Author's Note:
Wow, this chapter has been going on for a while now! Let's see... it's been twelve chapters or so since this arc started. Come on, it's time for the story to progress! Perhaps you guys figured out what Sergio is going to do? I can only think of one technique in history that's famous with the name 'reverse' in it. Here we go.
Chapter 52: Swallow Reverse
A Sacred Code.
The sound of my heartbeat, the throbbing of my wounds, they were all coming back. Each side was getting restless, and yelling came from the sea of men that had us all surrounded. With Amato now awake and watching my duel, I raised my blade, having taken up a stance I never knew I had. Kiera and the others looked downright furious when they saw how that pervert of a boss threw his punches on while Amato laid bound, and I can't say I'm feeling any different. Rei's eyes instantly glared at me when he saw my movements, but in the light of his eyes, there were a hint of uncertainty.
Right, with the idea Amato given me, I can win this! With the smell of my blood rising up my nose once more, the particular memory began playing in my mind, the images slowly becoming clear.
It was one of those days when I could take a day off from my training, so I was going back home with Johann. Kiera had began speaking about the guy, saying how he was struck by amnesia one day, after he and Amato came back alive in a struggle against the wardens of the Mafia underworld, the infamous Vindice. It seemed Kiera caught sight of the guy in the Kitchen one day, playing around with a fruit knife. Even as a joke, Johann was able to slice through the wooden chopping board with little effort, clean through the center. No doubt Kiera was angry when he tried to hide it.
Kiera told me, in between trainings, that even though he lost almost every piece of memory about himself, his swordsmanship is still there, and according to her words, Johann may be one of the strongest Swordsman in Italy right now. It was imperative that we have him by the Famiglia's side, even if he doesn't wish to join us.
That day, I asked about a certain sword technique, a legendary one from Japan. To my surprise, he actually said he knew how to use it, after I told him all about the particular technique.
"No way, I don't believe you." I was left skeptical, as we entered the backyard of the Zanna Mansion, where we met up so that he could show me how it's performed.
"Well, maybe it's not exactly that technique, but I feel like I've done it before. It's all muscle memory, though..." Johann replied as he draw out a katana blade from its sheath, and flourishes the weapon with both skill and precision.
"Uh, where'd cha get that?" I asked out to him after seeing a real weapon placed in his hand, a sword no doubt. With his memories a blur and the skills and strength of a Master Swordsman in his hand, I had the feeling the yard might not stay a yard after we leave that day. Truth be told, after the amnesia hit him, Johann became a lot different than he was before. The most prominent personality change is how he's so laid back and relaxed all the time, as opposed to how serious he was. He doesn't seem to take anything seriously anymore.
"I borrowed it from the Mansion, you won't believe the stuff Amato has hidden in there!" Johann exclaimed with raised brows while checking the condition of the weapon in his hands.
"All right, all right, just show it to me." Thinking we've been wasting enough time, I urged Johann to hurry, still not believing he could even perform the technique.
"Okay." He answered, crouching his back slightly as he grabbed onto his sword with his two hands, much like a samurai you see in movies. "Two slash in opposite directions, cutting off the opponent's way of escape." Suddenly, the air became really heavy, as if the energy is drawn in by Johann himself, sucking up in preparation of the legendary technique. Throwing the slash, the sword flew in a huge arc downwards, cutting into the ground and leaving a mark before he twisted the sword and its blade and slicing into the air back up, the motion of the attack reminding me of a swallow's tail.
"That's it..." I mumbled out the words as I stood surprised, and in awe. From the speed of the attack, the legend must be all true, no one would've been able to dodge the technique without getting hit. For the slight moment the attack was carried out, it felt as though the ground shook. Truly, it must've been Sasaki Kojirou's ace in the hole. And the name of the technique is...
"Tsubame Gaeshi." Johann whispered softly as he completed the attack, before putting the sword back into its sheath.
With the memory fresh in my mind, I threw my slash once more, no longer screaming out desperately. Eyes following my opponent's blade, I was searching for the right time to utilize the technique. Even though I only saw it once before, I have all the confidence in the world to know I can perform the move. One look is usually all I need. The fatigue in my muscles were building up, I could feel the gnawing pain lingering with each second passed. It felt as if they would lock themselves up at anytime. I'll have to end this quick!
"Shink."
With one swift motion, Rei's blade was raised to block my own, holding off my strength with his two hands on his sword. With my faltering strength, there was no chance for me to overpower his block, and so we were locked with equal power at each side before we were forced to jump back and away from each other. His eagle eyes completely focused on me, Rei dashed forward with blinding speed, thrusting his blade to pierce into me.
