Life is Cosmic Chapter 8.
AWESOME! We had an epic turn out last chapter! We concluded the Big Bad Banchou Mako arc, introduced the Akuma Twins formally into the story, had Gentaro unveil Fire States, and made the bonds between everyone stronger!
I can't wait to get going since this chapter is a cool down chapter. Not to spoil much, but we've got big plans for what's going to come your way, and we're going to have a lot of fun here!
It goes without saying, that both of Gentaro's family members were from extraordinarily manly material.
Kazuma Kiryu is the respective hero and the name of his adoptive father from the Ryu Ga Gotoku franchise AKA Yakuza in America and Europe. There is no finer game series that has visceral face-pulping martial arts combat and the extremely important shirtless rooftop battle with fists.
Akira Kongou is from Kongou Banchou, a series that my brother in all but blood dragged me into and one I found immense joy and pleasure in watching. If you haven't found the time to experience it, fix that, it is a fantastic manly manga with a badass hero who is like Jotaro Kujo but less stoic and more hot-blooded and inspirational. It has a huge cast of great and memorable characters who in their own way inspire and make others believe in the spirit of the Banchou.
Without further ado, neither I nor my partner in crime and older bro in all but blood The Swordslinger own Kamen Rider Fourze, Kill la Kill, or whatever madness we throw in!
We proudly present! The Ex-Club Captains' Counter Strike Offensive! And the Magical Girl and Boxing Clubs Captains' Revenge!
Recommended listening for this chapter.
Blumenkranz: Kill La Kill OST.
Zodiarts Appearance: Kamen Rider Fourze OST.
Zodiarts Arrival: Kamen Rider Fourze OST.
Ping Pong Circulate: Kill La Kill OST.
Italics for Flashbacks, Thoughts, and Henshin voice.
Bold for Zodiarts and Senketsu's voice.
Bold and Italic for Limit Breaks.
X-X-X-X-X
Yellow energy surged up and outwards, flowing, spiraling, then molding itself into its owner.
Omiko was pissed off, with a capital P. Meeting the Magical Girl Club had reignited her passion and rage, so long left unkindled thanks to the warm friendship she had with her club and Gentaro. She had her racket hit a tennis ball viciously against the back-alley wall outside the Mankanshoku residence. Every shot made an indent in the wall before the ball bounced back to her.
Sitting down on a relatively clean trash can, Maiko resisted the urge to bite her nails in frustration. Looking over her notepad with fastidious intent, she paused every few seconds to write something down, then ripped a page out and rewrote it.
"No, no, no…! Not good enough, I need these, and this, not those…!" She muttered to herself, sighing eventually when she noticed Takaharu was sparring with Gentaro.
The Rider was in full gear and had on a pair of boxing pads over his mitts. The boxer was slamming his fists repeatedly into the soft pads, the loud whacks moving in with his swaying body.
"What're you doing, Maiko-chan?" Gentaro asked while shaking a sore hand. Even through the mitts, Takaharu could crack some bones, and even with the armor the boxer's punches were relentless enough to cause some numbing.
"Now that I think about it, haven't you been collecting junk and doodling for some time." Takaharu added.
She sighed, "It's something I've been working on for some time, and it's also far more productive than our club captain over there."
Speaking of the squirrel girl… Ryūko and Mako were relaxing next to each other, but even she could see that the red locked girl was training in her own way. The girl was meditating as best she could, her scissor blade held on her lap, while Senketsu's eye was shut wide. Red energy surged over their body and focused itself through her form, occasionally creating red flames to appear up and over her flesh.
And Mako was... just sleeping, her head on her best friend's shoulder and drool pouring down her mouth with a soft, "Zzzz... zzz…" as her drool kept on coming. She dreamt about things that would only make sense to herself.
For some reason they involved Gentaro wearing a striped suit, having his eyes closed, and journeying throughout an underground and making friends with a bunch of monsters before he worked hard to deal with a flower's plans.
"That bitch Hikari, that bitch Hikari, that bitch Hikari…THAT BITCH HIKARI! MOCK ME WILL YOU!?" Omiko shouted and rammed her tennis racket even harder, the staccato of blows picked up in speed until the very air vibrated with their ricocheting.
Her yellow energy turned a blinding gold before her eyes seemed to shine through her glasses, two frozen chips of azure that showed her pure determination to beat the girl under her own power.
A passing by Mataro stared, a camera in his hands, "Can't believe there's people who pay for pictures of angry tennis girls… Can't blame them, though." Surely an odd taste, but one that paid money with Omiko's current state of mind.
The shark-toothed girl was beyond mad, "No one mocks me, no mocks my friends, no one mocks my hard work, no one mocks my weight…! AND NO ONE LAUGHS AT ANY OF THAT!"
Whirling around, with a backhanded swing, the tennis ball embedded itself into the wall, drilling its way through solid concrete like a corkscrew. Finally breathing heavily, the busty blonde tennis player wiped her face, sweat pouring down slowly from her face.
Getting up slowly, Maiko chuckled in a dark way after putting down her notepad, "Done. With these blueprints I just need the parts to finish it all." She said simply before she gleefully yanked Omiko's tennis racket out of her hands, then swiped Takaharu's boxing gloves.
"Hey! What the Hell, Maiko!?" Omiko snapped out furiously until she saw Maiko upending trash cans, boxes, and everything else she could find, even smashing windows and yanking stuff out.
"Shush! Science is happening! I watched like fifty episodes of MacGyver on repeat to learn how to do this! I just need your junk to finally finish this masterpieces of my utter genius" the trap mistress was a fan of makeshift traps, so the show stuck to her like glue covered leeches, "Watch… I'm going to give you two something to even the edge between Satsuki's Life-Fiber goons!"
Gentaro paused, turning to her in awe, and pumped his arms cheerfully, "That's Maiko-chan for you, always ready to break through with her wit!"
Whirling around with a triumphant and in some way's mad scientist grin, Maiko pushed her glasses up smugly, "I'm making you two weapons, the first of the Maiko Ōgure Anti Life-Fiber Series!" she cackled, making Gentaro think he may have been better shutting up.
"Oh, Maiko-chan…?" he worried that her mental health may have deteriorated more than usual.
"My aunt Naomi taught me everything I know about jury-rigging stuff like this, she even taught me how to make beam katanas. Long story there, not the time to tell you all of it." Maiko said as she started attaching, removing, sliding, working, and greasing objects to their respective items.
The sounds of sawing and tools being worked came along with her work, and before long she had finished and presented her finished products with a smug grin.
In Omiko's hands, she now had a stainless-steel tennis racket without the net. Its chrome colored finish displayed multiple knobs, switches, and pieces that seemed to do nothing at first.
The hilt when she swung it forward in a testing swish extended suddenly, making her gape when she held a tennis racket the size of a battle axe. Swishing it back shortened it, and when she pressed a small switch near the hilt the empty racket hole glowed suddenly before a bright red laser net appeared almost like a spider was weaving it.
"Ahuhuhuh… Now you see the undeniable genius of I! MAIKO ŌGURE! THE MO ALF 01 IS READY TO GO!" Gentaro tried snapping his fingers, but the mad genius girl was already too gone in her moment. Maiko even bent her body backwards at an unnatural degree with her arms extended, gripping nothing as she kept on laughing.
Omiko stared at the cackling genius and turned around, "Screw that noise. Death-Racket. That's what I'm calling this baby." Omiko said with a fanged smile while she rammed a tennis ball with the racket.
The energy net charged the small sphere with an overload of pure energy, then shot it forward as if out of a cannon. The resulting crimson explosion blew the fanged girl's pigtails back dramatically, her long golden hair waving wildly behind her head while a gigantic toothy smile grew positively demonic at the sight of the destruction unleashed by the blast.
