Seriously, why are so many fanfictions on this site about Tatsumi getting a Teigu that revolves around him using fire? Well, Great minds think alike. Shoutout to anyone who writes Akame ga Kill fanfiction.
Onwards to plot!
"So... You intend to stay behind for a short amount of time?" Najenda asked.
"Yes. To train, relax, and spend time with my friends before I set out on a personal mission," Tatsumi nodded.
"What mission?" Najenda asked.
"We will discuss details later," Tatsumi sighed. Najenda raised an eyebrow.
"Of course," Najenda said finally.
"Oh, and I fought Esdeath for about a minute," Tatsumi said nonchalantly.
The room went into uproar.
After everyone quieted down, Najenda was the first to talk.
"She was toying with you," She said finally. Tatsumi laughed.
"Vahnijwala!" He yelled. While no one could tell he had even moved, he walked beside Najenda, intent on making a point. He ended it.
"She- Wait, how?" Najenda was confused.
"Believe it or not, I could fight her. I countered every move she had with a trick I had," Tatsumi blatantly stated.
"Fair enough," Najenda smirked. "I underestimated your skill. Akame, you will train with him. Get his skills to a high enough level."
"Understood," Akame nodded.
"Now, I wish the two of you good luck. You two are dismissed. Begin training."
"Immediately?" Tatsumi's jaw dropped. "I just fought the Esdeath. I need a nap."
Technically, you already had one... for two days, actual-
NO.
"After you train, you may join your friends for whatever activity you wish to do. For now, do as I say," Najenda's eyes sharpened. "You are still a member of Night Raid and must do what I ask. Even if you spend most of your time away."
It was at that point that Tatsumi realized that Najenda was a scary person.
"O-okay..." Tatsumi held his hands up, surrendering. Akame grabbed him by the back of his jacket, pulling him outside.
"Sigh..." Tatsumi hung his head in annoyance.
"So... how is this supposed to relate to training?" Wrath asked, sitting by a creek.
"Honestly, I know very little about what it is you can do, excluding the skill you showed us before," Akame explained. "I need to gauge what it is I can and cannot do."
"So... Does this help?" Wrath asked, instantly evaporating the water in the creek. Akame's face remained the same. "Is that a no?"
"You surprise me at every second," Akame nodded. "What else can you do? No need for demonstrations, by the way. I believe you."
"Well, at this moment, I am capable of frying your brain. Instantly. That is why most of my enemies, except for those I want to fight, leave no blood. They collapse at any moment. Also, although this is lest consistent, I am able to control fire I did not start."
"What is that supposed to mean?"
Wrath leaned back.
"Okay, you see the campfire there? Now, if we were to compare it to this fire," Wrath snapped, causing another fire to spring up near the original, "Then we can see there are small changes in the color, size, and the way it flickers. The Fire I summon is less actual fire. It still is fire, but- artificial fire, if that makes sense."
"It doesn't."
"That's okay. Anyways, the whole frying people's minds only works if they remain stationary, or if there are not sufficient mental barricades."
Akame tilted her head slightly.
"Okay, you, for example, have your mind protected, preventing me from analyzing the part of your brain that would tell me the specific size, or essential areas. My flame only works if I can vividly imagine the mind of the one I am killing."
Akame nodded. "I at least understand what you can do. Draw your blade."
"Woah! What if I hurt you?" Wrath asked, concerned.
"You won't even be able to touch me," Akame stated bluntly, as if it was a fact.
The two drew their blades, staring each other down. Wrath applied his mask and wig.
"Why do you fight with those on?" Akame asked. She was surprised when Tatsumi responded, not Wrath.
"It makes me feel like less of a killer, as if I can blame it on someone else. I have never killed before, but Wrath has," Tatsumi's grin turned somber. "I guess that just makes me worse, huh?"
Akame's eye twitched before she dashed forwards, swinging Murasame down, near Tatsumi, who deftly avoided it.
