A/N: Ermygerd is that Chapter 9 I hear?! It speaks to me loud and clear! On the wind! Past the stars! In your ear!

Lian: Please stop, you're making my ears bleed.

That's the plan! Payback for making me cry last time! The hills are alive~ with the sound of music~

Lian: Kill. Me. Now.

Gladly!

Lian: -_- Is she retarded or is it just me?

Just you~! Oh! I forgot to mention, last Chapter, we reached 20,000 words! That's incredible! I want to quickly thank you all for helping me get this far, I wouldn't be doing this if I knew you guys didn't like it. So thanks! Let's see if we can get to 40,000 next, huh?

~SnK~

Daitan Futekina – Fearless

Chapter 9

Born with no life, into subjugation.

Treated like a worthless animal.

Stripped of all rights.

Just a lesser being.

Crushed by cruel, ruthless human rule.

When it started, all I wanted was a chance to live our lives.

Now in darkness, taking anything we want and we will rise.

From shadows, we'll descend upon the world.

Take back what you stole.

From shadows, we'll reclaim out destinies.

Set our futures free.

"Reiner Braun. He possesses great strength and integrity. His comrades trust him deeply for this. Excels in the aspect of Teamwork

Armin Arlert. What he lacks in physical strength, he makes up for extreme academic aptitude. He can listen to orders, and has not yet failed to carry any out. Excels in Judgement and Strategy.

Annie Leonhart. While her fighting skills are outstanding, she doesn't work well as part of a team. A lone wolf, so to speak, though she has previously worked well with the likes of Ackerman and Smith. Excels in Battle Skill.

Bertholdt Fubar. He is highly talented in many areas, but lacks the initiative needed to excel in these subjects. Excels in Teamwork.

Jean Kirstein. His 3D control skills are top class, but his overly-blunt personality causes friction among the group, mainly with Eren Jaeger and, at times, Kukri Smith. Excels in Battle Skill.

Sasha Braus. She is talented at working unconventionally, but that mentality makes her unfit for organised activity. She shows joy in every task, but judging her actions is difficult. Is moderate in every subject.

Connie Springer. He's skilled at making sharp turns, but his mind is nowhere near sharp enough. He has taken to following his comrade's actions, and is shown to be a fast learner. Excels in Speed.

Mikasa Ackerman. Her performance is exemplary in every subject. She is truly a genius of historically-unprecedented significance. She works best on her own, but in a small group she can be deadly. Excels in every subject.

Eren Jaeger. While he lacks any outstanding talents, he improved his grades for almost every subject through excellent diligence. In addition, he possesses an exceptional sense of purpose, surpassing all of his classmates. Excels in Agility.

Finally, Kukri Smith. Performance is near-perfect in every subject, 3DMG being her finest, though she has shown no want or need for any spot in the top ten. She shows natural leadership, but can listen to orders if need be. Her lack of emotion on the field is both a blessing and a curse. Excels in every subject."

Erwin, Pixis and Levi stayed silent throughout Shadis' summary, but after several silent seconds, Pixis gave a hearty slap to the Commander of the Scouting Legion's back, chuckles emanating from him. They had watched in silence as the 104th trainee squad zipped throughout the trees, slicing the back of 'titan's' necks as they did so.

"Proud of that daughter of yours then, Erwin?" The eldest man asked, crow's feet at the edges of his eyes as he grinned. "I'm jealous."

"She still has a long way to go." Levi muttered, watching the girl in question fly past them with a critical gaze. He was almost upset he didn't get to see the wound he knew she would have inflicted on the 'titan's' neck. Almost.

At this, however, Pixis turned to the short man, taking in his narrowed eyes. "Pah, you're just jealous you aren't her mentor anymore." The old man muttered, a smile still gracing his lips.

"She'll be joining the Recon Corps then, I assume." He continued, eyes twinkling. He really was jealous; the duo probably didn't realize that they were going to get a brilliant soldier. "But whose squad, I wonder?"

