Unmei Force: Wanderers
Chapter 1: Chaos Incarnate (Alt.)
A/N: Before you ask, most of the content, at least 80% in chapter length refers to content, excluding this chapter, is basically a copy-paste of the chapter bodies in the respective chapters in DH: Warriors Orochi 4. This story is to serve as a companion to the mentioned story, acting as a extension of the story from the perspective of the Unmei Force. Which means that there is content exclusive to either story on both sides. You'll notice that there will be a bit more dialogue on the Unmei Force side, and that you will later see how they dealt with their sides of the things in battle.
Without further ado, let us begin. As the (Alt.) symbol suggests, this is the alternate view of Chaos Incarnate in DH: WO4, explaining how the Unmei Force even arrived in this world in the first place.
In the GFS Ryujin...
Richard was relaxing, lying on his bed, having been spending a few days taking R&R, along with the rest of his group, due to having returned from their previous war in Europa. He looked up, and held the hand-sized emblem of Squad 7 in his hand, the one that Welkin gave him.
Ever since they have returned, Thrawn has proven to be quite useful for maintaining the army, as he proved to be quite loyal to their cause, despite being their former enemy.
But then again... He was only loyal to the Empire because of his duty and his ideals... Richard thought back. If Thrawn could see an organisation that can keep to his ideals and prove to be far more competent and effective, he wouldn't hesitate to join such a force, albeit with suspicion. Doesn't matter, since there's only a few skeletons in our closet compared to that of any others.
He then got up, before he then pulled out a small metal case from a hidden slot in his room, which he stored several 'souvenirs' of the worlds he had travelled to. He had a small Underworld medal in it and a ceremonial dagger with the Tokugawa Emblem on it. He placed the woven Squad 7 emblem inside, before he then closed it, and returned it, as the hidden slot closed itself to turn back into part of the room wall.
When he turned around to head to bed, he was suddenly startled by how there was a sukima in front of him, and he was certain that sukima was not one of his.
And his doubts were proven true, when Yukari Yakumo came out, with a rarely serious expression.
"Yukari..." Richard stated with a even tone. "What brings you here? If you have anything that you must tell me, then get to the point. No riddles, no cryptic messages."
"I see that you're still considerably on edge with the series of missions that you have went through, Richard." Yukari stated with a slightly amused tone, as she placed her hand-fan over her mouth in a playful gesture. She then closes the fan with a slapping sound, before she then dropped the closed fan through another sukima. "You should be able to understand me, even if I have to test if your wit is still as sharp as you had before you left. But since you asked, and that I have a sense of urgency for myself, I'll tell you. Tell me, what have you been calling those stones that you have collected? Two of them that actually manifested into being, if I can recall the events correctly?"
"...Were you watching us while we were on mission?" Richard asked with a accusing tone.
"Of course not. I know not to make my presence obvious, and I have no reason to oversee your proceedings, unless you are in utterly dire straits, to which only I can assist you with at the time." Yukari denied with a gentle shake of her head. "The only thing I have been watching is how your little fortress is proceeding. It seems that you have hired someone who actually is quite like me in a certain aspect. Do you believe you can handle him?"
"Thrawn knows that he cannot beat us, and so I persuaded him to join us." Richard explained with crossed arms. "Better he put his services in use for the better of the army, than to die trying to get revenge for the Empire. The only reason I recruited him, is because he's professional and hard-working. He knows the line between excess emotion and over-apathy, and he is far more talented than almost half of the Empire combined. And since you're the real power figure, I guess that he should share a modicum of respect for you, since he's like you, as you say yourself."
"Fufufu... I see." Yukari chuckled with a faint smile. "Anyway, I must apologise for causing us to both divert from the subject at hand. I do not care about what you do, for I know that you have matured enough to make your own decisions as a true leader. Either way, you call them 'X-Stones', or 'Cross Stones' as some of our personnel state.
"That is true. And we're looking for more, until the full set is at hand." Richard nodded back. "So far we have 4. Mostly, that would be either between half-way or two-thirds done, depending on the size of the set. And we don't have any good reliable way of finding them. Even using the resonance phenomena to allow us to detect them time-to-time, it has a extremely low success rate of detection, and there's no clear signal as of yet."