An entire building crumbled to dust in front of them, thankfully no one lived in it but the sight was still astonishing.
Fourze clapped eagerly, making her blush slightly but take a proud bow anyway, "Well done, Maiko-chan, Omiko-chan! You were always great fighters, but now it's like you two have found an actual bond as friends!" he was so happy they could see his soul crying, a tiny red heart glowing in his chest was spilling manly tears, "Working together like this… This is what I live for! Yosh! I'm going to work extra hard for your sakes!"
Takaharu laughed, "Should have guessed he'd be like that. It's both predictable and endearing." He gave a grin and turned to the self-proclaimed genius girl, "So, what are these new gloves of mine?"
"Here you go… the MO ALF 02 and 03!" Maiko looked a bit irked by Omiko overriding her very hard thought name, and she personally hoped that Takaharu would prove more accepting of her genius.
The two gloves she handed to him were boxing gloves that were unlike any other in the world.
The first was a gigantic fist, almost more of a cestus or a set of brass knuckles, with extended and vicious looking spikes over the knuckles, a drill piece for the thumb, and glowing blue circles over the palms. Said circles resembled a spiral inlaid over a Celtic circle. When he slipped the glove over his left fist, the glyph like symbols shone brilliantly, then covered the glove in an energy field.
The second glove was deceptively simple looking, a simple looking white glove that when he put it on showed its real power. In a gigantic flash of light, the entire glove gained a stunning golden finish, appearing like it was an armored gauntlet. With a simple jab, the fist itself shot forward like a rocket, a golden chain snapping it back onto his hand at a speed faster than even Fourze could keep up with.
Putting both fists up in a classic southpaw stance, he shot a barrage of jabs that appeared like falling comets. Blazing heat seared the air until he was actually weaving a firestorm of punches, the rubble that was still crumbling after Omiko's slice melted into slag due to the burning power of his blows.
"Heh… nuts to that name Maiko. These two are my Monday One and my Sunday Two." He swiped a thumb over his nose, the weapons of mass punching destruction changing into a white and black pair of fingerless gloves with a mere flick of his wrists.
With their new weapons, both Omiko and Takaharu felt that they could finally keep up with Gentaro and Ryūko's growing power, and thus hold their own weight.
Little did the group know that Satsuki wasn't the only player on the chessboard, and that someone had arrived in Japan who would throw the entire game into turmoil.
X-X-X-X-X
Sitting immaculate and glimmering in her massive office, atop a gigantic seat that seemed equal parts throne as it was office chair, it could be stated that Ragyō was a queen, nay an empress.
Clad only in a glimmering silken robe that showed a scandalous hint of flesh, and with a pure crystal glass of the richest and most expensive wine in the world which dated back to two centuries before she was even born, made in Italy and aged for that long until now, she seemed utterly content with herself at the moment.
Her hair when out of its wing like style seemed to fall in a glimmering rainbow sheet down her neck, even her red eyes seemed calmer and more tranquil at the moment.
The reason for this lack of intensity came from her reverent gaze upon a picture. A picture that she had went to an extraordinary amount of trouble to get, even going so far as trading valuable information with that detestable Gamou to get it.
From a space station that had been considered faulty for the image it captured, and as a result dismantled, it showed a figure captured deep within the galaxy, far away from the planet and even bordering the ends of the Milky Way.
It was one that she had an absolute invested interest in, even bordering fascination and obsession. It was a blue colored figure, with a black chest, a rocket shaped helmet, and most fascinating of all, space itself flowed through its masculine form.
He wielded a sword that was both a rocket and a blade mixed into a perfect meld, a weapon that her eyes drilled into and then into its wielder. She saw what few didn't, the absurd power of the figure was fueled entirely by the Cosmos itself.
Cosmic Energy, space's purest form of power, what the Life-Fibers themselves clustered around and believed to originally be born from, the power of the galaxy and the universe beyond was infinite.
She would even dare say it was possibly akin to God in her eyes, the Life-Fibers that infused every section of her incredible form pulsed and ached to see the Cosmos with her own eyes.
She wanted to be out there, not in the filth encrusted sphere she was stuck on and had been trapped in her entire life. Memories of a past she had buried under devotion to her true master were reminisced upon, then instantly discarded in favor of her attention upon the figure.
Her obsession began with what she witnessed in that picture, space itself flowed into him, it enveloped him, it caressed him, it empowered him to a point that she was amazed at.
Against opponents that'd break any other, even compare to a Kamui wielder in some aspects, he not only survived, he flourished, as space powered him further he went to greater and greater heights beyond his human limits.
A human who was superior to every other naked ape in her eyes, a human who was chosen by space not because he could hear its voice but because his love for it was founded upon pure joy at its wonders, a human who could wield its power freely because it wished him too.
"Kamen Rider Fourze. Gentaro Kisaragi, age seventeen going upon eighteen, second year in high school because of his grades, no remarkable features other than a body in the prime of its life and an ability to befriend anyone… Yet those who meet him flock to follow him, he defies those in power to make his way, and the universe revolves around him to follow his powerful decisions… How magnifique…!"
Her body ached and pulsed even harder with pure want as she admired the picture she was now holding in one hand, the other hand dipping below her robes, a sinful smile full of enrapture and desire overtaking her face.
Back at the training area, Gentaro felt himself shiver involuntarily.
He felt more uneasy than when he met his cousin Harara on a winter he wanted forgotten, and the red headed girl seemed far more intense than she usually was. Thankfully his cousin Kakugo was there, but something about how terrifying Harara had been stayed with him, he didn't know if she had wanted to kill or embrace him that day.
"Eghh…" his shivers brought the attention of Ryūko.
She called out to him, concerned at his full-body shivering, "Hey, you okay?"
"Yep! My family life is a bit complicated." He said with a slight grin, rubbing the back of his head.
"Ho…Tell me about it sometime. I don't know anyone except my dad. And he was distant to me." Sitting with him, the two of them looked at the training their friends were undergoing.
"That's sad…" he said, frowning at her statement.
Ryūko blushed angrily and gripped her arm, "W-well it's not like it ever bothered me much. I'm just, you know, a little better with your family than my own. 'Cept those two crazies, Scanty and Kneesocks, guh… you're related to demons, explain that one to me… wait, no! DON'T!" He opened his mouth and she shook her hand rapidly in response, sighing to herself, "My dad never told me if I even have family. I don't know if I have a sister, a brother, an aunt, a mother, even grandparents… He didn't tell me anything. I'm alone and was until I came here."
"That's…so painful." Gentaro couldn't help but tell her.
The red-locked girl stared into the distance, "Life is pain. As much of an edgelord statement as that is, it's kinda true. But..." She turned around, giving him a genuine grin, "I love your family. If I even have any, I doubt they'd be as fun to hang out with as yours. Even Scanty and Kneesocks are cool when they want to be."
"Ryūko-chan!" he said to her happily, holding up a hand to stop him from getting near.
She gave him a slight playful glare, "No touchie! Remember that, I'm not a touchy feely type, got it?!" She said with a chuckle, Gentaro smiling before his eyes got more introspective.
"I do wonder though. If we found your family, what would they be like?" he asked.
She rolled her eyes and shrugged, "Who cares? I'm happy just being myself. I don't care if I have any, they've never been there for me, so I won't be there for them if they come calling."
Gentaro chuckled with a bright grin and waved, "I guess that's one way to look at it, but it's never good to be alone."
"Is that your life philosophy?" the drifter asked with a toothy smirk.
"Maybe..." he replied with a laidback grin.
Both chuckled and continued their day, ready to face what could be ahead of them.
X-X-X-X-X
It was an odd day to go to school and finding how things had changed in one's club when it displayed itself proudly in the middle of the courtyard.
