Corruption, Murder and Redemption?

by Man of cartoons

Corruption is said to be a monster that eats the soul of a man. So what if a hero with a pure heart decides to come to a world where the monster has almost taken over? Will he survive? Will he break? And will he get this dumb blond to stop calling him a cattle? Please read to find out. BenXAriaXSheele (Love Triangle). It used to include Leone.

21. Night Raiding, A Battle and SACRIFICE!

Hey everyone! I apologize that this took longer than it should've, I've been occupied.

Big thanks goes to everyone that showed their support for this fanfiction and the proposed fanfiction involving Generator Rex and Attack on Titan. It was really great to see that a lot of you were on board with the idea, and still are.

Now about this fanfiction, there's one thing I've considered. I've decided to take the tip of a reviewer a while ago and not indicate a song to listen in the chapter. Instead I will have it indicated in an author's note like this. Sorry that those things were a distraction.

By the way, this chapter includes the rest of chapter 8 of the manga and most of chapter 9 of the manga (I say most for reasons you'll find out soon).

Now with that out of the way, here's another awesome chapter of Corruption, Murder and…Redemption?

Chapter 21: Night Raiding, Teigu battle and…SACRIFICE?

The time was night when it was right to strike. Originally, Leone was meant to go with Tatsumi on a special night mission to deal with some scums, but for some reason the female assassin had changed her mind and instead chose Ben, who she was now with. Now the two of them stood on the top of a rooftop, looking over a particular district's street.

"So this is the red-light district huh…?" Ben asked with mild interest. "It looks good, but I've been here once, I recall." Then he turned to Leone. "By the way, what's the big idea bringing me here? I thought you were done screwing with me today."

Leone smirked. "So cute." She remarked. She was standing next with the teen with her hands on her hips. "Keep being straightforward like that and I'll be yours, kid."

"Wait. What?" Ben was taken aback. He could already feel his cheeks heating up.

Leone laughed in response. She inwardly liked the embarrassing look on his face and wanted to tease him more. However, the current mission came to mind that pushed that attitude aside.

"Now then. Time to get to work." The blonde assassin said. "I've got debts to pay!"

"Yeah…I kind of figured that part." Ben replied.

And with that, Leone went into action. She called out her Teigu's name, which immediately caused the transformation begin. Hence, right before Ben's eyes, he watched as the woman's clothes almost seem to dissolve as certain parts of her body grew claws, a tail, longer blonde hair and beast ears. But if that wasn't enough, the sight of it made the teen hero to turn away out of mild embarrassment, even when the transformation was completed.

"Alright, I'm pumped!" exclaimed Leone with a smirk. "Changing into this form always get me excited!"

"Sure…Right." Ben replied.

A part of the teen hero thought he should look now, however he couldn't bring himself to it. Leone always seemed to be the member of Night Raid that usually caught him off guard. As such, the hero concentrated on the Omnitrix by selecting through the alien playlist.

But then Leone had other ideas. She immediately and wittingly grabbed Ben's wrist before he could find the right alien. Then, before the hero knew it, the woman placed him in a bridal style in his arms, much to his shock and embarrassment.

"Wai-Wait! What are you –" Ben tried to say.

"Shh! We're sneaking in!" Leone interjected.

In response, the teen hero wanted to object. He was in a position where he would mentally die if anyone he knew from his world (especially Kevin) found out. But Leone didn't seem to care because she suddenly ran off in incredible speed without any warning and jumping from rooftop to another. Then, when they got to their target building, she ran past behind a bald bodyguard and got into a room safely.

"Phew! Made it!" Leone exclaimed with relief.

Ben was feeling a bit shaken. He was now on the ground on his arms and knees, trying to recover from what just happened.

"Never…do that again." He managed to say.

Leone laughed a bit. "Sure thing, kid."

Just then, the topic was changed. Leone moved a few feet away before gesturing to the teen hero to come to her position. Now Ben could ignore her, but seeing that he was in an unexpected situation, he decided to comply. Hence, he and Leone stood in the same spot where she then removed a wooden board of the floor, revealing an awful sight below.

A big number of girls lay on the ground, inhaling some unknown substance either naked or partially naked. This was also followed by the fact that each girl had an addictive expression on their faces as the substance clearly had its effect on their minds and possibly their bodies.

"Guh!" Ben uttered in disgust. He had to cover his mouth and nose with his hand to shield him from the foul smell. "What the hell is this place?" He questioned.

For the past month the teen had been in the Capital, he had just about seen anything. He had learned to deal with the worse of the people who run it, as well as its surprises. However, as he was puzzled at the sight below him, he couldn't help but feel further disgust by it. Some of the girls below were those older and around his age. But before he could take any action, the door to the place was opened before two men walked inside.

Ben didn't recognize any of them. He had dealt with criminals in the Capital at this point, so he figured he should know them. But by the looks they had, he clearly didn't. He saw that one of the men was dressed gangster-like and wearing an eye-patch, while the other was shorter dressed in an unbuttoned business suit.

"Hey there, girls!" called out the eye-patch guy. He didn't seem the least disgusted as he stood there with a satisfied grin. "If you keep earning money well, I'll make sure to send around some more 'medicine' alright, girls?"

"Okaaayyy." The girls replied 'sweetly'.

Just then, the guy in the business suit noticed something. It was a single girl on the ground, clearly weak but deeply drowned in the substance given to her. However, rather than show concern, the guy seemed somewhat disappointed.

"Boss…take a look at this one." He said.

The boss (the eye-patch guy) looked and was disappointed too. "Aaaah, damn it. This one's done." He said. "She smells like fish. She's broke."

The girl suddenly rose from the ground and held the business suit guy by the ankle.

"HAHHHHH…." She 'sweetly' said. She also had an addictive smile was on her face as she continued. "I need some of your drugs."

"Deal with her. We'll get a new one to take her place." said the boss.

And so, the business suit guy did as ordered. He immediately punched the drug addicted girl with one hit, killing her instantly. Not surprising, this had an emotional effect on both Leone and Ben. They both felt themselves snap at the scene, as all they did was watch what had happened.

The two men didn't seem fazed by their action, though. The one who killed the girl wiped his hand with a cloth and said. "We'll have to call up another stupid bitch from the slums, right?"

"Yeah." answered the boss. "Those good-for-nothing will do anything as long as they get paid after all."

Ben immediately pressed his fingers on the Omnitrix's faceplate. He didn't care about which alien he got; as long as he got the one to kick the men's asses was fine. However, as he raised his hand up to slam on the now exposed Omnitrix core, Leone suddenly grabbed his wrist, which got a response from him when he turned to her.

"Let me go, Leone!" Ben angrily protested. The glare in his eyes was filled with hatred as he continued. "I'll make those bastards pay!"