Throb.
At another pulse of feeling and pain, I pushed my legs and jumped to the sides, before raising my blade to the side of my face, assuming the stance I saw in my memory. There it is, now's the time! Without a second thought, I pulled in all of my focus, drawing in as much energy as I could to stabilize my condition and my breathing. Suddenly, nothing but silence leaked out of me like an aura. There was no room for mistakes.
"I don't believe it, he's doing it!" Johann's voice, all surprised with a touch of being impressed, only served as an encouragement for me. As soon as Rei's eyes lit up,I swung down my sword, the largest arc I've ever swung, in a diagonal fashion. As expected, the only way to avoid getting damaged by my attack was to dodge to the sides, and so Rei jumped to my right. As he did, my swing never stopping, followed after him as I leaned forward, before pulling my sword up in another gigantic arc. The steel would come into contact, slicing into my opponent as my hands dragged it through his body.
"Swoosh, shing." My sword, with it's monstrous speed, sliced through air itself, the sound crying out as the enormous swing came to an end. I don't believe it, he dodged the technique that was supposed to hit no matter what!
"What?" I was struck by surprise, and that was my mistake. When my eyes searched to see where he disappeared to, he fazed into the scene on top of me, plunging his blade down at me and forcing me to go defensive. The wight of his attack was so heavy that the moment I raised my sword to block it and the plunging slash connected, I was pushed down to one knee. Arms shaking, a surge of adrenaline helped me push him off, and the two of us jumped to the sides once more.
Darn it, how did he dodge that technique? The Tsubame Gaeshi is supposed to be undodgeable precisely because the slash after the first goes in the direction where the opponent is supposed to jump to, he should've been cut!
!
That's right, with his crazy speed, he must have moved faster than I thought, jumping up into the air to dodge the slashes that would've rend through his flesh if he stayed on ground level! Well, that just means I have to go faster! As Rei landed on his feet, he immediately raised his blade once more, his presence changing to one far more deadly than before. It was truly the feel of an assassin that was going to take my life.
"That was close. I can't afford any more surprises!" His words were stern and strong, and as soon as they ended, he lunged towards me with his insane speed, pulling his katana to his side, held by his two hands. In an instant, he was right in front of me, his face emotionless but his sharp, serious eyes.
"Kenjutsu: Swarm of Arrows." After the name was given out, Rei vanished before my eyes, vanishing as he distorted, just like before. Then, I was assaulted by what felt like a dozen tugs, pushed back and forth by an invisible force. When the last one turned me to the back, Rei re-appeared, his blade drawn out by his right arm, red blood all over his blade. Wait, is that my blood? What the heck?
"He attacked so quickly you didn't see the strikes, you couldn't feel the blows!" Kiera gave me her analysis, shouting it out as loud as she could.
"G-" But when her words reached me, the outcome of the attack had reached its full effect. "G-gragh! Augh!" Screaming out, the feeling of swords by the dozen cutting into me stung the whole of my body, each swing grazing and slicing my skin apart, chewing down on my flesh. There was no indication of the blade, no feel of the cold metal, just a burst of fire, burning my wounds as they appeared, one after another in quick succession. Like a disease erupting from my body, the wounds seemed to sprout, my clothes seemed to tear on their own, Frankly, it was very, very frightening as I watched my own body broke down in pain.
"Hah.. Cough... Argh!" Then, the assault of a million stakes being driven into my flesh, piercing through my body. Each blow felt blunt, puncturing into my bones. Tensing my body only made it feel as though my bones would break at the barrage. I was left completely dumbstruck even as I struggled against the effect of the technique. How the hell can something like this attack even exist? It sounds ridiculous, but it was the fact that it has struck my body. When the pain began to die down, my body became so heavy, I felt as though I couldn't move anymore.
But, even with the feeling of my legs gone, I pushed on, refusing to fall to the ground. I couldn't afford to lose this duel, my will did not allow it.
"You're still standing? What kind of monster are you? Cough!" Rei spoke the truth, as he looked at me with disbelief while coughing out and getting into fits. I assumed he must have low constitution, he can't take many hits, that's why his speed is so fast.
Throb.
Nonetheless, the pain from my wounds, the warm blood flowing out, were all distorting my vision, rending on my focus. It reminded me that I most likely won't be able to fight on for much longer. Feeling of the rest of my body was slowly fading as well. Is this it? Is this all I can do? I think I have enough strength for one more try at the technique. My eyes, having needed to keep pushing my eyelids from closing, watched as the leader of the Kaijin Palm pounced on me once more, closing in with the same, lightning fast speed. My legs refused to listen to me, so all I could do was take the attack head on.
