HAHA 6 MONTHS I'M SORRY I AM TRASH. but I'm back for now. Not even going to say much more; please enjoy!
"You are wasting your time." The small boy glanced up at the elder man. There was no warmth in the man's eyes; his hard grey eyes practically pierced into the eight-year-old, daring him to disagree. The boy's eyes lowered, as the man took a deep breath. He reached for the book in the boy's possession, eyeing it keenly. "The Code of the Samurai?"
"Bushido," The little boy amended. "It's a code of honor that all samurai must abide by. There are eight virtues we—they—must follow: rectitude, courage, benevolence, politeness, honesty, honor, loyalty, and character."
"We don't live in a Feudal Age, Kairi," Seto reminded him. Kairi clenched his fist, staring down at the table. "You have more important pursuits in life other than reading about some archaic legend. You should be learning about something useful, like business trade or entrepreneurship, something that can benefit you in the future." Kairi nodded slowly. His eyes lingered on the Code of the Samurai for a second, before turning to his bookshelf, reaching for one of his father's books on economics, before sitting down to read it.
Kairi was not used to being on the opposite side of his father. Standing outside of his father's shadow, Kairi felt suddenly exposed; fear was the blood pulsating his body, immobilizing him. All he could do was stare at his father; his expression was completely stoic, the sun bouncing light off his glasses. The bruise on his face seemed exceptionally painful suddenly.
"We don't need to do this, Saira," Tadase began, his voice thick. The mossy-blonde-haired teenager turned to face him. "There is another way to get what you want. You don't need to pursue this." Tadase extended his hand in her direction.
"We're family, Saira-Chan," He continued, his voice softening. "I'm your cousin. I know my uncle hasn't been the best, but… but I can be your family. You don't need Amu-Chan to give you some forced fortune; you can find have a family with me!"
"Hotori Tadase, the noble king. Such a kind offer, but…" Saira shrugged. "I'll have to refuse, sorry. You're not the family I'm looking for; you're not the family I want."
"Sometimes you can't go back," Ikuto urged, desperation filling his voice. "I know you miss your mother. My father left a long time ago and—"
"You know nothing about me." Saira lifted her hand, but tightropes quickly surrounded her wrist. She turned her head, frowning at the petite blonde. Rima glared at her.
"I won't lose to you again," Rima spat. "I won't let you get away with this." A smirk formed on Saira's face, though Kairi could make out that it waned slightly.
"It's too late, Rima. You can't stop us now."
"Try me." Some juggling pins floated up, surrounding Rima. They circled her, spikes on the tips of each of them.
"Juggling Party," She murmured, causing the line of pins to launch straight at Saira. The ropes on her wrist disintegrated suddenly, and she lifted her palm, causing the pins to launch straight back at Rima. A small smirk formed on the blonde's face, as the pins immediately flung back into Rima's open palm. She tightened her fist around the pins.
"I'm not falling for that trick again," Rima taunted. Saira grimaced, before extending her arm in Rima's direction once more, shooting green energy at her. Before Rima could retaliate, a basketball suddenly knocked into Saira, causing the energy to dissipate and for her to fall to the ground. Nagihiko stepped beside Rima.
"What are you—"
"We're partners, remember?" He smiled at her. "We'll fight together." He gave her a look, prompting Rima's eyes to widen. She nodded slowly, her eyes drifting back to the sky.
More Easter employees arrived at the scene, armed with weapons. Kukai immediately tossed a soccer ball in their direction, hindering their movement momentarily. Yaya stood beside him, launching rubber duckies at them. Utau extended her trident, shooting Nightmare Lorelei directly at one of the unsuspecting employees. Tadase formed a protective shield around Nagihiko just as he was about to get hit directly with one of her attacks.
"It doesn't need to be like this, Saira!" Tadase called desperately. Saira rolled her eyes.
"You talk too much." Tadase gripped his scepter tightly as Saira launched an attack at him, but it was Ikuto who had deflected the beam with his claws.
"If you aren't going to lay down, Saira, then we won't either," Ikuto hissed.
As the action continued to unfold, Kairi watched absentmindedly. Both sides were in a stalemate; with the exception of a few unconscious and weakened employees, no one from either side seemed to be too badly damaged. He could hear pants and cries from his friends as attacks hit them, but every time they would be down, they immediately got back up.
Courage. A voice inside of Kairi whispered. He admired their resilience, their ability to keep fighting for what they believed in no matter the risk. They kept doing what was right, no matter what the risks were. No matter what fears they had, they drove forward.
His eyes drifted back to the two Easter executives, who seemed preoccupied to even observe the fighting. Deidre and Seto were busy looking at a tablet, frantic whispers bouncing back and forth. Kairi's gaze lingered on them for a moment longer, until it dawned on him what they were doing. He stepped forward, before hesitating. His heart began beating rapidly. He stared at his father, his eyes watering. He remembered his rough fist against his skin, the sound of his glasses shattering ringing loudly. Kairi took a deep breath.
Rectitude. Kairi thought. The strongest virtue of the Bushido. To move forward with reason and virtue, without wavering. With that, Kairi stepped forward, approaching his family.
"What are you doing?" Kairi demanded firmly, false confidence leaking into his voice. His cousin and father glanced up, mildly surprised to see him. A loud bang prompted Kairi to glance up in concern, but he sighed a breath of relief upon seeing that it was merely the sound of Kukai's soccer ball ricocheting off one of the employee's metal shields. He turned back to his father, stoically.
"That is none of your concern," Deidre responded, her voice short. "Perhaps you could have been of use if you had stayed aligned with us, Kairi. After all, doesn't family mean something to you?" Seto turned back to the tablet in his hands.
"I could ask you the same, Father." Kairi responded, deflecting the question. He could feel trepidation filling him, but he maintained a brave expression. Seto didn't look up at him. "Did I ever mean anything to you? Did you ever respect me…love me?" Seto scoffed.
"What did you want? Did you want me to coddle you? I raised you to be successful, to achieve greatness in your business endeavors. I was raising you to be a man, but it seems I've raised a coward instead, someone who does not know his place."
"You're right." Kairi clenched his fists. Seto glanced up. "I did not know my place. I thought, for the longest time, I believed my sole purpose was to follow you, to be in your shadow. I thought that pursuing what you desired for me would be my fulfillment in life; I thought I aspired to run the course you had established for me. And I made myself believe that this path was my destiny."
Character.
"But I know now, my place is not behind you, Father." Courage built in each of his words. "For I do not follow the same moral compass you do. Monetary success does not dictate my actions. I believe in inherent goodness, the basic morality of humankind. What you stand for, