Disclaimer: I do NOT own Shaman King.
Strife-lover: I don't know if snow's fun to play with, I haven't been privileged enough to be able to see it yet. And Ren's not really grumpy, more like…pessimistic? Haha.
Lady girl: Of course Ren got worried. If he didn't, I'll have whacked him till he admits it. Ah, you should treasure your shopping time. Poor me was being tortured by endless tests. Though I don't really like shopping for clothes, I prefer the bookshop. Lolx.
MeeLee: Oh wow, your reviews never stop me from gushing in happiness. Always. You're just too kind. 'beams happily again' Though I don't know why you'll envy me when you're much better than me.
Freefaller: thx for your last gift to sunny. It's on my table. I love the roses. And I agree that Ren's awfully observant. Though I think it'll be a little tiring if it was me.
The Beauty of Silence — Chapter 12
Horohoro mumbled incoherently as someone nudged him. Sleep was still tempting him, lulling him back into the realms of dreamland, but the nudge came yet again, a little harder this time. Discarding all thoughts of being allowed to sleep back, he opened his eyes and glance briefly at the clock. Ten a.m. He stared at the clock in horror, momentarily at a lost for words. The match was scheduled for today! And the starting time was 9a.m. Is the match over yet? Koloro gave him a sharp poke, and Horohoro could see that she was distracted, shaking her head in an annoyed manner at something else. He thought for a moment. There's another shaman in my room, sneaking up behind me right now. Chocolove! He understood everything now— that Afro joker had done something to his alarm clock! Turning around angrily, he saw the said grinning shaman, signaling a truce sign. After the mountain incident, they had been training at home, with Horohoro trying to harness his newfound abilities so that they functioned to give the optimum performance. Thus far, he had been able to sense shamans close by, even to the extent of identifying the person once he got track of the unique pattern that will become crystal clear to him once he had absolute focus on it. For Chocolove, the feeling was weird, a cross between laughing in exasperation and optimism. The opponents would be no exception, I hope.
"Young Master, Bason will do his best to ensure a victory today," what had prompted Bason to say it, Tao Ren knew, but he was not prepared to admit that he was not as confident as he wanted to be for this match. Their opponents, according to Manta's laptop, were careful people who did a throughout research before challenging people. That is to say, that there was a high chance that they knew all of Ren's, Horohoro's, and Chocolove's attack, and would thus be prepared to handle them. Though which bastard dared broadcast information about me I don't know. He'll be dead if I ever find him. Still, he knew there was one thing he was sure they didn't know…
Nine o'clock arrived soon. Their opponents, who didn't bother to identify themselves, were punctual. It was a windy day, which was to be expected in autumn, but the sky was overcast, threatening rain anytime. Ren glanced at his opponents briefly. One of them, the leader, he presumed, was a middle-aged man of about forty, with a heavy-set jaw and thick muscular arms. His long shaggy hair was unruly, and his weather-beaten face spoke tales of hardship and determination. Standing in the middle, he stood out among his younger counterparts. The other two, though well build, looked relatively easy to defeat compared to the first-man. They were much younger, and Ren hoped that they would be much more inexperienced too. They looked as if they had had easy lives, and this may be a disadvantage when it came to training. Ren assumed that they were the information finders. The leader extended his hand in what seemed like an invitation for a handshake, and Ren returned the greeting firmly.
It was only now that Horohoro began to feel a little queasy. This would be his first non-friendly match since the accident. Worriedly, he wondered if all his practices with the rest had seemed too easy. What if they were giving me more leeway? What if they were just going easy on me? There had been wins, loses and draws among the friendly matches with his pals — Yoh, who won under the eyeful watch of Anna, Ryu, Faust, Lyserg, Chocolove and Ren, and each attack were not aimed to kill. The opponents today don't look friendly in the least. I'm beginning to regret eating so much breakfast now. I haven't felt this nervous since showing Dad my report card in grade school. Speaking of which, I should be giving him my medical report soon. Getting distracted was easy. Anything was better than to look at those three big guys right in the eye. They were intimidating, and Horohoro wasn't like Ren, whom he knew would be analyzing the opponents right now. He looked at Chocolove, and knew right away that the Afro shaman was the most nervous of them all. Knowing that brought a smile on his lips, and he waited uneasily for the signal that would start the match. I have Koloro and the rest with me. Nothing will go wrong, right?
