Chapter 37: The Price of Power
Middle of the sea
As Akuma Eshi is holding Leenalee, signs of using the Innocence to maximum power are showing on her body.
"Lavi, when I get back to the ship, I was going to apologize." Leenalee thought. "Alice, even though you lost your memory as a child, I hope you make precious memories with everyone. Allen-kun, you suffered so much. Yet you're always looking out for me, thank you. I shouldn't have borrowed this. Anita-san's hair-tie..."
Leenalee then remembers Allen and Alice smiling at her.
"Allen, Alice, I... know you two will come back to us, that's what I decided to believe in."
"So Eshi is the stubborn type. Is that what you said...?" Akuma Eshi says.
"Who knows?" Leenalee says.
The signs start to spread even further and Akuma Eshi notices it.
"What are you doing?"Akuma Eshi asks.
Leenalee says nothing and looks down.
"So these are the consequences..." Leenalee thought. "They're showing up sooner than I expected."
"I'm..." Leenalee speaks. "Breaking..."
"You mustn't despair." Akuma Eshi says. "Killing is more fun when they're still squirming."
Leenalee then looks up at Akuma Eshi.
"That... won't happen. Because YOU will be the one to die first." Leenalee declares.
Then the Akuma Eshi starts punching Leenalee as he laughs.
"What's wrong, Exorcist?" Akuma Eshi asks. "Squirm, squirm, squirm, squirm, squirm, squirm, SQUIRM!"
Akuma Eshi let go Leenalee and she begins to fall.
"Enbu..." Leenalee says. "Kirikaze!"
Leenalee makes a destructive tornado at Akuma Eshi. However, it cuts the tornado in half and looks around.
"Up..." Akuma Eshi says as he looks up.
"Shittsui no Tougi*. Tetsukase**."
*Forsaken Footwork. **Iron Fetters
Leenalee is in the air and her Dark Boots turned into morass of blade around them.
"Pitiful..."Akuma Eshi says. "Eshi cannot be damaged by the likes of you."
"You're wrong." Leenalee disagrees and she looks down at Akuma Eshi. "Because you've just... given me the ability to do so."
Leenalee then closes her eyes.
"She suppressing her Innocence's power...!?" Akuma Eshi thought.
The chains suddenly fly towards Leenalee's body.
"This is it." Leenalee thought. "This is my final attack."
The chains are then surrounds Leenalee's body and starts wrapping around her. She watches her body getting wrapped us and she closes her eyes. Akuma Eshi realizes what Leenalee is going to do.
"Don't tell me..." Akuma Eshi says. "She's gonna use the gravity chains to..."
~Meanwhile~
On the ship
Suddenly, the boat rises up from the ocean and resurfaces.
"Huh?" Lavi says. "What the-...? The ship..."
"Resurfaced!?" Krory finishes.
"How?" Lavi thought.
"The tides have been turned." Krory says as he smiles.
"LAVI! NOW!" Bookman calls. "SHOW THEM WHO'S BOSS!"
Where Leenalee is
Leenalee is dropping like a meteor towards Akuma Eshi. Once Leenalee is near it, Akuma Eshi holds her back.
"Just now that girl put over 40,000 tons of weights into this...!" Akuma Eshi thought. "So that's why she didn't dodge Eshi's attacks..."
"UWAWAWAWAWAWA" Akuma Eshi shouts and it starts to resist the fall. "How dare you do this to Eshi... How dare you...!"
"This is relentless the speed... the power... It's like a meteorite!" Akuma Eshi thought. " How much can Eshi's body take!? Are you planning on take us both out, girl? Your body is going to burn from the air friction."
"But is Eshi can endure this...! Then Eshi wins. You're the only one who is going to die..." Akuma Eshi concludes. " You think you can destroy Eshi...? YOU'RE OUT OF YOU'RE MIND!"
As Akuma Eshi holds Leenalee back, her hair starts to burn up, letting the hair-tie that she borrowed from Anita to come out.
"A... Anita-san's hair-tie..." Leenalee thought and she reach towards it. "Stop... Must not let it burn. It's important to her."
Leenalee then feels Akuma Eshi is resisting her even more.
"Eshi... is he alive...!? I will not let you survive. You and I are going to disintegrate here and now. Die! DIE!"