"You think I don't want that?" Leone questioned. Deeply, she was enraged and wanted to do the same thing as Ben, however a sense of reasoning was in her. Hence, she continued. "The one that man hit was someone I knew from the slums. But you're gonna have to wait till they're alone from those girls, understand?"

Ben said nothing back to her. However, the teen knew that the female assassin was right. So rather than let his anger get to him, he rudely pulled his arm from the young woman's grip and stood up straight.

Leone was not surprised by the teen's reaction. She understood perfectly on how he felt. So, in that moment, she stood up as well and punched her fist into her open hand.

"They make me sick!" Leone exclaimed angrily. "Let's put an end to their business permanently!"

"Right." Ben nodded seriously. "I promise, as long as I live, I'll never let scums like them get away with this."

_(LINE BREAK)_

Back at the two guys, they eventually moved to a different room. The room was spacious, as it had a table which they sat close to with their bodyguards and one drug addicted girl.

"Boss…" called the business suit man. "it's about time we expand our drug delivery route, don't you think?"

"True huh…" The boss replied. "I wonder if we should go over to Chibul-sama's place to discuss it."

Suddenly, a loud boom was hard. It didn't come from the men, but from the ceiling some feet away from then. The next thing they knew, two people dropped from a huge hole now in the ceiling and stood before them.

"LEMME TELL YOU SOMETHING, YOU DRUG LOVING PRICKS THAT TREAT WOMEN LIKE GARBAGE! THE ONLY THING THAT'LL BE GOING ANYWHERE IS MY FISTS ALL OVER YOUR ASSES!"

The men were totally taken aback. The two people that stood before them had a feline theme to them. But it was clear which gender they were. Leone stood in her beast form while Ben stood as the nine foot tall tiger-like alien, Rath.

"Intruders! Kill them!" shouted the business suit guy.

In response the men did as told. They had their weapons out, which were swords, and charged in their numbers. But then, unfortunately for them, they didn't get closer. The reason was because of Rath, who leapt forward at them with his arms up.

"COSMIC DROP!" Rath cried out.

And with that, the alien hero beat them with one swift move. He did this by crashing his fists into the ground, which created a shockwave that sent the men flying to different directions.

Meanwhile, Leone had her own fair share of bad guys to beat. Right now, some of the other men had her surrounded with the positivity of their numbers in their minds. However, Leone didn't seem fazed by them. She did, however, have a smirk on her face as she had her arms crossed over her chest.

"My targets are the drug smuggling ring leaders. But you also share their sins." The assassin told the men. Then she pulled her fists back and tightened them. "….so you can all die together."

The men were instantly in big trouble. They had no time to react, as Leone unleashed blinding speed punches at them. There were some that tried to evade, but they were instantly killed by her fists. But if that wasn't enough, Leone grinned and swept a kicked at a couple of men, sending them straight into the wall, dead and broken.

Now the only targets left were the main ones. The two bosses, who were the main boss and the business suit guy, had just witnessed what happened before them. They had seemed so positive of themselves, until now that death seemed inevitable to them.

So in that moment, the business suit guy reacted. He pulled out his gun while panicking and pointed it at Rath, who was charging at him on all four legs.

"S-Stay back!" The man cried out. "Don't fuck with me! If you think I'm going down that that easily, you've got another…AAAHHH!"

Fear led to weakness; the man immediately let go of his gun. It would appear that Rath's approaching form was too much for him. Hence, in the second he released his gun, Rath leapt at it and bite in within his teeth and then stood on his two feet. But if any of that wasn't enough, his terrifying appearance and snarling face terrified the bosses.

"Now then…" Rath said. He then picked up the business-like guy by the shirt and raised him to his face level. "Lemme tell you something! There's a lot of things Rath hates! One of them is when someone messes with Mr. Smoothy and the other thing is when pricks like you treat girls like they're property! So prepare to eat dirt!"

"Wa-Wait!" The man begged.

However, there was no stopping Rath now. The teen alien immediately tossed the guy with one strong throw that proved damaging. It didn't kill the guy though, but it did cause his body to roll dangerously against the ground, breaking as much of his bones as possible. Hence, by the time the man came to a stop, he was covered in blood and unconscious.

Now that just left the boss of the group. He stood there momentarily in shock, fear and confusion until he felt a strong grip on his neck. Unfortunately for him, it wasn't by Rath, but by one of the ruthless killer of Night Raid, Leone.

"What do you want…?" The boss asked. He could feel his wind pipe tightening with each second, thus making it harder to speak clearly. But he continued to beg anyway. "Do you want money…drugs? I'll give you whatever you want if you'll let me go."

"I don't want either of those things." Leone told him. "What I want from you…is your life."

"Wh…" The man gasped. Leone had tightened her grip further. But again, he managed to speak. "Who the hell are you guys….?"

Leone grinned instantly. The moment had come for her to unleash the beat down she had been holding back. Hence, she drew her fist back to strike the final blow.

"One of us is a hero…as for me, I'm a nobody!" She stated.

The female assassin then unleashed her punched. She had gathered that much strength, and as such released a blow unlike any she had done to the guy's men. As a result, the man was killed instantly with his body slamming to the wall and breaking it instantly.

"Therefore…" Leone continued. "disposing of society's trash suits us just fine."

_(LINE BREAK)_

The bosses may have been dealt with, but there was still the matter of the girls involved with the addictive drug. So within the room there were kept in, the door to the place was opened. Of course, this got the girls attention as they all looked addictively to the one who opened it with expectation.

"Are you here to give us more of the drugs?" asked one girl.

Ben said nothing in response. However, the look on his face was far from that of unresponsiveness. It was shown then that he had sympathy for the girls as he stood there. Hence, as Leone stood by his side, he went to his Omnitrix and began going through the alien playlist.

"I'm not here to give you any of that." Ben stated. Then he found the right alien and raised his hand up to slam on the Omnitrix core. "I'm here to save you all." He said.

_(LINE BREAK)_

Both Ben and Leone were walking by a lonely street by themselves. They had done what they had to do, especially as the teen hero who was at ease now. The girls that had been affected by the addictive drug were on a better path to recovery, and it was all thanks to Ben Tennyson.

"That was pretty amazing, you know." Leone remarked with a thoughtful look. She was back as her human self and walking with both arms behind her head, "To think you could actually fix those girls like that was well…"

"Unexpected?" Ben smirked. "I know. I'm pretty awesome. You can go on and praise me more if you want."

Leone turned to the teen and giggled. "I guess so. But I got to say. I prefer that fairy alien than that big green tank of chemicals you used the first time. You looked so cute."

