Chapter 52: Reason to Live
Inside the Ark; the tower
"Kyahahahahahaha!" Road laughs.
"Road?" Allen calls and Road looks at him.
"Allen…" Road calls before her body turns to dust.
"GYAAAH! ROAD-TAMA!" Lero shouts.
"What was that just now?" Chaoji asks.
"Hey, wait a minute. Didn't I just hear a subdued 'Allen'? Just how much does she like you? Seriously Allen, what exactly did you do to that girl? Even at a young age…" Lavi asks as he whispers to Allen causing to thrust his elbow to Lavi's stomach. "UGH!"
"I didn't do anything. Please don't say weird things." Allen says.
Quickly, both Allen and Lavi fight each other as Chaoji tries to break it up.
"Hey Allen, if Road disappeared, what happen to the exit on top of this tower? Wasn't it created by Road's power?" Alice asks as the boys stop what they are doing and realize this along with Leenalee.
"A―H!" The boys yell.
"Lavi! Extend it! Extend!" Allen exclaims.
"Ok, already!" Lavi exclaims.
"Are you guys sure it's gonna be okay, even if the door's still there?" Chaoji asks.
"… Lavi's Innocence is pretty dangerous after all…" Leenalee adds.
"It's more like reckless than dangerous." Alice points out.
"I'll go up and take a look to see if it is I'll come right back down! Extend!"
Just then a tremor occurs, causing the tower to shake.
"An earthquake?" Chaoji asks.
"This place is starting to crumble too… Let's get out of here." Leenalee says.
"We probably have no more than thirty minutes…" Allen thought.
"It would be great if the door's up there…" Chaoji says.
"How's the bleeding, Chaoji?" Leenalee asks.
"This is nothing!"
"Kanda… Krory…" Allen thought.
"Allen." Alice calls. "Even if the door is still there, you're not going through with us, aren't you?"
Allen looks at Alice with his eyes widened as Leenalee and Chaoji look at both of them.
"Wow, as expected from Alice." Allen says.
"What do you mean, 'As expected'!" Leenalee shouts and punches Allen.
"GUH!" Allen grunts. "Leenalee, you're somehow becoming really violent since your legs stopped working."
"SHUT UP!"
"Kanda and Krory are probably keeping the other guys busy somewhere. I'm also worried about Master. The Ark is completely destroyed. I'm going to go back and look for those two."
"Me too…"
"Leenalee, you and everyone else should go on ahead." Allen cuts off what Leenalee is about to say. "Out of all of us, Alice and I are in the best shape. I understand your frustration. But please listen to me."
"It's so unfair…" Leenalee says. "You're always smiling like that…"
"It's because Of the effect it has on others that I can keep smiling this smile…"
"But you know. I'm sure of this much… If I was in your place, Allen… I would do the same thing. Let's go home. Together with everyone…"
"Don't worry!" Alice exclaims. "We're definitely get out of here alive with Kanda and Krory."
"It still here!" Lavi yells. "All four of you grab the handle! I'm going to pull it up! Oh, and if that's not possible, Leenalee, Chaoji, I know you two are injured, so maybe the both of you can hold onto Allen and Alice instead?"
Both Allen and Alice hold onto the handle and Leenalee holds onto Allen as Chaoji holds onto Alice.
"Please hold on tight." Allen says.
"I'm heavy though." Chaoji says.
"No problem." Alice assures.
"Are you sure?"
Allen looks a far and sees Tyki who is lying against the wall with Lero next to him.
"Ch." Allen clicks his tongue.
"Tyki Mikk." Allen thought.
"What's wrong, Allen?" Alice asks.
"It's nothing, Alice."
Lavi then brings them upward to the top of the tower where he and the door are.
"Hurry! We don't know when the door's gonna disappear!" Lavi tells them. Then Allen turns around activating his Innocence. "Oi, Allen!"
"I'm going to get Tyki Mikk and Lero!" Allen exclaims.
"WHAT?!" Lavi runs up to Allen and grabs his shoulder. "Are you serious?!"
"Tyki Mikk is free of Noah… He's just a normal human now. I know even you saw that, Lavi. When I first met him on that train, he had human friends! Those people know nothing about this part of him. They may still be waiting for his return!"
"…I don't really care… but, if the Order finds out you rescued on of the Noahs… then…"
"Rescue…? You mean you didn't kill that man…?" Chaoji questions and Allen and Lavi looks at him.
"…He's still alive." Allen answers.
