Chapter: 27: Wrath of the Four Heavenly Dragons
Asuna was leaping around, furiously dodging the demons' attacks. She had managed to banish several of them with her artifact but it seemed that for every demon she defeated another three took its place. There was just too many of them. One demon hit her with its giant cleaver and sent her flying. Negi's magic protected her from harm but it still hurt. She saw that Setsuna had problems with her opponents too. Eventually, they ended up with their backs against each other and the demons closing in on all sides. Then suddenly a swarm of figures appeared all around them.
The demons were struck by several powerful attacks that sent them flying in all directions. All the figures except for one faded away and Asuna saw who it was. It was that it was Kaede from the class! She was wearing some kind of ninja uniform and held several daggers in her hands. Then a few demons closed in again but were hit by bullets and vanished. She looked back and saw Mana and Ku Fei too.
"It's not like you to have such a hard time Setsuna." Mana said calmly as she reloaded her gun, "I'll put this on your tab."
"Wh-wh-what the…" Asuna stared around her; this was the backup? Had Negi gone insane?
"You did well Asuna-san." Kaede said, "We'll hold these guys off, you go and save Konoka-san."
"Hey wait, I can't just leave…" Kaede pushed her.
"Don't worry," She smiled, "This is no time for thinking; it is time for fighting. Go!"
"Let's go Asuna-san!" Setsuna said, "They will be able to handle things here. I have worked with Mana before and the others are good too."
"…Okay!" Setsuna and Asuna dashed forward towards the direction Chigusa had disappeared in. Mana's bullets and a large fuuma shuriken thrown by Kaede stopped the demons that tried to pursue them. As they ran towards Chigusa's location Setsuna spoke up.
"I'm impressed by you Asuna-san. You are much better than I expected."
"You're not half bad either." Asuna said, "We make a good team. When we're done here you'll have to teach me some more of your tricks."
"I'll do my best, but I'm still in training myself."
"So that means that I ain't getting' any good fight outta you?" A male voice asked from the trees. The question was followed by a swarm of black wolves that came flying at them. The two girls barely dodged the animals the crashed into the ground and vaporized. They looked up. There on a branch stood Kotaro. He was grinning predatorily and crouched together.
"Sorry but you ain't getting' past me." He said, "An' now you ain't got Negi t' cover for you."
"Out of our way!" Setsuna charged at him and cut through the branch he was sitting on. Kotaro leapt away and landed a few meters from Setsuna.
"Damn, Negi's harem really got some spunk in 'em" He grinned. "This might be fun after all!" He launched himself at Setsuna and swung his claws at her. Setsuna countered with her sword and the two met in the air. Asuna was certain that Kotaro would lose his hands but saw that they were enveloped in black fire and seemed to be just as hard as the steel in Setsuna's sword.
"Go and save Ojou-sama!" Setsuna yelled as Kotaro pushed her away, "I'll hold this guy here! They are at the shrine by the lake! Hurry!"
As Asuna dashed off Kotaro looked after her.
"Aren't we th' brave little samurai," He said, "Holding th' enemy off like that; it's so cute!" He charged at Setsuna and unleashed a flurry of claw swipes at her. Setsuna dodged furiously and tried to gain distance but the hanyō was too quick for her. She eventually managed to leap out of his range and held up her sword. Kotaro suddenly grinned again.
"Just one thing sweetie," He said, "D'ya always fight "wet t-shirt" style?" Setsuna looked down and saw that the water from the pool had drenched her clothes that now clung to her body. She gasped and turned beet red when she saw that the cool night air had made some parts of her clearly noticeable. "Not that I don't appreciate th' show though. Real nice in fact." Kotaro continued what the impudent grin still on his face.
"Shut up!" Setsuna's embarrassment turned into anger and she charged at full speed. The hanyō dodged her sword but still got a shallow cut across his left eye.
Kotaro rolled out of the way and felt the blood run down his face. For a moment he was shocked. "You cut my face…" Then the astonishment turned to wild joy. "You cut my face! Goddamn this is awesome! Ain't no one that's done that before! Killing you will be th' best thing ever!" He leapt at her with the joy of battle singing in him. The pain from the wound only further increased the sensation. First Negi and now this girl! This had been the greatest time he had had since he had gotten out of Aokigahara!