"One two, three four, we don't care 'bout that Omiko whore! Five six, seven, eight, she's who we magical girls will obliterate! GOOO MAGICAL GIRLS!"
While Gentaro was worried about his odd premonition and memories of his terrifyingly strong cousin, Hikari Naito and the Magical Girl Club were doing a peppy cheer meet that wouldn't be out of place in the actual Cheerleading Club. If it wasn't for Magical Girl Dino waving a banner with a cartoonish parody of Omiko with blown up glasses, buckteeth and pimples on it.
"Mankanshoku, Fukuroda, hold her!" Maiko shouted, and as if they had something implanted in their mind the boxer and the slacker tackled Omiko before she could go on a rampage against the magical girls.
"Let go! I shall make her existence so miserable she won't even feel the embrace of death!" she screamed while clawing at the floor to reach the large amounts of pink that was the Two-Star.
"Hikari Naito!"
Said pink girl turned to see a certain banchou with the fanciest of pompadours and a friendly smile, "Huh? Aren't you the bad guy that needs to be shown the error of his ways?" she asked, clearly following the magical girl plot formula of clichés.
Gentaro grinned, "You've gone against a former comrade. I believed magical girls could reach to anyone to save them. I watched enough anime to know of the bad things of being one! That is why I will befriend you next!"
Cue his manly fist pumping towards the new friend he was determined to make.
And then cue the highest pitched laugh to ever terrorize your ears, "Hee-hee-hee-hee! Is this a joke?!" Hikari laughed with a hand near her mouth. "Don't you know magical girls always fight the ugly monsters and those arrogant pretty people that pretend to be nice?! Hee-hee-hee-hee!"
"That laugh's going to bleed my ears dry…" the feather-haired drifter groaned, feeling tempted to reach for her scissor blade, but didn't. Why? Gentaro said he'd try to befriend Hikari.
As this point, everyone was willing to accept his ways… it didn't mean her grip loosened on her sword, though. If the pink magical girl tried to attack Gentaro, she'd be forced to change her name to Magical Girl Corpse.
"Then…" Gentaro said as he approached the magical girls and pointed at them, "Since magical girls like Usagi in Sailor Moon end up fighting along and for their friends… I'll befriend everyone in this club as well!"
The entire courtyard was silent.
Magical Girl Dino, or Dina Saori as she was commonly known, trembled in her pink T-Rex suit, "That's… That's… uh…just the two of-" she was promptly pushed aside by her captain.
Hikari beamed, "Since magical girls never associate with the wicked the likes of that crocodile mouthed hussy behind you, any girl that associates with a bad guy in this club will be kicked out." Her eyes sparkled in delight, "If you befriend Magical Girl Dino, you'll take away her One-Star status!"
It took three seconds of being stunned into silence for the entire Rider Club to let out, simultaneously, a loud "WHAT?!"
Hikari twirled, showering the floor with sparkling dust, "Magical girls never submit to ugly things in canon. What do you think we're in, an adult comic?" and here she showed a cheeky grin, "That is why we'll keep our beloved things close by keeping all that's pretty close to us and never letting anything ugly come to our life."
"Y-Yeah!" Magical Girl Dino said, soon hanging her head low.
And to that, Gentaro grinned, "Sorry, I can't buy that!" he squatted before them, like a traditional banchou, "That attitude to forbid others to befriend who they choose to makes you nothing like a magical girl! You'd be no better than a true dark queen!"
"What?!" the pink girl just couldn't believe him! How can he be so damn cheerful after everything she told him and then say something like that?!
"Keeping pretty and shiny things around is nice, but I can tell you've been blinded by them." He hooked a thumb to his face, "I'll make sure to stop that light so you can appreciate what it hides behind all that glitter!"
Maiko finally dropped the bomb, "Do you think Gentaro gets weirder each day?"
Hearing that, the poor Rider fell face down on the floor, "Come on, Maiko-chan, don't ruin the moment!"
Hikari glared at it all, nearly about to growl before recalling what she was supposed to be, "A magical girl is never mad… a magical girl is never mad…" she repeated as a mantra before walking off, ignoring the Rider Club while the others followed.
Omiko was finally set free, but Mako and Takaharu remained close to her, "Mako thinks you should be careful with who you befriend, Gen-chan. Those magical girls don't even have a pose like yours! A magical girl that doesn't pose putting her heart in every motion and muscle to show off her pure spirit in a single stance is like a Mako who doesn't devote her life to enjoy her lunch with her friends!"
As if it made sense, Gentaro got up and nodded with his arms crossed and a serious look on her face, "That is why I must help her, Mako-chan! All that spirit they have is only skin deep! I can't sense anything from their hearts! It's like Sakura-chan didn't have her friend Tomoko giving her cute outfits to capture those magical cards!"
"Wait a damn!" Ryūko got out, "How do you know so much of something as girly as magical girl anime?! Mako I can understand, but you?"
Takaharu coughed into his fist with a faint blush, "I, uh…I... grew with Sakura Card Captor…" he poked his fingers together, "I-I was around her age when I first watched it and…"
"No, no, don't say anything else…" Ryūko grumbled, putting a hand to her face, "I'll pretend this never happened and just question what the big idea is. Gentaro?"
The pompadour clad youth hummed, "Hmm… Well, there's someone who could help us, but… he's a guy, not a magical girl. Even if he's cool when using his magical rings, I don't think he'd be of much help…"
Takaharu put a hand to his chin, "We may need a feminine touch here."
"Ahem…" the two spectacled and the red-locked girls said, staring at him in disbelief.
The boxer replied calmly, "I meant something more pink-aisle oriented."
The three girls were about to say something but couldn't. Sadly, they realized he had a point. If Gentaro and Takaharu were more into magical girls than them then questions needed answering.
Mako was about to speak but noticed something small around the corner of her eye, "Oh, hello. Are you lost?"
The one she was speaking to appeared to be a little girl of twelve at best given her small stature and lack of womanly curves. She also wore a traditional blue sailor uniform like Mako's. But then Omiko recognized the brown hair in a side ponytail, the fang popping from the corner of the girl's mouth, and the big, round yellow eyes.
"I…" Dina Saori started, looking down, "I want to… to…"
Omiko narrowed her eyes, "Stand up!"
The small seventeen years old girl stood straight up, "Dina Saori reporting for duty, captain!" she shouted with a slight quiver to her voice, and her body firm like a trained soldier's.
The petite girl then closed her eyes, feeling herself tear up under her former captain's stare, "Out with it." Omiko could be cruel, but she couldn't be mean the only former member of her club that didn't try to be mean unless Hikari said so.
"I... I want to help you… become friends with Hikari…" Dina whispered, "But…"
"But?!" Ryūko asked, making the girl jump back a few inches, which immediately made her feel bad when Dina's big yellow eyes started to tear up, "Oh, sorry, sorry! I didn't mean to…"
"N-No…" she said, trying to sound more confident, "I just don't know what to say here, sorry. I… I joined Omiko-san's club to be less afraid of, well, being me. I just joined this club to remain part of the One-Star life, and it still doesn't work. All I want is… is…"
Maiko pinched the bridge of her nose, "Go ahead, say it. I know nearly every single little secret in the life of everyone, like how the Tea Ceremony Club captain is afraid of snails."
Dina nodded and decided to be honest, "It's my boyfriend… Kazama Ikki."
"Oh…" Maiko went slack-jawed, "I… certainly didn't know that."
"Wait!" Ryūko cried, holding both hands up, "You? And that raccoon?"
Dina nodded, "I like boys younger than me, and since I look like this, he's a bit of a…"
Takaharu cringed, "Oh goodness, I feel a bit conflicted on what to think now."
