Disclaimer: I do not own anything from Gintama.
Note: I hope you understand what I am to express in my attempt to write fighting scene.
Manju knows not to underestimate Yato. She had seen how Kagura go around destroying things and beating up people with bare limbs when she is upset. Kagura has the strength, but in order to use it effectively, the young Yato will need learn more about herself and step up on her training. Narrowly dodging those powerful attacks, Manju told herself to go faster, looking for openings and strike when she found it.
Kamui told himself not to underestimate Meteor, but when his opponent is just a little girl, he actually let his guard down a little. It was only when Manju's sword made contact with his cheek that made him realise how much strength this girl has. Most all the time, only his nails managed to make cuts on her skin, with occasional kicks that crack her bones and maybe even broke a rib. Looking at himself, he got numerous cuts from her bokuto too, and a broken jaw that heal quickly. Still, he is impressed that Manju was not even out of breath.
Their fight reminded him of Gintoki's fight with Hosen. Hosen is the strength type. His heavy body mass made him slightly slower than Gintoki. To compensate that, Hosen can take lots of hits, thus how their fights drags on. Kamui has that speed, and he is confidence in his strength. Manju might be on par with the silver-headed samurai, but he knew he will win.
Kamui broke her bokuto with his bare fist, that punched showed no stopping until only half of that punched made it to her shoulder as Manju ducked, reaching out to the broken piece of bokuto and lurched forward to stab the Yato on his arm, her legs already did a tip to jump backwards to dodge his right leg coming for her stomach.
The wooden piece got lodged in his arm, to which Kamui pulled it out and crushed it in his palm, ignoring any splinters.
"You have good agility." Kamui smiled and said.
"Am I supposed to be honored by your compliment?" Manju smiled back, starting to feel a little short of breath. She felt a stabbing pain on her chest, probably from a broken rib that is poking her. Her limbs are started to feel a little sore and she could hear some joints creaking too.
"I am telling you not to die too quickly. Make me fight harder, Meteor." Kamui flashed a crazy grin and jumped at her.
As time drags on, Manju got more wounds and out of energy. One thing she hates about herself, human restrictions. Still holding her broken weapon, Manju stabbed him deeper this time, without giving herself enough reaction time to jump away from his karate chop that breaks her left shoulder. Still she managed to back off from the next kick, but they both knew she is already starting to get slower. With no time to rest, Manju aimed the broken bokuto at his face, lashing out at him, but she felt a choking restraint around her neck that pulled her backwards forcefully until her back hitting a tree. Kamui followed his original momentum to stab Manju in her guts but stopped in time when he noticed someone interfering with their fight.
Thin but strong near-invisible threads were tied around her neck. Manju tried to free herself, but her hands got caught too.
"Human, do not interrupt a duel." Kamui looked over to the platform of the hot air balloon take off point. He finds no joy in killing Meteor when she is restricted by someone else.
"Kamui-dono, the orders are to bring her back." Kawakami Bansai pulled his threads tighter when he felt strong resistances from Manju. Manju choked and coughed as the thread cuts deeper into her flesh, causing her to bleed on her neck and wrists. "Takasugi did promise you a chance to fight with her."
"Ka-gura's nii-san, are you...going to break your promise even though you wanted me to trust you not long ago?" Manju forced both her hands to move and pulled on the thread around her neck.
"Remember why I made that deal? To fight you. If Takasugi can give me that chance, I don't see a need to keep that promise." Kamui dusted himself and looked at his torn clothes.
" Why am I so stupid to believe the enemies." Manju pulled harder, ignoring the pain when the thread cut into her finger joints. She stood up against the tree and mustered all her strength to rip the string off her neck, then gave Kamui a punched, pulling on the thread that was still tied to her wrist and sent Bansai flying towards the tree. The samurai in blue is totally taken aback by her strength, crashing into a tree that broke under the impact.
Before Bansai could recover, Manju broke all the threads after it loosened and jumped off in time to avoid a deadly punch from Kamui.
"Forget about Takasugi, Meteor...Let us finish this." Kamui grew excited at how Manju recovered from restraints. His blue eyes shone with killing intent, his blood rushed through every part of him, preparing him for battle. He had never felt this alive ever since he fought an interrupted fight with Hosen.
"Do something about him first." Manju panted while referring to Bansai. "He will interrupt again."
Bansai stood up, wobbling a little and looked at the broken tree he had smashed into, still a little in a daze until he found his threads around him, tying him to the roots. "Kamui-dono, untie me immediately. We are supposed to bring Meteor back. If you continue to waste your time here, her reinforcements will arrive soon." He said.
"I will bring her back once I beat her." Kamui hopped from his position and aimed his landing on the girl. Manju moved and stabbed his legs before he landed; sending him a kick in his face, but her leg was caught by the Yato and her ankle broken by him. Kamui then threw her into another tree, breaking that tree.
Manju could taste blood in her mouth, and more splatted out as she coughed. The back of her head throbbed and that pain quickly intensified, making her eyes burned. She almost could not duck another kick, taking a larger leap with her intact right ankle and put some distance between them. However, Kamui closed that distance in one jump, leaving Manju no gap to breathe, much less dodge.