The hanyō only became more violent after she hit him. This guy wasn't human at all. Setsuna felt the disgust well up inside her. This guy… this creature lived for blood. It didn't matter if it was his or others. He was a monster. The kind of creatures the Shinmei-ryu was meant to put an end to. She met his attacks and struck at him with everything she had.
"Awesome!" the half-inugami yelled again, "This is so damn great! Where have you been all my life, eh?!"
"Shut up you monster!" Setsuna yelled as she forced him to leap out of range, "Your filthy existence ends right here!"
"Monster huh?" Kotaro lost his smile, "So your one of them ain't you? Very well girlie" He hunched down, "You wanna see a monster? Then look closely…" Then he started to change. It was as if something under his skin tried to get out. His skin suddenly tore with a sickening ripping sound and Kotaro rose again.
"Here's your monster girlie." Setsuna backed a step when she saw what he had become. "The big bad wolf's comin' for you…"
Asuna ran out on the bridge towards the altar in the middle of the lake. The lights that were swirling around the lake made her nervous. What were they planning? She then saw the demon that had captured Konoka. It was flying towards her with high speed and roared as it descended on her. Asuna didn't even think as she leapt towards it and struck it down, the harisen banishing it in an instant. When she landed again the white-haired boy stood in front of her.
"Still trying to fight the inevitable?" He said as he swung his fist at her. She barely dodged and countered with the harisen; she was too slow though and the boy sent her flying with another punch. When she got up again the ground was shaking. Around the altar in the middle of the lake six titanic demons had begun to rise. They were huge, they had to be at least two hundred meters tall, seemingly made out of crystal and with four arms each. Asuna only stared at the creatures; they were big… too big. She took out the card.
"Where are you Negi? She has dug out a bunch of giants now!"
"What?! Oh shit! They summoned the Sukuna ogres! Last time it took the entire elder council and my father to seal them away! Goddamn it… I'm flying as fast as I can!"
"Hurry!" Asuna saw the white-haired mage approach again.
"Asking your mage for advice?" he asked, "The only thing that will help you now is giving up. You are too inferior to me to accomplish anything."
Asuna became fed up by his arrogance at that point; she leapt into the air and brought down the harisen at him. He leapt out of the way when a giant sword crashed into the bridge. Asuna stared at her artifact; it had become a giant blade that made Setsuna's sword look like a letter opener. She followed up her attack and swung at him again. Despite the size of the blade it was light as a feather in her hands. When the boy suddenly caught the blade between his hands she let go of the blade and punched at his face with everything she had. To her amazement she hit but the fist stopped only an inch from his head, blocked by his hand.
"That could have been dangerous if you had been stronger," The boy said, still calm as ever, "though it ends now." He swung at her when suddenly the ground between them exploded as a lightning bolt struck it. Asuna fell backwards from the sudden explosion and when she looked up again she saw Negi. The red-headed mage had appeared seemingly out of nowhere and now held the silver-haired boy's hand in an iron grip. The latter had turned to look at Negi, his eyes slightly widened.
"Fate Averruncus…" Negi said coolly, "I'm surprised to see you here, surprised and disappointed."
"Negi Springfield," The white-haired mage, Fate, was just as impassive as before, "I'm impressed by your speed. The extremist base is nearly twenty miles away."
"You can admire my speed…" Negi begun to crackle with magic. "…In the afterlife!" He swung his fist with incredible speed against Fate and hit him in the chest. Fate's body exploded in a cascade of water and Negi looked around.
"Stay back Asuna, this guy is beyond your level." He said before punching straight downwards, making the bridge shatter from the impact. Fate reappeared behind him stumbling but still chanting with incredible speed
"Vish Tal Li Shutal Vangate. Little King, Eight Legged Lizard, Master of the Evil Eye. Let your Light Shine from my Hand, Release the fire of Catastrophe, Evil Eye of Petrification." The spell made a bright lance of energy shoot out from his fingers towards Negi but just before it hit Negi sidestepped and the ray hit and bounced off one of the ogres, who now were halfway out of the lake. Negi used the momentum from the dodge to send a swift roundhouse kick towards Fate who was unable to dodge in time.