"What…? Even though he is with the Akuma who killed Anita-sama and Mahoja-sama, along with many other comrades…? How come… you'll recue him? I don't believe this… Are you going to betray our resolve? If you're going to rescue him, that makes you my enemy."
"Chaoji…!" Lavi calls trying to stop him.
"You're an enemy! You're an Akuma, just like the rest of them!"
Allen senses something coming towards them from below and he pushes him out of the way.
"CHAOJI!" Allen calls before he hit by the energy instead of Chaoji.
"Allen-kun/Allen!" Leenalee and Alice shouts.
"N-no you're… wro…ng…" The tentacles wrap around Allen except his arm that pushed Chaoji. "Ag… ghn…! UWA―!"
"Allen!" Lavi shouts as Allen is drag to the bottom of the tower. "Damn it! He was dragged under!"
"Was it Tyki Mikk!?" Leenalee asks. "Why… Why?!"
"Like I said… That's what you get for trying to save those bastards…" Chaoji says and Alice looks at him. "I don't care what your reason is… those bastards kill humans… They are Akuma…"
Alice walks up to Chaoji before she grabs his collar and slaps him across the face.
"What gives you the right…" Chaoji looks at Alice. "What gives you the right to say that!? You don't know what kind of life Allen had before me and our Master found him!"
"Alice wait…" Leenalee calls.
"All has something he regretted in the past because of what he did. But us Exorcists have some sort of scars in our hearts that we don't to happen again in the future."
Silence comes over them for the moment as Lavi, Leenalee, and Chaoji stare at Alice who is breathing heavily from yelling at Chaoji. Then a tremor occurs throughout the tower and the three Exorcists look around.
"What's going on?" Leenalee says.
"Something might have happened to Allen." Alice says as she let go of Chaoji's collar. "Lavi!"
"I'm on it!" Lavi says as Alice grabs onto the handle and she looks at Leenalee and Chaoji.
"You two stay here. We're going to do and check things out."
Then Iron Hammer extends downward taking Alice and Lavi to where Allen is. Once they reach the room, they see Allen is thrown off to the pillar and about to fall to the floor before a man is about to punch Allen. Immediately, Lavi commands his Iron Hammer to go to where Allen is and Lavi quickly take Allen away from the man, skids on the floor with Alice already has Silver in her hands in twin swords form.
"Tyki Mikk…?" Lavi calls. "What kind a joke is that outfit."
"Lavi… Alice…" Allen mutters and the two look at Allen.
"Allen, get a hold of yourself!" Alice tells him.
"The door…" Allen trails off causing Alice and Lavi to widen their eyes. "We can't… escape the Ark anymore…"
"Gukukukuku." Tyki laughs as Lavi and Alice look. "Hihahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!" Tyki then launches himself towards Lavi and Alice.
When Tyki is near them, he punches the ground where the both of them were standing as they dodge from the punch.
"Ahah… ha. Hihahahahaha!"
Lavi and Alice senses a murderous aura around Tyki, Alice grabs onto the handle and Lavi enlarges Iron Hammer.
"Extend!" Lavi exclaims as the handle extends upward and both Lavi and Alice looks at Tyki. Tyki looks up before he grins. The two reaches back to the top of the tower along with Allen.
"What should I do…?" Lavi thought.
"Lavi! Alice!" Leenalee calls.
"Even though me and Allen are jumping all over the place…"
"Allen-kun…!?" Leenalee calls as she sees how badly injured Allen is.
"There's nowhere outside the tower to run anymore… Ah dammit…! But still…!"
"You two, hold onto me!" Lavi exclaims. "Ext―…"
Behind Lavi is Tyki who has a grin on his face. Tyki then attacks, but Lavi uses the fore from Iron Hammer to block.
"… UGH…!" Lavi grunts.
"What strength…"
"Ka… Kaijin…!" Lavi says and a crack appears on Iron Hammer. "Jika Hiban!" A fire seal appears between them, but Tyki breaks the seal, subsequently, damaging Lavi. "Ugh… wha…?"
"No way… what the…"
Tyki looks at his hand which has Lavi's blood and he glances at Lavi before he licks it.
"A―H!" Allen shouts as he charges at Tyki with his sword in his hand. Tyki then blocks Allen's attack and sends him away. "AGH…!"
"This is bad." Lavi thought as Tyki punches Allen repeatedly. "He's too strong…"
"Allen!" Alice calls.