"Sergio! What are you doing?" Kiera cried out for me to move, anger and worry in the tone of her voice. I felt bad for making her feel that way, but my body doesn't seem to be listening to me anytime soon. Johann, Aria and Hinata also yelled out to me, but their voices escaped my ears as my hearing got distorted as well. Though Vito and Dante had their eyes to the ground, I couldn't help but sense as though they were feeling worried as well.
"He's stopped moving! His eyes are blank!" It was my best friend's turn, and his worry was the biggest. I didn't need to look to know how he was acting, struggling his way in his captor's hands out of concern for me.
Anger and disappointment was slowly rising within me. I felt as though I spent all that effort to pull of stupid stunts like calling the duel just to fall here, was nothing but a stupid, pitiful farce. When my sight cleared for a second, and I saw Amato's expression, I began to think back within that one second before Rei struck me. Think back on exactly why I'm so fixated on serving the Zanna Famiglia, and helping Amato. Is it because he's my best friend? That he saved my life? Is it because I'm just following the Bushido code?
That was when Amato came into mind, his smile, the way he does all he can for his Famiglia, how he never complained about the position forced upon him. I guess I was just jealous. I envied him for being such a great guy, and I want to strive to be like him, and to stand by him as his right hand man whenever he needs me.
That's why I was so desperate to do all I can to solve this mistake I made, to make sure I'm the only one getting hurt, while the others remained safe. As right hand man, I felt that it was my duty, that if I could do it alone, the other members need not lift a finger. Kiera, Vito, Dante, Johann, Aria even our new friend Hinata, as long as Amato welcomes them with open arms, I would do all I can to protect them. That is what I decided, the oath I chose to adhere to, by my own Bushido Code.
The chains weighing down on my mind seemed to vanish as I reconfirmed my beliefs, and I was able to jump to the sides, with strength I never knew I had. My body felt light again, touch and feeling rushed back into me like the torrents of a river. Dodging the strike, I was met with a multitude of reactions, gasps of awe and surprise from the Famiglia, the stare of disbelief from Rei, and shock coming from everyone else.
"Swoosh." The wind could be felt as it was shifted by the coming of the slash, with Rei stopping beside me as his attack missed. Turning around, my body moved faster than my mind, performing the techniques once more. Only this time, it was easier, my vision is clear. The same slash was swung from the left, the giant arc aiming for my opponent. Clear as day, I watched him hop to the right, already getting used to the technique. With the change of direction of my slash came the heavy toll, but even that was conquered with ease.
When the slash would cut into the enemy, Rei kicked the ground hard in sharp motion, jumping into the air. Unlike before, perhaps it was my own skills improving, or Rei slowing down, but his figure did not distort like before. I watched as he pushed himself into the air with the same, unbelievable speed. And that was when I pulled my sword back almost immediately, taking a stance once more. If I can't cut him with the technique, then I just have to go faster and catch up! At the same time, the memory continued.
"Tsubame Gaeshi. Hm, what does that mean in English?" Johann asked out innocently as he rested after performing the legendary technique, looking as though he had already began to lose all interest in it. That's right, the other name for the technique was...
"Hragh! Swallow Reverse!" I screamed out the name with all my might as I shoot out another slash overhead, closing all points of escape. Pushing with all to match his speed, I staked my will into that final attack, certain it would end the duel. My blade caught my opponent in mid-jump, and my hands met with resistance as I forced it through the entirety of his chest, catching him by surprise and grinding through his muscles with my blade.
Stunned by my attack, Rei fell and crashed behind me, motionless. But, I knew for a fact that he would not die from such an attack.
"Rei!" I could hear the voice of his friends, his comrades, crying out his name in worry. Even those who held on to Amato, keeping him bound, seemed distraught in their movements. However, as I turned to face him, Rei struggled on his feet, surprised and confused at why he was still alive. My only answer was to show him my katana. It had but a tiny portion of blood tainting the center portion of the blade, but, the blood only landed on the backside of the sword, the dull edge.
"I won't be the one taking your life today, not in front of your friends." For some reason, I felt as though I needed to make the declaration clear, and with that, I threw my blade on the ground. The sword slid to Rei's side in silence. Rei gave me no reaction, and only turned his eyes on the ground, as if in shame. All of a sudden, he dropped to his knees, pulling out his blade and placing it before him.