The impact created a loud "crack" as Fate twisted and fell to the ground landing on his back. He jumped to his feet immediately however and threw a haymaker at Negi who grabbed his opponent's arm, pulled him past him and spun around sending an elbow strike towards Fate's neck. Yet again Fate turned into water as Negi's strike dug deep into his body. However this time Negi's hand shot into the water and he pulled Fate out of it and clenched his fist before striking him with a mighty punch that seemed to Asuna to be accompanied by a giant beam of energy. Fate was sent flying across the water and disappeared into the seething lake.
"About time you got here!" Asuna said as Negi turned to her, "Where have you been?"
"On the other side of Kyoto." Negi looked at the scene. The ogres were almost fully out of the water now and perched on one of the ogres' shoulder was Chigusa who held Konoka in her arms. "Now listen, I'm going to give you one final boost of magic, you'll have to catch Konoka when she falls and when you've gotten her you have to run as fast as you can. Got it? If those ogres get out all the way we are in trouble. Chamo will help you." The Ermine jumped off Negi's shoulder and onto Asuna's. "And when I say run I mean run." He lifted his hands and unleashed a swarm of missiles towards Chigusa.
"Let's go big sis!" Chamo yelled and Asuna dashed towards the ogres. The missiles struck against Chigusa who had summoned a swarm of demons to protect her, she escaped unharmed but then a powerful gust of wind sent by Negi knocked her off the shoulder and both she and Konoka fell. Asuna managed to catch Konoka, before her friend reached the ground, with a mighty jump and ran towards Negi again. There she saw the mage hovering in the air chanting, a black staff was hovering horizontally in front of him and around him four orbs of magic energy was floating. One seemed to be made of swirling clouds, the second out of dancing lightning, the third out of roaring fire and the fourth out of pure light.
"Run big sis!" Chamo was in panic, "He's going to use his dragon magic!"
"What is that?" Asuna asked as she dashed towards the forest.
"Big bro's artifact gives him access to some of the most powerful spells that exist! He's going to unleash one of them now! The "Wrath of the Four Heavenly Dragons." It's the magic equivalent of an atomic bomb! The entire area he'll target will be annihilated!"
The gargantuan amounts of energy coursed through Negi, invoking these spells were like a drug-trip, every single one of his cells was on fire with energy.
"Hear my plea great Wyrms of the immaterial!" He chanted the last verse of the spell, "Bring the true wrath of existence to my foes and annihilate them with your endless power! Wrath of the four heavenly dragons!"
The energy streamed through him and the orbs around his shattered as the energies inside them burst forth, reminiscent of how a lizard hatched from his egg, taking the shapes of four titanic dragons; one of them, a serpentine being made out of light, dashed forwards and began to encircle the ogres, leaving a trail of light behind it as it defined the area of impact. Then the other three suddenly flew straight at the encircled area.
The explosion that came when they hit shook the ground and Asuna, who had gotten nearly a kilometer away, was thrown to her knees by the shockwave. Negi still hovered in mid-air with his arms reaching out towards the area of impact. The light-dragon was now flying around a massive pillar of pulsating clouds, fire and thunder, that seemed to reach heaven itself; it's long snake-like body seemed to be endless as it coiled around it. Then a beam of light from the sky tore through the clouds and another, even more powerful explosion shook the ground.
Then, after what seemed like an eternity the pillar retreated into heaven followed by the four dragons and an almost deafening roar came from the lake as the water rushed in to fill the area where it had been vaporized by the spell.
Kotaro was holding Setsuna by her throat towards a tree. Setsuna fought desperately to escape the grip but the hanyō was too strong. She looked into his yellow eyes and felt, for the first time in years, fear. Not fear for Konoka's safety but simple fear. The fear of the gazelle as the lion chases it. Pure, undiluted, terror. She would never admit it but the boy that held her throat terrified her. How could anyone be so powerful? He was like a monster out of the legends.
