A/N: Apparently my Mom has been watching me watch Megaman for like 10+ years but still didn't realize Rockman has green eyes.
A/N2: Got dragged to a party by some friends and it lasted longer than expected so you're getting this chapter a bit late. Sorry.
FallenwaterTheFallen: Glad you liked the new coverart! I was a bit uncertain about it, since it wasn't in my usual drawing style. Anyways, you'll find out if Shadowman' or not in this chapter. About that Navi who pushed him though... We'll just have to wait and see, but some people may already sort of guess by the following discussion that happens in the chapter.
The area was quiet for a while, before a loud shot burst through the rubble, the large pile of broken tiles cracking and breaking in half before revealing a small barrier inside.
"Shadowman! Are you alright?" Rockman said as he canceled the barrier he was using and helped the other Navi up.
"...I am fine, thanks to you, my Mistress." Shadowman took a moment to steady himself.
The blue Navi allowed himself a sigh of relief. He didn't mean to doubt Shadowman's abilities, but knowing that WWW was now aware of his presence made him worry they might do something to target the shadow Navi directly. He ended up tracking the other through their Pact and arrived at the server just in time to see Shadowman falling directly into Stoneman's attack.
Now that he thought about it, it was good that he had made the decision het had. Shadowman relied on stealth and surprise to take out his enemies- Not brute strength. An attack of that scale would have seriously injured him, or might have even deleted him.
"...Shadowman, what happened?" Rockman asked once he was sure the other Navi was indeed alright. "It's not like you to be caught off guard like that…"
Shadowman was silent for a moment, probably brewing in a mixture of shame and anger at his own mistake before speaking.
"It is my fault." Shadowman confessed. "I did not sense their energy signal, and that allowed them to sneak up on me."
"They snuck up on you…?" Rockman frowned. That was a bit hard to believe, but if Shadowman was a Navi specifically designed for stealth, then maybe it wasn't that hard to conclude that there might be other NetNavies out there that were programmed to do the same thing. It was just surprising that there was a surface Navi with the specs high enough to fool even Shadowman's senses, though that only further confirmed Rockman's suspicion that WWW was actively taking measures to get rid of the shadow Navi.
As if sensing his question, Shadowman clarified his words. "I do not believe that they are a surface Navi, my Mistress. It's very possible that they are an Undernet Navi."
"An Undernet Navi?" Rockman briefly considered the possibility. "But… Why would an Undernet Navi ally themselves with WWW?"
"It does not need to be an alliance, my Mistress." Shadowman explained. "Many Undernet Navies will be more than willing to do anything, given the correct price."
"Oh, so a mercenary…!" Rockman realized. But that only brought up another question in his mind.
What Undernet Navi would be both stealthy enough to get past Shadowman's senses, and would be willing to do dirty work for WWW? Rockman couldn't think of any Undernet Navies he knew of that fit both these criteria.
"...I shall not fail again." Shadowman was determined. "The next time I meet them, I will make sure they pay."
"Shadowman…" Rockman sighed, giving the other Navi and soft smile. "I'm just glad you're okay."
The shadow Navi met his gaze, becoming silent once more before he suddenly fell to his knees. Alarmed, Rockman grabbed him by his hands. "Shadowman! Were you hurt?!"
"...No Master would care about their Subservient as much as you do, my Mistress." Shadowman said.
"Wh-what…?" The blue Navi was confused by why the other was suddenly bringing this up.
"I have been searching for a Master for years, yet I could not find one that I respected or trusted enough to follow." The shadow Navi clarified. "But… when I saw what you did in the Mettaur Village... " He paused slightly at that, as if unsure of how to say it. "...I am glad that I took that risk."
Rockman just stood there, eyes wide, unsure of how to feel about Shadowman's confession. It was true that they had formed a Pact as Master and Subservient but… The blue Navi supposed he must have underestimated how mistreated Subservients were by their Masters.