Fire users? They dared to use fire before the great master? Too bad they didn't approach me for help; I could've given them some pointers. Or sent them to hell. Hao Asakura had decided to 'grace' the event and go watch the match, and he was seriously amused to know, by reading their minds, that the three will be shamans who used fire. Horohoro would have a disadvantage if the fire were strong enough to melt his ice. Should I tell those pathetic three what to expect? I do owe them a little; it might even be my fault if they lose. But giving help was akin to admitting that he had a little good in him, and Hao certainly didn't want that. He may had wanted to change, but was rather torn between the idea of being accepted by who he was not in terms of power but judging him by his character, which happened to be flawed; and having the sense of being all-powerful and making people submit to him. Hmm, right now the match's top priority. Who knows, it just might get interesting…
It had started drizzling just when the fight commenced. The rain intensified within minutes, coming down in sheets relentlessly upon them. There was not much action at the start, and Ren knew, from experience, that the other three were probably sizing them up first. Might as well be take the offensive and try to gain an early advantage. Due to the torturous training, put together by Pilica and to their surprise, Anna, their movements and attacks had become more coordinated (since they suffer together). Launching his Golden Slash Dance directly at the leader, he was not surprised when that person merely deflected the anticipated blow with his heavy, double-edged axe before returning with one of his own.
Since Ren aimed for the man in the middle, Horohoro decided he would just concentrate on the one nearest to him, a.k.a the guy on the left, who wielded a long, slender blade with a phoenix atop at the handle. The rain did not bother him in the least bit, in fact, he was secretly happy about it. He knew that the sound of rain pelting upon the roof and tiles would render the other shaman useless in trying to pinpoint the position of him by using sound, and he, unlike himself, would be unused to it. Horohoro grinned. Heaven's helping me! Maybe we wouldn't lose after all. That means that Ren would have no excuse to make me do extra training exercises later. Avoiding an attack by sliding, using his snowboard, on a thin trail of ice that he created, he was only mildly surprised when his opponent simply kept up with the attack. He knew, from Ren's prep talk, which consisted, he was sure, much yelling at Chocolove, that it was possible that all their attacks and techniques were already known. Excluding the fact that he was deafened.
"Bason in Horaiken!" Disengaging the oversoul he had on his Bason Sword, Ren held up his sword just in time to take the blow from the axe. He's strong. Using his giant Bason, he delivered his Golden Punch attack, which missed. Not only does he possess strength, but he's quick too. The rain had evolved into a thunderstorm, with dark clouds covering the entire horizon, at least till as far as he could see. Streaks of lighting occasionally light up the gray skies in flashes of brilliant silvers, and the loud, rumbling sounds of thunder was deafening. Another flash of lighting, and yet another peal of thunder. The storm did not look as if it was going to let up anytime soon. A Tao must learn to fight and win under any circumstances. The wind was howling in his ears, and he must constantly blink, something he didn't like to do, to keep the rain out of his eyes. It strangely reminded him of the match with Horohoro at the beach, with the sand limiting his vision and the cries of the seagulls annoying him. Why does everything I do remind me of that blue-haired Ainu baka? Dodging another blow that left a hole the size of a small crater on the ground, Tao Ren scowled to no one in particular and refocused on the match at hand.
Why are all the attacks physical so far? Horohoro had seen Chocolove, on Jaguar Mic, leapt into the air to sail past the twin blades that the last member of that unknown team was employing. Concentrating on his main opponent, he was surprised to find out that he uses an element too. The feeling he got was warm, of seemingly untouchable form, unlike his own ice, which was solid. No, not warmth, but heat. Fire! They must be using fire. I get that feeling around Hao too, except that Hao's much stronger. He knew now that their opponents were at a big disadvantage, for the rainwater would be drenching out the flames. It wouldn't exactly be an honorable win, would it? He wondered briefly if Tao Ren would care if they won because of the weather. Probably not. Freezing a large amount of rainwater, Horohoro did an area attack, sending spirals of icicles at the three shamans. They backed away hastily, giving his other two companions time to close in for another attack. One of the younger ones, Chocolove's main competition, Horohoro assumed, tried to melt the ice away, forgetting about the rain. All that resulted were wisps of smoke emitting from the blades of his swords. A glance at Ren told him that his leader had seen it, the smirk upon his face told Horohoro that he had realized what it meant and the weaknesses of his 'enemy'. To him, every competitor must have been a threat, an enemy that must be defeated. Not that I blame him, nobody likes the taste of defeat.
Suddenly, the bad weather seemed like a blessing in disguise. His opponents were in a major disadvantage. They must be regretting picking this date now. Slashing systematically at his much larger opponent like a predator closing in for a kill, Tao Ren allowed himself a small inward smile. Looks like this won't be too hard after all.
Author's note: Hehe, I know I promised a more 'exciting' chapter, but things just don't work out the way I want it to at times. I don't think this even qualifies as a cliffhanger. Just more narration as usual. The exams are approaching real quickly, and being a 'studious' student, I've got to cram big time. So don't blame me if I can only upload about 3 weeks later, ok? Do remember to review and I just might update sooner. Lolx.