"I have agreed to let her join Levi's squad, but the final decision will ultimately be up to her." Erwin confirmed, turning to look at the short man who leaned against the trunk of the tree that they perched upon. He seemed indifferent to the idea, but Erwin had a feeling he was nervous. After all, the two hadn't seen each-other for 2 years, and the man she had once trained with now had a group of his own. Despite being her father, Erwin had no idea how she would react to that.

"Well then, I don't doubt for a second that she would do well with him, then." Pixis muttered, knowing for a fact that she would be exemplary with the short man. He had noticed her fighting style, and it was so similar to Rivaille's that it was almost comical to look at. He knew as a team they would be a force to be reckoned with.

"Disappointed?" Levi asked, a faint smirk on his face, knowing for a fact that Pixis wished she join the Garrison. "Don't worry, you can always have Arlert." He continued, remembering the boy from Shadis' description. He put a face to the name when he saw a blonde boy stand for several seconds after not cutting far enough into a 'titan's neck. Amazingly, he had gotten it the second time, after thinking about his entry for a second.

The Garrison needs someone like that. He thought, though he wouldn't have minded having him as-well.

"No way! I want the pair!" Pixis exclaimed, eyes one more meeting the flying albino's form.

She had landed next to Arlert, listening to his words, before nodding with a faint smile. He watched as the two jumped, intertwining their lines as they did so. The force of the lines rubbing against each-other made sparks begin to sizzle from them, and he hadn't even noticed it when they were untangled. His, and Erwin's, eyes drifted to the titan dummies nearby, now both sporting missing chunks from their necks. Kukri nodded at Arlert, who smiled in return, before they separated, moving on to new foes. The pressure of the lines had propelled them forward, nearly cutting off the dummies' heads.

"See!" He half-yelled, throwing out an arm for emphasis. As a pair, they worked extremely well, and Pixis wanted to stay just to see more.

The trio continued watching with calculative eyes, Shadis standing behind them with a clipboard in his hands.

"Why doesn't she want in the top ten?" Levi asked, blue eyes looking at Shadis, who stared right back with his own piercing stare.

"Smith has said several times that she has no desire to be part of the Military Police, and I suspect the reason for her refusal is to let others join if they wish." At this, Levi let out a simple 'tch', simply returning to watch the trainees.

"Eren! To the right!" They heard, and after turning around, they saw Jaeger cut a clean slice out of dummy's neck, following his friend's advice.

"Thanks!" He yelled back, a grin gracing his face as they passed by each-other. He received an acknowledging nod, and the two separated.

"Seems they finally put their differences aside." Shadis muttered, at which Levi raised an eyebrow. Erwin too turned to the instructor with a confused gaze.

"What do you mean?" He asked, wondering what the man meant by differences. From what Petra had told him, the two were friends again. Had she lied?

"There was an incident about two weeks ago involving the two of them." Shadis said, hands clasped behind his back.

"Incident?" Levi asked, beating Erwin to the punch. His arms were crossed, and he was now completely focused on Shadis.

"Fight." The instructor replied, eyes steely as he recounted the event.

~SnK~

Eren tensed up, ready for Reiner who charged at him. When he was close enough, the brunette flung his entire body over, with little effort. Reiner cringed as his body hit the ground, face scrunching up in pain with the wooden dagger clutched tightly in his hand.

"Sorry, man." Eren apologized, holding out a hand for his friend to take. "I suck at holding back."

Reiner was pulled up by the brunette, now standing on his own two feet. He held the wooden knife to the shorter boy, handle facing outwards. "You be the bad guy next." He said, wondering how a boy so much smaller than him managed to knock him flat.

The same was happening across from them, where Bertholdt and Kukri stood, the very same wooden dagger in the tall boy's hand. He swung it at the albino, but her small frame allowed her to dance out of the way.

Is this how Levi felt all those times? She thought, surpassing a giggle. She rather liked this exercise; so far not one person had managed to hit her before she moved, and she had only not sparred with Eren and Annie yet. She had a feeling they would be the toughest to dodge, though, she had been watching them, especially Eren, who she suspected to be paired with next, and they were by far the top of the class in hand-to-hand combat.