"Please don't bring Pesky Dust into this." Ben said. He was embarrassed by the image of the alien. "It was already bad enough you had to kill the guys I knocked out…Anyway, I wanted to use Whampire to hypnotize the girls to forget their experience there, but clearly the Omnitrix thought otherwise. But I guess it worked out for the best in the end. With Gutrot's gases and Pusky Dust's…dusts, those girls should be reformed back to society within a week or two with the aid of that friend from the slums you just mentioned."

"Pretty much." Leone smiled. She then looked away. 'Well today concluded my suspicion about Ben's Omnitrix. The kid really doesn't get the alien he wants all the time. I should report this to Boss. She'll want to hear about this.'

"By the way, Leone…" Ben called the assassin.

Leone turned to the teen hero in response. She was curious on what he had to say since he wanted to talk to her. But then, for something she thought would be nothing special, she was astonished when she saw a unique smile on the teen hero face.

"Despite all that has happened today, you're a great person." He said. "Thank you for all you've done. I appreciate your company."

Leone suddenly made her move. She cupped the teen by the cheeks before he knew it and bit him lightly on the ear with her teeth. This, of course, surprised Ben as he then backed away and held his ear.

"Wh-What's with you and biting?!" Ben shouted. "You bite me as Rath when we first fought and now this?"

Leone giggled and smiled at you. "I guess I already marked you before. My bad."

"What?" Ben was confused.

Leone suddenly patted him on the back. "Relax, kid. If you grow up to be a good man, you're mine, got it?"

"Uh…Uh…" Ben uttered.

For the moment, the teen hero felt taken aback. He could feel his heart beating as he stared at the assassin with a flustered expression on his face. So immediately his mind went into panic as he then ran away with an excuse.

"See ya! I got to meet Aria and Satou somewhere!"

Leone giggled in response. She had expected a reaction like that from the boy before it even happened. Hence, she felt no bother about it as she then looked up to the moon in wonder.

"I wonder how the others are doing." She said.

_(LINE BREAK)_

Somewhere in a possible park in the Capital, three human beings were running. They weren't trouble, though it depended on who met them, as they were making their way back from a mission. They were Sheele, Mine and Ieyasu, having finished their own part of the mission.

"That Chibul guy was too wary of attacks." Mine stated.

"Yeah, but in the end, it didn't cause too many problems." Sheele replied

"Yup!" exclaimed Ieyasu excitedly. "Haha! I can't wait to get on another mission!"

Unknown to them, however, they were being watched. Within the darkness of the tree branches, there were two figures. These figures had locked sight of the three Night Raid members, before then making their move.

Fortunately, the blood thirst by these figures altered Night Raid. Hence, on instinct, Sheele, Mine and Ieyasu jumped to their own respective sideways, just in time to avoid the figures when they landed and caused the ground to shake.

"An enemy!?" Mine questioned. She skidded back and came to a stop.

Things clearly weren't right, especially with the arrival of a suspicious person. Sure, there was the little thing next to that person; however that didn't excuse the fact that this person was different than most people. In fact, this was even thought of by Mine as she, Sheele and Ieyasu stood and watched the figure stand fully, revealing herself to be an Imperial officer.

'Who is this…?' Mine questioned. 'I didn't notice her at all…She seems different from the other Imperial guards.'

"I knew it…" The stranger said. She had a wanted poster of Sheele in her hand, before then facing Sheele herself. "It's the same face as the one on the wanted poster…You are definitely Sheele of Night Raid!"

However, the Imperial officer didn't stop there. She turned to Mine and then at Ieyasu, while making her own conclusion.

"And judging from the Teigu your friend has in her hand, she's also a member of Night Raid; The same for the boy with the strange eyepiece on his forehead. Hiding myself and waiting night after night was definitely worth it…"

Ieyasu felt a lot of blood thirst from the Imperial guard. It was unlike any he had sensed before, even to the point of surpassing what Aria possessed in her psychotic days. Thus, when the Imperial officer madly grinned, he gulped down some spit and mentally prepared himself.

"Finally…" The Imperial officer said. "I've finally tracked you down, Night Raiders!"

With that, the woman didn't hold back her joy. She held her arm up with her finger pointed to the sky and shouted. "Imperial guard forces, Seryu Ubiquitos!" Then she pointed at the trio. "In the name of justice, I will absolutely make you evildoers pay here and now!"

_(LINE BREAK)_

Tension seemed to be in the air as the four Teigu users had a face off. Seryu's appearance had definitely been a shock to the trio of Night Raid. However, now that they had assessed their situation and readied their Teigu, they seemed ready for the inevitable fight.

"So you know who we are." Mine stated with a smirk. "Why are you here? I don't think you came here just to die."

Seryu was silent. The night was somewhat cold as small breeze brushed past the hairs of those in its way. But then, just as that happened, the Imperial officer raised her finger up and pointed it at Mine with a deadly scowl that could possibly kill.

"No matter what happens…" Seryu said angrily. "I will deliver justice. For my father who fell in the line of duty to villains like you! And for my beloved teacher who was murdered by you and your friends! You will never be forgiven!"

Silence immediately followed with that. It was very much clear that the Imperial Officer was dead-set on having her revenge. But that didn't mean it fazed any of the Night Raid members. In fact, Mine was calm minded as she held her Teigu tightly.

"She's really intent on doing this, huh?" Mine said. From there, she began firing at the Imperial officer. "The first to strike has the advantage!"

Now at this point, one would expect the Imperial officer to be done for. After all, she was in the path of the bullets and not moving. But then, just as it seemed the young woman would be killed, Kuro got before her and took notice of the bullets just as they came and hit. Soon enough a dust cloud was made when the shots made contact.

"Did I get her?" Mine questioned.

Ieyasu looked closely. The dust cloud was still there when Mine had asked. Thus, with the aid of his Teigu, he got a clearer look of the scene, especially when everything cleared up. It shocked and upset him mildly.

"No…you didn't." He said.

The teen assassin was right. The dust cloud that had been formed due to Mine's shots had cleared up just to reveal Kuro as a twelve foot tall monster of himself. He was now snarling angrily with his wild teeth showing.

"Mine, Ieyasu, that thing's a Teigu." Sheele claimed.

"Right." Mine agreed. "But that's a biological type, right?"

Ieyasu mentally noted. He had read about the type of Teigu and was knowledgeable about its weakness. But then, when he turned his attention to the Imperial officer, his Teigu noticed her movement which made him react to his comrades.

"Out of the way! She has guns!" Ieyasu shouted.

True to his words, the Imperial guard did have guns. She chose that moment to pull them out before facing them at the Night Raid members and firing them. Thankfully, all three of them leapt out of the way.

However, their evasion of the attack didn't change much. Seryu stopped her firing, but only out of observation.

