Daughter of the Ogre

Hinalover 1010

Chapter 9: Aftermath

XXX

The sun was shining throughout of Japan as the screen got closer to the Akezawa mansion and showed the inside where Emi and Baki were sitting at a table with teacups full of tea in a room while Emi was laughing about something while weakly attempting to cover her mouth. "That's hysterical."

"Well I don't think that's funny," Baki said, angry that his mother was laughing at something that shouldn't be laughed at.

Emi smiled as she said," I'm sorry, I'm sure you fought well it's just a little ironic that he didn't break a sweat. Plus, Aki was taken with ease."

"Hanayama wasn't in his best condition," Baki said, trying to make an excuse for his friend's lost that night.

"Right," Emi said with a doubtful smile on her face as she looked at her son for a few moments before she continued. "If he were healthy then Yujiro would've really been outmatched and Aki would be here right at this moment."

Baki looked at the ground in anger while Emi looked at her son and said," You do realize that you'll never become your father's equal."

Baki slammed his fists on the table and shook in fury while his mother paid no attention to it and said," I'm only telling you because I care about you. To be the best, you have to beat the best. You prove nothing by beating losers like Hanayama."

"He took you to the brink of death and yet your father dismantled him with no effort," Emi said. Kaoru frowned as he then charged at Yujiro with a roar, but Yujiro stood in his place with a smile on his face as if he knew what the outcome of the fight would be. Kaoru jumped and prepared for something but Yujiro then said, "You fool."

Yujiro disappeared within a flash and dropped to the ground as he got his hand to support his entire body as moved his leg and swirled it to where Kaoru's leg was, breaking it and causing Kaoru to cry out in pain.

Kaoru still breathed heavily as he struggled to get up on his legs, almost getting up but he fell and was caught by the jaw by Yujiro who lifted him up and said," I see… you're trying to become a warrior are you?"

Yujiro began to squeeze Kaoru's jaw and successfully broke it, causing Kaoru to scream. "Are you willing to die like a warrior? I truly don't see it, you don't have the hate in you."

Yujiro pulled his fist back and then punched Kaoru straight in the face as the young gangster flew back once more to the wall as he fell and caused some of the wall to fall with him.

Emi smiled as she then said, "Your father proved drawing with Hanayama is no accomplishment. Right?"

Baki stared at the ground in anger before he looked at his mother and said, "You're wrong. I don't care what you think. Hanayama is as great a fighter as any other man I've seen. He took me to a level I've never been before and I think he'd say the same." Kaoru formed and fist and punched Baki, who had no time to defend, into the wall as it formed a hole with Baki being the center of it. Kaoru took his fist off of Baki's face and allowed Baki to fall only to put him in the hole again as he punched Baki in the stomach.

The two punches connected and the sound of a bone breaking was heard as Baki looked at Kaoru's broken pinky.

Kaoru ignored him and attended to his pinky finger as he fixed it back into a fist.

Baki tried to escape Kaoru's grip, but to no avail his arm made a loud explosion sound causing people to look at Baki's arm in horror.

Baki looked down at the ground once more and said, "Mother."

"Yes Baki?" Emi answered.

"I have nothing but genuine respect for my father as a fighter, but a as a man I don't know. It's like I feel a much better connection with the other fighters I've faced off with. Even though we spill each other's blood and touch each other's heart too for instance when I spared with Yuri," Baki said as he remembered his fight with Yuri.

Baki was getting punched continuously in the ring by Yuri and fell back into one of the rings only to get punched multiple times by Yuri and made a swift upper cut on Baki fell on the floor.

Baki moved around the ring nonstop while trying to tell himself to not stop jumping and then jumped on of the ropes and landed his legs of Yuri and punched him in the head many times like lightning.

Yuri turned around and saw Baki, punching in the face in midair, causing Baki to fall to the ground with the boxing glove still in his face.

"Or the Yasha Ape." Baki looked at the ape in shock as the ape began to let out a roar before he jumped onto Baki, who couldn't do anything as the ape grabbed him between his legs and began to punch Baki in the head.