"I see. Well then, it's a good thing that I have the location of the next stone you are looking for." Yukari stated. "Although it's going to be quite... familiar to some degree for you."
"How so?" Richard asked with a raised eyebrow.
"I guess that I'll have to hint you towards it, since you don't know which one it relates to." Yukari responded back. "Very well, does the word, Hydra and Orochi seem familiar to you...?"
"Hydra... Orochi..." Richard repeated under his breath, before he then realised what Yukari was talking about. "Could it be...? Ah, I guess that makes sense. If you're talking about the Warriors Orochi series, having seen the DW side of things, I should be partially familiar with the people. Alright, Yukari. How are we going to deal with this? Do I have to deal with the Hydra myself?"
"Not quite. You're thinking about the events of the third tale." Yukari answered back. "At this current time, a new tale has unfolded, and its already started."
"Come again, so it's a sequel then?" Richard stated, before he sucked in a breath with a difficult expression. "Well, I haven't brushed up properly on knowledge regarding this one. Either I never seen it before I left Gensokyo, or I don't recall whatever events occurred."
"That is quite a underwhelming excuse for not knowing about the worlds, do you?" Yukari chided Richard with a slightly more critical tone. "I thought that you boast yourself having your knowledge of the worlds up to date."
"Knowledge only goes so far. Something has to exist for you to know of it." Richard responded back, before he shrugged. "Besides, even with everything, I'm still human, so I tend to have temporary moments of forgetfulness at times, without any stimuli. And besides, like I said, whatever game this is from... It's from after I focused my efforts onto something else. I just made-do with what knowledge I had of the fandoms, up to the date. Anything after, I'll just have to play by the book, and check for certain 'flags'."
"Well, even with the elaborated explanation, it is still a excuse, yet a heavily justified one." Yukari stated, before she then realised that she went off-track again. "My apologies, it seems that I have went off track once again. Perhaps it might be because I wanted to stay some more with my dear disciple, who is taking on the big bad reality with just his friends and army."
"Heh, well, I was never longing for you, because I knew that you would come knocking on my door like that." Richard smirked. "Alright, if you have anything to share with me, like whatever favour you're going to ask of me, or what I should keep watch for, then share it with me now. I'm going to round up the team and leave for the mission."
"Always rushed to get into action, Richard. You do know that this once has caused you severe problems, hasn't it?" Yukari sighed. "But I know you well that you've learned your lesson back then. Alright then, before you leave, I'll offer you two things, one related to a favour I have, and the other is information regarding your potential enemies."
Yukari then immediately opened up a sukima, as it dropped two white bracelets, which seemed to look like a long snake that was biting its tail, except that it was coiled around into a small spiral, as the circles formed were large enough to fit an arm through it, as its eyes seemed to be closed, like it was hibernating. Richard immediately took one, as he had a close look at it.
"What are these...?" Richard asked, as he felt a strange form of energy emanating from within the bracelets. "What kind of energy that lie dormant in it?"
"That is for you to find out." Yukari stated. "Do not be surprised if you see bracelets like these in the other world. You are free to use these two as you wish, but make absolutely sure that they are not taken from you, not even for a single moment. These bracelets are more important than you would think. I cannot tell you what purpose they serve yet, but I will tell you that it is something that I consider important, so you are to take extreme caution. Am I understood, Richard?"
Richard reeled back from Yukari's serious attitude, as he did not expect the casual and tricky gap user to show such seriousness in her statement, before he then nodded vigorously. "I understand your meaning, Yukari. Worry not, even if they are taken from me, I will use everything I have to reclaim them. If it's something that even YOU consider important, then I cannot imagine how world-changing the true purpose of these bracelets will be."
"Good. And that leads me to a favour." Yukari stated, as she moved closer, and placed the other bracelet in Richard's hands. "I want you to promise me that you will utilise that bracelet at least once. I don't care how you use it, but you must awaken its power at least once. I ask for nothing more. What you do after you have done this favour is up to you."
"...I'll do it, but why the favour is this specific? You're not leading me into something messy, right?" Richard asked with some suspicion in his voice.
"...It's a promise for an old acquaintance." Yukari stated, with a reminiscent look in her eyes. "If you ever meet him in person, then tell him that an old friend from the spiritual beyond has come to lend him the help I promised him long ago."