'I don't think attacking from the distance would be very effective.' She thought.

And so Seryu changed tactic. She turned to her twelve foot tall Teigu and directed her arm at him. "Kuro! Prey!" She shouted.

Kuro immediately obeyed. Thus, instead of standing still, he jumped straight for Ieyasu with his mouth open, revealing a tunnel of sharp teeth. However, the incoming attack didn't seem to scare the assassin. Instead, it just made him smirk a bit even though Kuro became dangerously close.

"Ieyasu! Out of the way!" Mine shouted.

But it was too late. Kuro was already close when Ieyasu ran straight for the beastly Teigu. Surprisingly, his axe cut straight from its mouth and across its stomach, knocking it to the ground instantly.

"Ah dammit." Ieyasu said and laughed a bit. "I missed its damn core."

Seryu was shocked, though the same wasn't for Sheele and Mine. The latter two were actually relieved that the teen made it through such an attack. So, in that moment, Ieyasu proudly turned to Seryu's direction with his axe slung over his shoulder.

"Surprised, eh?" He asked proudly. "Good. You should be. You thought because I carried an ordinary axe that I was the weakest. But just so you know, my axe is equipped with my friend's Cross Tail's thread. Plus, I have this eyepiece on my forehead that gives me a foresight advantage. So it is you that has the disadvantage."

Seryu snarled in response. Inwardly, she hated to admit it, but she had made the poor judgment of having Kuro attack Ieyasu. But that wasn't the same for Sheele and Mine, both of whom felt a boost of confidence. This was especially so when Kuro rose from the ground and tried to strike his hand on him, only for the teen to jump out of the way on time.

"Nice work, newbie! But don't be cocky!" Mine remarked. A proud smirk was on her face. "Right now we need to put that Teigu down. A biological Teigu always regenerates unless it's core is destroyed. So where is it?"

"Right." Ieyasu affirmed. "The Teigu's core is…"

The teen was then interrupted. It wasn't of his own doing, but by the doing of Seryu who shot a few bullets at him. Fortunately, the teen was able to jump out of the way while the Imperial officer herself glared at him in a somewhat nonchalant way.

"I guess I underestimated." Seryu said. "But don't think you've won because you have Zank the Beheader's Teigu." Then she turned to Kuro. "Kuro! Arms!"

Kuro immediately obeyed her again. This time, of course, his feeble arms grew into big muscular ones that just added more menace to his appearance.

"Gross." Mine commented with disgust. "It looks like we don't have any choice but to do that, Sheele. This woman clearly isn't going to let Ieyasu spill about the core."

"I understand." Sheele replied.

Just then, Kuro came charging at Sheele and Mine. Ieyasu, to him, was clearly a bigger threat, so it went for the weaker ones in its eyes. Thus, their predicament became shocking when it began to throw several punches at remarkable speed.

"What the hell?! There's no way to dodge!" Mine shouted in shock.

Ieyasu was shocked too and fearful for Mine. Hence, he ran to her aid, wanting to help. But before he could get there, Sheele already stood before the pink haired girl in a protective manner.

"Mine, get behind me!" Sheele instructed.

And then the young woman endured. She stood in place with her giant scissors held up as a shield to take in all the punches. But the endurance wasn't easy for her. The Teigu was clearly strong, as each punch it threw was being a great strain on her. Fortunately, Ieyasu came yelling and getting the Teigu's attention in the process.

"Bastard, eyes on me!" Ieyasu cried out.

Kuro immediately stopped his attacks. He could see the teen heading straight for him with his axe. Hence, to protect and kill, Kuro swung its fists at Ieyasu at the same fast rate as it did to Sheele. But then, to his surprise, it soon found out what made Ieyasu an exception.

The teen's Teigu guaranteed him a better field than the other Teigu users. He may be using an axe, but with the fact that Lubbock had added some of his trends on it gave him an added advantage. So when Kuro's fists came, Ieyasu remarkable dodged them all and jumped straight between the Teigu's legs when he got the chance. Then, upon sliding on the ground's surface, he got on one knee and turned and swung his axe across Kuro's back leg, thus doing some damage.

However, Ieyasu wasn't done yet. Kuro was distracted as it cried out furiously in pain. Therefore, to deal a bigger blow, the teen leapt upwards and held his axe above his head, where he then let gravity pull him back down but with his axe cutting the back of Kuro from his head and all the way down.

Seryu was alarmed by this. She had been prepared to fight Night Raid, but she hadn't expected Kuro to be overwhelmed by just one member. So immediately she reacted. She pulled out a whistle and blew into it, calling for reinforcement.

Not surprising, this put the trio into a tough situation. Sure, Kuro had received damage, but the Teigu was quickly healing. Fortunately, Mine took advantage of this as she readied her Teigu again.

"A storm of attacks and she just called for reinforcement!" Mine noted efficiently. "This is what I would call being in a pinch!"

With that, the pink haired girl went into action. She jumped into the air and pointed her Teigu at Kuro, who was now standing before Ieyasu with a snarling face. So before she fired, Ieyasu noticed the girl and immediately jumped back to get out of range.

"Let it rip, Mine!" Ieyasu cried out.

"Right!" Mine agreed.

The female assassin then unleashed her power. She shot a direct blast for Kuro's back, hence catching him off guard. The power also surprised Seryu, as her eyes widened in shock.

"It's power increased?!" Seryu questioned. "But…"

Mine landed on the ground with malice. Her shot had been perfect; however Kuro was standing and regenerating rapidly.

"Shit!" Mine cursed angrily. "It's already started regenerating. What unbelievable life force…"

Seryu was madly proud. She could see her chance of winning the fight improving. So it was then she laughed and wickedly glared at Mine. "Don't underestimate Kuro's durability!" She shouted.

Unknown to her, however, Mine's blast had created the perfect cover. This was obvious when the smoke created by the blast allowed Sheele and Ieyasu to move closer to Seryu. As a result, both Teigu users were now close to Seryu when they emerged.

"The Teigu are just tools." Sheele stated seriously. Her eyes had nothing more than the instinct to kill as she drew closer. "All you need to do is kill its user to make it stop!" She added.

"Right! I got your back, Sheele!" Ieyasu affirmed.

Seryu was surprised. Her situation clearly called for quick action, which she did by bringing out her guns. However, Sheele had a trick of her own as she opened her scissors.

"I'll give you cover, Ieyasu! Take her down!" Sheele ordered.

"Yes!" Ieyasu nodded.

With that, Sheele did what she intended. She activated her Teigu's trump card, which was a big flash of light that blinded those in its sight.

"Ecstasy!" Sheele cried out.