The Yasha ape then kicked as Baki moved backwards and held his head as he realized that he was bleeding from the kick while the Yasha ape roared and grabbed Baki before he bit into his shoulder. Baki let out a cry of pain.

Baki punched the ape with fury in his eyes before he heard the ape let out a groan and got up while looking ta Baki with his one eye before he picked the teen up and threw his over his head and slammed Baki into the ground before he punched Baki and slammed his fists into the teens back.

Baki kicked the Yasha ape in the head and then elbowed him before he eventually shoved his fist in the ape's mouth. "Only in standing toe to toe with another have I ever felt alive and sharing the same level of exhaustion is the greatest way to establish mutual respect. It's been in the beginning of each the best relationships I've had. To me, fighting is about respect. But to father, it's completely different. To him, fighting is about something else, something I don't want to value. It's about supremacy."

Emi was smoking a cigarette and then blew the smoke out of her mouth while Baki looked at his mother with anger and determination. "Everything I've done my whole life was for one reason: to earn my father's love. But today, I hate my father."

Emi looked at her son with wide eyes as a single gasp escaped from her mouth while the two stared at each other. Baki looked at his mother as she looked down and got up from her seat as she walked towards a dresser with only two draw and said," I'm sorry to hear that."

Emi opened the dresser as took out an envelope and said," Here, it's for you. It was brought here this morning."

Emi handed Baki the envelope as the red haired teen as he then looked at the writing and said," It's addressed to me."

Baki looked at the envelope for a few minutes before he saw that it was Hanayama who wrote the letter and opened it immediately while Emi said," What hand writing. I suppose he must not be well educated."

Baki read the letter and gasped he read the contents of the letter:

Baki,

I want you to come and see me. I need to talk to you. Amano hospital.

From,

Kaoru Hanayama

Baki crumpled the letter a little as she then said," Kaoru."

Baki placed the letter on the table and then got out of his seat before he ran out of the room while Emi thought 'Baki wait' before she turned her head away with a smile.

XXX

Baki was running around the city with sweat running down his face as he thought 'Hanayama' as he ran past the train tracks and the words Kaoru had written on the letter flashed through his mind as he finally entered the hospital Kaoru had written.

When Baki finally reached Kaoru's room, he looked at the man before him in shock and disbelief. Kaoru was lying on a hospital bed casts on both of his legs as they were elevated with a pillow, casts on both of his arms, and bandages on his jaw and forehead. Baki then said," you sent for me?"

Kaoru smiled as he looked at Baki and said," I could only write that letter with my mouth. I thought it wouldn't be legible enough to send it."

Baki looked at Kaoru with wide eyes while Kaoru looked at the ceiling with a smile still on his face as he said, "I think he broke every bone in my entire body."

"You shouldn't have tried to-" Baki tried to say but Hanayama looked at Baki and interrupted him.

"Don't say that Baki. Why should you regret what I don't?" Baki looked at Kaoru with wide eyes as Kaoru continued with his speech. "But that said, I want you to become stronger, even stronger than Yujiro.

Baki looked at his friend while he thought 'Hanayama believes in me' as Kaoru smiled back at Baki. Baki trembled as he tightened his fists and put them up with determination as he said," I'll do it for you."

Kaoru's smile widened before he closed his eyes and said, "Do it for you."

"Am I late?" a voice said. The boys looked and their eyes widened as they saw Aki at the door way but it was different this time. Aki had on cast for her right arm and a few band aids on her face and bandages on her left leg.

"Big sis, what happened?" Baki said in shock.

Aki looked at her wounds as then scratched the back of her head with a smile on her face as she then said," Father punished me lightly for what I said about the two of you fighting. I really didn't want you guys to see me like this but I felt that I had to see Kaoru."

"How can you just say that lightly? That's abuse," Baki said.

Aki ignored Baki and walked towards Kaoru as she then showed him a gift bag and set it down on the table beside him. "It's just something I thought your mother or girlfriend would like. There are also some snacks just in case you get tired of the bland hospital food."

