch.
"Oh, son of a...!" Kazuma cried, as he watched the bag hit the floor, completely ripped out of the ceiling. He instantly hopped back a few steps and raised his hands into the air, as if showing his innocence. "Nope! Not me! It was not… Wh-What are you talking about? I… It's fine…"
"You broke it. It's obviously not fine." Ryuho stepped forward and folded his arms, harshly staring at Kazuma.
"Dunno what you're talkin' about, dude. Come on, it was just an accident. Isn't like I did it on purpose." Kazuma shrugged and clutched at his forearm, gently, yet still firmly massaging it, trying to keep the pain from pulsating through it.
"Your strike… It was sloppy, at best. An attack like that would be useless against a living opponent." The green haired commander turned and allowed his leg to shoot out, colliding with another punching bag close to them. The sheer force of the blow blasted the bag backwards, and sailed off of the rafters it was secured to.
Though it landed closer to the pair than Kazuma's, it was, without a doubt, a cleaner attack, than Kazuma's was.
"What's your problem, man? You're always actin' like you got a fork up your ass, and somebody's tryin' to fit in the rest of the utensils and a plate." Kazuma was on guard. He could tell that there was something amiss. This man had something dangerous in mind for Kazuma.
"I do not act like that," Ryuho retorted curtly. He began circling Kazuma, like a cat cornering its prey, and he slowly said, "How about we test this… "strength" of yours? I'm sure you do not remember our last face off… but I have improved tenfold, since that day. How about it, Kazuma? How about a sparring match?"
The chilling smile on his face would've sent most people packing, but, Kazuma, as always, simply shrugged it off and laughed. "Sparring? You're jokin' right? I ain't never half-assed a fight in my life, and I ain't startin' now. This is gonna be a full fledged brawl…" Grinning wickedly, Kazuma added in, "No holds barred."
"Alters?"
"Only if you think you're man enough." Kazuma smiled slyly as Shell Bullet split his arm, and bound it back together, within the confines of his metallic gauntlet.
-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-
Mimori sat at her desk, diligently filling out sheet after sheet of medical forms. Stifling a yawn, the woman readjusted her glasses, and skimmed through the paper, before signing her name at the bottom and repeating the process with a new form.
She paused or a moment, sipping at her cup of coffee. Wryly staring into the liquid, she noted that it was extremely bitter. "I should have grabbed some sugar, at the very least."
The floor under her seemed to tremble for a slight moment. Remaining perfectly still, Mimori's whole body tensed. After a few moments, the feeling subsided, and she continued to work on her papers, as she was a few weeks behind, due to her constant maintenance of her friend, and new found love interest, Kazuma.
This time, the floor shuddered violently, and she ended up scribbling all over the form, as her coffee spilled down the front of her desk. "Oh, darn it…" she mumbled.
-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-
"Having trouble keeping up?" Ryuho spat as he sent Zetsuei ricocheting towards Kazuma. "It seems that you are weaker than I estimated."
"Shaddup, jackass! Shell Bullet Burst!" Rapidly propelled towards the commander of HOLY's alter, Kazuma completely ripped through Zetsuei, releasing a massive explosion of light. "I ain't no pushover! I'm just gettin' warmed up!" Twisting through the air, Kazuma landed a blow square across Ryuho's face, sending the man flying into the wall, shattering bricks and bending metal.
Dislodging himself from the wall, the man struggled to keep to his feet. "… I did not expect to be forced to use this… especially not in your current state. What must be done, must be done." Ryuho began glowing, as he started to reformulate his Alter, Zetsuei.
The humanoid quickly shifted forms into the much larger, gorgon-esque creature. A whirling vortex of energy surrounded both of them, as master and servant began to merge into one mystical warrior. "There is no hope for victory now, Kazuma… I know that you are limited to only that form, and the weaker form of your pitiful Alter."
Like a howling wind, Ryuho slashed through the air, biting into Kazuma with the blades gripped in his hands.
Grinding his teeth, Kazuma fought back against the pain within his body. Using the last amount of strength available to his body, the mercenary shot forward, grabbing hold of his foe, and trapping him to the ground with his lion-like paws.
The downed officer of HOLY continued slashing at Kazuma with the bladed weapons gripped tightly in his hands. This wasn't just a fight… it was a life or death struggle.
"Both of you! Stop this, please!" Mimori's voice filtered into the room. The doctor quickly ran to both of their sides, and placed her arms around Kazuma, gently persuading him to let go of her boss.
The simplest of touches seemed to calm him, as Kazuma receded from his position atop Ryuho, and instead backed away, in the embrace of Mimori. "Just calm down, Kazuma… He was just trying to goad you into fighting…"
"Well, it worked…" Kazuma gave Mimori's arm a gentle squeeze, and smiled at her. "Thanks a lot… I got a little carried away back there."
"You are a disgrace, Kazuma…" Ryuho's voice shot darts into "The Shell Bullet". "You can do nothing… You could not defend your useless friend, and you certainly could not defend Ms. Kiryuu."
Kazuma stopped dead in his tracks, as pictures of a black haired man surged through his mind. He couldn't place a name with them, but he knew that something was wrong with them. This man that he could see… he had passed.
Whole body trembling with rage, Kazuma turned around slowly, and deliberately, fixing his flashing, dangerous, golden irises on Ryuho.
Kimishima.
That was the name. It had finally returned to its pictures.
"I will always keep Mimori safe… I won't let the same thing happen to her that happened to Kimishima… I will ALWAYS keep Mimori safe from harm!"
"But you can't… You are not strong enough. You are nothing but a weakling, Kazuma, The Shell Bullet."
Nothing… Weakling…
Author's Notes: I hope you guys weren't waiting for too long… Sorry if you were, but I was working on another story! Anyway, there you have it. And yes… Things have an annoying tendency to pop up right at important moments, hahaha. Goddamn it... My computer is still being stupid. I think something's messed up... It's not registering in my own computer that I updated.
Random Bonus: Ah… This one will be hard. What movie did I take the line "So what about you?" from? I'll give you a hint, it's from a cult classic movie from 1979, and it's about gangs.
Last Chapter's Bonus: Nirvana wrote "In Bloom".
