A.N: Another short chapter, yeah. But, let's be real here. Do you guys really want me to drag this out any longer? Yeah, I didn't think so. But you know something? It was super satisfying to write, so I've got that going for me at least. And it's something you all have going for you as well. So, enjoy just over 2,500 words of Jotaro Kujo vs. Hari Kurono.
Chapter 22
Time's Up
Block A Comes To An End
Hari Kurono, AKA Chronostasis, quickly whipped out a revolver and trained it right on Jotaro Kujo. "Let's see what you can do, you wannabe punk!" Chrono yelled while Jotaro just stood there impassively.
Talk about a pain in the ass for gunslingers. Chrono thought to himself in slight frustration. I'm not allowed to kill him, so even if I do aim for the center of mass, which you're supposed to do if you're shooting at someone, I'd most likely hit a vital point like his lungs or his heart. But, I'm a damn good shot, so I can incapacitate him with a couple decent shots.
With that, Chrono fired all six shots from his revolver right at Jotaro. Jotaro heaved a sigh and summoned Star Platinum, which quickly moved right in front of him and grabbed the bullets right out of the air. Chrono, who thankfully had been given the right to see Star Platinum like everyone else fighting a character from the Bizarre Universe, could only stammer in disbelief at the sight of Star Platinum. "What the hell?!" He yelled in disbelief.
Star Platinum calmly dropped the bullets to the ground while Jotaro now glared at Chrono. "You still feel confident enough to try me, ya masked bastard?" He demanded. "What you're seeing here is my Stand, Star Platinum. A manifestation of my soul that I once wrote off as an evil spirit."
That made Old Joseph Joestar fold his arms back in the stands. "Boy, does that take me back. Looking back though, it actually is rather strange he called it an evil spirit, considering how it stopped him from shooting himself in the head."
"WHAT?!" Jonathan Joestar looked at his elderly grandson like he was crazy.
Back at the fight, Chrono snarled in frustration. What the hell is this nonsense? Nobody said anything about having to fight some imaginary friend that helps a guy out in a fight!
Chrono then tightened his grip on his revolver, regaining his resolve as he reloaded all six rounds. No way, stupid imaginary friend-Stand-whatever the hell he wants to call it! I entered this tournament to restore Kai's honor! To restore the Shie Hassaikai's honor! Kai wants to use his wish to rid the world of Quirks. I need to win this so I can just give us a limitless supply of the Quirk destroying bullets so that we control who has the superpowers of our world!
Kai's not thinking rationally, so as his right-hand man, it's my responsibility to win so that I can make sure the Shie Hassaikai will end up on top, like it was meant to be!
Chrono fired at Jotaro. Star Platinum quickly defended his master and caught the bullets. I don't know what my Quirk can possibly do to this 'Stand' of his, so I need to try and land my Quirk on him! Chrono noted.
"Hate to break it to you, pal, but Star Platinum's main power lies within its superhuman precision. Catching bullets for Star Platinum is like the Karate Kid catching flies with chopsticks." Jotaro explained. "In other words, you better have another trick up your sleeve...or frankly, I'm going to feel bad for what I'm going to do to you."
I just need an opening. He's nothing without Star Platinum. I'll get him when he comes after me! Chrono decided.
Star Platinum flew towards Chrono. Chrono's eyes widened. He's fast! The right-hand man of the Shie Hassaikai frantically noted before barely managing to dodge Star Platinum's first punch by rolling past him.
I'll disable this thing first. Let's see if my Quirk actually can get him! Chrono decided as the 'minute hand' of his hair extended outwards towards Star Platinum.
Jotaro narrowed his eyes as the minute hand sped towards Star Platinum. That must be...whatever power he has. He noted. It won't catch my Stand though!
With that, Star Platinum moved to the side and avoided Chrono's minute hand. Chrono then smirked. I win, you wannabe delinquent! Chrono grinned beneath his mask as the 'hour hand' of his hair, located in the back of his head, extended outwards.
Jotaro's eyes widened as he quickly moved to the side, trying to avoid the hour hand. Only to have it graze him in the side. Jotaro gasped when he felt his body, no, his movements, slow down. "What...what the…" Jotaro managed.
Chrono scowled. "Well that's a surprise." He said. "Usually people struggle with talking when they're hit by my Quirk, Chronostasis. You either have incredible willpower, or you seem to have experience with time manipulation in your world."
"You could...say that." Jotaro muttered.
Chrono then walked towards Jotaro. He then removed his mask, revealing his face and his clock-hand like hair to Jotaro. "Impressed, punk?" He asked. "This is Chronostasis. Anything the two clock hands on my hair strikes, they have their movements slowed down."
"I sent the minute hand after your Star Platinum. You thought you were safe, but that was exactly what I planned. You were wide open to my hour hand afterwards."