In response, Seryu was taken aback. She had to shield her eyes with her right arm to avoid getting blinded, and move back. But that didn't change the fact that she was shocked by the outcome.

"The metal is generating light now?!" Seryu questioned.

At this point, there was little telling on what Night Raid's next action would be. The battle was basically three versus two, which put the Imperial officer at a serious disadvantage. As such, Seryu was taken aback when Ieyasu seemingly appeared before her, ready to slash her with his axe.

"It's over, bitch!" He cried out furiously.

Seryu was instantly angered by this. It was obvious that she was in a difficult situation, but it did not deter her. That is why, the moment she caught sight of Ieyasu, she began moving back and firing at the teen, who in turn used his axe to block the attacks and dodge the others.

'So the user herself is strong as well.' Sheele noted. She stood by with a concentrated look on her face while assessing the fight. 'If I charge right in our victory will be ensured. But even without me, Ieyasu should have the advantage with his Teigu. Plus, Mine will be able to keep the woman's Teigu at bay until the kill is done. This is truly over.'

Kuro begged to differ, however. He was still confronting Mine when he noticed Seryu in trouble. So, by instinct, the Teigu turned and began running to his mistress's aid. But then Mine shot it by its leg, causing it to stop and turn to her with anger.

"Did you forget about me?" Mine rhetorically asked. "I won't let you go."

Kuro growled in response and faced her entirely. Mine was fine with it, but not to the level to calm down. This was because, like Sheele, she could see the outcome of the fight between Seryu and Ieyasu.

'This Teigu may be strong for me to take down even in a pinch, but keeping it occupied should be enough till Ieyasu kills its owner.' Mine thought observantly. 'But if he can't on time, I'll have to find its core by process of elimination.'

Back at Ieyasu and Seryu, their fight was reaching its climax. Seryu was still moving back and shooting at the charging teenager, who in turn was now able to maneuver her shots with ease. He was getting close and increasingly stressing Seryu with each passing second. So it came as no surprise then to Ieyasu that she tripped backwards and unintentionally let go of her guns.

'Oh no!' Seryu gasped.

'Now's my chance!' Seryu thought confidently. 'A lot is riding on this! I won't fail Sheele and Mine!'

So, with that resolve, Ieyasu became serious. He closed the gap between him and Seryu and sliced off her arms instantly. Then, as the girl fell to the ground, he raised his axe up, ready to bring it down on her and end the fight instantly.

Unfortunately, Seryu had one trick up her sleeve. By that, two guns emerged from where her arms used to be before she then madly and psychotically grinned.

"FOOL! YOU'VE LEFT YOURSELF OPEN! JUSTICE WILL ALWAYS WIN!" Seryu exclaimed before she fired a shot from both weapons.

A clang sound was heard which wasn't the sound of a bullet hitting flesh but rather a bullet hitting metal as her bullets had connected with Ieyasu's axe which he had brought down to shield his face just in time thanks to his teigu warning him about her hidden weapons right after he sliced her hands off. Seryu was so shocked by this that she failed to react when Ieyasu suddenly kicked his leg against the girl's twin guns and then with his axe he sliced both guns instantly in an upward slash.

"No…! That's impossible!" Seryu yelled. "This trump card was from my captain!"

However, Ieyasu bothered less with it. In his eyes were the eyes of a hunter against its prey. Thus, he marched his foot against her chest and forced her entirely on the ground with that move. Then, with his axe, he raised it up and was ready to kill her.

"I'm not done yet!" Seryu angrily yelled. "This life was saved by someone special! I won't be taken down easily by evil!"

Just then, the young woman turned to Kuro. "Kuro!" She called out. "Activate your trump card! Beserker!"

Kuro complied with this command. However, unlike other commands, this one shook the tide of the battle. The Teigu that had been held at bay by Mine suddenly grew more fierce, bigger, stronger and wilder. It looked nothing like its former self.

Unfortunately, that was only the beginning. The Teigu suddenly let out a roar that was so powerful that it shook the ground and caused an ear piercing pain to those close by. Not surprising, Mine, Sheele and Ieyasu were affected by this as each of them dropped their guards and blocked their ears with their hands.

"So she had a Trump Card." Mine thought with strain.

Suddenly, the pink haired assassin was caught off guard. She was grabbed by the giant arm of the Teigu in one swift move that immediately alarmed Sheele and Ieyasu. As for Seryu, she was psychotically pleased despite her position.

"CRUSH HER!" She ordered.

And so the Teigu did as told. The grip on Mine became painful for the little girl. In fact, it was so bad that Mine arm was instantly broken, which caused her to scream. Kuro didn't care though; he just kept pressing on her until Sheele leapt and cut the arm off while Ieyasu caught Mine before she could hit the ground.

"Sheele! Ieyasu!" Mine cried out.

Both people smiled in response.

"We seem to have made it just in time." Sheele sweetly stated.

"Yeah." Ieyasu agreed. "We really –"

Just then, two gunshots were heard. They happened so fast that even Ieyasu couldn't have foreseen it due to his composure then. Thus, right before Mine's eyes, Ieyasu's Teigu broke into pieces while Sheele's back was wounded deeply.

"I…can't move my body." Sheele muttered in shock.

Mine was completely horrified. The same would've been for Ieyasu, if not that the teen was taken aback and in deep shock of his own. As for the one responsible, it was revealed that Seryu was the one, as a small pistol-like opening was in her mouth.

However, the scene didn't stop there. For an obvious reason, Sheele couldn't feel her body. She felt numb in that very instinct and could do nothing about it at that moment. So it was then that Kuro leapt straight at her, intending to take her with its widened mouth.

"S-Sheele! Out of the wayyyyy!" Ieyasu cried out.

Sheele couldn't respond properly, though. The body of the woman was still unable to move. Thus, in order to protect her, Ieyasu quickly put Mine dodge and jumped to Sheele's aid. Then, by pushing her, both him and the young woman hit the ground and Kuro missed.

But the fight was still not over. Kuro landed on the ground on all four legs and then snarled at the Night Raid trio with a thirst for blood. Thus, it was now clear to Ieyasu that they weren't going to win this fight.

"Mine…" Ieyasu softly called. He used that moment to get off Sheele, who was breathing fast. Then he fully turned to the pink haired girl. "Can you still stand up?" He asked.

"Y-Yeah, I can." Mine replied. She then followed this by getting back on her feet. "Tch!" She said. "We're really in a bad pinch."

"I know that." Ieyasu said back. "That is why…when I give the signal; you take Sheele and get the hell out of here."

"What?!" Mine was shocked.

However, Ieyasu didn't speak back about it. Kuro was once again heading towards them, when suddenly he threw his axe straight for Seryu, who was distance away. This surprised the Imperial officer, of course, as she was still sitting on the ground when it happened. Fortunately, Kuro was able to sense his mistress's situation and chase after the axe.

"NOW GOOOOOO!" Ieyasu cried out.

"Are you stupid?!" Mine yelled. "Come with us!"

"No, I can't!" Ieyasu yelled back. This time he was glaring furious at the pink haired assassin. "This is your chance! I'll stay back and keep them busy for you and Sheele to get the fuck out of here!"

Mine was shocked and heartbroken. Here she was, standing at her weakest moment while her junior (in assassin skills anyway) was willing to risk his life for them. It made her realize something about the young man instantly, even to the point of starting to cry.

"We're not leaving you!" Mine cried out. "What about Tatsumi?! Don't you want to see him again?! Don't be stupid, Ieyasu! You're coming with us!"

Ieyasu became silent. He knew perfectly well that the situation he had given himself would guarantee total death. But despite it, he tightened his fist as a sign of his emotional strength and softly began to cry.

"D…DON'T YOU THINK I DON'T WANT TO LEAVE?!" Ieyasu yelled angrily. His attitude shocked even Mine, even as he continued. "TRUST ME! I'M SCARED! I'M VERY SCARED RIGHT NOW! I FACED DEATH'S DOOR ONCE AND I DON'T WANT TO FACE IT AGAIN! BUT…BUT YOU AND SHEELE MATTER A LOT TO TATSUMI!"

Mine was taken aback by the teen's attitude. She hadn't known the teen so well before. In fact, prior to this night, she had always been bossy and mean to him. But then, as the seconds passed, the teen seemed to mellow down his tone and retain a lot of sadness in his voice.

"Now…don't get me wrong…" He said. "Tatsumi and I have been best friends for as long as I can remember. I want to be there for him always…I want to fight alongside him countless more times…But…But if it's to protect Tatsumi's new friends…, the ones who gave him a purpose to keep fighting, then I would gladly lay down for life to protect them."

"Ieyasu…" Mine muttered.

The look of sadness was written all over the female assassin's face. It understood Ieyasu now, probably more than she ever did. But sadly there was nothing she could do to change the teen's mind, especially as he continued.

"So please…please just go." The teen said. Then he cried tears. "Oh and…tell Tatsumi…being with him with this past month has been…the best times of my life."

Mine squeezed her eyes shut and cried. She wanted nothing more than to bottle this emotions away. However, she couldn't, and as such she nodded to the teen. "I will! I will…! But dammit! Tatsumi will be depressed you know!"

Ieyasu cocked a small grin. "So…you really do care about us…huh?"

Mine said nothing back. She could've, but she couldn't find the words to say it. She knew enough had been said for things to not get any more complicated. Thus, with some effort, she tried to get Sheele's arm around her. But after a short effort, Ieyasu went to her and helped put the bleeding woman's arm over Mine's neck.

"I…I guess this is goodbye." Mine said softly.

"Yeah…" Ieyasu tearfully smiled. "Please…take care of Tatsumi for me."

"I will…I promise." Mine replied assuredly.

"NONE OF YOU ARE LEAVING HERE!" The Imperial officer shouted. She was now back on her feet with her Teigu furiously staring at them. "And by the way, your petty axe is gone?! Evil will never prevail!"

"Tch." Ieyasu responded in frustration.

Trouble just seems to keep coming whether the teen liked it or now. First, his Teigu was destroyed and now his axe was gone. He clearly didn't like the odds against him, but upon seeing Mine and Sheele in their weakest moment he slowly walked over to where Extase lay on the ground and lifted it over his shoulder. This in turn surprised everyone.

"What are you doing?!" Mine yelled. "You can't use Extase! You're not compatible!"

Seryu laughed full-heartedly. In her eyes, she was seeing the last attempts of evil-doers trying to save their lives. However, Ieyasu didn't seem bothered by it as he raised the giant scissors up above him.

"Laugh all you want, bitch, but the battle isn't over!" Ieyasu cried out loud. "The first means to get a Teigu is your impression of it, right…?! Well…my impression of it is that it should give me enough power to protect the ones I care about…right here…RIGHT NOW! ECSTASY!"

Suddenly, Extase shined a bright light. The action instantly surprised everyone at that moment as none of them had expected such to happen. But it was in good timing, anyway. Mine used that chance to glance over Ieyasu for the last time before then moving herself and Sheele away.

'I'm sorry.' Mine thought sadly.

Back at Ieyasu, the teen kept his position and stance. He could see Mine and Sheele leaving the area, when suddenly he felt fatigue. It was strange, as the teen hadn't anticipated that. However, despite straining himself, he stood in place and waited for Mine and Sheele to be away from the edge of his eyesight before then letting out a cry of relief and piercing Extase into the ground.

"I…I did it…" Ieyasu smiled. 'But using Extase was dangerous. I may have a good impression on it, but…I'm still not suitable mentally. As such…I have to push myself to use its power…even if it's just for a bit longer…even if it kills me.'

Back at Seryu and Kuro, the two of them were furious. The both of them had just witnessed their victory slip away from them at that moment. However, before any of them said anything, numerous lights came from a specific direction and not long a big number of Imperial officers came rushing in.

"Over there!" shouted one officer. "They're doing battle! Bring in reinforcement!"

Seryu grinned in response. Maybe it wasn't too late to kill Ieyasu and deal with the girls that fled the scene.

"HAHAHAHAHA!" Seryu laughed manically. "IT'S OVER, NIGHT RAID SCUM! THE CALVERY OF JUSTICE HAS ARRIVED AND WE WILL DEAL SWIFT JUSTICE ON YOU AND THOSE SCUMS THAT RAN AWAY!"

"Hmph!" Ieyasu huffed.

The teen became quiet soon after. He could see that his situation had just become rough. But surprisingly he didn't show any fear. He showed a firm look on his face as he struggled to his feet by Extase's aid. Then, with a loud voice, he laughed, much to the surprise of everyone present.

"What's so funny?!" Seryu yelled. A sadistic grin was on her face. "Have you finally accepted your fate, evil-doer?!"

"Yep!" Ieyasu responded. However, he had a grin of his own as he glared at the girl. "But don't think that this is over just yet! You and your dog and your fucking reinforcement will have to get through me to get to those two…! Because…because those two are precious to my best friend, I swear…I won't let you bastards get one inch to them!"

Seryu's grin grew wider than before. She was mildly impressed by the teen; however she saw it as fruitless. Thus, she sent her arm forward at the teen and made her command.

"Fine! Then die!" She yelled. "Kuro, finish him off!"

Kuro did as ordered and charged at the teen. At the same time, Ieyasu pulled Extase out of the ground and charged at the Teigu with a loud cry.

"COME AT ME, DOOOOGGG!" He cried out.

_(LINE BREAK)_

Aria let out a huff of air and rubbed her hand through her blonde hair. She was a messed and in tiring mood as she walked alongside Ben. It had been an hour since they had arrived in the Capital, as they were in the company of Satou and talking about the event of the day.

"That was so exhausting…" Aria said. "I know I should train more, but…Danger beasts are the worse."

Ben laughed a bit in response. "Well I guess they do." He said cheerfully. "But they make good practice. I haven't felt that much thrill in a fight in a long time. I'm so gamed to go to Mt. Fake again tomorrow."

"Stupid…" Aria commented.

Satou laughed in response. Though he hated the girl, Ben's enthusiasm never ceased to amaze him. However, there was a reason Aria called him stupid. She revealed this by pulling Ben's arm and then whispering into his ears.

"Your watch is timed out, isn't it?" She asked.

"Yeah, but it's cool." Ben whispered back. He still had a cheerful look on his face. "Give it a few minutes and it'll be recharged before you know it. Besides, it's not like anything bad will happen."

"Tennyson, is that you?!"

Immediately, Ben, Aria and Satou turned to the source of it. The teen hero somewhat recognized that voice, especially because it sounded desperate. Hence, upon turning, they saw both Mine and Sheele heading to their direction, before the former girl finally gave into her fatigue and fell to the ground.

In response, Ben and his companions were surprised and shocked at the scene. The physical looks on Mine and Sheele's bodies were in terrible shape, especially for Sheele. As such, when Ben and the others ran to the scene, they gasped, with the teen hero bending down and holding Sheele in his arms.

"She's…She's been shot." Ben noted. However, that wasn't the worse of it. Sheele was losing blood, and as such she was turning pale. Hence, Ben turned to Satou."We need to get them out of here. Can we use your –"

"There's no time for that!" Mine suddenly interjected. Her physical body was weak, as she tried lifting her body up with her shaky arms. "Ieyasu…Ieyasu is in trouble! We were sent on a mission to take out some guy…! And on the way, we ran into some Imperial officer and her biological Teigu…dog thing…!"

Ben eyes widened, with his mouth gaping. He knew instantly on who Mine was speaking about. Thus, he couldn't help but utter the name.

"Seryu…"

Mine was a bit startled. She didn't figure in the slightest that Ben would know the name.

"You know that name…?" She asked.

Ben said nothing back to her. A bunch of emotions were already going on within him that went along with the situation. Hence, he carefully placed Sheele on the ground and turned to Satou with a serious look. "They need help! Attend to Sheele and the girl's wounds and get them out of hereI don't care where it is! Just do it!"

"I will." Satou nodded.

Meanwhile, Aria was surprised at the scene. She felt confused by Ben's sudden shift in mood and the predicament that the two Night Raid members were. However, no sooner than that happened, she watched as Ben ran off immediately before Mine suddenly collapsed to the ground unconscious.

_(LINE BREAK)_

Bodies of Imperial officers lay on the ground, with those still alive standing and watching. Reinforcement had been called in as it was clear from the past ten minutes that the Night Raid member was harder to beat. He had not only fought Kuro to a close stalemate, but killed some Imperial officers that dared used the fight between him and the Teigu to get to Mine and Sheele. In other words, he was a monster in the area.

Unfortunately, there was only so much Ieyasu could do. The teen was still able to fend for himself, but he was reaching his limits. It also didn't help that Extase was beginning to reject him more and more to a certain extent, thus giving him greater fatigue, mentally and physically.

Kuro, therefore, used his power over the human to his advantage. He was able to catch Ieyasu by surprise by backhanding him with his huge hand. As a result, the teen was sent rolling furiously on the surface on the ground until then coming to a stop, badly wounded.

Now the climax of the battle had truly reached. The teen assassin was beaten, with blood covering certain parts of his body and clothes. However, rather than give in to his bleeding body, the teen slowly rose from the ground and looked around him in search of Sheele's Teigu.

"Looking for this?" asked a certain sadistic Imperial officer.

In Kuro's hand was Sheele's Teigu. Ieyasu was taken aback by the sight before a scowl came over his face. As for Seryu, she stood meters from her Teigu and grinned sadistically at the teen's poor state.

"Give that back, bitch!" Ieyasu yelled angrily. "That's Sheele's Teigu, not yours!"

Seryu laughed in response. She found it pathetic that Ieyasu was still concerned for a fellow 'criminal' despite the poor state he was in. But seeing as he was defenseless now, she replied. "Evil-doers like you will be done in! As for the Teigu, it shall serve the arms of justice to track down other criminal filths like you!"

Ieyasu gritted his teeth angrily. He care that he was defenseless; he was just pissed off that Sheele's weapon would be used to kill possible innocent people.

Sadly, there was nothing even Ieyasu could do. He watched helplessly as Kuro tossed the Teigu to the Imperial officers, who then watched it pierce the ground before them. Then, as the Teigu turned to face him, he looked around him for a weapon and found a stray sword near a dead body of an Imperial officer next to him.

The teen immediately took it.

'Why…Why am I still fighting?' Ieyasu asked himself. His body still felt heavily beaten as he clutched the weapon in his hand. 'I don't have any Teigu left…and Sheele and Mine should be far from here by now…So why? Why am I still fighting? I'm clearly going to die here anyway.'

Kuro let out a furious roar. The roar was very powerful, as it instantly let Ieyasu scream in pain. Hence, before the teen knew it, the Teigu grabbed him in his hand and hit him hard on the ground, creating huge cracks.

"Guh!" Ieyasu spat out blood.

"YEEESSSSS!" Seryu cheered sadistically. "Crush him, Kuro! End him once and for all!"

Kuro responded with a huff and did as told. He lifted Ieyasu's half-unconscious body in his hand and tightened his grip around him. Then, with his strength, he began squeezing the teen, who in return cried out in unbelievable pain while Seryu laughed maniacally.

'I-I'm actually going to die…' Ieyasu thought sadly. 'But at least I went out with a fight…I just wish…I could speak with Ben…even for the last time.'

Ieyasu's Teigu suddenly sparked. It was still missing the main piece that was its function. However, the fragment that remembered began to spark, with the teen unintentionally making a mental connection with a certain teen hero.

_(LINE BREAK)_

For the past minute, Ben had been running. He ran and ran as fast as he could, while attempting to use the Omnitrix, with no success. The alien watch was clearly still in recharge mode, meaning even the teen hero was defenseless. However, that didn't deter him in the slightest. He still ran forward with as much strength as he could muster.

'Dammit, Omnitrix!' Ben cried out in his head. 'Just when I need you the most, you're still in recharge mode!'