"He's not a level where we can just try our best and hope to beat him… what should we…" The tentacles wrap around everyone in the room. "What should we…"
NO―!" Leenalee shouts as the tentacles wrap them up, subsequently breaking the top part of the tower. Allen, Alice, and Lavi fall on the rubble which is on the water completely unconscious. Meanwhile, at the top of the tower, Leenalee is being choke from the tentacle that is from Tyki.
"Ugh…" Leenalee chokes.
"Lee… Leena…" Chaoji calls.
"We can't… here…" Leenalee thought. "Without protecting… a single thing…"
"Shit…" Chaoji curses as he shivers. "Shit…!"
~Flashback~
Anita's ship
"And so…" Anita trails off. "The only ones who survived… were Kie and Masao. Just the two of you."
Both Kie and Masao look at each other and Mahoja notices this.
"Hm? Is something wrong?" Mahoja asks.
"… Well…" Kie and Masao say.
"That idiot Chaoji, he…"
On the deck
Chaoji is hugging himself as he sits on the floor as his crew mates look at him.
"I'm the one of the dead!" Chaoji exclaims.
"Lair."
"I know you weren't shot, you know…"
"I was shot!" Chaoji exclaims.
"He's so lying." Three other crew members says.
"Hey look, his ears are twitching."
"Chaoji, you're a terrible liar, you should know that."
"Your ears are twitching right away, so it's pretty obvious."
"I'm not lying! I really got shot!" Chaoji exclaims.
"Ha― so can you look at her in the eye and say that?"
"He's so stubborn…"
"Chaoji-han!" Anita calls as she, Mahoja, and the two surviving members walking to the crew members.
"UGH! Anita-sama…" Chaoji calls. "Please let me stay on the ship with everyone else!"
"That's impossible." Alita says.
"He really was lying…!" A crew member says as he punches Chaoji.
"That idiot!" Another crew member says and kicks him.
"Th-that 'Edo' place is crawling with Akuma, right…?!" Chaoji asks. "And ordinary human like me will die right away… Even if there was any chance of me surviving… without Anita-sama and everyone. I don't even have anything to go back to… I have no… reason to live… I-I was taken from the belly of my mother who was killed by an Akuma… Taken in by Anita-sama's mother and Anita-sama herself… if it weren't for the two of you, I wouldn't even have been alive today. I became a supporter of the Order because I wanted use my life for the sake of those people! If Anita-sama is going to sink to the bottom of this ocean, I'll sink too! Let me stay with you!"
"It is always the ones left behind who feel the greatest pain. I understand those feelings very well." Anita says. "But you know, Chaoji-han… whatever happens, we won't disappear completely. Even if our bodies vanish into the sea… our lives will become yours and the Exorcists' and so be passed on. And when those lives once more save other lives and so form new connections, in that moment. We won't see them or meet them, but we will certainly be present there." Anita lifts Chaoji's head. "Live. Live and survive. We no longer be able to see one another, but my comrade… use your life to save those Exorcists. At that moment, we will certainly be… by your side."
~Present~
"Th… there's nothing… I can do… Anita-sama, Mahoja-sama… everyone… there's nothing…" Chaoji looks up and see Tyki is bringing Leenalee closer to him as the tentacle tightens around her neck.
"Agh… Aaa… Ah…" Leenalee struggles.
"WHA―!" Chaoji yells as he runs up to him and about to punch Tyki. However, the tower then collapses from the previous battles.
"The tower…" Leenalee trails off and she then kicks Tyki by the head, but it has no effect on him. Then Tyki lifts her up about to throw her. "Ugh…!"
"Keh…" Tyki trails off and he slams Leenalee on the concrete rubble. Chaoji sees Leenalee falling down.
"Leenalee-san!" Chaoji calls out as he reaches out for Leenalee, subsequently falling down behind her. "Anita-sama… Mahoja-sama… Agh… everyone… Anita-sama… ANITA-SAMA―!"
Once the tower completely collapses into the water, Tyki looks down as he smiles.
"WHA―!" He yells as he holds up the large rubble above his body. "UG―H!"
"Cha… Chaoji…!?" Leenalee calls and nearby, Allen, Alice, and Lavi are still unconscious as the rubbles are close to them Also green light surrounds his hands.
"This feeling…! Innocence!?" Leenalee thought.
"UG―H!" Chaoji grunts.
"Innocence is reacting to Chaoji? But where…!?"
"UG―H! H―A―! Anita-sama… Mahoja-sama… Everyone―"
As Chaoji holds the rubble, Tyki comes near him and Leenalee who is behind Chaoji.