"I lose... and thank you." He replied while his head still faced the floor. And just like that, I won the duel.
"Hey, hey, hey!" An unwanted voice screamed out at us, just as the tension at both sides was starting to fade. It was none other than that failure of a Yakuza boss, now standing at Amato's side, with an obvious frustrated expression on his face. "This is the fabled Kaijin Palm? The one who completes their mission no matter what? The shadowed, monstrous left hand of the Yakuza? Is this a joke?" Venting his anger with insults, he grew agitated at the outcome of the duel. At his voice, his men were driven into restlessness once more, arming themselves and picking up their weapons, yelling and cheering like a bunch of hooligans.
Suddenly, from his coat, the pervert of a boss pulled out a pistol, loaded it and shoved it against Amato's temple in swift motion. "Looks like the saying's true, you want something done, you do it yourself." He spoke out the words with a crazed tone. It doesn't seem impossible for him to pull the trigger right now!
"Amato!" Hinata cried out in shock and fear, worry all over her eyes. When I turned to the Boss, he had his eyes shut, trying to stay calm even in such a situation, but I could see the beads of sweat flowing down the side of his head. Not a second later, a dozen other guns were locked and loaded, as Kiera, Vito and Dante pulled out their own. With a giant shield in one hand, Kiera pointed her weapon at the enemy boss, her eyes all flared up. Vito pulled out two combat daggers, aiming it at those with more heavier weapons, such as chain-guns and machine-guns, while Dante pulled out twin pistols, pointing them at those who were targeting Kiera and Vito.
"Daggers, you think this is a game?" That monster yelled out, partly laughing at Vito when he saw the weapons. Pulling back his weapon, Rei quickly got up to his feet, preparing himself for when the bulk of the incoming storm hits.
"Eh, guns are too slow." Vito gave out, a witty ignorant tone to his words, even in such a dangerous situation. All the while, his eyes were kept switching from one target to another, with a smile on his face.
"Ha ha, that's the most retarded answer I've ever heard!" The boss of the Yakuza laughed out loud, pushing his pistol and twisting it on Amato's temple, twitching his trigger finger. At his reaction, his men began lowering their guard, laughing together with him. I only shook my head in disappointment. Such bad conduct, and these were supposed to be the infamous Yakuza Crime Syndicates? Planning my next move, my eyes landed on the katana I tossed to the ground, before turning to Johann. Signaling him the sword, he immediately understood me, and replied with a slight nod.
"Try me." Vito gave out his taunt, his wry smile never fading, his hands tight on his weapons. Pointing his dagger at the man pointing his pistol at Amato, Vito seemed intent on riling him up.
"Why you little-" Before he could finish, he pulled his weapon and aimed it at Vito, only to have a dagger lodged through his wrist, cutting through bone and flesh, so much that the blade actually appeared at the other side, causing the man to drop his weapon. It was so fast, I could barely hear it, let alone see the attack. "Gah! Argh!" The screams of pain surprised the sea of armed men, when they realized their boss had been struck.
"Shik. Shirtch. Swoosh." Next thing I knew, the most heavily armed men were down, with a dozen ballistic daggers driven through their arms, their chest and their head. Instant deaths brought upon them by the Angel of Life. One of the huge thugs who wielded the huge machine-guns fell, and from the shock, pulled down on the trigger, blasting and firing his weapon off, whose bullets struck the roofs and everything around him. Followed by the initiating shots, Kiera and Vito fired down on the rest of them, striking down man after man in the blink of an eye. But, still the number overwhelmed us.
I crouched down in reflex to make sure I wouldn't get hit, and watched as Rei, as well as the girls we had in our hands, whom we released, jumped to Amato's side to shield him from the chaos. Scrambling forth, my hands picked up the sword I had my eyes on, and I tossed it with all my might at Johann. "Johann, now!" I screamed out as loud as I could, to make sure he could hear me over the gunshots.
"He he, awesome, a sword!" As laid back as usual, Johann gave off an usually innocent expression of excitement when a blade landed in his hands. Then, without a warning, he vanished, just as Rei did before, maybe even faster.
"Argh! Urgh! Gragh!" When I looked around, the gunfire had stopped, as the sea of men were assaulted by a barrage of slashes, slicing them up at a speed so fast my eyes couldn't keep up no matter how much I tried. Soon, their feral screams of pain ended, replaced with an eerie silence befitting of the night. Strangely, the Zanna Famiglia, as well as the Kaijin Palm, remained unscratched.