"Well, I am a senior in age, and he's still a freshman…" Dina started with her face now bright red, "And he likes flat girls over voluptuous women since, in his own words, we look more innocent. He really doesn't like busty women. He may look mean, but he... Oh, I shouldn't talk this much."
Gentaro took only a moment before he proudly smiled and declared to the girl, "As long as you care for each other, love should be about the bonds you make with someone! Stand strong and proud, Dina Saori, from now on and forever, you're one of my buds!"
Banging his chest twice, feudal drums echoed in the dinosaur themed magical girl's head before he pointed at her without hesitation.
She stepped back, her arms thrown up in a comedic fashion from the shock, "Bwa uwa, wait! Th-That's a little sudden, isn't it!? I was one of your enemies and I-"
He stepped forward, then held out his hand with an ear-splitting grin, "Let's be best buds from now on! We'll make Naito Hikari see reason and your boyfriend too!"
"I, I, uhwahahaha….!" Dina Saori wasn't good being under pressure, and Gentaro had a way of simply bonding with people even if they didn't want to bond with him.
"Just shake hands with him. This idiot will become your friend even if he has to drag you out of your own Hell himself." Omiko had a toothy smirk on her face as she said that, but the warmth in her tone and eyes were unmistakable.
Unconsciously, Dina reached out for the pompadour clad Rider, and gripped his hand tightly. She felt it go up once, then down, Gentaro's grip making her unconsciously grip his hand as well. Pulling apart, he reached out with one fist as she made one of her own, as the two banged them together she heard feudal drums pound in her head dramatically.
Swiping his thumb underneath his nose, the brightly grinning young man smiled at Dina widely, "I'll accept all of you, the Magical Girl, the Tennis Player, the girl who loves her younger boyfriend, it doesn't matter who you are, because I'll be your best bud no matter what!"
Dina's eyes were spinning around rapidly at the insane amount of craziness she had to deal with, "U… Uwaaa! Wait, I am okay with this, Gentaro-san… Just slow down and let me tell you why Hikari has become such a…um…" She faltered until Omiko spoke out.
There was a scary sneer on the blonde's face, "Raging psychotic hoebag with the most friggin' annoying laugh ever?"
"Yeah…that…and…" she played with her side ponytail before trying to be honest, "It all begins with-" her words were cut off when a shadow suddenly appeared at her side with a smirk.
"My, my, how loud you are." Said none other than Inumuta with a smirk. "Noise Cancel." He hit a button which immediately froze Dina up.
Her dinosaur suit sprung to life and swallowed her whole, "AAAAHH! HELP!" she cried as the pink T-Rex wolfed her down in a single bite.
"W-what are you doing here!?" Gentaro asked, getting serious, "And how can you just silence someone who has finally found a chance to help herself and a friend!?"
"Pardon me, I just don't find this drama needed." Inumuta told them, "Don't you need to fight a lot of these guys to get to Satsuki-sama? You'd do well to stick to what you're good for." He had a smarmy smirk under his high collar and Ryūko knew it.
"Listen here, blue mutt, we kick ass and take names of worse than you, so let the girl go or I will perform a hysterectomy on you! And I mean punching you so hard you'll grow ovaries and the whole deal for me to rip off!" the drifter was easily pissed off, but the sight of kidnapping an innocent girl who wanted help pushed all the wrong buttons.
"So eloquent..." Inumuta said dryly and pushed up his glasses with his middle and ring fingers, "I have important matters to attend to and need to see what you can do. Do you think Satsuki-sama wants to waste time? She needs you to be on top of your game, not crawling to her heels."
"I see..." Gentaro started with a smirk, "So she's going to push us down, huh? Good..." he kept a confident smile which couldn't be taken off even if he faced a fierce deity in battle, "We'll bounce back tenfold, you can tell her that...and give us Dina-chan back now."
"Interesting assumption, but no." Inumuta said before snapping his fingers, a dozen copies of his image appearing to swarm around the group, "Take care!" he shouted as he grabbed Dina as all the copies and the real deal leapt away.
"FUC-…FUDGING BASTARD! I'LL WRING YOUR SCRAWNY NECK!" Ryūko was furious as she shouted, lowering her fists in impotent fury. "We have to get that little dinosaur freak back!"
She spun around, Omiko crossing her arms with a huff, "Fine, but I don't want to deal with Hikari's problems more than I needed." She walked off holding Death Racket over her shoulders.
However, observing the group was the kidnapper with a smarmy grin, "Too easy." Said a man with Inumuta's face, but not his voice. With a click of a button, a humanoid cockroach carrying a staff on one hand and with two weighing scales giving his single-eyed face the look of a pair of cymbals, revealed his true form. "This girl's please will give Fourze a reason to test that Kiryūin girl, but it puts an actually entertaining show on stage."
X-X-X-X-X
"Hey pops! Thanks for the ramen, you always make the best stuff!" Exiting a small ramen shop, Uzu felt pretty damn good about himself.
He had gone out to Osaka to visit his uncle, a man by the name of Sendou, and had spent a very nice weekend with him. He more or less skipped Saturday and Monday to have a three-day weekend on family related matters, another perk of being one of the Elite Four.
A toothpick hung loosely from his lips while he himself wore a normal outfit with minimal Life Fiber stitching. Said outfit was a tight green t-shirt with a smiling monkey holding a banana on it, a pair of white jeans, and his old school jacket tied around his waist.
"My weekend is almost up, man… I almost hate to get back to Satsuki-sama and the academy, I wanted to hear more about Oji-san's boxing stories…" He let out a small smile, "Eh, I'll get the full play-by-play about how he fought that tough asshole Ippo next time I'm out here."
Scratching the back of his head, he shoved his hand down into his pockets and walked towards where he knew the train station was, his stuff already being packed onto a VIP cabin. He admired the night sky and the glimmering lights of Osaka, the Kanto monkey wishing he was able to drink already but that Gamagōri would get irked at him if the man caught him so much as taking a sip of booze, not even Satsuki drank except for rare occasions or extremely important celebrations.
"My, my, my…" someone whispered, barely able to contain their excitement.
Stopping suddenly, something about the air made him spit out his toothpick, and slowly reach for the bamboo sword at his side. Turning his head slowly, his eyes snapped wildly around, focusing on every single direction possible.
"No use hiding, I can feel you watching me, so come out from that stupid illusion, you freak." He reached for a nearby lead pipe, holding it like it were his shinai.
From the shadows a tall, handsome Japanese man walked out with a fine if simple haircut, a fancy leather jacket, and an expensive casual outfit beneath it. He was middle-aged and had a face like a model or an actor for some cool live action show of the early 2000s.
"Hahahaha, so that is the power of one of that little girls Elite Four…" he said with a charming smile, "Ragyō-san's daughter certainly surrounds herself with interesting people. How intriguing, I wanted to test this out on the woman herself or that other girl… but a Life-Fiber user will do for now, the results will be useful when I wish to use this on a Kamui user."
Uzu smirked, "Boasting so much about your plans… I just want to see how cocky you can be when I break that smug smirk in two." He twirled his unconventional weapon once in his hand before rushing at the man.
The man pulled out a red switch, "To think Leo chose that maniac…" he pressed it, his body wrapping in dark energy and miniature stars, "I'll have to use the proper specimens."
Uzu gasped when his temporary "sword" met a staff the likes of a traditional monk, with several rings dangling on one end. But the shock came from seeing what the man had turned into. His form was now fully cloaked, but what he could see was a head that consisted of two parts resembling scales put together with antennae, giving it a cockroach-like appearance. Not only that, a single and very unsettling lonely eyes stared right at him.
"You're still too confident!" Uzu shot at him, holding his weapon in both hands and delivering strikes.
