(John's Struggle)

*October 23rd, 1920*

*7:55pm*

John Claude smiled as he was prepared to unleash his ultimate attack as those events were being watched by Peter Ermakov who had an annoyed look on his face.

"Kaede, Kill him now! You can strike him down in this blow! Do it now before he kills you once more!" Peter Ermakov advised Kaede as he was met with a smile from her.

"I don't want to kill John. I hope to defeat him and if I truly wanted to then I would have done it from the start…" Kaede had spoken back to Peter Ermakov as she awaited for her opponent to unleash his attack so she could counter it as this annoyed Peter Ermakov.

"Are you serious? Your soft heart is gonna be the end of everything! You must cast those feelings aside and KILL him when you have the chance!" Peter Ermakov spat out towards Kaede as he was simply met with a smile from her.

"I know but I'm unsure if I can take a life like this but If it does come to that point…" Kaede has spoken back as she heard laughter from John Claude as this made her turn her direction back to her opponent as she quickly was on guard.

"This attack will spell the END for you and everyone that you care for! I shall use my sword's ability to turn back your lifespan to the point in which you'll turn into an innocent baby then I'll KILL you from there! YOU ARE FINISHED!" John Claude cried out in joy.

He extended his right arm in the air and proceeded to summon his attack as a huge clock appeared above him as everything was being watched by Kazumi as his expression was in shock and surprise.

"Kaede, Watch out! If you allow him to hit you then It's all over! Don't be a fool and take it head on! Dodge it!" Kazumi cried out towards Kaede in a tone of concern and worry as he was met with a nod of understandment from her as she had given him a thumbs up before turning her direction back to John Claude.

"I hope you are ready to DIE! CHORONO'S REWIND!" John Claude cried out in pure joy.

He extended his hands to form a ticking clock as he proceeded to motion his fingers in a backwards fashion indicating that time for Kaede may begin to go back.

"EXCALIBUR BINDING LIGHT, Hear my cries! Eradicate this attack!" Kaede cried out.

She used her Excalibur and proceeded to slam the tip on the ground which caused two pillars of light to appear on both sides of her opponent which caught him by surprise.

"W-WHAT THE?!" John Claude cried out in shock as he looked above to see the two shining lights that were placed on each side of him as this caused him to quickly panic as he motioned his fingers at a faster pace in hopes of rewinding time for Kaede however he was unsuccessful.

"John Claude! Your evil ends TODAY!" Kaede cried out in a booming tone of voice as her attack destroyed John Claude's time attack with such ease as this amazed everyone around her.

"S-She utterly destroyed it like it was nothing! Kaede is truly more powerful than John Claude…" Tatiana uttered in shock and with a hint of joy as she proceeded to cheer for her friend in hopes of motivating her friend even further.

"N-NO! W-Why? Why can't you just die! I can't fail! I can't! That was my only way of truly defeating you! WHY! WHY! WHY!" John Claude roared in fury.

He dashed towards Kaede with great speed as he attempted to hit his opponent with his Ares sword however it was countered by Kaede who had a serious look on her face.

"EXCALIBUR SLASH!" Kaede cried out.

She quickly attacked John Claude with sheer power and speed as this caused him to cry out in pain as this forcefully pushed him back as this was watched by Natasha who had tears rushing down on her face.

"John, Is this our fate? I refuse to believe it! I'll rather die than have a future where SHE and the PIGS are alive…" Natasha thought to herself in pain and sorrow as the tears continued to flow down from her eyes as she refused to accept her loss while she continued to watch the ongoing battle with little hope that was left in her.

"YOU STUPID BITCH!" John Claude roared in pure hatred and anger as he and Kaede traded many blows as their attacks became faster and faster as he saw Kaede leap in the air.

"EXCALIBUR CROSS!" Kaede cried out in sheer motivation.

She quickly dashed towards John Claude as she slashed him two times in which formed an X as this caused the man to scream in pain as this shattered his shield in the process as he looked up to see that Kaede wasn't done with him yet.

"N-NO! I can't lose! I CAN'T!" John Claude thought to himself in anger as he saw Kaede preparing another assault as he watched in horror.

"Just give up already! EXCALIBUR SMASH!" Kaede cried out.

She quickly descended towards her opponent with great speed as her attack impacted John Claude as this sent him crashing back to the ground as this caused many cheers to break out from Anastasia, Olga, Tatiana, and the rest of Kaede's friends as they watched the battle with excitement.

"Kaede is truly remarkable. She has this in her favor but, I hope John gives up. He knows he's lost but he still insists on continuing this long dawn fight…" Olga had spoken to everyone in a tone of seriousness as she was met with nods of agreement from everyone.

"You're right, He may get desperate and we don't want that so let's hope Kaede can knock him out before things get out of hand…" Kazumi had spoken in agreement to Olga as he continued to watch the battle.

"Y-You w-won't w-win! I shall kill you and the Romanovs! I should have killed everyone when I had the chance!" John Claude cried out in pure hatred and anger as he spat out some blood in the process as he was wobbling before retaining his balance as he had seen his opponent approaching him.

"You've lost!, Give up NOW!" Kaede advised John Claude as she stared back at him in a serious tone of voice as she suddenly heard Sakura calling out to her from her Excalibur.

"Kaede, Strike him down! This is your chance! John is simply an evil that must not exist! Remember the pain he's caused in the other timelines! You must do what's right. Only justice can bring peace…" Sakura advised Kaede in a serious tone of voice as she was met with Kaede shaking her head in disagreement.

"Don't worry, I can handle this okay? I can end this with this final strike! If John refuses to give up then I shall force him to!" Kaede had answered back as she was ready to attack her opponent once more as this was being seen by Peter Ermakov.

"It seems that Kaede has accepted that she must kill in order to save her little friends. Let's hope she can do the job…" Peter Ermakov said to himself as he continued to watch the events that were currently going on while Natasha gave him a depressed look.

"I truly hate Kaede, She is stealing my future away from my love! Is this fate? If so, I will rather DIE but at least I will finally be with my love…" Natasha thought to herself as she felt her body moving by pure instinct as tears flew down from her eyes.

"My body moved on it's own. Is this what it's like to save someone you trust? Before I knew it. I felt the pain of the sword stabbing me…" Natasha thought to herself as she suddenly found herself protecting John Claude as she was stabbed by Kaede which was meant for her lover as this shocked everyone.

"N-Natasha…" Kaede uttered in shock as her eyes widened in fear as she appeared to be frozen.

"N-NATASHA!" John Claude roared in agony and sadness as he saw his lover protecting him which caused her to be stabbed in the process...