Bertholdt frowned as the tiny girl slipped away from his hold; she was like sand, if you even managed to grab her for a second, she just fell right through your fingers.

Eren shook his head at her antics, poor Bertholdt was probably having extreme self-esteem issues. Nevertheless, he grinned when he saw her giggle at the exercise, he missed seeing her smile like that, mainly because even as a child he didn't see it all that often. It had taken a while, and a lot of help from Armin, but the two were quickly on the road of friendship once again, and Eren had begun to wonder what made him avoid her in the first place. He could hardly remember his reasoning, so he quickly put it behind him.

Nevertheless, he turned to his partner and gruffly took the knife, his smile quickly fading.

"What's wrong?"

"I just don't see why we have to do this, is all." He muttered in response to Reiner's question. "It's not like soldiers fight other humans, and no-one would be stupid enough to go in a fight bare-handed, anyway." He grumbled. His attention was swerved, however, when Kukri rolled up next to them, once again dodging her partner's attacks.

"Don't jinx it." She said, looking at his cyan eyes for a brief second before jumping and balancing on the fence. At this, Eren raised a brow; what was she doing?

His question was answered when Bertholdt walked up, feeling rather put-out after his failed attempts to catch the tiny albino. She jumped over him, using the extra height the fence provided to leap over the tall boy. Reiner and Eren could only stare in astonishment and she grabbed the taller boy's arms, twisting them around to meet his neck, before leaping on his back and pinning him to the ground.

Looking up at the two astonished faces above her she said sheepishly, "Levi was hard-core with the training."

"I can tell." Bertholdt murmured from his position on the floor. He was helped up by the small girl, who nearly fell over herself in the process, handing the wooden dagger to her.

The two walked to a clearer area before starting again, with Bertholdt now dodging Kukri's swings with the wooden blade.

"She's right, you know." Eren looked at Reiner for an explanation of his odd words. "It's irresponsible, thinking like that. We're soldiers. There are times when we can't back down, no matter how hopeless the situation might seem." Eren looked at Kukri who had kicked in her partners knees to hold the wood to his neck, remembering the night in the forest where she confessed she thought they died. Had she given up then?

"We can't always be sure what we're up against," Reiner continued, face looking almost grim. "So we master artillery and hand-to-hand combat too. That's our responsibility as Soldiers." He finished, at which Eren turned back, blinking at his words.

His partner's attention was averted, however, by someone to his left. "Would ya' look at that?" Eren turned his gaze to see a blonde figure, one who he had not yet sparred with.

Annie Leonhart, a friend of Kukri's.

"The officers never notice when she sneaks off." Eren observed, seeing Kukri turn her attention to the blonde after her partner walked off for a drink.

Reiner now had a mischievous smile on his face. "Let's teach that slacker a lesson." He said, at which Eren looked at him in shock. "We'll teach her how true soldiers ought to behave."

By now, Kukri had wandered up to them, a frown marring her pale face. "Just stay out of it, guys. It isn't our business what she does." She said, defending her friend. Eren frowned at this, however. Who was she to say what they should and shouldn't do?

"You're not out mother, so stop acting like it." He muttered darkly, giving her a glare. Her eyes widened in response; what on earth brought this on?

Nevertheless, the two moved in-front of Annie, who stopped and looked up at their presence. "You looking for a head-butt from the instructor?" Reiner asked, and Kukri wasn't sure if he was mocking her or being serious. "If you don't wanna get any shorter, I suggest you recall your first day here and get serious." The blonde boy threatened.

"What are you talking about?" Eren asked, confused at his choice of words. His attention soon drifted to Annie, who looked murderous with the dark look in her blue eyes.

Eren's eyes also snapped to meet Kukri's who had come to stand next to him with crossed arms and a heated glare in his direction. "I told you to stay out of this." She murmured, making the brunette's blood boil.