Left, right, up, down, and even straight forward. The cloaked figure saw each hit coming his way and infuriated the monkey themed young man by deflecting, blocking, or simply swatting aside every strike with ease. Not only that, it gave the green haired lad a bad case of déjà vu like when he first fought Satsuki, but unlike the elegant young woman he felt no respect for this man before him, if he could even be called that.
No, what he felt was a knot in his stomach that came not from fear or anger, but a strange disgust. Something was wrong with this man, something was truly twisted in him, and yet through every blow he failed to deliver he could see one thing… This man was motivated by something far stronger than the two of them combined, the same drive that made Uzu follow Satsuki. It could have been a brief meeting, but the monkey swordsman could say without a shadow of a doubt that his opponent was as devoted if not far more to a truly powerful person, the same way the green sword master followed Satsuki.
"Enough games, Libra!" said another figure, and Uzu had just those words to react to what came next. He found yet another cloaked figure, but this time their head was lion-themed, and this newcomer had very shape clawed-gauntlets.
Brief as this newcomer's appearance had been, it still served to slice the lead pipe like it were sushi. What followed next was a blur to Uzu. He knew he lost, he knew he was unmatched but couldn't believe just how badly. Falling back, he felt his eyes unable to focus, his body seemingly paralyzed, it wasn't fear, nor was it pain, he just felt unable to believe what was happening next.
The cockroach bastard forced his hands to grip a small switch, making them press the button upon it, then… he only saw darkness as everything consumed him.
The last words he heard being the smug jerk chuckling, "Embrace the power you're given my boy, it'll prove beyond useful for you."
From a distance Ikki watched it all, playing with his Switch, "Sanageyama-senpai, huh? My bosses are actually being smart…" he threw his Switch in the air, catching it with a small smile, "After all, who better than Uzu to prove to Satsuki-'sama' who's truly strong?"
He pocketed the Switch and walked to the men while the darkness settled around his senior, waving in a disinteresting manner at them, "You're late." Libra said.
The raccoon boy gave him a soft if twisted smile, "Part of having responsibilities is to take care of them. The boy and my girlfriend are the things I need to take care of, don't you get it yet, sensei?"
Libra's staff was about to hit the young and rude boxer, but Leo's claw stopped it, "You played enough, Antennae-boy." With that, the two men returned to normal, Leo revealing himself as Gamou's bodyguard, "And you, Kazama…"
Said brunet shook his head in amusement, he gave the muscular man a challenging look, "Just remember, after I defeat Kisaragi-san, and then target Satsuki-'sama', I get a chance to fight you. It's what I deserve, don't you think?"
Kou's hand went directly to Ikki's neck, cutting his breath swiftly, "You and I are men without purpose. Gamou-sama gave us a goal. If you dare to disrespect that, I won't need my Switch to show you how pathetic you are on your own. You deserve little more than a slap across the head for your insubordination, boy!"
And with that said, he kicked the boxer to the side… making him crash into a wall.
Libra, better known as Kouhei Hayami, scoffed, "Why would you pick such a punk?"
Kou lifted his hand, playing with a new set of walnuts. Before he could make any noise Ikki was on his feet with a wide smirk on his face and blood dripping from his forehead. The young and scrawny pugilist licked the red liquid and spat it on the ground.
"Ahahaha…haheh…" he laughed softly, cracking his neck, "Is that all?"
"He has a natural gift for boxers, an iron jaw." Kou explained, "He's stubborn and can take strikes well… I kicked him with enough force to break a concrete divider."
Hayami nodded, "Sounds like Cancer, only more annoying."
Kou merely scoffed to himself, "He's a strong boy, he'll get stronger. And more importantly… I have business myself. I'll let you and Kazama teach that foolish samurai warrior how to use his Zodiarts abilities… For now, there's a man I need to have a drink with, so do not follow me, or interrupt me. That is my rule."
With that the massive man walked off into the darkness, heading towards a bar only he and a few others knew the location of, to have a drink with a man he admired, and to pay his respects to another long lost.
Hayami looked back upon Uzu's Zodiarts form, and could only chuckle as the unconscious body righted itself properly, "Argus… That's a constellation I have yet to see truly appear... I was right to pick you as a test subject samurai boy, Gamou-sama will be impressed with you for sure. Especially as he can annoy that fiendish woman even more."
The Zodiarts that stood blankly in front of him was indeed unique to say the least. Over its arms were vibrantly colored blue, green, and purple feather tufts, giving it an armguard or fencing manchette like appearance. Its body had dozens, if not over a hundred different eye-like spots over its chest, arms, back, legs, groin, even its underarms and joints had these fake eyes.
Said eyes seemed closed at the moment, but the stony eyelids that covered them twitched, making it certain that they'd open sooner or late. At its side was a gigantic weapon, half-way between a club and a zweihander, namely a massive blunt blade attached to a wide wooden handle made into a hammer-like grip with those same eyes covering its entire form, giving it a decidedly organic appearance.
Its head was a mix of a peacock and a human's, with beak-like lips, a distinct lack of eyes or nose, and a feathered mane of green 'hair' giving it a rooster like appearance. Its body was clad in armored samurai plating, making it appear all the world like a human-shaped peacock just raided a feudal Japan museum, it even had on a Japanese style helm with the chin guards ripped off.
"…Surpass… Satsuki… Surpass… Fourze…!" The Zodiarts rumbled out in a distorted tone similar to Uzu's normal voice, before it swung its sword around in an arc, a wave of energy snapping out and making a building explode into a blazing inferno.
"Most impressive… hahaha! I can't wait to see that Fourze brat deal with you…!" Hayami chuckled out with a nasty smirk, before he walked away, the Argus Zodiarts following him mindlessly.
The night stars twinkled above them, and all was quiet after their departure.
X-X-X-X-X
Tomoko stared at her friends sweating bullets around her, "Please, keep your distance."
She told them as they all huddled around the Mankanshoku household's small coffee table, which also doubled as the dining table. They were looking at the goth thanks to the Burgermeal's transmission of Rabbit Hutch. Kengo was beside the goth, observing as intently as the others her attempts to find the missing girl.
On one hand she held a small crystal dangling from a cord and over a map of the city. Candles were lit as she tried her best to find the girl with a picture of Dina – courtesy of Omiko keeping things tidy and organized enough to know where to find one – for her location hexes. Everyone, including Ryusei, waited impatiently for an answer.
"Just tell us if Dina-chan's fine." Gentaro pleaded.
Ryūko was still pissed, "And then, tell us where to find Four-Eyes so I can make him lick his b-"
"...odd..." Tomoko whispered, "I sense her presence, but someone...powerful, too powerful, is hiding her with his link to the cosmos." Shutting her eyes tight, she tried to concentrate, "I can't tell where they keep her, but...I can tell she is alive...and..." the crystal started to spin around, a gasp escaping her as it danced, "She's..."
"Where?!" Gentaro asked, but the cord snapped and sent the crystal flying.
"Dammit..." Tomoko cursed, "They're good, but...too good."
"Huh!?" Mako questioned, "Isn't that a given if they can do this?"
"No, but...if this Inumuta is like anything you say, how could he just block me like...that?" their resident dark arts expert mumbled in worry, "Could he be...in cahoots with the Zodiarts?"
"Wait, what makes you say that!?" Maiko had to step in, "Sure, he's an asshole, but he's not the kind of guy who'd betray Satsuki."
"Unless they got to him like they did Ikki-kun." Takaharu commented.
"Or they could've brainwashed him." Kengo added, "Libra's good on that department."
"I see..." Gentaro stood up and clenched his fists, "If they are willing to use people like this, it's another reason to face them." He turned to his friends and nodded seriously, "Kazama-kun and Dina-chan seem to really like each other. Remember those plushies he had, Ryūko?"