Richard then looked at Yukari, who showed a sense of longing in her eyes, as he wondered who could possibly make Yukari have such a expression on her face. After a moment of silence, Yukari then turned back to Richard.
"Alright, now the second thing, which is the information." Yukari stated. "I have recently heard rumours that there is a very dangerous group that might be heading for the same world as you."
"And how do you know, if you cannot spend long observing the other reality, without compromising your own ability to deal with the matters back home?" Richard asked.
"You underestimate me. I don't need full visual confirmation to make my assumptions." Yukari stated with a sly tone. "Let's just say I have eyes and ears in several different places, and I can use any of these spots to make my attempt in collecting information. Mostly, it has been things that do not concern you. But lately, I have heard these rumours about the group in question. Before you ask, it's not you all, because the information I collected does not coincide with any of you, or your new members."
"Then out with it." Richard bluntly growled. "Who is so determined to go after this world, and what kind of ability do they have under their belt."
"Well, I have very little information on that." Yukari stated. "I can tell you that these people are within your league, but I'd be careful regardless. And there is one other person, a swordsman, I heard, that has blades imbued with a void-like power that is capable of destroying a certain kind of power. Since I don't have any information as to what the effects of those blades would be against any other kind of power, I'd advise extreme caution fighting against him. Just because his blades are specialised to permanently ending the powers of an 'Enhanced', which is a term for certain beings with certain powers, doesn't mean he won't be able to do the same to you, and that would be dangerous indeed."
"I'd like to see him try." Richard smirked. "Even if he negates all of my powers, he'll still have to deal with a sword-fighter of unknown capabilities. If he's going to rely on that bull-shit skill of his, then it'll be a losing battle for him."
"Always confident, huh...? I guess you deserved that, ever since you have been training still, even without your former trainers with you." Yukari said.
"Well, I still have Meiling, so I can still train my martial arts at full efficiency." Richard stated, before he sighed deeply. "But yeah, I sure hate the fact that I can't go back to visit for a moment yet, because I still haven't gotten any closer to the solution. Anyway, you should head back. The longer you stay here, the more likely things will get out of order back at home."
"That is true. Very well, Richard. I have left the portal in the meeting room, so that you can get everyone in there quickly." Yukari stated, before she then turned away. "Until the next meeting."
She then disappeared through her sukima, leaving Richard alone, with the bracelets in his hands.
"Well, gotta keep my word on what I told her." Richard stated with a casual tone, before he then immediately left the room.
In the Yellow Turban Fortress...
Richard and the others soon arrive on the battlefield, as the sukima immediately disappears, leaving Richard, Gus, Meiling, Reimu, Marisa, Elma and Ieyasu standing by each other. As they looked around, they seemed to have found themselves in a rocky battlefield, where the ground was a sandy desert.
"Where are we…?" Gus asked.
"No idea, but somehow, the signal of a X-Stone is strong here." Richard stated. "Thankfully, the signature is quite clear, although the exact location is unknown for now, since there is a lot of supernatural interference in this world…"
"This place reminds of the world I once came from." Ieyasu remarked.
"Richard, I feel something strange about this place, as if there is a strange magical presence covering the entire area…" Elma remarked.
"You can feel it too!?" Richard exclaimed at Elma's statement, as he hummed deeply. "Yes, there is something strange about this place. The magic is literally overflowing around the entire landscape, but I can't put a finger on what it has to do…"
"The only choice now, is to press on and try to find out where we have landed. Perhaps we might be able to find other wandering heroes, and assist them if we must." Meiling stated.
"I have to agree with Meiling. Although if this strange presence that I'm sensing as well, is truly there, then I suggest we be careful. There's no telling what might go on this world."
Richard nodded to both of them, as they immediately made their way across, before they encounter a crowd of soldiers, who were clad in light-coloured tunics, and had bandanas on their heads. When the group saw them, Richard, Gus, Meiling and Reimu became utterly surprised.
"Aren't those…!?" Gus exclaimed.
"The soldiers from Ancient China? Yes, there's no mistaking it. Well, some of them are. The others seem to be from the other Sengoku period." Richard stated. "After that time in the Three Kingdoms Era, we encountered these kinds of troops again. Makes me wonder… Will we meet 'them' again…?"
"I never thought that this kind of situation would occur again." Meiling sighed. "I've wished to forget about the times back there. Being worshipped as the embodiment of a destructive god-like being leaves a bad taste in my mouth, considering my own duties and ideals."
"You have met these kinds of people before, Richard?" Ieyasu asked Richard, curious about how Richard knows about the Chinese troops before them.
"It's a long story, Ieyasu. So long that it could fit into a massive novel-long epic." Richard stated. "Long story short, they're from a warring time period, not unlike the one you came from. Except they're from long before your time, and they're from China."
"China… I've heard about that country before, albeit rarely." Ieyasu stated. "I admit I had a curiosity for it, but I never did wish to leave my country."
Soon the soldiers noticed the group, as they pointed at the group, and prepared to attack, raising their weapons up.
"Tch, looks like we'll have to fight our way through." Reimu clicked her tongue, as she pulled out her gohei. "Surely, this is going to be a very bad day for them. I might actually rob some of their wealth, if they're reckless enough to go attacking us."
"Not now, Reimu, let's first deal with the matter in front of us, before we talk about money and all that stuff." Richard stated, as he immediately summoned his twin blades by his side. "Either way, stay back, Elma. Don't get too close into the fight. Ieyasu, if any pass through, I leave it to you to protect Elma in my stead, alright?"
"I shall do so." Ieyasu curtly responded back.
"Alright, everyone advance!" Richard ordered, as everyone charged at the swarm of enemy soldiers.
"Ha!" Meiling uttered, as she used a series of palm strikes, that were strong enough to create large shockwaves that knocked the soldiers flying, before she then used a barrage of cross-kicks to knock more enemies into the air.
Reimu was utilising her shrine maiden powers, as she used her ofudas to assault the soldiers, as they stuck onto the enemies, sapping their strength, or exploding in magical explosions like miniature paper bombs, and wielding her gohei like a shortened battle-staff. Marisa was utilising her full arsenal of magical items, using her explosive potions to blast those faraway, and using her broom to slam enemies back, and often using her own Hakkero to fire off various kinds of lasers.
Richard rushed into the fray, as he was slicing and dicing aggressively in the enemy ranks, often counter the strikes of the enemy soldiers before they could finish them, or parrying them and sending them back with a wide round-house kick. Gus was using his heavy great-sword, to slash through the enemies before him, often letting off a quick barrage of slashes that knocked enemies either into the ground or air.
Elma, having decided to support the others, often casting protection and recovery spells on the others, while Ieyasu often beat back any enemies who tried to attack Elma with his gauntlet-clad fists, as his might was strong enough to blast his foes without much effort.
Eventually, they made it across the battlefield, as they seemed to have come out of a large cave, as the entire battlefield was situated in a large canyon, with sand and stone structures all around them, as Richard seemed to be familiar with the layout.
"This battlefield...!" Richard exclaimed, before he turned to Meiling. "Meiling! Surely you recall this battlefield, right?"
"...I do remember. This was the Yellow Turban Fortress, where the Yellow Turbans made their last stand against the Coalition forces."
"At least this is our home advantage." Richard stated with a smirk. "I don't know if I can gap in Red Bunny into the fray, but I bet that she might actually enjoy reliving a battle on her home turf."
The group immediately made their way, before they encountered the demons on their way across, as they were shocked to see them.
"First SW troops, and now the demons?" Richard remarked with a surprised tone. "Well, ain't going to matter. If they're here, then that means we're on the right track to some degree."
The demon soldiers, including several of the demon officers among them, noticed the group approaching, as they drew their weapons, before charging at the group.
"Traitor…" One of the demon officers hissed towards Elma, who was the demonic girl that was supporting the group.
"Traitor…? Why would I be…?" Elma pondered with a concerned expression, before Richard immediately counter-charged the demon officer. He then used one blade to catch the demon's blade, and the other to slash at the demon officer, causing it to flinch, and allowing him to take it out with a series of strikes, finishing with Divine Judge thrust right into the demon's chest, as it fell to the ground, dead, as it faded into dark mist
The others whittled down the demon soldiers surrounding them, as Reimu used her arsenal of ofudas and her gohei to bring destruction onto the troops, as those struck by her ofuda was infused with purified spiritual energy that caused the demon soldiers to writhe in agony from the conflicting element's energy coursing through their veins. Elma immediately did her best to support the others, by providing with a magical barrier coat around their bodies, to soften the blows dealt to them. After the soldiers were eradicated, Richard turned back to Elma.
"Don't concern yourself, Elma." Richard responded back with a caring smile. "You're no traitor. You're an Overlord, and you are a hero to all, not a traitor. The demons here are not the same ones as you know back in your world, so don't agonise yourself over their opinions, they don't have a single shred of decency regardless."
"R-Right." Elma remarked with a nod.
Soon, the group managed to reach the front of the allied camp, where they caught sight of the other groups fighting, a three-way battle between the Coalition Forces, Fuma's forces, and the Demon forces.
"What is this…?" Meiling remarked, as she looked around, before she then noticed several familiar figures to her. "...So they are here... Then we've found the right people."
"And I see…" Gus remarked, before his eyes widened. "David…? And the others!?"
"Hmm? Hey… Aren't those…" Mayumi asked, as she noticed the other group, while her teammates were fighting off enemies from both sides at once, and doing a good job at it.
"There's no mistaking it, Gus. I see a few new additions to their group, other than the warriors of course." Richard stated. "Well, at least with this, I can at least know who's the enemy here. Alright, team, take care of the forces that are hostile towards the force with these guys in it."
"Right. I'd like to see how this world's demons can handle spiritual magic." Reimu smirked, before she then immediately summoned a set of ofuda between her fingers, before she then threw them forward, as they turned into a rain of blue-white light that assaulted the demons, causing them to shriek in agony from the purifying aspects of the attack.
"Well...it seems we've gained new allies." Fox said.
Gus immediately turned to Fox next, as he muttered "Yusuke..." under his breath.
"Mayumi, do you know them?" Hope asked, turning to David's friend.
"We met these guys during the Tokyo Digitization incident. Don't tell me you forgot already." Mayumi told Hope.
"Though, to be fair… We didn't exactly meet them on the best of terms." Zelos said.
'Well, for an first encounter... It wasn't THAT bad...' Richard thought with a unamused expression. 'I mean, we parted on fairly neutral terms at Under Zero, the last time we met as whole teams.'
Da Ji immediately turned around, wondering who was attacking her force, all the while she was evading David's attacks and attacking him back, as the two of them were currently at a stalemate. When she saw Meiling in particular, her snide expression suddenly creased up into fury.
"You…..!" Da Ji growled, before she was then smacked by David, causing her to be knocked down on the ground.
"You shouldn't have taken your eyes off your opponent." David said.
"Well, aren't you a little sneaky brat, attacking all the while I have found that person." Da Ji chuckled maliciously, as she got up and fought even harder, with a angered expression on her face. "Perhaps I'll have to teach you a lesson in respect!"
"Hey, hey. It wasn't my fault you were distracted." David said.
However, Da Ji merely sneered back, as the two of them continued their battle, all the while Richard managed to take care of most of the demon forces in the area, while the other heroes finished off Fuma's forces, allowing for a moment of rest for both groups, as Richard's group immediately approached the Coalition Forces.
"Hmm." Spade said.
"So, you're Richard." Hope said. "We finally get to meet."
Richard merely shook his head with a sigh, resisting the urge to face-palm at this kind of development.
"Hope, we already met this guy, remember?" Spade stated with a sweat-drop.
"Ignore him. He tends to ignore things that don't involve him personally." Jesse said.
"Oh, right. So these are the guys you met while we were gone." Zoro said.
"Yes, but it wasn't exactly a friendly encounter persay." Ace said.
"Like Zelos said, it wasn't on the best of terms." Ross said.
"So, you were the ones that were on the other side of resolving the Tokyo Digitization incident. I am Leopardmon. It is a pleasure to finally meet you all properly." Leopardmon said with a bow.
"Well, while you guys fixed up Yggdrasil... We had to take care of the very manifestation of Eden, in the form of a Eater." Gus explained back. "It's a pleasure to meet you at last, Leopardmon of the Royal Knights."
"And I'm Scarlet Fist." Scarlet added. "Like Leopardmon said, it's nice to meet you."
"He's our comic relief." Gajeel said before Scarlet hit him, knocking him aside.
"Like heck I am!" Scarlet fumed back, as he stomped back towards Gajeel."...Actually, your not entirely wrong, but I'm still insulted!"
"You wanna go, bastard!" Gajeel shouted.
"*sigh* Guys, now is not the time for infighting." Leopardmon said.
"I got this." Saki said before bonking their heads together.
Elma couldn't help but chuckle as to how comedic the entire situation was, as both Gajeel and Scarlet Fist slumped to the ground out cold, while Reimu merely sighed at how familiar this entire situation was, considering that she had to deal with this kind of thing often back in Gensokyo.
"Wait, where's David? Is that maniac still fighting that demon lady?" Jesse asked.
"Seems like it. However, thanks to it, most of the demon army and some of Fuma's forces have been taken out." Sinon said. "Just who is she anyway?"
Meiling glanced back, as she managed to use her enhanced sight to see clearly that David was soon able to overpower Da Ji and defeat her.
"Good. I will leave for today. But keep in mind this minuscule defeat won't stop me from reviving him." Da Ji said before vanishing, and giving Meiling a final glare.
"David, get back to camp. We've got some old friends back here." Mayumi said on the comm.
"On it." David said as he made his way back.
"You weren't planning to leave like that, were you?" a voice said as standing there was a man in full body blue armour wielding a strange weapon.
The Youthful Armoured Warrior
Xiahou Ba
"Xiahou Ba? This isn't good. I've been intercepted." David said.
"I had an ambush waiting for you all ahead but since you were using all that power against those demons, I decided to bring the ambush to you." he said.
Richard immediately looked back, before he noticed that David was clashing with Xiahou Ba.
"Huh, looks like someone decided to cut between us." Richard stated, before he turned to the group. "Give me a moment. I might even bring you a warm cup of fermented wine."
With that joke, as Gus merely sighed at him for making a joke regarding about one of Guan Yu's feat. Richard immediately teleported from one of his own gaps, appearing nearby to the battle.
"Well, David, seems like you got some enemies to deal with." Richard remarked with a calm expression. "Mind some help, taking care of the soldiers surrounding you, so that you can focus your full attention on Xiahou Ba?"
"Much appreciated. Thanks." David said.
"Well then, time to get to work-" Richard stated, as he raised both of the blades up.
"It isn't just him you gotta worry about." A mature female voice as a woman that was wielding a bladed whip, and had frilly brown hair that was tied by a yellow flower, and a red kimono dress, and a young girl, in a cyan royal Japanese dress, with a partial hime cut for her brown hair, wielding a strange racket joined in.
The Combative Flower of the East
Kai
The Jewel of Kanto
Lady Hayakawa
"You won't get to Fuma! We will defeat you!" Lady Hayakawa, the racket-wielding young successor, said with a determined tone.
"Well, what a surprise. If it isn't the twin female heirs of the Hojo clan." Richard remarked with an intrigued smile, as he faced them. "Sorry, but I'm itching for someone to fight, and since you come up onto the plate, I'll gladly take you two on."
"Sounds like you got a death wish." Kai growled, as she and Lady Hayakawa ran at him, as the latter prepared balls of ice in her racket-like weapon.
"Oh-ho-ho, you say that now." David quipped, just as he parried a blow from Xiahou Ba's lance with his blade.
Richard merely keeps the smile, as he immediately used one of his blades to catch the bladed whip, before rushing forward and smacking Kai with a pommel strike, before then striking at her several times, before backing away, and side-stepping the ice balls thrown towards him.
He immediately twirled his sword around, before a large magic circle appeared in front of his blade, firing off a large fire-ball that honed onto Lady Hayakawa, which she barely dodged, as the attack had singed her clothes slightly, as well as causing her to be a little bit intimidated by the sheer power and heat emanating from the attack.
"Now who's the one with a death wish?" Richard taunted back. "I'd suggest you watch who you underestimate, young woman."
"Ghhh…!" Kai grit her teeth in anger, before she then helped Lady Hayakawa up. "All of this is just confusing me! I don't even have a sense for what's right and wrong now! We'll meet again!"