She was certain she was dead meat, but that stubbornness in her just refuse to let her give up, bring up her right arm to block the blow with her broken weapon pointed at his leg.
"Manju!" Someone shouted, and the blow Manju expected did not come. Instead, she was pushed backwards and a long hair man landed between her and Kamui's leg, a katana blocking Kamui's leg.
"Ko-taro?" Manju blinked and looked at him. "Why are yo-" She realised that Gintoki must have called him. "That idiot." She cried and stood up on one leg. "Kotaro, leave. You are not his match."
"You are the one who should be running." Katsura watched Kamui with caution. "Gintoki is stuck with them. Takasugi went to stall him. He won't be coming, so I have to."
[I will come for you. I will come for you, so wait for me.]
"He will come." Manju cracked a smile. She trusts him.
"Meteor, you are the one breaking promise now?" Kamui asked, looking at Katsura.
"No." Manju smiled, taking Katsura's katana scabbard and stuck her broken weapon into the scabbard, using that as a weapon. "It is a one-on-one. After the match...If I pass out...you can take me with you...as for what the others do, I can't do anything." She beamed cheekily.
"I see." Kamui grinned. "Loopholes. You are a cunning one."
"Kotaro, stand down. This is my fight." Manju tore off part of her kimono and tied it around her broken arm.
"It is not. You are too wounded to fight." Katsura looked at her sternly.
"Then..." Manju went to Bansai and freed him, avoiding the blue samurai who lashed out at her. "Keep him away from me."
"Are you crazy?! How can you release an enemy?!" Katsura scolded, chopping away threads that are heading for Manju.
"Kotaro...promises and deals are supposed to be fulfilled." Manju wiped the blood on her mouth and said. "If everyone breaks them, there is no trust anymore. Trust is essential for living."
Katsura could not rebut on that. What she said is true, and her persistent and upholding promises impressed him. Katsura had known Manju as a soft toy lover, a little girl who needs. However, the girl he sees now is a fearless samurai who chose to follow her own principle, just like Gintoki. "Sorry, Gintoki. Your girlfriend is too much for me." He smirked and charged at Bansai.
"I am impressed Meteor. You fired me up." Kamui grinned at all the excitement piling up in him. "This is what you call being a samurai?"
"Me? I am not a samurai." Manju smiled. "Just someone who likes to do what I feel like doing." She waved her makeshift weapon, and broke the tip on the ground, forming a sharp tip.
"Then what are you?" Kamui held his fist.
"I thought I am this Meteor to you?" Manju shrugged her shoulders, ignoring the pain in her shoulder.
"I hope you are not the last of your kind." Kamui lurched at her, that heavy fist ready for killing. "It is a sad thing for your kind to go extinct," He added. Manju managed to move so that the punch hit on her already broken left arm while she drove her weapon right through his cheeks, out of the right side of his neck. Kamui was stunned and Manju took that chance, pulling out the weapon as the rough edges from the broken tip ripped some skin and flesh off his face, showing his teeth.
Sweeping her legs with a forceful kick, Kamui reached for her neck when she backwards. Manju pierced his stomach, just below the rib cage, but that did not stop him from grabbing her neck and squeezed before he felt a stabbing pain in his eyes, and a kick that sent him into the air.
Manju had taken out her broken bokuto from the scabbard and scratched him in his eyes with the wooden splinters. She dropped on her knees and took this opportunity to catch her breath, watching as Kamui fell on his back, the scabbard still inside him. She got up on one leg and leaped to him for a final blow.
The Yato sat up tediously, and pulled the scabbard out, ripping out bits of his internal organs that got hooked by the rough edges at the broken tip. He had not suffered such a serious injury since his fight with his father, but he was sure Manju got it worse. Just as he got on all fours to stand up, his right hand gave way and he fell face down. The pain only came when he saw his wrist in a bloody mess, with the white of bones peeking out of the flesh. His wrist got caught in one of the big piece of the bokuto he had broken earlier on when he fell.
Manju weight nothing on his back, but it was not like she is expecting herself to crash him, instead, she channelled all her strength to her hand so that she can drive her broken weapon deep down into his spine. That hit successfully disabled him.
Spent, Kamui lay on the ground, gasping for breath, still alive and awake. Manju panted on his back, her hands shaking as she pulled the bokuto out. "You lost...Kagura's nii-san." Manju got off him and fell on her butt.
"You really think so?" Kamui scoffed.
"My weapon is enough to cut your head off." Manju coughed and more blood splatted on her kimono.
"Do you have that strength?"
"I am curious too." Manju took a deeper breath and a sharp pain in her chest made her stop. "Let's give it a try." She stood up unsteadily and raised her weapon.
"Danchou!" A figured came and swept Kamui off the ground, onto a tree. "This is bad. That is why I said stop playing around." Abuto looked at his wounds and lectured.
"Manju!" Gintoki limped over as fast as he could. He looked just as terrible as Manju, telling how difficult his fight with Takasugi was too. He lowered Manju down on the ground after he managed to break her fall and looked at her wounds.