His narrowed eyes widened, however, when Reiner pushed him forward, making Kukri glare at him. "Come on, Eren."

Annie quickly adopted a battle stance, and Eren charged at her, after confirming she knew what to do. Her face was as monotonous as her albino friend's, ready and waiting.

He was kneeling on the ground within seconds.

Kukri looked disapprovingly at him, a huff escaping her lips as Annie turned to Reiner, having completed his 'challenge'. "Can I go now?" She asked, albeit impatiently, at which Reiner shook his head.

"No. It's not over until he lets go of the dagger." Reiner said, and Annie turned to face the kneeling boy once more, with an almost sinister look in her eyes.

"Wait, Annie- we're supposed to do it the way-" Eren shouted, protesting to the girl.

He was on the ground once again.

As Kukri watched complacently from the side-lines, arms still stubbornly crossed, Annie tossed the wooden knife to Reiner, who looked at it with widened eyes.

"Here. Now it's your turn to attack me." The blonde girl said, feeling confident about her abilities. Kukri didn't doubt for a second that the tall boy would also be on the ground within seconds; hand-to-hand combat was surely what the girl excelled in.

"I don't..." Reiner said, not prepared to face Annie's wrath.

"Go on, Reiner." Eren said with a dark look in his cyan eyes, still bitter about being on the ground. "You're going to teach her the responsibility of being a soldier, right?"

At this, Reiner sputtered out denials, making both Kukri and Annie flash small smiles, the most they would probably get out of the girls. At this, Reiner looked determined, however, saying, "Yeah, sometimes a soldier can't back down. Like right now!"

In the end, Reiner joined Eren on the ground as Annie walked away triumphantly. Kukri gave her a nod of recognition, and received one back, making both girls smile. "Doing this is pointless." She said after hearing Eren's compliment on her fighting style.

"You mean this exercise?" Eren asked, happy that someone finally felt the same way.

"Anti-personal techniques don't factor into our scores, so people just take it easy until it's over." She continued, a far-away look in her eyes. "The right to join the Military Police and live in the inner city is only given to the top scoring graduates. The people who bother participating in this are either stupidly serious like you, or seriously stupid. Kukri falls into neither of these categories."

"Why in this world are the people most capable of fending off the titans the only ones given the privilege of avoiding them entirely?" She asked, with the wooden knife to a now-standing Eren. "How do you think it got to be such a farce?"

"Who knows?" Eren retorted, pushing the wood away from his neck.

He was on the floor a third time, now with the dagger pressed against his jugular.

"Maybe it's just human nature?" Annie continued, though her questions sounded like anything other than rhetorical. "Point is, I can't even pretend to be stupid enough to play soldier in this messed-up world."

And then she walked away like nothing had happened.

He briefly registered Kukri coming to stand closer, a disapproving look on her face that Eren was quickly becoming familiar with. "What?" He snapped, cyan eyes burning with a fierce intensity.

"That was stupid." This made his eyes widen. In the past year they had been training, not one had Kukri ever look so emotionless. He thought she had grown past it all, and had learned that having emotions and feeling something, anything, wasn't a bad thing."You can't just leave well enough alone." She said with monotonous eyes. Eren's blood boiled.

"Don't act like you know everything." He muttered darkly, feeling the familiar sensation of hate fill his entire being.

"I never claimed to be all-knowing, Eren."

"But you do! Without even realizing it!" The brunette yelled, drawing the attention of a few students. "3DMG: Perfect. Hand-to-hand: Perfect. When will you let someone else take the spotlight!"

Kukri's red eyes darkened to a deep shade of maroon as she glared. It wasn't as though she asked to be surrounded by her classmates every night, with no privacy what-so-ever. "Fine then. Fight me and take it." She said, and Eren gladly complied. Neither paid any attention to Reiner, who was now standing after watching the fight with tentative eyes.

Both adopted their own battle stances, Eren with fists up and Kukri crouched low to the ground. Several people turned their heads at this, wondering why neither were holding the customary wooden knife, but Shadis wasn't one of them. He was too far away, probably reprimanding Sasha and Connie for making fun of the excersize.