She realized that she had only one option left; one last card that was her only hope of survival. She had to call upon the cursed powers she had sworn to never use. The ones that rested in her blood. There was no other way. But then a deafening explosion shook the area and the ground started to tremble. Kotaro looked at the lake and saw the giant pillar of energy. He suddenly dropped Setsuna and she fell to the ground gasping for air.
"Seems like Negi won again…" He said with a smirk as he looked on the pillar of magic, "Heh… Well, I'm done 'ere, th' ape-bitch's gotta be dead and I ain't got no one t' pay me. Say hi t' Negi from me." He reverted to his human form and turned around to walk away. Setsuna felt the humiliation burn in her.
"Stop… we're not… done yet…" She pressed forth as she rose unsteadily to her feet. Kotaro looked back at her.
"What's with you samurai guys an' fights?" He sighed, "An' people call me bloodthirsty… go get your friends instead, I ain't gonna fight you no more." With that he disappeared. Setsuna gritted her teeth and started to limp away towards the lake.
Negi came down to the ground panting heavily. When Asuna came to his side he took a deep breath.
"I hate using that spell." He said tiredly, "Even with my magical powers it's too damn draining. That spell is the kind of stuff that would kill most normal wizards. I almost had to use the taint."
"But it was pretty cool." Asuna said, that display of power had hade her see him in a completely new light. She now understood why Konoka's dad had said that they needed to get Negi. This guy, her teacher, really was one of the most powerful people on the planet. And he hadn't even used the taint! It was then that she saw the white-haired boy rising out of a puddle on the ground. "Negi watch out!" She dashed forward and came in between them. Negi pushed her out of the way though.
"Move you fool, what do you…?" His speech was interrupted when the boy created a giant spike of stone from the ground that pierced his chest. Asuna stared in horror at him; no… no it couldn't be!
Then, suddenly and without warning, Negi's body transformed, it turned into a black oily cloud that flew in behind the other mage and transformed into Negi again. Negi spun around with his arm out in a chopping motion and cut the boy in half. The white haired mage transformed into water when his body was destroyed.
"So that's what happened in Berlin…" The boy said, "It seems like I'll have to give up on defeating you." then the water fell apart completely. Asuna was now lying on the ground staring at her teacher. Negi was staring at his hands with a look of horror on his face. It was then that they heard Setsuna.
"Negi-sensei! Asuna-san! Are you all right?"
"Not one word," Negi said quietly as he helped Asuna get up. They reached the place where Konoka was lying, she was still unconscious, and Negi saw how Setsuna looked. She was covered from head to toe with claw-marks. Her clothes were torn and she walked with a limp. She looked as if she had been tossed into a lion cage.
"My god, what has happened to you?" He asked.
"One of the mercenaries." Setsuna said, "I underestimated him."
"It was Kotaro." Asuna added as she checked on Konoka.
Negi nodded and picked up Konoka. "Let's get back to the temple; we'll have to cure the petrification spells as soon as possible."
They returned to the temple by midnight and found that most of the victims of Fate's spells had already been cured. Some of the older mages had been away when he struck and only returned when they noticed the fighting. Setsuna was immediately sent to one of the healers and Konoka was put in bed. She had been placed in a deep coma and would not awake until the next day.
Negi was now sitting in a borrowed yukata outside the main building looking at the trees; the events of last night clear in his mind. He had instinctively managed to do something he had never read anything about. The taint had acted on its own accord and moved without him doing anything. This made him wonder. Was he really in control? It didn't make sense; the taint was a cancer that sought to corrupt everything, to turn normal people into murderous maniacs. It didn't act to protect its host. It didn't act at all for Merlin's sake! It was the stuff of evil, nothing more. But why had it done that? He then perceived something in the trees and looked in its direction. There he saw Kotaro sitting on a branch. His friend sat with one leg dangling off the branch and was staring at him intently.
"You are good," He said, "They didn't even detect you entering."
"But you did, suppose that means you're good too." His old friend answered, "What did you want with me?"
"Many things, but most of all I want to know what happened after you ran off to lure the demons away in Aokigahara."