"Thanks," Kaoru said as he looked at Aki in shock.

Aki then bowed towards him as she then said," Kaoru, Yujiro didn't come to the fight on his own free will. I called him to see the two of you fight because I felt that he had to see how strong Baki had gotten, but I never expected him to do what he did last night. Can you ever forgive me?"

Kaoru looked at Aki and said, "I can't forgive you."

Aki looked down with a sad smile on her face as Kaoru continued, "How can I forgive you for something I'm thankful for. I got to fight Yujiro and that's all that matters."

Aki's smile went wide as she then walked towards Kaoru and kissed him on the cheek as she then said," Get well soon Kaoru."

"Baki, it's time to go and let Kaoru get some rest. He's going to need it to heal," Aki said as she walked out of the room and Baki looked at her retreating figure before he turned to Kaoru.

"You're sister is something else, you know?" Kaoru said.

"Yeah, but sometime I wish she was normal. Then again, I wouldn't have met her if she was just normal," Baki said.

Kaoru looked into Baki's eyes and saw something that made him have a knowing smile on his face as he then thought 'Baki, you're really in love with your sister, aren't you? Just when I'm starting to have feelings for her too.'

Baki then looked at Kaoru with sad eyes as he said," See you Kaoru, get well soon so you can see me beat Yujiro."

Baki walked out of the room and saw Aki not that far away from him so he ran towards her and grabbed her by the shoulder which caused Aki to look at Baki with a curious look on his face.

"Big sister, I have something to tell you," Baki said.

"What Baki?"

"I finally figured out why you told me to not care about father."

Aki instantly dropped the curious look on her face and sighed and she patted Baki's head gently before ruffling it a bit and said," I'm glad that you're focusing on you and not your father."

Aki then leaned forward and kissed Baki on the lips for a second before she back away and walked away before she looked at Baki with a knowing look on her face as he walked up to his sister and offered her his arm, which Aki gladly took. The two walked out of the hospital with smiles on both of their faces.

XXX

In the mountains, Yujiro was walking in the woods as he dragged something around by the arm with scene showing how much the object Yujiro was carrying around looked like the Yasha Ape. Yujiro had a smile on his face as he said," I'm coming Baki and with a present for you."

XXX

On a track field in a park, Baki was wearing a red tank top and yellow shorts once again while rolling bandages on his wrists and then tied his shoes as tight as he could. Meanwhile Aki sat on the ground and watched Baki with a smile on her face as she saw Baki get up with a determined look on his face.

Then, Baki warmed up by doing squats and stretching his legs when he finally did a spilt and lifted his body off the ground with his hands and did a handstand before he leaped off of the ground and began to run around the track as he thought 'There is no turning back.'

Later, Baki was doing pull ups with only one hand until he stopped and did push-ups as he thought 'I must get stronger.'

Soon, Baki was pulling back a finger on his hand until he eventually had only his thumbs to support him as he thought 'Stronger than my father.'

Baki stood in the middle of the track field while gusts of wind were blowing away the dirt while Baki and Aki were paying no attention to them. On Baki's arm was a little bird that flapped its wings before Baki moved his arm slightly and the bird calmed down. The bird tried to move but Baki moved his arm once more which made the bird calm down once again but it was chirping at Baki this time.

A few feet away from Baki was an expensive looking car parked there with the window rolled down which revealed it to be Emi who looked at Baki with a smile as she said," He won't develop by playing with some dumb bird."

"He's not playing," a voice said. Emi turned her head to look at Kurigawa as he explained further what Baki was doing. "The young master is training that way. He's actually developing his reflexes with an ancient Chinese technique."

Emi looked back at Baki with a doubtful look on her face as she said," Really?"

"When a bird takes flight, it jumps before flapping its wings. By sensing the first jump with his skin and lowering his arm, he can prevent the bird from being able to take off. The Chinese say that in order for one to do this, they must have exceptional concentration and reflexes well needed for combat," Kurigawa explained.

Emi looked at Baki in shock before a voice said," And now you see how much Baki is developing."