"My Mistress." Shadowman took Rockman's hands in a firm grip. "Even if you were to revoke our Pact, I shall forever remain your loyal Subservient."
"..."
Maybe he had also underestimated just how much of the future he had affected.
"What do you mean you're not going to be able to participate anymore?"
"It's like a just said…" Hub Hikari sighed. "I think Zero and I might have overdid it with the Programme Advance, and I don't feel too good about letting Zero into another battle when he's not fully recovered yet, so…"
"Damn… That's a shame…" His younger sibling mumbled as the two walked back to the spectator stand. "I was hoping we'd get to fight more opponents together…"
"Well, even if I made it onto the next round, we might not have been paired together, anyways." Hub offered an encouraging smile. "...Besides, this is the perfect opportunity for you to win the tournament! We both know I would've won if we were paired against each other!"
"Hey! That's not true!" Netto was about to say more, but another announcement had caught his attention.
"Our next tag team match will be Blues and Shiningman against Pickman and Drillmach!"
"Blues?" The younger Hikari appeared to have realized something. "Oh! Isn't he that Enzan guy's Navi?"
"He is." Hub nodded. "So he's made it this far into the tournament, too."
The twins then fell quiet and watched as the four Net Operators step onto the stage and plug in their Navies.
"Battle start!"
Pickman and Drillmach reacted instantly, rushing towards Shiningman and Blues at once as they attacked. Shiningman didn't appear fazed. Instead, the Navi began to march forward, humming some sort of weird tune.
"..." Blues stayed where he was, merely observing the scene before him as Pickman and Drillmach closed in on the two of them. Then, without warning, the red Navi swung his sword, emitting a wave from his blade, the slash hitting all Pickman, Drillmach and Shiningman in one fell swoop, ending the match instantly as he defeated all three Navies at once.
"P-pickman, Drillman and Shiningman are all unable to battle!" Kiro seemed astonished by this turn of events as well. "The winners are Enzan, and his NetNavi Blues!"
There were some hushed murmurs within the crowd. On the stage, Shiningman's operator was already yelling at the white haired boy, but he was promptly ignored as Enzan made his way off the stage.
"That guy…!" Netto frowned. "It's like he doesn't care about anyone other than himself!"
"..." Hub was quiet for a moment, but as Enzan made his way just past where the two twins were sitting in the spectator stand, the elder Hikari yelled down at him. "Hey you!"
That got Enzan to stop in his tracks. He appeared to have recognized Hub's voice, and looked up to meet the other's gaze. "...It's you."
"I don't know what you're thinking, but you can't just win everything by your own!" Hub yelled down at him. "There's going to be a time that you have to rely on someone!"
"Nii-san…!" His elder sibling's forwardness surprised Netto.
"..." The white haired boy narrowed his eyes briefly, before he spoke. "You talk a good game. But you still ended up being held back by the people you rely on."
"Wh-what did you say?" The elder Hikari was slightly taken back.
"Your technique is clearly greater than that of your brother's over there." Enzan continued. "You could have had your Navi return to the Battle Sphere by himself easily, yet you chose to save that sibling of yours, thus forfeiting your chances of winning the tournament." With that, the elder boy continued on his way.
"Th-that's not true! You take that back!" Hub yelled after him, but this time, he was ignored.
"...Nii-san, what he said about you and Zero, was it…?" Netto asked, feeling guilty for having caused his elder sibling to be unable to participate in the N1 Grand Prix, either directly or indirectly.
Hub Hikari turned to him immediately. "Don't listen to him- It's not true at all! And even if it were, I don't regret it!" He told his younger sibling, his gaze stern. "...You just focus on your upcoming matches okay?" He flashed a smile at his sibling at that. "Tell you what, if you win your next match, I'll let you borrow my Battle Chips!"
Netto Hikari appeared slightly uncertain for a short moment, before he nodded with renewed confidence and determination. "Alright, Nii-san! You said it!"