"You mean...wait, now it makes sense, he got them for her." The drifter put the pieces together.
"If they got Dina-chan, they must plan to use him." Gentaro slammed a fist into his palm, "But if they think we're breaking our promise to Dina-chan, let's show them we mean business!"
"Yeah!" everyone cheered.
But Kengo's voice from the laptop had to ruin the moment, "As good as that sounds, how would you find her? This is extremely fishy."
"Simple, I gotta talk to Satsuki-chan!" the Rider beamed.
Everyone's reaction was a loud, shocked, "HUH!?"
"I need to see Inumuta myself, and she's the one I can trust on this."
"Are you cracked on the head!?" Kengo asked.
"I've got an odd feeling... Kinda like how Ryusei first tried to befriend us." He said and looked at his fellow Rider on the screen, who hummed in thought.
"You're saying we got punked...just out of instinct?" Gentaro nodded, "Alright, I trust you."
Kengo rubbed his face, "Hmm...considering how ridiculous this is, it seems fitting." He looked at the one man who tried his hardest to befriend him, "It's possible your link to Cosmic Energy and Life-Fibers got stronger here considering this place is a bottomless barrel of potential."
"Alright, let's say we believe that...what proof do we have?" Maiko asked seriously.
Suddenly, a small alarm blared from Kengo's computer, the sickly teen looking worried, "It seems another Zodiarts has already materialized, we're tracking it as it makes a beeline to you. It's strange however, the Zodiarts energy fluctuating is almost… almost as if its user isn't fully aware of the changes in their body and is only moving by instinct."
"Alright, so it's either Inumuta...or someone tricking us." Takaharu commented, believing what his brother in all but blood said. "We ought to look it up."
"I shall send Tomoko and Sakuta to you immediately, wait for them." Kengo ordered.
"What about your own school, Kengo, isn't that in trouble?" Ryūko asked casually.
"Daimonji came back here, so we can count on him, and even JK decided to back us up, though it's mostly by Miu forcing him." Kengo told the crew hovering over Gentaro's shoulder, the pompadour clad teen already pictured Miu in a throne with a crown and full queen outfit ordering some knights to put JK in a large yellow mecha. "And I have a name. I'd like to be referred to as Utahoshi-san."
Ryūko turned to her Rider friend, "How can you be friends with this jackass?!" she shouted, feeling tempted to punch the screen displaying the stoic sickly teen.
Gentaro chuckled, "You kind of have to grow on Kengo."
"I'd still prefer that you weren't so casual with my name, Kisaragi." The intelligent teen said, "However, I am bothered by what you claimed to have found out… Fukuroda, right?"
The short boxer nodded, "What do you have? Like I said, Kazama-kun had some strange morals around Mako-chan's little brother."
"Or he has a short fuse. Whatever it may be, it shows signs of something, dare I say it, parasitic with this Switch of his. All Switches so far are like drugs, they rot the minds of the user while granting them power. There is always a motivation, and the more violent or passionate it is the easier it is for the user to turn into a true monster. Yet this one guy acted like he looked for comrades, for people like him. After all, he was around this kid when he was a delinquent, but then turned on him when he changed into a snob."
Kengo's words made sense to Gentaro in the only way they could, "In short, he's looking for friends like him, looking for… bad boys…" he whispered the last two words with a bit of an accent in it.
Kengo's right eye twitched, "Do not… ever… ever… say those two words in that bad American accent. And please, promise me you won't do cosplay again." Gentaro rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment while Kengo sighed again, "By the way, I'll come by in a week or two to fine-tune your Switches."
"Thanks, Kengo! I can't wait to introduce you to everyone!" Gentaro's easy-going grin made the young man chuckle despite himself, before the two ended communications.
Ryūko looked mildly annoyed by but also accepting of the situation, she commented blithely while scratching the side of her head as an irritating itch came across it, "If these Zodiarts assholes are as strong as you say… I'm glad we have an ally who can help us fight them off coming here."
She didn't want to admit it, but she was wary about fighting them herself. She had never fought literal monsters before and having Gentaro and his friend show them how to fight those things made her feel more reassured.
X-X-X-X-X
The revving of a motorcycle made all of the group run outside, Mako looking out with bright sparkling eyes before she declared, "AH! IT'S ANOTHER KAMEN RIDER BIKE!?"
A bike that was best described as being akin to a satellite on wheels blared towards them, then stopped at their side, the faint scent of its hydrogen-based fuel filling the air before the rider stepped off of his bike. A tall figure in a brown uniform and a bike helmet flipped up the visor before he took it off to reveal a handsome face roughly a little younger than Gentaro's.
"Gentaro-san." And there he was, the man of the hour. Ryusei smiled brightly before a hand placed itself on his shoulder, black nail polish glimmering as an evil aura made Mako gulp.
Ryūko gulped herself and looked wary, while Omiko and Takaharu took places next to their de facto leader, the four fighters looking ready to battle. Maiko was prepared to dive into somewhere nice and safe until the fight ended.
"Gentaro-san…. It's wonderful to see you again. I told you I'd make Ryusei-kun into a proper man, didn't I?" the beautiful if extremely creepy goth girl clung to the Meteor Rider's back, her head on his shoulder and a wicked smile on her face that turned genuinely warm at seeing Gentaro grin right back at her.
Maiko hugged herself, shuddering, "For a moment the air got cold, too cold…" she looked at the goth girl, "I can just tell… she will defy science…"
Tomoko poked her head out further from Ryusei's back, her eyes focused on the glasses clad girl, "Mnh? Your aura… it's as nasty as JK's, you look like you're as creepy and cowardly as he is." she said that bluntly, making Ryūko snicker to herself while Maiko adjusted her glasses in a flustered motion.
"And you're that goth girl Gentaro spoke of. Tomoko Nozama, he mentioned you were as illogical as a Cordyceps infected spider, and about as nasty too." Maiko said with an oily smile, trying to keep her temper from spiking at the creepy coward comment.
"I see you're as venomous as JK too, not surprising, you are his counterpart, of a sort." Tomoko replied back in an airy manner, her unblinking gaze flustering Maiko even more to the point that her glasses became askew.
"I-wha-bwha, I've n-never!" She gasped out with a bright red face, Tomoko ignoring her now and cuddling Ryusei's back making the more stoic of the two Riders embarrassed.
"Oh, I like her already!" the tennis girl cheered, earning a glare from Maiko. Her comment also caused Tomoko to hide her face on Meteor's back.
Gentaro was beaming, "I can tell it's going to be a fun day! I can't wait to see what happens next!"
X-X-X-X-X
"Ahaha…man, this is just boring… Come on, give me a fight, no? You're done?"
In the middle of an alley, three men in suits, all of them teachers of the academy our heroes attended to, were facing a slightly grinning Kazama accompanied by a stoic Uzu.
"Knock it off, they're not worth it. Even if they're trash…" the green haired lad spat out, "Tch… To think that cold bitch of Satsuki would give these losers a chance to be on my level…"
"Well senpai, that's one reason why we got to knock some heads, right?" Ikki smiled thinly, his solemn expression growing more warped, "You need to get stronger, especially since I aim to take your ambition from you. Call me a thief of pride, if you prefer."
Sanageyama chuckled darkly, scaring the teachers before him and the raccoon boy, "Heh, you can go and get your fill of weaklings, remember that Satsuki and Fourze are mine…"
"Fine…" Kazama said, getting into a lazy boxing stance, "I'll just leave a note to those fools who don't want to challenge status quo... But as I said, senpai, if you don't take the initiative, I'll fight her in your place."
One of the teachers pleaded at them, "S-Sanageyama-kun, please! You're not like this, you-"
"Let me get one thing straight." Uzu started, putting on a wild grin, "I was never following Satsuki to be her butler… I just wanted to surpass her, and now I finally can unleash more power than she could ever dream to have."