The two looked at the window to see a smiling Aki. Kurigawa looked at Aki in concern as he asked," Young mistress, are you alright? What happened?"

"Father and I had a fight last night. I'm alright, Kurigawa," Aki said.

Emi looked at Aki with a devious smile on her face as she then said," It looks like you're being pushed away from Yujiro."

"On the contrary mother, father looked very pleased when the fight began and he even carried to a hotel until we reached the suite and then he placed me on the bed and trained right in front of me," Aki said with a coy smile on her face.

Emi scowled at her adoptive daughter and instantly turned her attention towards the driver as she said," Drive."

The car drove away while Baki continued on with his training until the bird eventually flew away as dozens of crows began to hover ever the field cawing as loud as they could while Baki looked up at the sky in disbelief. Baki then turned around to see his father walking with an unconscious Aki slung over his shoulder and a box in his hand. "Father?"

"You look like somebody just walked over your grave," Yujiro said with a sadistic smile before his eyes narrowed. "Panic is weakness."

Baki looked at his father with shocked eyes as his heart began to beat fast while the two stared at each other with different looks on their faces. The wind was blowing as the two Hanmas looked at each other until Yujiro announced," In one month, we will fight."

Baki said nothing as he continued to stare and swallowed his saliva as his body trembled with his teeth chattering. Yujiro just ignored his son's look and continued," When you lose, I will no longer permit you to call yourself my son. I await that possibility eagerly."

Baki stared at his father, not backing down but his teeth were still chattering as he then looked at Aki's unconscious body and then looked at him angrily. Yujiro looked at the box and said," Oh yes, I almost forgot I brought a little gift. It's just a little reminder that love is mortal and hate is survival."

Yujiro then opened the box and showed just what was inside the box. Baki gasped as he said," that can't be…"

The thing inside the box was revealed to be the Yasha's head. Baki looked at the box in horror as he screamed, "NO! He was my friend."

"He was weak!" Yujiro yelled back before he closed the box and laughed loudly in mockery while Baki felt rage growing inside him each moment his father was laughing. Yujiro looked at his son as he said," Your evidence as a human is affirmed by your friends."

Baki looked down at the ground and closed his eyes as tears sprouted from his eyes, weeping for the loss of his friend before he cried out loud and charged at Yujiro who looked bored before he threw the box towards Baki who was about to punch it until Yujiro kicked it, making the Yasha's head explode so that only the fur of the ape and could show instead of blood which blinded Baki who cried and said," Damn you Yujiro."

Baki cried and cried as he tried to reach out and grab something but couldn't because he was blinded while saying," Yujiro."

Yujiro looked down at his son with disinterest while Baki finally wiped the filth out of his eyes to see a blur of Yujiro's body along with his sister's which made him charge towards Yujiro with a quick kick to the face but Yujiro dodged it with ease but Baki continued to try and kick his father, who always dodged it, until Baki tripped and fell to the ground.

Baki trembled a bit before he felt something in his hand and he instantly looked down at his hand to see the Yasha's teeth and he gathered more of his friend's remains and cried with tears on his face, "Yasha!"

Yujiro looked at his son with disappointment while Baki got up and said," You don't have to beat me… I disown myself."

Yujiro smiled as he then grabbed Baki and forced his son to look at him as he smiled and said," Yes Baki, accept your hate. That is the one true division between a warrior and a failure. Embracing your hate makes you strong. Affection is peculiar as time itself for the weak, it destroys you."

Yujiro shoved Baki's hand which was full of the remains of the Yasha ape into Baki's mouth and then kicked his legs which made Baki fall to the ground with his mouth still in his hand. Baki got up immediately but saw that no one was there anymore. "Baki…one month!"

Yujiro began to laugh as crows flew away from the trees they settled in so they could feast on the Yasha's remains but Baki instantly shooed them away as he said," Go away!"

"Yujiro, I hate you!" Baki yelled as all of the crows flew away from Baki and what was left of the ape.

XXX

At a river with a bridge on it, Baki was in his normal clothes as he looked down at his hands which held the Yasha's teeth with tears welled in his eyes.