"So, now you know. Tatsumi hates killing," Wrath said, parrying Akame's diagonal slice, "So I do the work for him."
"I see," Akame said, attempting a feint, which Tatsumi easily saw through. "I understand you are a good fighter, but is Tatsumi?"
"Of course! My skills would transfer to him, if he was to fight without my help."
"Understood. The question still is, how are you sentient?" Akame asked, narrowly avoiding a slice aimed for her head. She retaliated with a swing downwards, using both hands and putting as much effort into it as possible.
"You know, for a girl, you are certainly powerful," Wrath frowned. "I mean, seriously. I am stronger than you, physically, but barely."
"I was put through a strict regiment, attempting to increase muscle in the Elite Seven. It worked, to an extent. I will likely never be stronger than you, in terms of muscle, but I know how to channel my strength into each strike," Akame explained, jumping in the air. She brought the blade down, hard. Wrath stumbled.
"Like, seriously, wow. I can feel my hands still vibrating from that last hit."
"That was the intention," Akame said, dropping to the ground, landing a kick to Wrath's shins.
Or she would have, had he not jumped over her, about to land a punch to her gut, which of course missed, due to Akame's natural reflexes.
"I will say, I find your reflexes and speed to be more troublesome," Wrath grimaced. "I haven't been able to land a hit on you."
"Nor I you," Akame said. "Granted, I'm not trying as hard as I could, but even then, the use of your Teigu-" Akame paused, reflecting on something.
"What?"
"Am I talking to a Teigu right now?" Akame asked, perplexed.
"Uh, yeah. So it would be 'the use of Tatsumi's Teigu', to be proper."
"I suppose so!" Akame shouted, charging forwards, faster than before. Wrath barely blocked the strike, not expecting her to approach as fast as she did.
"That was new," Wrath said, looking at where the blade would have cut. After a moment, he turned to Akame, his eyes gleaming through his mask.
"How about my turn?" Wrath grinned like a madman, the cracks in his skin lighting up. After a few seconds, fire engulfed his entire body, coating him from head to toe in a flame shield. His sword lit up, ad he stood in a battle position, holding his sword backwards, at his side.
Akame noticed his position, her eye twitching again.
"Why the Nebenhut position? I've rarely fought fighters that use it. More often they go for the first four..." She thought.
As the battle raged on, both fighters locked in a dance, sparks flying each time their weapons clashed.
"I've rarely fought fighters using the Nebenhut position, usually they go for other positions. Why stick with that one, considering it puts your front at a disadvantage?" Akame asked.
"You tell me!" Wrath yelled, his voice even more warped than before. He charged, swinging his blade over his head. Akame dodged out of the way. However, the blade sent out a beam of fire about 10 feet. While Akame was not harmed, it forced her to dodge, lest she be cooked.
Akame adjusted, and, every time he sliced, she weaved her way around the fire. While she had not been hit, she was sweating profusely, simply out of the intense heat. Akame was pushing him back.
Until he changed Tactics.
He switched to the Vom Tag position, holding the word above his head. He brought his blade down, but no fire came from it.
Rather, the flames originally launched flew back to the sword.
He performed a vertical slice, followed by a diagonal swipe, upwards.
This first hit missed, but the second one barely scratched Akame's forearm.
Akame immediately realized the pattern. Wrath only did two slices at a time, and then brought the sword back to the original position. So, she attempted to exploit it.
Only for him to change positions again, this time to the Albur, with the sword held down, deceptively lulling the opponent into a sense of empowerment, only to attack with a brutal counterattack. Akame was not as naive, however, and would not fall for it. She assumed the same position.
"You are constantly switching tactics each time I figure it out. Not just stances, but how you manipulate fire, and the strikes you perform," Akame said, her eyes narrowing.
"You find it cowardly?" Wrath asked, the flame armor disappearing.
"On the contrary, it keeps your opponent on their toes. Even if they figure it out, they can never anticipate what you'll do next. That makes fighting you infuriating," Akame explained.