'Ben…?' asked a voice in the teen's head. '….Ben is that really you?'

Ben suddenly came to a stop. He was a bit taken aback, but at the same time alarmed as he looked at his left and right confused.

'Ieyasu?' Ben questioned.

'Yes…it's really you…Thank God.' responded Ieyasu's voice.

Ben was still confused, though.

'What's going on? How are you in my head?' Ben questioned.

'I…I don't know…' Ieyasu admitted. 'But there's little time left for me.'

Ben became even more alarmed. It didn't make sense to him that Ieyasu was in his head, nor did he try to reason it. But when he heard those weakening words from the teen, he began to run again.

Nevertheless, Ieyasu continued.

'Before I leave this world…there are some things I wish to say to you. I know things haven't been good between us this past month…with what happened to Sayo because of Aria…But I just want you to know that…despite how much I acted badly about you…I always appreciated what you did for me that time…You gave me a second life to experience…For that…I'm very thankful.'

"You can tell me all that later, idiot!" Ben yelled determinedly. "Wait for me, Ieyasu! I'm coming to save you!"

'No! Don't!' Ieyasu yelled. "This bitch's Teigu is stronger than I thought! You don't want to get involved in this!'

"Of course I do!" Ben yelled. "Omnitrix or no Omnitrix, I'm still a hero! And I will save youuuuuu!"

Ieyasu cried out in pain. Apparently, Kuro increased the grip on his and now broke his arm and chest bones. It was horrible to the boy, as all he could do was endure it. But then, a smirk formed on his face which led to him spitting some blood into the Teigu's eye. Ben's words had given him courage.

So in that moment, Ieyasu was free. He landed on his back and winced badly from it. Fortunately, the teen was able to endure it and pick up his sword that had dropped earlier.

'That kind of dedication is what I like about you, Ben!' Ieyasu stated proudly. 'I've been fighting wrong! I know where this shit's core is! I can still win this fight!'

Ben heard the teen assassin perfectly well. But that didn't slow him down in the slightest. In fact, if anything, it just made him to keep running faster, even as he finally approached the area, with Ieyasu and the Kuro in sight.

"That's Seryu's Teigu…?" Ben was shocked.

Now at this point, the teen hero was still running. But so was Ieyasu at that moment. They didn't lock eyes though, due to the distances between them. Ieyasu's right arm was broken, so he had to rely on his bruised left arm to dive the sword forward for a piercing attack. It was a good thing then that Kuro was wide open.

So with that, Ieyasu got closer. He let out a battle cry with each step he took, while maintaining his sword's grip. Surprisingly, it seemed he would succeed despite his limits long since being passed. In other words, his body was now being driven by willpower. Thus, he would drive his sword right into Kuro's core and destroy it instantly.

Unfortunately, the teen didn't win like he hoped. A bang was heard, followed by the teen's grunt as something hit in by the waist side. And it all seemed to happen slowly in the eyes of Ben, who was in shock especially when he heard Ieyasu's sword drop to the ground.

Seryu was sadistically pleased. It was revealed then by the pistol opening in her mouth that she had been the cause. It was also obvious when Ieyasu's descending body had a bullet wound by the waist side.

And so nothing could be done. Seryu resembled that of a demon, as her snickering face held such a horror. Ieyasu, on the other hand, was a goner. He was descending to the ground when suddenly Kuro jabbed his claws into the teen's abdomen, thus cutting him in half. But if that wasn't enough for a horrified Ben, the Teigu lifted the upper body of the teen and lung him up into the air where from below it opened its mouth wide open, waiting for the teen to fall in.

The scene was truly a horror to behold. It was also beyond anything Ben had ever seen in his life. Blood splattered on the ground while Ieyasu's bottom half fell to the ground, spilling its own blood. It was just too much for Ben to comprehend. In fact, it was so bad that Ben's body stopped running and came to a stop. However, something in Ben still made his body to march forward even though Ieyasu's fate seemed inevitable.

'Ben…' Ieyasu called. The tone of his voice sounded like a dying young man as he continued. 'Ben…thank you for everything…It was because of you that I was able to experience a second life…I got to be around Tatsumi a bit longer…and I made friends in Night Raid. The memories we shared with Sayo and Tatsumi were the happiest ones of my life…I will never forget you…Please don't ever forget me.'

And so, in his final moment, Ieyasu smiled. It was odd, but he felt at peace with himself especially as he closed his mouth. This was also followed with past memories of his time with Tatsumi, Sayo and Ben and fresh memories of his time with Night Raid. Hence, it was with these memories that he fell right into Kuro's mouth and was bitten down in one swift move, dying immediately.

So while this moment was joyous for Seryu, Ben was overwhelmed by it. His eyes were shaky as he stared at the sight of Kuro biting down on his friend. It was horrifying, as just looking at it made the teen feel weak in the legs and thus fall to his knees.

Unfortunately, that wasn't the worse of it. No, the worse came when fragments of Ieyasu's blood flew into the air like a sprinkler, with a few of it dropping on Ben's body.

"U-Uh-Uh-Uh-Uh…" Ben uttered. His voice felt shaky as even his mind couldn't comprehend easily on the sight before him.

But then, to add insult to his moment, the Omnitrix finally recharged. It made a sound to alert its own on its new status. But it didn't matter. It just added more to the teen's pain as he finally screamed the word that had been bottled up in him.

"IEEEYASSUUUUUUUU!" Ben cried out.

_(CHAPTER END)_

And we've reached the end of yet another chapter. Thank you for reading this chapter, I know it had an expected ending unlike most of my chapters. But come on, this is Akame ga kill. It basically strives on moments like these from time to time.

Anyway, there was an alternate version for this chapter and an alternate version for the overall fanfic. Now I can't tell you much since it doesn't matter anymore, but I still think you guys should know.

In the alternate version of this chapter, Sheele was supposed to die off. The difference would've been that she died in Night Raid's headquarters (intact of course) after Ben saved her and Mine.

As for the alternate version of this fanfic, it concerned Ieyasu. His role was meant to be widened; however I later changed my mind. The reason is because the beta-reader for this fanfic wanted Sheele to live (just like all of you wanted). So because of that I changed this chapter and the direction of the fanfic I had for Ieyasu and presented this.

Now don't get me wrong. This doesn't mean I plan on killing as many characters as the manga/anime had done. I do promise that certain characters will be saved (both from good and bad) while other certain characters will be killed off (both good and bad). Confusing? I'm sorry about that. But please just keep reading to find out. This is Akame ga Kill; I think it would be insulting to the anime/manga if everyone lived, whether Ben or otherworldly character was there.

Thank you for reading this chapter. There's much more to expect in the next chapter, so please supporting this fanfic.

Merry Christmas!