The ape looked the two them before Aki budged Baki, who took down his backpack and took out something from the backpack which was revealed to be a skull, similar to the ones the two had encountered when walked down in the cave with Baki saying," Your wife."

The ape did nothing as Baki continued," Six years ago, my father took this from you."

The ape grabbed the skull and walked with it in his arms as Baki thought 'At that moment, I understood what he was doing.'

The ape placed the skull on a skeleton body that had no head as Baki continued his thoughts 'This was a 150 year old, human-like animal.'

Then, Baki began to cry as he fell to the ground as he said," Thanks to you, I've grown stronger! Thank you very much!"

The ape looked at Baki before he placed something down before him, revealing it to be a fang. Baki said," A fang…"

Baki looked at the teeth in his hands before he clenched them in his hand and then ate them with tears in his eyes before he swallowed them and thought 'Now you can help me beat him.'

A figure appeared behind Baki as the teen turned around and saw that it was Strydum behind him as the captain immediately said, "Baki."

As two boys were running along the river with a soccer ball in one of the boy's hands, Stryudm and Baki were having a conversation as the two walked in the opposite direction the two came from as Strydum said, "It's been a long time. You and Aki have gotten bigger."

Baki said nothing as they walked further and further along the river until they stopped and Styrdum said," you're going against Yujiro."

"Strydum, where is he?" Baki asked.

Strydum lowered his head slightly as he answered, "Wait, Baki. You still have a month. If you fight Yujiro now, the strength difference would be that of a rabbit and a wild pig."

Baki looked down at the ground with a scowl as he then looked at Strydum as he declared," I'm going to take down Yujiro. I'm going to get stronger than that man!"

Strydum gaped at Baki before he got serious when he saw how determined Baki was to take down Yujiro once and for all. "If so, then there is only one option."

"What?"

"The thing that holds Yujiro's strength is his ego. There will be no one on earth harder on himself than his ego," Strydum said. An image of Yujiro's smile along with his back showing the demon residing in his back showed while Strydum was talking.

"And there have been many fighters taken down by him," Strydum confessed. An image of dead fighters piled on top of each other with Yujiro standing on top of the dead with a smile on his face showed while fire was in the background.

"I am the best, I will always be the best. The person who believe that al the time is battle. Africa, Europe, he has shown his strength all over the world. I know this because I've seen through these eyes… His power," Strydum said.

The look on Baki's face didn't lessen as he said," Captain Strydum, lead me to this extreme battlefield."

Strydum looked at Baki as he said," You're serious."

Baki nodded while Strydum narrowed his eyes and took something out of his coat pocket and threw a sharp knife at Baki, but Baki caught it inches away from his face while Strydum began to groom his moustache as if nothing had happened before he looked at Baki and said," Then go to Hokkaido."

Baki lowered the knife from his face as he then asked," Hokkaido?"

"Over there is the battlefield you want go to. It is the same place Yujiro has gone through," Strydum answered.

XXX

In Hokkaido, there seemed to be a military base as someone yelled," General!"

Then, the screen showed the inside where an injured man was lying by the wall with bruises on his face, bandages on his forehead, a large band aid on his swollen cheek, and an eye patch where his right eye was supposed to be. Then, the screen showed dozens of injured men wearing bandages and groaning in pain while the medical staff tried to help everyone out. Watching the whole thing play out were two men. One of the men, who was dressed like a general, asked the man beside him who had on a green military hat asked, "What happened captain?"

The captain looked down, not giving an answer which made the general repeat, "I asked what happened."

The captain immediately straightened himself out and said, "Sir, our entire team was beaten by five people."

The general looked at the team with disbelief and said," Our team beaten by five people, what an embarrassment."

"With all due respect sir, if we can hear the enemy, we can engage them. If we see them we can engage them, but what can we do when we can neither see nor hear the enemy?" the captain said.

"They don't show themselves?" The general asked.

"We still don't know what their motive is," the captain answered.