"You know...monologuing...isn't...always wise for jackasses...like you." Jotaro pointed out. "Seriously...read a freaking...manga, you bastard."
Chrono smirked. "You would think that, wouldn't you?" He taunted. "But here's the thing. The minute hand slows the target down for a minute. The hour hand, however, slows down its target for an entire hour."
Jotaro's eyes widened. "In other words, my wannabe delinquent, I really have no reason to worry." Chrono revealed. "I've got an hour worth of time to bask in my victory."
"Then bask...all you want...what the hell...are you planning...to do with your wish?" Jotaro asked curiously.
"I will be restoring the Shie Hassaikai's power." Chrono replied. "We lost everything because of the damn heroes. We lost our source of power, our leader, our plans to bring society back to its powerless self to bring the Yakuza back to power."
"But I will fix it all with my wish," Chrono revealed, "I will have our Quirk-destroying bullets mass produced without limit. Then, we won't even need that damn Eri. After all, it was their desire to save that cursed child that ruined everything in the first place."
Jotaro slowly narrowed his eyes. "What's that supposed to mean?" He demanded through gritted teeth.
Chrono rolled his eyes. "I really have no reason to tell you." He pointed out. "But you're not going anywhere. I've already won. If Stands really are a manifestation of yourself, then even if you could summon Star Platinum, it'd be as slow as you are."
"See, the truth is, Eri was a child with a cursed power." Chrono explained. "She had the power to reset everything to zero. Kai, our boss, found out how to harness that power into the Quirk-destroying bullets. Through her DNA, her blood."
Jotaro's eyes slowly widened. Chrono sighed. "It certainly was tormenting to watch, I'll admit. I mean, at the end of the day, Kai was destroying and then reforming a child for her blood." He acknowledged.
"However, I still choose to believe in Kai's vision for the world." Chrono brushed his guilt aside. "And besides, those damn heroes have no right to judge us. She was related to the Yakuza. It was her destiny to be a tool for us from the start."
"What?" Jotaro managed.
"It's not like she was a slave. It's not like we did anything else to her." Chrono revealed. "We fed her, we cared for her, we made sure she was healthy. She was our meal ticket after all. We're not savages. The Yakuza have standards, ya know."
"At the end of the day, it really should not matter how many times Kai destroyed and reformed her. She was always alive at the end of it after all." Chrono coldly pointed out. "And that's all that matters, right?"
"That sick bastard!" Eijiro Kirishima yelled from the stands.
"That's...that's horrible." Ochaco Uraraka muttered in horror.
Izuku Midoriya remained silent, choosing to keep his rage bottled up. Still, is there anything Jotaro can do at this point? He wondered. If that Quirk really does slow him down for an hour, what else can he do?
"You're a...sick bastard...you know that?" Jotaro growled.
Chrono shrugged. "We're Yakuza," he pointed out, "but we're still criminals at the end of the day. So sorry that our methods are too 'disgusting' for someone like you. But see, that gives us an advantage over men like you."
"We're not held back by our morals. We do what we have to in order to make our ideals a reality." Chrono pointed out.
"You lost." Jotaro reminded Chrono.
Chrono narrowed his eyes. "Well, if that's all you have to say, then I think I've had just about enough of you, punk." He said. "So here's how it's going to work. I'm going to shoot you in both of your kneecaps. If you feel your knees weaken and your body slowly starts to fall, please do let me know. Of course, if you want to be a macho fool, say nothing and I'll resort to shooting you in the spine. That'll guarantee your end and we'll see just how good the medics in this world actually are."
Chrono then pointed his revolver at Jotaro's right kneecap. "So if you want my advice, don't be macho and just accept defeat. Goodbye." He said nonchalantly, preparing to pull the trigger.
Cue the song 'Stardust Crusaders', folks…
Suddenly, a fist came flying out of nowhere, nailing Chrono right in the face with a loud 'ORA'. Chrono yelled in pain as he stumbled backwards, clutching his bloody nose. "What the hell?" He yelled in surprise.
Chrono then got a good look at his attacker. "S-Star Platinum?!" Chrono looked at the Stand in shock.
That's impossible! His fist came so fast. Practically out of nowhere! Chrono noted to himself. I hit the punk with my Quirk's hour hand. His Stand shouldn't be moving this fast!
"Good grief, you know, with how putrid your face looks, I actually prefer you with your mask on." Jotaro muttered. "Of course, I won't deny that's my fault. But, anyway, let me be blunt with you. You are such an idiot."
"What?" Chrono said in shock.
"While you were monologuing, I was having Star Platinum move around behind you." Jotaro revealed, now strangely speaking as though nothing happened, while his body was still slowed down. "Just to test to see if my Stand could still move freely while you had slowed my body down. Truth be told, I had known Star Platinum could still move freely shortly after you had turned your attention to me."