They were about to flee as she saw Lady Hayakawa just standing there, while David knocked down Xiahou Ba with one of his Artes, while Kunoichi popped in by a plume of smoke.
"Same goes to you, Xiahou Ba." David said, standing over the defeated man. "Any sightings on Fuma, Kunoichi?"
"Negative. Looks like that freaky Fuma already fled, however, he was empty handed." Kunoichi said.
"Copy that. Heading back to camp now. Before anyone else jumps at us. " David said. "Thanks for the save, by the way."
"Well, since we're allies, it's only beneficial to provide assistance." Richard replied back with a casual tone, as he opened a sukima in front of everyone. "Hold my hand, and we'll get back. And hold on tightly, because I don't think you have experienced this before."
"Wait." Lady Hayakawa said. "Let me join you."
"Hm? Lady Hayakawa?" David asked.
"My father supported Nobunaga's actions in acquiring the bracelets. But...if collecting them will cause something bad to happen...then I can no longer fight for the Oda Army." Lady Hayakawa said.
"Seriously...!?" Kai exclaimed, before she then let out a strained groan, as she didn't know how to deal with what had happened. "Guess I better join too. Just to make sure she's safe."
"I see. Well, guess I better bring along this guy too." David said holding Xiahou Ba on his shoulder. Oof… This guy is heavy…"
"Well, if that's what you like, then we accept your offer." Richard responded back, as he grabbed both Kai's and Lady Hayakawa's hand. "Hold on to me firmly, please. As for you, David, just walk on through."
"Got it." David said as he carried Xiahou Ba through the gap, while Richard did the same, as they arrived back at the allied camp in almost an instant, much to the surprise of the transported, except Richard and David.
"What… What is this…!?" Kai remarked. "We went from there… to here… in just a moment."
"Don't concern yourself over it." Richard assured Kai. "It's something that can only be explained if you know the powers behind it."
Kai looked at Reimu briefly, as she just simply shook her head, as if she was dissuading the bear princess from investigating further.
Richard then turned to David. "Speaking of which, who were you looking for all this time?" Richard asked. "Because I definitely know that, considering that the lady with me, blurted it out."
"It's Kotaro Fuma." Lady Hayakawa clarified. "He's the clan ninja. We were protecting him, until we were captured by both of you."
"I see." Richard remarked, before he then turned to Reimu. "Reimu, prepare the Detection Formation, just within this area. I may have a hunch for where this ninja might be…"
"Got it." Reimu tersely answered back, before she then threw up another set of ofuda, which immediately spread out to the four corners of the area.
"While we wait for the results to come, how about we get familiar with each other, since we met for the first time?" Richard offered.
"Well you met with David and the others before us but...we're members of a group that travels with them. You might have heard of us. The Dimensional Heroes." Dan said.
"Dimensional Heroes, eh?" Richard answered back, with a hand on his chin, before he muttered something inaudible to the rest. "A strange name... I have heard many names for groups of heroes everywhere, but this one is quite the interesting one..."
"Richard...?" Dan asked, snapping Richard back into reality.
"Nope, haven't heard of you all. And if your other teams have names as well, I certainly don't recall ever hearing of them." Richard answered back with a short shake of his head.
"The Phantom Thieves." Fox said. "Though that name might not be as popular as Jack believes it is."
'Phantom Thieves...!?' Richard thought, as his eyes widened, and he tried to spot Joker among the crowd. 'But that's not right... The Phantom Thieves couldn't have possibly left for adventures with Akira...!'
Gus immediately turned to Fox, as his eyes widened. "Yu-" Gus was about to say, before Richard immediately slapped a hand around his mouth.
"I see. What a coincidence. I heard that name before." Richard stated with a restrained tone, as Gus's muffled voice sounded from his hand. "Speaking of which, you seem to look quite familiar, like an old acquaintance of ours."
"I apologize but I've never met either of you before." Fox said.
"Well, the feeling's mutual." Richard replied with a nod. "So don't worry about it. My friend was just surprised to see someone he hasn't seen for quite a while."
"Hey, guys." Al said approaching the group.
"The bracelet is secured. Naotora is keeping it under watch." Yaoyorozu said.
Hearing that phrase, Richard turned to them, with a raised eyebrow in intrigue.
'Bracelet...? So they do exist...' Richard thought to himself.