The fight began when Eren leapt forward, at which the albino smoothly dodged his punch, sliding to the left. Skidding along the gravel, she said, "Mistake Number One. Never make the first move."

This lasted for several minutes, Kukri throwing in 'rules' every now and then to amuse herself and anger Eren further.

"Number Two. Use your surroundings." Using a tree branch nearby, she leapt over the brunettes head effortlessly.

"Number Three. Strike fast, and in several small bursts. You'd rather have several shots with little chance of missing than one large hit that you could fail with." She performed a series of sharp punches to his arm in certain areas, and Eren grit his teeth as he tried to move it. He couldn't.

She knows pressure points?!

With the number of spectators growing steadily higher, Armin and Mikasa joined the crowd. "Why aren't they using the knife?" Armin asked, to which he received a shrug from his oriental friend.

Kukri didn't land any hits after she rendered Eren's right arm useless, knowing that arm was his stronger of the two, instead opting to dodge all of his. A devious thought entered her head as his left arm snapped into view, and like her mentor used to do, she said tauntingly, "Miss."

This continued with every punch Eren failed to hit, every kick that failed to land until eventually, he had enough. His right hand shot out, catching Kukri by surprise; she hadn't expected him to get his strength back so quickly. Eren saw the flicker of surprize on her face, crimson eyes widening a fraction, and he grinned. His right hand grasping the front of the albino's t-shirt, Eren let the other reel back. With a sickening sound, his fist hit her face, and the power of it combined with her tiny mass made Kukri fall to the ground.

Eren wasted no time. Straddling her waist and paying no heed to the shocked voices and gasps around them, he slammed his fists into his friend's face without hesitation.

Left.

Right.

Left.

Right.

"Eren! What the hell are you doing!?" Armin screeched, having witnessed the beating go on long enough. He pushed his way through the crowd, Mikasa following close behind, and the two struggled to pull the brunette of the girl. Armin had no doubts that if they didn't interfere, his friend wouldn't have stopped.

Kukri's head lolled to the side weakly, indestructible persona broken, and chest heaving as she breathed through her busted lip. Armin stole a glance at her face, and instantly knew she would be left with bruises and a sore head from hitting the ground. Blood trickled from her slightly open mouth, such a deep contrast from her pale skin, and several small scratches marred her face from the stones that littered the ground.

Shadis himself had seen the commotion too late, but still pushed his way through the crowd. He was met with four of his students, two valiantly holding one back, the last weak on the ground. It didn't take a genius like Squad-Leader Hanji to figure out what happened, and as Shadis turned his gaze to Jaeger, he shouted.

"Get him out of here."

Armin gulped, and he and Mikasa complied, now having no trouble pulling the boy from the scene.

~SnK~

"From what other students told me, the fight didn't last long." Shadis finished, being met with nothing but shocked faces. Eventually, however, Levi's face darkened.

How dare that insolent little brat place his hands on her.

"He was punished, I hope?" He muttered, narrowed eyes following the boy in question as he zipped through the trees and out of sight.

"Two months cleaning duty and I'm sure she retaliated herself." Shadis confirmed.

And so she should. Levi thought, though he was still unhappy with the boy's sentence. If it were up to him, he'd face twice the pain the broken albino had.

When the albino girl herself flew past again, Levi got a closer look at her face, which was indeed, covered in little scratches and bruises invisible to the un-trained eye. A sickly yellow splotch dotted her right cheek, several tiny red marks swiped over it, and a clean slash was placed smoothly underneath her eye.

He felt protective of his prodigy, and thought to himself; That brat will pay with blood.

~SnK~

A/N: Well, we really broke the record with this one guys! Nearly 4.,000 words! Mother Hubbard!

Lian: Please tell me you didn't just say 'Mother Hubbard'.

...

Lian: You did, didn't you?

No...

Lian: Liar.

Well you're fat!

Lian: I weigh less than you.

So? I never said I wasn't.

Lian: -_-