Off in the shadows, a gasp escaped one Dina Saori when she watched her boyfriend knock down a teacher with a hook before giving chase to the other two, "Ikki-kun…"
"Is that it?" Kazama asked coldly, delivering an upper-cut to another teacher knocking him down and cornering the last one, "If you're going to make excuses, please make them original. Okay?"
"B-But I don't even teach you two!" the last teacher cried, "P-Please! I never try to be mean to my students, and if I'm ever strict it's because I want them to improve, to grow up! I-"
"I, I, I…" Kazama mocked him with a smile, "It's always about you teachers, never about the students… Really messed up, you think the world cares about you? It doesn't. We're going to run it in the future, fool."
He was about to deliver a straight punch to the man's jaw, but stopped at the last minute, "Ikki-kun, please!"
"Dina-chan?" he actually stepped back, eyes widening a fraction of an inch, "Why are you here?"
The girl had her arms stretched, trying to shield the teacher, "Stop, ok?" she begged, "J-Just… talk to me, ok? Why are you even doing this? Why do you hate teachers so much? Please, tell me. I-"
"Move." Uzu said, walking past her, "Kazama-kun already left our greeting card to Satsuki and Fourze beating these teachers… What say you?" he asked the lanky boxer.
"Ikki-kun…" she started, "Why would you do this?"
He reached to her, and for a moment the girl closed her eyes, but snapped them open when she felt his hand on her head, ruffling her hair a bit, "Go home, Dina, things are gonna turn out nasty sooner than later. I don't want you in the crossfires, and tell that Mankanshoku brat to stay home too, I don't want him there either."
"Tell me why!" she snapped, and did something that shocked her younger-than-her boyfriend, she slapped him, "Oh… Oh no, I didn't mean to-"
"Hah, you're too kind…you care so much about a tanuki like me? Dina-chan, go home." He said as he rubbed his cheek, "Just stay there, and don't worry about what I'll do, I'll be back later."
"Stop with the romantic crap." Uzu said, "You want to mess the place and the snobs, and I want to have a proper match with Satsuki, so let's go."
Ikki frowned, "Just stay out of this, senpai, this is between me and my girlfriend... I'll be back soon, Dina-chan. You won't have to worry about school anymore, no one will…" He said with a stern look before he walked past her.
Dina sniffed as the two passed her off, a man who gave her the creeps following them with a loud hum. She meant to turn back home until a gigantic man whose appearance screamed yakuza passed her by. Worried beyond reason as all four were giving horrifying auras, she rushed back to Honnōji, wanting to warn her friends at any cost.
"Wait there, little lady." Said Hayami, the man instantly appearing before her, "I need to make sure you remember only the important things, nothing about unnecessary details."
Dina gasped at the cold hand reaching for her forehead, "N-No, don't-"
Ikki appeared right in front of the principal, "You targeted her before, I owe you for that cockroach. Touch her again and I'll-" he said. It was the first moment that he gained a semblance of anger and fire as he grabbed Hayami's arm.
Dina watched her boyfriend flying soon after, receiving a roundhouse kick to the gut from Kou, "I'm starting to think you may be right, Antennae-boy. He is starting to become more trouble than he's worth."
"G-Get your hands off her…" Kazama grunted, trying to get up.
Before he could, Sanageyama brought out his trusty shinai, smashing the boxer on the head to knock him back down, "You said I'd get to fight Satsuki and Fourze, just make sure it's actually worth my trouble."
Hayami smiled while Dina's mind started to feel fuzzy, "And I told you a student chosen by that cold school president would be our best choice, Leo."
Said tall man scowled but decided to give the Libra Horoscope the point, for now. All that Dina knew was that whatever recollection she had was starting to fade.
"Ikki-kun…" She whimpered. A shimmer replaced Hayami's body as he once more resembled Inumuta.
"Why…?" He stumbled to his feet, restrained by Uzu until a look from Kou made the green-haired man let him go.
"She's a decoy, worry not, she won't be harmed if you behave. You can have her back once we get what we asked of you." Hayami said, smiling thinly.
Kou cracked his walnuts loudly, "This level of trickery is a waste of our time antennae-boy." The ex-street fighter said to Hayami with a growl. Ikki glaring at him as the man stared down at him. "It will prove to be incredibly useful to our needs. Ikki Kazama, you will fight them. Using this boy's image will prove beyond useful."
The folly of man, and even Zodiarts, is arrogance and underestimation of their foes. None of the four plotting, would imagine that Gentaro would do the most unexpected thing possible.
X-X-X-X-X
"Sat-chan!" Gentaro was inside of her tower, standing right in front of her as the woman sipped a cup of tea.
Nonon glared at him, Inumuta was typing at his computer and Gamagōri had his arms crossed. Putting down her cup with a soft clink of china, Satsuki Kiryūin steepled her fingers, staring at the pompadour clad youth. For once he wore the uniform.
"I see you've conformed. Does this have anything to do with what we discussed before, Kisaragi Gentaro?" She asked him with closed eyes.
Gentaro grinned proudly up at her without a care, "It has everything to do with that! I'll take this uniform off later, but this is just so I could prove to you that my desire to understand the truth is genuine! I will conform to your rules and wishes if it means I can prove what I know to be true."
She let the faintest smirk to appear on her face, "Oh? You're conforming to gain my attention to get information? You're cleverer than I gave you credit for. Very well! Your actions are amusing, what do you wish to know? Ask it and if I deem it acceptable, I will answer your question." She let a laugh escape her lips, looking down at him with a cold smile.
"I want to know if Inumuta Hōka is a Switcher! He kidnapped Dina Saori in front of our eyes. Where has he been the last day?"
Looking aggravated, the hacker teen rose up, "A Switcher?! You think I'm a Zodiarts? Of all the most laughable-"
He was cut off when Satsuki spoke firmly, "Absolutely not. He has been at my side for the past day. Whoever you saw certainly was not him."
A smirk appeared across Gentaro's face, "I knew it. Someone was impersonating Inumuta."
"Explain." The spectacled tech-savvy teen demanded.
"I felt something off about them considering you use those fancy uniforms like you're a Senketsu of yours," he started. "It feels like your clothes feel comfy with you, like Senketsu with Ryūko. However, I didn't feel anything like what you guys have with your uniforms from that Inumuta."
"An impostor, then..." Satsuki said, then glared, "However, saying we befriended our uniforms is a laughing matter. They are tools, nothing else."
"I don't know." Gentaro retorted, "Seems to me they feel comfy with you, even Junketsu feels a bit warmer thanks to you."
Satsuki glared but had to stop the conversation, "I see you won't change your mind. However, I do have a matter I need to ask of you." She stood up, hands clasped over Bakuzan's handle like it was a cane, "Have you seen Sanageyama?" the school president declared before turning her fool icy attention to him, "I know he has been eager to face you, therefore my question. I recalled him from Osaka a day ago, he has yet to arrive, and more importantly has yet to call back."
Satsuki was many things, all-knowing was sadly not one of them. She had lost contact with her trusted Elite Four member a good day ago. He was supposed to come back today but had yet to show up or give any report indicating his untimely arrival. It was testament to the discipline that she installed into all her students and her Elite Four that a mere day of being late was considered abnormal and alarming to her. Sure, they could skip classes if they saw the need to do so, but even then, they'd have to answer to her about the motive, and Uzu was a man unafraid of any punishment he could get.
"I haven't, but we may have a clue." He replied, "If anything happens, know we're going to keep everyone here safe, whether you want us to or not."
Nonon was livid, "Hey, do you even know who you're talking to!?"