The general looked at his captain with shock while the captain continued," the only reason we know they exist because they attacked us."

"God," The general said as he then looked at his captain's hand to see that it was bleeding.

XXX

The train passed the bridge on top of the river as Strydum explained, "There is an elite group that enjoys blood more than money."

Baki looked at Strydum but said nothing as he continued," Though there are only five, each person has very high strength. Our army went to investigate Hokkaido. To the group, training and fighting are the same thing to them. The army didn't have a chance. They were wiped out."

Baki clenched his teeth together along with the knife he caught in his hand as Strydum continued," Wherever they are, a fight ensues."

XXX

The door opened and two men came in as a topographic map with red lines was put on a desk as the general looked at the map while his captain was watching the general. "All we need to know is where they are."

"I'm sorry," the captain said as the general looked at him. "But I don't know that information."

The general looked down while the captain continued as he asked, "Can you really call this training? Our training isn't supposed to be against these people."

"We are at war with them. It doesn't matter how many injuries we get or how much equipment is destroyed," the general declared.

The captain looked at his general in shock as he declared, "This is war against them. It's no longer training."

XXX

"These guys are at war, but this is exactly what you need," Strydum said as he looked at the determined Baki in order to continue his speech. "War with Yujiro, if you lose the war against him, it means death. Will you go to Hokkaido for that? To Hokkaido."

Baki looked down as he said nothing.

XXX

It was morning in a mountainous region as a military helicopter flew over the green mountains. Inside the helicopter were Baki and Strydum sitting next to each other as Baki looked out of the window to see where he was while the helicopter flew closer and closer to where Baki needed to go.

XXX

Inside a luxurious hotel, Aki was laying on a large king sized bed while Yujiro was wearing a black speedo but was wearing nothing else. Aki looked at Yujiro and said," Yujiro."

"What?"

"Why do you do this?" Yujiro stopped what he was doing and looked at Aki with a confusing look on his face. Aki looked at Yujiro's confused face and giggled before she walked towards Yujiro and continued. "Why must you cause Baki so much misery?"

Yujiro smiled sadistically and said," Because that boy is so weak and you failed at being his teacher, so I have to teach and he will learn or else he will simply die like the weakling he is."

Aki smiled sadly as she hugged Yujiro and said," You two… honestly are so cute I can't help but feel the need to spoil the both of you in every way possible."

Yujiro laughed and put a hand on Aki's head as he said," I wonder if this is you talking or the one who was raised to be a killing machine."

Aki giggled as she said, "This is coming from both of me. The one who loves both of you because I know you and I grew up being around you and the one who loves death and people that can cause death."

"You're such an odd child, Aki."

"I know but you and Baki raised me this way. Without you two, I would've just been a boring killing mahcine."

"Then, you would have just become boring like everybody else."

"That's true, and we all know that you hate boring things." Yujiro smiled as he walked up to Aki and grabbed her cheek as he smiled at her sinisterly while Aki just smiled lovingly at her father as she caressed his cheek.

"You know I can't wait for the day Baki defeats you," Aki said as she continued to caress Yujiro's face. "Maybe then, you can recognize him."

"That's if he defeats me and with the skill I saw when he was fighting that yakuza boss, he's centuries away from ever defeating me," Yujiro said.

"That's true but he's developing," Aki proclaimed as she glared at Yujiro.

"Yes, but he's slowly developing and you failed to make him stronger," Yujiro said as he then punched Aki in the face which forced her to fly across the room and land on the wall which caused the entire hotel to shake from the force. As she stood up and glared at Yujiro, Aki charged at him and kicked him in the face which caused his head to move a bit before he looked at the glaring Aki and smiled.

"That look…that's the look I've always loved on your face," Yujiro chuckled. Aki continued to glare as she got back on the bed and under the covers.

"Thanks Yujiro, now it'll take me a while until I can go to work again and tomorrow was my pay day," Aki grumbled as she then closed her eyes and fell asleep.

As he looked at his adopted daughter, Yujiro cackled loudly but Aki paid no attention as she snuggled further under the covers with a smile on her face.