"Ain't much t' say actually," The hanyō shrugged, "Th' seal broke an' I became a real inugami for a while. When my head cleared again th' demons' guts were paintin' th' trees. I tried t' follow you but you kept that spell active an' I lost track of you. Then I spent three years in there an' managed t' get out when a group of God's Cry samurai that had gone there t' find some rare herb found me. Th' funny thing is that th' leader of 'em was that woman Tsuruko who kicked our asses that time."
"Really?" Negi asked, "She didn't tell me anything of that when I met her a few weeks ago."
"Didn't want her to." Kotaro got something hard in his eyes, "I ain't who you think I am Negi, I'm more Inugami than man now an' I ain't gonna apologize. I live t' fight an' kill. I ain't expectin' th' guy who, after over a year as a merc, still lived in th' world where people didn't die t' understand. You shoulda let me remain in th' past. Now you'll remember me as the monster you think I've become."
Negi smiled slightly at his words. He leapt up into the tree and summoned a small amount of taint. Kotaro's sensitive nose picked up the smell immediately and he started to sneeze violently, like a dog trying to get a foul smell out of his nostrils.
"What th' hell?!" he stared at Negi, "You ain't tryin' t' tell me that you…"
"I'm in no position to judge anyone Kotaro." Negi said grimly as he effortlessly balanced on the branch, the sun rising behind him and throwing his shadow at his friend who was standing with his back against the tree, "If you are a monster, then what am I? A man? A monster?" He smiled sadly, "A demon most likely. This filth infected me after I had left Aokigahara and I have had to fight it ever since. I know everything there is to know about evil; I have more of it in me than any of the beings in that forest."
Kotaro stared at him, the revelation had shaken him and he seemed about to bolt.
"So what do you say?" Negi continued, "I can't judge you, even if I could I wouldn't. And I'm guessing that you're not interested in judging anyone either. Any attempts on judgment from either of us would be hypocritical. Let's forget about that and continue as we were before the forest."
"Hey Negi!" Asuna's voice came drifting, "Where are you?" Negi saw her entering the garden.
"Seems like we'll have to finish this later," Negi said, "If you're interested, meet me at Norihisa's place this afternoon. Bring the other two mercenaries if you find them."
"Deal." Kotaro vanished as he moved too quickly for the eye to see towards the temple walls. Negi came down from the trees and walked out to meet Asuna.
"There you are," She said, "Eishun wanted to see you. Apparently he's planning something and wants you to be there."
"Okay." They both walked into the building.
The main room was filled with mages who sat and discussed the events of the night. Eishun sat on a platform near the stairs and the other mages sat in two rows down from him. Negi was given a place by Eishun's side and when he had sat down Konoka's father spoke up.
"Now you may tell him Danjuro-san"
"Springfield-san," An old mage said, "Although we are grateful for your assistance during the events of last night your use of the dragon magic is an intolerable action. You have completely wiped out the altar and it will take weeks to rebuild it. The Sukuna are now free to roam this world as they see fit. We have called you here to let you know that you will be punished for it."
"My assistance?" Negi said softly, "You didn't do anything if I remember correctly; me and my students did everything without even as much as a lick of assistance from you. One mage and a group of adolescent girls stopped the Kansai extremists from taking over while the entire Kansai magic association sat on their hands. Your reluctance to act allowed them to grow so strong that they could challenge you, your cowardice allowed them to hold this city in their hands and your, frankly, incompetence allowed the extremists to attack the temple. And I stopped them in a few days to ensure the safety of my student. Now you are going to punish me for it just so you can desperately try to maintain some thin façade of competence? Allow me to put it this way," He looked at the council members,
"Make one move against me and you'll wish that the extremists still had control of the ogres." The air dropped to the freezing point, "I'm not going to let you judge me here, you did nothing; I did everything and if I had to destroy an altar to do that then so be it. I doubt that calling to a meeting, which seems to be the only thing you are capable of, would have helped. Besides, if you would have even the most basic knowledge of spirits you would know that a spell of that level would be guaranteed to make them dormant for a year at least, so you'll have time to rebuild. If you are going to come up with fake reasons to punish me for stopping a group of fanatics from threatening all of Japan, you should do a better job, which I doubt you are capable of. And, of course, there is also the fact that you have no legal right to judge me."