"It's fine, Nonon, I see his conviction won't change." Satsuki retorted, "And it'll be a good way to see if he can back up his words. However..." she drawled out dangerously coldly, "If you do not provide me of the whereabouts of my Elite Four, I shall declare any further discussions with you a waste of time and allow Gamagōri to find a proper punishment."
"I shall make an example of him, Satsuki-sama." The large frog man kneeled.
Where many would've been terrified, the Rider smiled, "You're afraid for his safety." Gentaro said, somehow cutting right to the matter.
Satsuki accused him lightly, "Kisaragi Gentaro, you are getting too smart for your own good…this was not in the report we had of your personality and personal values."
The Kamen Rider flashed her a slight grin, "I love surprising people. Doing what's expected, I understand. To me just following what everyone else is doing might never get me to where I want to be. If I wear the uniform tomorrow, I'll be a member of your school. But if I wear it only when it'd matter most, then I'll prove to you that I'm someone worth noticing!"
The way he worded that little micro-speech made her lips quirk into an infinitesimally small smile, "You have room to grow. Here." She reached into Junketsu, then threw a small dog-eared but immaculate book at him.
He caught it with one hand and tilted his head inquisitively. In vibrant letters atop a backdrop of a stick-figure in front of a crowd were the words, "The Big Book of Charisma." In smaller print underneath the title it said "From writing speeches to inspiring troops, advice from the greatest motivational speakers. Personal interviews with inspirational men such as Keanu Reeves! Guaranteed to make you a better you than the you of today!"
"Your copy?" he asked her in excitement.
Satsuki motioned with her hand; he was dismissed. He got his answer after he left, since the inside of the book had her name written on it. And the age she got it.
"WOW!" he gasped in awe, as it said she had been reading this book at age 6!
Knowing that Satsuki Kiryūin was much more incredible than before, gave the delinquent Rider the courage and passion to discard the no-star uniform. Conformity was only to be done for special occasions, being independent and finding his own way through life were too deeply ingrained into his very core as a man.
He put it back where he had kept it before, in a small box that came with him when he entered the academy proper. Energized and ready to keep going, his resolve to befriend Satsuki burned brighter than ever.
X-X-X-X-X
Even as the Zodiarts were on the move, there were other parties heading towards the Academy. Atop a massive Harley, a man was riding without care towards his goal and his enemies. Behind him was a trail of smoke from his cigarette.
"You don't need to go to these lengths. It's almost like you want to hunt them all. We're not talking about that woman's suited minions, Tsumugu, these are kids." The ear-piece got out a clear message from the overly fabulous nudist professor.
"They should have known what they were doing before putting on those clothes. Just tell me two important things. One, how much do you know of this Fourze? And two, how do I beat him if he's too stupid to mind his own business?"
"That is... I don't have much, but he's one of those Kamen Riders. I've heard little about them, and there's little to go off of to begin with, but what I do know is this. Take away his ability to use his belt, and there's nothing he can otherwise. Just be wary, Kisaragi Gentaro isn't like a Kamui wielder, he can fight without his suit."
Aikuro sighed loudly, the nudist teacher twirling a lock of his hair with a groan before he told the man what little he knew of the belt's functioning. The tech was beyond anything he had ever seen before, and was definitely a cut above the level of their nudist gear. He'd go so far as saying that Gentaro was their best bet at fighting Ragyō and what laid beyond her on even ground.
"Just...take it easy on that kid, he has no idea of what threat Life-fibers can pose."
"I'll see about that... But I will not hesitate to put him down if he turns out as a threat."
Flicking his cancer stick behind him, a trail of smoke shot up into the air as the man floored the bike and bellowed
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ALRIGHT! We had a great turn out this chapter, and more importantly we've done something surprising I hope, me and my brother in all but blood The Swordslinger hope you guys were surprised by this change of events!
Uzu being a Zodiarts, Satsuki worried about him, what will happen next?! Especially with Hayami, Kou, and Kazama with him along with Tsumugu on the move!
Next chapter we'll show just what happens next with all these parties! Look forward to it!
Also yes, we're pair of dicks for this cliffhanger!
Until next time, this is The Lord Of Pages, off to record another chapter!
Also this omake stars a great character from an amazing manga. Licenseless Rider/ Mumen Rider! The Bike Riding Hero of Justice!
X-X-X-X-X
Omake by The Swordslinger:
The Kisaragi Family pt. 4
After having some fun with Gentaro's relatives, the odd group of friends decided to get some ice cream. They were standing near a river with a view of the water passing by and some kids playing by the shore and some others fishing. Everyone had a frozen treat to their liking while enjoying the view.
"Your family sure is nuts, Gentaro." Ryūko said softly, "No offense, but you have to admit, a giant banchou, a yakuza, two devils… Is there anyone normal you're related to?"
Gentaro put a hand on his chin, "Well, it is hard to say…" he tilted his head back, "Hmm… I think there's one. His name's-"
"Ah, kitty!"
The teens turned to look at the river, where a little girl tried to reach deeper into it but was stopped by her mother. In a bridge over the river was a box, and inside it was a tiny orange and black spotted white cat, a kitten that could fit in a little girl's hand, mewling with its head resting on the edge of the box. The kitten's weight was making the box tilt towards the water, making many people worry.
Gentaro didn't even waste a second and he was immediately running to the river. He'd have made a jump for it and grabbed the falling cat, had someone not beaten him to it.
"Out Of Saddle Mode! Roar, Justice Roar!"
A boy turned as a green blue zipped past him and into the water, the sound of a bicycle's wheels rushing into the river. Everyone saw as an average looking man clad in cyclist gear similar looking to Gentaro's armor leapt off his green bike. His head was protected by a green round helmet, and the upper part of his face was hidden behind a pair of safety goggles.
The boy recognized the man, "Go, Mumen Rider! Go!"
The cyclist managed to catch the box and wrapped his body around it, becoming a protective sphere. Everyone nearby watched the man land on the other side of the river, rolling to a stop. They held their breath while waiting for a response for the man was sprawled over, not even twitching.
Ryūko slid a foot towards the man, trying to get a look at him, "H-Hey… are you dead?" she hated how dumb she sounded, but she had nothing better to ask.
A grunt was a relief, though, "Is the cat-" the man sat up straight like he had been zapped by lightning, looking down at the box on his lap to see a curious kitten tilting its head at him, making the cyclist smile, "Thank goodness…" he chuckled and petted the little ball of fur.
"Ah, uncle?!" Gentaro gasped with a finger aimed at the cyclist.
Said man leaned his head to the side as he took in the sight of the teen, before gasping and taking off his helmet and goggles, showing a round and kind face with simple glasses and a messy mop of short and spiky brown hair.
"Gentaro-kun…" the cyclist smiled, "It's been a while. How's my uncle, I mean, your grandfather doing?"
"He couldn't be prouder of you, as I am!" Gentaro cheered.
Grinning widely, Gentaro helped his uncle up, Mumen Rider giving Ryūko a warm smile despite his dirty armor and face.
"Hello there, my name is- Ah! I forgot, super hero code. I can't tell you who I really am. So just call me… Mumen Rider!" The man begun, then slapped his forehead with a gasp, smiling again as he told Ryūko that.
She could only groan as the man and Gentaro help give the kitten back to its owner, yet despite that… even though the man was obviously nowhere near as strong as his nephew, she could only smile at the heart he had on him.
"A hero's a hero no matter how small they are… peh, such sappy crap…" She muttered with a snort, remembering something Gentaro had told her once when they were going to bed and she asked him why he felt so strongly about Kamen Rider's.
It was a stupid question and she had been tired, but what he told her…
"Dammit that was inspiring though… It's because they protect those weaker than them, because they give their all to let innocent people live freely… tch…"