"It's still not perfect. I would prefer if no one was able to know what I was able to do in the first place, but I have not yet unlocked what I can do fully. Tatsumi's body can only endure so much stress, you know? I don't want to kill the poor bastard."
Akame nodded, putting Murasame down.
"That concludes today's session," Akame said, relaxing. "I'm hungry."
Wrath's eyes lost their gleam, and Tatsumi was back to normal.
"I forget that I rely on him too much," Tatsumi remarked. "Given the alternative though..."
...
"What you said at the beginning of the battle annoys me."
Tatsumi looked at Akame quizzically.
"You said that you have never killed," Akame stated.
Tatsumi's face darkened.
"Yeah, what of it?" Tatsumi muttered.
"You have killed. Many, in fact. It was by your will they died. Regardless of the fact that you yourself did not kill them," Akame stated bluntly. "The fact of the matter is whether or not they deserved it, and, they did."
"That doesn't help! Maybe they might be awful, but it still doesn't change the fact that they are dead!" Tatsumi shouted.
"Do you know why I'm in Night Raid?" Akame asked, catching Tatsumi off guard.
"N-no-"
"I was part of a Capital Group called the Elite Seven. They handled Assassinations for the capital. I was..." Akame paused. "Introduced, to this group. But they more we killed, the more we slaughtered, the more I began to question what I was doing.
"Of course, I had probably seen it coming for a long time, but for all of my time there, I had taken lives without understanding why.
"The worst part about it is that I likely killed hundreds of would-be revolutionary army members. The ones who couldn't live with the corruption and greed. We were never given orders to 'take into custody'. Always to kill.
"I have looked back on this, seeing this as a point where I killed those who were perhaps completely innocent. I value the difference between the innocent and the truly guilty."
Akame sheathed Murasame.
"The guilty are the ones who hold the world back. They abuse their power for whatever they want. So long as they exist, we can't change what is happening.
"No one enjoys killing. The only thing we enjoy is he future that will be improved by their deaths. The only way to live in this world is to get rid of those who would prevent you from doing so. There is a large difference between surviving and living."
Akame held her hand out to Tatsumi.
"You fought well."
Tatsumi grabbed her hand, and shook it, before noticing the cut on her arm.
"You're hurt?" He asked. Akame looked away, letting go. Tatsumi, being Tatsumi, grabbed her, and inspected the cut. It was cauterized.
"I cut you?" He asked, facing Akame. Surprisingly, she was somewhat red.
"You're kidding... You're actually embarrassed by a small cut?" Tatsumi asked incredulously.
"We're leaving," Akame said, regaining her poker face.
"Hang on!" Tatsumi said, holding her back. "I have bandages."
"-so now I have a general scope of what he can do," Akame said to Najenda. "So for today, he's free."
"Hooray," Tatsumi sighed.
"Tatsumi!" Ieyasu yelled. He was running at full speed, with Sayo trailing behind. Neither was slowing down.
Tatsumi braced for impact, but was not prepared for the full force of the two.
He collapsed to the ground, exhausted.
"It would be nice if you were to visit us every now and again!" Sayo yelled.
"What's with that, Tatsumi? You don't want to be associated with the Great Assassin Ieyasu?" Ieyasu bragged.
"You're probably going to end up dead, Ieyasu..." Sayo joked.
"Yeah, but not before you kick the bucket. I bet I'll die only by the hand of the strongest warrior on this continent!" Ieyasu retorted.
"That'll be the day," Tatsumi said, regaining enough strength to stand. "Anyways, where are we going?"
"We're going to go get something called 'Ice Cream', which is said to be the most delicious thing on the planet. After that, the whole group is going on a mission to take out some cousin's nephew's sister in law's- you know, I forget the connection, but he's related to the Prime Minister, and then, I think we might target some serial killer or something," Sayo explained. "Me and Ieyasu are all ready to go, are you?"