"How dare you!" the old man said, his face was white from anger, "You are a guest in Kyoto and you will obey our laws!"
Negi held up his hand and lit up the mark, "No I won't; due to my authority as the Hand of the Welsh Magus you have no right whatsoever to pass judgment on me. Send a letter of complaint to Wales if you wish but that is the only legal action you can take towards me." He got up, "Now, I have a class to look after and no time for these pathetic power games." With that he left noticing in the corner of his eye how Eishun smiled.
Later, when the meeting was over and they were about to leave, Eishun asked Negi for a chance to talk with him. They went to the garden and walked under the cherry trees.
"I want to thank you Negi-kun." Eishun said, "Danjuro-san has been a pain for a long time. He was actually the reason why we never took any action against the extremists. He's not one of them but his sympathies lie with them to a large degree. Your speech made him lose face and a large part of his authority has now vanished."
"Just don't allow him to regain that power." Negi said.
"I can't stop him. I would have to deny him the right to speak in order to do that. But it will take time before he has regained that face and that will give us time to breathe."
"Eishun-san." Negi said slowly, "How long will it take before you realize that you aren't a samurai anymore? You are a ruler. Stop blindly following bushido and start to apply some realism. You can't solve these battles with honor and willpower. You have to start using other means too if you are interested in keeping the peace."
"So I should start employing the same methods as my opponents?" Eishun looked at his friend's son "If I'd do that there would be no difference between me and them in the end. That is what separates me from them. I believe in finding honorable solutions."
Negi chuckled, "Spoken like a true samurai. But you are wrong; there is one important difference, your goals."
"You mean that the ends justify the means?"
"Yes." Negi returned the gaze. "Sometimes they actually do that. What is this peace worth to you? If your honor means more you should reconsider your position. To be a ruler is to give everything for your people, if that means you have to become a villain, so be it."
Negi then looked at his watch, "Sorry but I have to go now; we must get back to the hotel as soon as possible." Negi bowed slightly to Eishun who returned the bow. As Negi was walking away he felt Eishun's gaze on his neck. He looked back at him.
"Yes?"
"I'm sorry," Eishun said, "I'm just amazed by how different you are from your father."
"That's because you expect a copy of him. People never see me; they see my father. I don't want to be "the son of the Thousand Master"; I want to be "Negi"." With that, he left.
A/N: And that puts an end to the battle against the extremists of Kyoto... This chapter was the last part I wrote before I started to put this story on FF. It's really amazing how the story has changed from my first idea. In the beginning this was a much more straightforward action story with flashy fighting scenes and more humour. I originally planned to have Fate too team up with Kotaro and Negi, forming a group where Fate and Kotaro would be the ones always bickering and Negi the peacekeeper. But the story changed in my hands and became this.
Now, there were a couple of matters I wanted to adress before I wrap this all up. One of the readers asked whether the taint was based on the "Cursed Seal" of Naruto. I can see where that came from but no. The taint and the cursed seal is in no way connected, inspiration for the taint... heck, we can say the very idea, came from "Legend of the Five Rings", a CCG/RPG set in a fantasy world reminiscent of Japan.
The second is whether Nodoka will become Negi's partner. No she won't, at this part the girls will start to have less and less screentime so if you want more of 3-A you'll have to look somewhere else.
The other matter was how Negi can summon a demon. In the chapter where Negi tells his story Hermann offers his contract card to Negi, essentially becoming his servant. And since Hermann is, as he say himself, "a Demon Lord of the Second Circle" he has a swarm of demons under his command. This man (demon) is only one step below the overlords on the ladder of power. I didn't like how easily he went down in the manga. To me, there will always be things humanity doesn't stand a chance against and therefore I boosted him to become a REAL demon. As it is now he is easily on Fate's and Evangeline's level, perhaps even more. And if anyone can figure what his real(demonic) name is I will dedicate an omake to that person. The only clues is that he's been mentioned in litterature (real litterature) before, that he was a leader even then, and that it isn't Satan.
PM me if you want to take a stab at who Hermann really is, don't write in in the reviews, that will spoil it.
And also, don't ask why I made the sukuna have five brothers... it just became like that