"Phew… That's good to hear." Jesse said.
"We found it as soon as we arrived and that's when those armoured demons showed up." Al said.
"I see." Meiling responded back. "It must be coincidence that we arrived shortly after the demons, because they seemed to be just starting their battle."
"More like Al couldn't help herself. She went right at it just as they arrived. That's when we ran for it." Ross said.
"Hey, come on, treasure's treasure, I should have a bit of my own fun before I leave for a bit after we find the last Youseiken." Al said.
"Clearly, we've got a lot to catch up on." David said to Richard. "Ugh… Where to begin?"
"And much has happened on my end as well." Richard stated. "I remember Gus telling you about the fact that your team met his in Endor, and you guys worked together to take down the shielding station there. It was quite impressive how well you all did that job."
Richard then noticed something, as Gus still had his mouth covered by his hand, as Richard immediately retracted the hand with a sheepish expression, while Gus took several deep breaths.
"Oh, sorry for that." Richard apologised to Gus.
"Geez, I felt like I almost started choking on my own air there…" Gus panted. "Could you not do that next time?"
"Well, you don't blurt people's names out loud for the world to hear." Richard argued. "But still, point made. Alright, David, fill us in."
"Well, after the whole incident, we stopped an ancient kingdom, battled beings of light and darkness, fought in the PLT and currently, we're looking for sacred swords called the Youseiken." David said.
"And your search has led you here as a result?" Richard inquired.
"PLT..." Gus stated, before he turned to Reimu. "Wasn't that the tournament with all those Pokemon and people fighting together, the one we watched with Sanae and Erika...?"
"Sounds like it." Reimu merely nodded back in response.
"More or less. We split ourselves into small parties, and as a result, we ended up separated." Leopardmon said.
"Yeah, we were not expecting to get caught in some sort of bizarre otherworldly war." Dan said.
"We're looking for the Byakko Daireisou. It's the last Youseiken we need to retrieve, and unfortunately were not the only ones looking for it." Hope said. "There's these other guys called the Lost Thieves who are also looking for it."
"Lost Thieves, huh?" Richard remarked with a thumb on his chin in thought. 'Byakko Daireisou... Youseiken... Why does this seem familiar somehow...?'
"Guys! An urgent report!" Colette said. "It's Liu Bei, he's under attack!"
"This isn't good. If he's down, the whole Coalition Army goes down with him." Leopardmon said. "We'll have to move right away, we'll explain the situation on the way."
Richard's expression darkened, hearing Liu Bei in danger, as he nodded vigorously.
"Richard...?" Gus asked, before Richard turned to him, with fire in his eyes, as he walked over to whisper in Gus's ear.
"Our Liu Bei or not... As his descendant... I don't care if you're coming with or not, I'm going after the groups, even if I have to go along against overwhelming odds." Richard harshly declared with a strict tone.
"Of course we are. We know clearly that you would have done that." Gus whispered back. "We would have done the same as you in your shoes. So don't worry."
"Good." Richard muttered back, before turning back to Leopardmon. "Alright, that's unanimous. We're coming with you."
He then turned to Reimu. "Reimu, have you got any signals around in the area, anyone who is trying to hide in particular?"
"No." Reimu stated, before she flipped her hand up, as the ofuda she scattered returned back into her hand, as she pocketed them. "No sign of the ninja at all. Either he took a path outside of the scanned area to escape, or he was never here in the first place."
Richard clicked his tongue in frustration, before turning to the other team leaders.
"Do you have anything urgent regarding Kotaro Fuma at the moment?" Richard asked. "If you truly need to capture him, I'll gladly take the task out of your hands. Otherwise, I'll come with you."
"No. Now that we secured the bracelet, I think we're in the clear." David said.
"Besides, when we deal with the Hojo, it'll be likely we'll see Kotaro Fuma again." Yaoyorozu said.
"C'mon, lets go rescue Liu Bei." Hope said.
Richard nodded, as the groups immediately made their way to the next battlefield, as Gus caught up with Richard.
"Richard... About those bracelets..." Gus told him, before Richard turned back to him.
"I know." Richard stated, before he then placed a hand onto one of the hidden bracelets within his sukima dimension. "Turns out that we're not the only ones that have access to these things..."