Leenalee pushes the Akuma Eshi and its hands starts to disintegrate as he holds Leenalee back.
"T... Ti... Title." Akuma Eshi says and it gets stab by Leenalee's Dark Boots.
Leenalee goes through Akuma Eshi's body and straight into the ocean. Akuma Eshi's body starts to disintegrate and destroys. Then a pillar of light shoots out and slowly gets smaller as the chains that surrounds Leenalee starts to disintegrate.
~Meanwhile~
On the ship
Bookman orders Lavi to take the Akuma from the say. Lavi then activates Iron Hammer Second Opening and the seals appears surrounding him.
"Yes sir!" Lavi replies and hits the seal with 木.
"Seal Marumoko." Lavi thought.
Lavi slams Iron Hammer on the deck and the wood seal is on it.
"Tenchi Pankai!" Lavi says as he points up and the wood seal goes up into the sky.
"The 'wood' seal is not an offensive sea." Bookman thought. "It is something unique to his Innocence. It is the seal that operates the exertion of the influence of all things in nature."
"Hey, you clouds..." Lavi calls. "...Recede!"
Once the seal touches the clouds, lightning appears and the clouds starts to disperse. Krory sees three Akuma are in the sky.
"There they are!"Krory thought.
Krory then jumps up and Lavi follows him as he about to launch Krory to where the Akuma are.
"4 o'clock." Krory tells Lavi.
"OK!" Lavi replies. "Go get'em, Kuro-chan!"
Lavi launches Krory to where the Akuma are.
In the sky
Three Akuma are shooting the ship and one of then notices the clouds are cleared up.
"Wha—t!?" Akuma A says. "The clouds just cleared up! Why the hell!? Ah. But as if their human eyes can see us, when we're this high."
Krory steps on Akuma A and he disappears when Akuma A turns around
"Huh? What was that just now..." It asks.
"What's wrong?" Akuma B asks. "While you are slacking off, I won't end up getting more kills?"
"Didn't something come just now?"Akuma A asks.
"Ha—?" Akuma B says as Krory steps on it as well, but he quickly goes to the last Akuma. "Well... that something hasn't visited that Level 2 over there."
"Hmm?" Akuma C says. "What do you mean, 'something'?"
The three Akuma then notices that Krory is standing on Akuma C.
"An E-Exorcist!" Akuma C exclaims.
"If if were only the three then..." Krory trails off.
Then the Akuma's body starts to get infected.
"Wha... What?" Akuma B says. "my body feels funny..."
"I injected my blood into you." Krory says. "I really want to drink you blood dry like it was a party... But you bastards killed too many of my travelling companions. The price for that is atoning for it with an equal death."
The three Akuma's bodies start to corrode by Krory's blood.
"My blood has been laced with Innocence. To you guys that might as well be poison." Krory continues. "Die with pain!"
On the ship
Miranda sees red snow falling from the sky to the ship.
"Red... snow?" Miranda says as she reaches the snow.
Suddenly, Krory drops down in front of Miranda, shocking her.
"Crimson..." Krory says. "Blood that reeks of blood... isn't it good?"
Krory then falls face-plant to the deck.
"KYA—!" Miranda screams. "KRORY-SAN!"
"MASTER!" The Crew calls.
"You're t-t-turning ghastly pale!" Miranda exclaims. "Didn't you suck the Akuma's blood!?"
"Sh-shut up..." Krory mutters
"Hey what's that!" Crew member A shouts.
"Did something happened?" Miranda asks.
"The light over in the sea!" Crew member A says. "It looks like it came from an explosion..."
Crew member A points out at the pillar of light.
"Look!" He says and the light starts to disappear. "Aww, it disappeared."
Miranda then looks at the chains that is on her Time Record as the chains starts to glow.
"What are these chains...!?" Miranda says.
"That direction..." Lavi says. "Leenalee..."
The pillar of light then disappears.
"The light..." Crew member A says. "Disappeared."
Then the chains starts to break apart and both Miranda and Lavi widen their eyes.
~Later~
"We're adjusting course to Japan!" Crew member B says. "Each man to his own position! Roll call! There might be ones that fell overboard!"
"Roll ca—ll!" Crew member C shouts.
As the crew are gathering, Lavi is sitting on the board with his hands together against his face and thinking about Leenalee.
"Leenalee..." Lavi thought. "Why haven't you come back..."