"I don't believe it... Demon's Bane Whirlwind." Rei spoke out the name in utter disbelief, as he moved his eyes to witness the entirety of the attack. The light in his eyes were those of awe, he looked genuinely impressed. When Johann re-appeared, he stopped with a skip or two, like he barely performed the technique and kept it under control, but I think he just didn't put in that much effort.
"Kenjutsu: Demon's Bane Whirlwind." Softly, he whispered out the name of the unbelievable technique he just did with a smile, like it was nothing. With the conflict finally settled, I walked towards Amato, and tore off the chains that bound him. Aria and Hinata greeted the return of the Boss with hugs, while Kiera blushed as she turned away, looking as if she wanted to as well, but her personality, as well as her rank in the Famiglia, was holding her back.
"Ha ha, go on, hug him already!" I couldn't help but urge Kiera when I saw her acting like that, but she only slapped away my hand when I tried to push towards Amato, turning away from me as well. Vito and Dante only remained in the background as usual, but the two of them had their own smiles. I think they were at least glad that Amato was safe.
"Gah! H-hey! You're all gonna pay for what you did today! You're all marked for death now!" We must have forgotten all about him, as the pervert of a boss limped towards us, his hands crippled. He was no longer a threat. In his anger, he forced his body onwards, only to be stopped by the Kaijin Palm. Rei, with his back facing us, got in front of him, his katana in hand.
"Enough." Rei's voice first came out but a whisper. Perhaps he was still regaining his strength from the duel, but even with his back towards me, I could feel the anger building up within him.
"What did you say?" Refusing to adhere to what was said, the man continued his disgraceful performance.
"Enough!" Finally, Rei burst forth in anger, throwing a gigantic slash with his sword. In a flash, the man was cut into two, the pieces of his body falling down to the ground, dripping with blood as it splashed, exploding out on the ground. Aria and Hinata looked away when it happened, but none of us had any objections to what was done, for it was no concern to the Mafia. With the quick death of their weak boss, the few remaining members still alive ran away in fear.
When I stepped out of the warehouse, the light of the moon shining down on me and the cold stinging my wounds, it felt as if a part of my life had passed. In the dark, winter sky, there were no clouds and no snow falling, just a silent, empty night. But from that silence was peace, for which I was thankful for. With Amato on my shoulders, barely being able to pull his head up, I pushed forth with one careful step after another. Kiera and the others were slow in their steps as well, following at my side. I guess we were all just happy we managed to get out of the warehouse with Amato safe.
"Ugh... Why can't I keep my eyes open?" Amato gave out, swinging his arms about like a madman. It was probably because of the sake, he's in a hangover now, I think. When we saw him like that, we couldn't help but burst out laughing. At the corner of my eyes, as we walked a good distance away from the warehouse, I saw the Kaijin Palm standing on top of the building we were in, looking down at us.
"Zanna Famiglia." Rei's voice boomed through the silent night, brining caution to our movements as we turned towards him. The five members of his group stood behind him, their hoods over their heads. But, none of them was armed, and their presence did not scream danger. "Don't worry, we'll make sure nothing happens." Rei told us, with the moon hanging behind him. When Vito looked towards them, the two smaller hooded figures seemed to dodge behind Rei on reflex, it was a funny sight. "Somehow, I got a feeling we'll meet again." The leader of the Palm gave out, before they vanished into the night.
"... Who will meet what again?" Amato gave out with a slurred speech, as if he had little idea what he was talking about. When I noticed the weight pushing down on me gone, he suddenly appeared by Hinata's side hugging down on her. For once, I saw our new friend flustered with emotions, as a red wave washed over her face, but, she did nothing. She didn't even push him away.
"Lord Amato! Cease this shameful behavior!" Kiera suddenly burst out, her face all crimson red, trying her best to tug on Amato's arms and pull him away.
"It's okay, I don't mind." Hinata curtly spoke out after a few seconds of silence, recovering from her daze. From her tone, I think she's just trying to mess with Kiera. And so, our little group left the scene with smiles and laughs, calling and teasing out to each other. Hinata and Kiera ended up in a little tug of war to see who should help Amato back to the hotel, while the rest of us did little to help, because we couldn't choose a side. Amidst the laughter, the throbbing of my wounds seemed and felt non-existent.
I was just glad we're all safe.
Strange that so many things happened in one day, huh? I think the last five chapters only covered the Zanna Famiglia's second day in Japan! Did you guys like Sergio's development? Don't worry, there's more exciting things to come! Praise, comment and criticize in your reviews! Yes, I'm catching up and finishing that pile of chapters I had accumulating! Keep your eyes out for the next update!