"How are Shinpachi and Kagura?" Manju wiped the blood on Gintoki's head.
"Unconscious, but fine. I left them with Shinsengumi." Gintoki tore his kimono and wrapped it around Manju's neck to stop the bleeding.
"Kotaro?" Manju looked towards the back, that strain caused by her movement made her winced.
"I am fine." Katsura held his right arm as he walked over. The two Yato and Bansai had retreated. Katsura had wanted to chase after them, but Abuto got him good by crushing his right arm.
"Right..." Manju sighed in relief. "Can anyone call the ambulance?" She felt her consciousness slipping after tension left her body. "I think my phone is smashed."
"Mine got sliced into half." Gintoki took it out from his pocket and threw it.
"And mine got smashed too." Katsura had to scoop it out from his pocket.
Gintoki stood up, carried Manju on his back and started making his way to the theme park entrance where staff should be busy with closing now. Katsura limped along.
"Gintoki, your back is bleeding," Manju asked sleepily.
"You are as light like a feather that I could not feel anything," Gintoki said.
"Then I got to eat more. Or you might forget that I am on your back one day." Manju could not clear her vision no matter how she blinked. Gintoki stumbled a little as his consciousness began slipping. Luckily, Katsura was there to support him.
"I won't." Gintoki leaned onto a wall and put Manju down while he sat down. "How can I forget a hot piping azuki manju on my back?" He said.
"Azuki manju? It is Bloody manju now." Manju wanted to laugh, but it hurts too much.
"Oi Zura... go get the ambulance," He said to the healthier man and carefully get Manju to lay down on his upper tights. His legs are shaking already. That blow Takasugi landed on his thigh must be more serious than he thought. Katsura said nothing and walked towards the ticket counter to get help. "It is definitely azuki manju." Gintoki moved her hair way from her eyes and watched her sleep as they waited for the ambulance.
In the end, all three of them had to be hospitalized given how much internal and external injuries they had. Gintoki watched as Manju slept on the bed beside his. Katsura had another bed at Gintoki's left.
"Gintoki, Manju is strong. I was not needed." Katsura said. "You better step up on your training or she will be the one protecting you in the future."
"Training huh... I had not done that since the day before that fire." Gintoki recalled his last training session with Katsura and Takasugi.
"Then, do you want to train with me?" Sogo stood by the door and asked. The Shinsengumi got alerted by the amusement park staff and came over.
"You?" Gintoki looked at him with a question mark on his head.
"I had been training with Manju for some time. Thanks to her, I improve too. The men in HQ are all so weak. It is better to train with someone strong." Sogo folded his arms and said.
"She trains with you?" Gintoki did not know about that.
"You did not know?" Sogo asked in amusement. "We had been at it since you got her back from Kiheitai. Shinpachi-kun is too weak to be her training partner. You should have seen how she smile like she is having fun when we are at it."
"Gintoki, are you not suspicious? Why did they assume that she is Meteor? Without her memories, treating training as play, and yet she is so strong. Could it be that she really is Meteor?" Katsura asked.
"It does not matter to me. She is just Manju." Gintoki looked at the ceiling and said. "Plus, I would not say that having fun in training means she is playing. She just loves to have fun in the things she does." Gintoki then looked at her, who is still soundly asleep. "Meteor or not, nothing will change. I will just have to protect her forever."
"Gintoki… for you to say such mushy words… " Katsura asked teasingly. "Did the author made you this OCC by accident? Or was it on purpose?"
"He just got changed by love," Sogo smirked teasingly.
"Shut up." Gintoki glared at them and said.
"But I did not think you will come. After all, you got stuck with Takasugi." Katsura said.
"I made a promise. Manju will kick my ass if I break it." Gintoki never forgot his promise with Manju. At first, he could not focus on the fight with Takasugi because of his worries for Manju's safety. It was only after some time he remembered promising Manju that he will trust her too.
"I see." Katsura closed his eyes and smiled. "Promise, deals and trust are very good survival tips." Katsura threw something at the silver-headed samurai and Gintoki caught it. It was a black cube keychain with a Kapibarasan face on it. "Bomb detonator," Katsura said. "Manju want me to use it if she got controlled and go on a rampage. With you around, there should not be a need for this. I will leave it to you." He pointed at his ear. "The pair of earrings is the bomb. She went for piercing specially for Kapibarasan earrings, but also because it is a good way to hide bombs."
"Are you crazy? You should not be accepting this in the first place." Gintoki threw it into the air and smashed it with his Toyako that was next to his bed.
"Yes, I should not have." Katsura closed his eyes. "She loves Edo so much, there is no way she will blow this place up."
"It is different if she gets controlled." Sogo turned to leave. "Dana, you are too soft. If you cannot do it, I will just have to be the one to destroy her if she ever goes berserk."
"You got to step over my dead body to achieve that," Gintoki said flatly, knowing that Sogo can hear him well even though he had gone outside.
Too soft? No...All he wants is to be able to see her smile. For that, he will get stronger, not only to protect her but also everything she loves.