"Of course! I suppose we should go then, best not to keep the Cream of Ice from melting, eh?" Tatsumi grinned.
"My lord, it's sooooooo gooooood..." Ieyasu grinned dreamily, ravenously devouring his ice cream.
"Ieyasu, you're going to get a brain freeze," Sayo scolded. "You can't eat that fast, or else-"
Ieyasu's face turned blue, and he let out a small yell.
"Told you," Sayo sighed.
"So, how have things been with the group?" Tatsumi inquired.
"Oh! I've mostly been training with Bul- Bro, actually. He told me to call him that. Anyways, he's really strong, and I've learned a lot from him. Although the weapon he has me use changes frequently."
"He wants you to learn other weapons, I guess," Tatsumi nodded.
"That makes sense, but why does Sayo have to stick with a spear?"
"Hey, just because I'm good at something doesn't mean I should change it!" Sayo retorted. Tatsumi started to chuckle.
"What's so funny, Tats?" Ieyasu asked.
"Okay- first, never call me Tats. We've discussed this," Tatsumi stated, leaving a disappointed Ieyasu in his wake. "And second, it just feels good to be able to be with you guys now. Considering I'm- at work, shall we say- for most of the time, I don't have time to be with you guys."
"Well, at least a lot of the people at the base talk about you!" Ieyasu grinned. Tatsumi merely sighed.
"They talk about my accomplishments, not me. Which, to be fair, is okay, considering what it is he has done, but it makes me feel- I dunno, left out, I guess," Tatsumi said. "Regardless, I'll gladly sacrifice friendship with a few people than let what almost happened to you two happen to others."
"You don't like that though, do you?" Sayo muttered. "You need to act like yourself more often. Don't rely on your 'friend' so often."
"Wish I could. My accomplice is just- too bombastic for my tastes. So I let him do what he wants," Tatsumi leaned back in his chair. He raised his hand to his head, supporting himself. He looked off in the distance a bit, as if he saw something. "Well look at that..."
"What are you looking at?" Sayo asked.
"Looks like the Coliseum is quite busy today," Tatsumi mused. "Wonder what's happening..."
A few people scrambled by, heading towards to Coliseum.
"Hmm..." Ieyasu hummed. "Maybe we should check it out?"
"Maybe," Tatsumi said, standing up. "You guys want to check it out?"
"We'll follow you, if you want," Sayo stood.
"Alright. Let's go," Tatsumi said, feeling uneasy.
The crowd was eerily silent inside the Coliseum. Not a word was spoken. The only noise was the shuffling of feet.
Tatsumi, Sayo, and Ieyasu sat near the front, by an exit. If there was danger, the three could escape at any second.
A man walked to the center of the Coliseum, holding- something that appeared to amplify his voice. The man himself was rather large, had blonde hair, and a red cape, as well as armor on his body, and- something- on both of his arms.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, you are here to witness the Execution of the Void Walker," the man said. "The charges include Treason, Murder, Theft, and Tampering with weapons of great power."
"Here to execute him is General Esdeath. She chose to personally preside over this execution.," The man said. "Also here to observe his death is I, Great General Budo. We must purge the Empire of those who wish it to fall!"
He raised his hand skyward, his hand curled into a fist.
"Glory to the Grand Empire!" Budo yelled.
At that time, a few soldiers brought a prisoner forward. The prisoner had a sack over his head. He was dragged out from one of the sides of the Coliseum. His hands and legs were both bound with chains.
"Who is the Void Walker?" Ieyasu whispered. The two shrugged.
"I dunno. Maybe we should leave though," Sayo whispered back. Tatsumi nodded.
As they were preparing to leave, the man was brought into the center of the Coliseum. Esdeath walked calmly to him, a small grin on her face.
The sack was lifted from the man's head, revealing the man Tatsumi had met just before entering the fortress that was the Capital.
"The execution of Kitama, the void walker, shall commence!"
Ye.