"But how is your Stand moving?" Chrono demanded.
"Stands are a physical manifestation of one's life energy. In other words, they are an extension of our souls." Jotaro revealed. "You can slow down my body, you masked bastard, but you never slowed down my soul."
"Although, if that's not a satisfying enough explanation for you." Jotaro continued. "I'll let you in on a little fact about me. I do have experience dealing with people who manipulate time, and you know what I discovered?"
"I discovered that Star Platinum manipulates time too. He stops it and moves freely within it. You were screwed the minute I saw how your power manipulated time in your own weird way." Jotaro revealed.
Chrono could only whimper and moan in terror. "B-but, wait a minute," he managed, "if you had found out shortly after I turned my attention to you, why did you let me speak for so long? What the hell were you doing?"
Jotaro glared at Chrono. "Simple, I was hoping you'd spill something that would make me feel less bad about pounding the ever-loving crap out of a guy who doesn't have a Stand." He revealed. "And you delivered. Oh boy, did you deliver."
Chrono's eyes widened. Eri. Jotaro was pissed about Eri. "You know, I won't pretend I'm the nicest guy." Jotaro told him. "People rightfully label me as a delinquent. The only person who still thinks I'm a 'sweet boy' is my mom."
"But you know what? I'm not a scumbag who helps his boss torment a kid the way you bastards did. So I've got that going for me!" Jotaro declared.
"Get away from me!" Chrono yelled, extending his minute hand outwards, only for Star Platinum to grab the hair and rip it off Chrono's head, making him scream in pain.
"So I'm going to make you an offer now, you piece of crap." Jotaro told him. "You're going to tell me your boss' name. You do that, and I won't punch you into oblivion as much as I'd like. I'll save that for him."
"K-Kai Chisaki!" Chrono, in his terror, forgot his loyalty to his boss. "He also is known as Overhaul! But that's his real name and his villain name!"
"Good boy," Jotaro said mockingly, "now then, how does a minute of endless punching at hyperspeed sound?"
"A minute? B-b-but, with how hard your Stand punches, you'll probably only need a few." Chrono whimpered. "You said if I told you Kai's name, you would go easy on me."
"I did and I will keep my word." Jotaro promised him. "I was originally going to punch you the entire hour your Quirk's in effect. Then again, something tells me that would kill you and get me disqualified. So, we'll be sticking to a minute."
Chrono screamed in fear. Jotaro glared at him. "Hey now, you've got no reason to complain, bastard." Jotaro pointed out.
"You'll be alive at the end, right?" Chrono's blood ran cold as his own words were thrown right back at him.
"THAT'S ALL THAT MATTERS, RIGHT?!" Jotaro yelled as he sicced Star Platinum onto Hari Kurono. Hari could only scream in pain as one minute of pain began with a punch and a loud 'ORA.' And then more punches, and more Oras.
"ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA! ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA! ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA! ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA! ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA! ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA! ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA! ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA! ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA! ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA! ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA!"
Hari Kurono, Villain Name: Chronostasis. Status: Retired…
Chrono let out one final scream as Star Platinum let out one last Ora, sending him flying with one last mighty punch that sent the Yakuza sailing into a nearby wall, a bloody mess of his former self.
"Chronostasis is unable to battle." Daisuke said after a moment of silence, shocked by the brutal beatdown administered by Jotaro Kujo.
"Dude, I clocked it, that was an exact minute of Oras." Kaji sounded impressed.
"Jotaro Kujo never was one for half measures." Daisuke could only say as Chrono's body vanished to be taken to the medical team. "But with that victory, I have a very important announcement to make."
"Block A's preliminary has now ended!" Daisuke revealed. "120 contestants entered, and 64 have left as winners to enter the elimination round.
"We've seen some great battles, but it's time to move on. And by move on, I mean get things ready for Block B of the Urban Tier." Kaji added. "If you think it's going to be the Labyrinth though, you're dead wrong. We mix things up here."
"So stay tuned, and let's find out how Block B's going to have to compete for the right to advance to the elimination rounds!"
A.N: People, I legit clocked it. Reading at my pace, that was a minute of Oras. Ouch. Personal squad goal of mine: To have fate will it so that Jotaro ends up against an opponent he'll Ora for an entire page. Can you imagine? An entire page of Oras. Not manga pages, manuscript pages.
I loved adding the JoJo references in the JoJo fight though. The Stardust Crusaders OST (or as I like to call it, Jotaro's about to punch a bitch into submission). The "retired" joke at the end of Chrono's beatdown. Short a chapter this was, it was so much fun to write for those moments alone.
I hope everyone enjoyed this as much as I did. Next time, Block B gets started. We'll probably get through the blocks before we move onto the next tier. See ya!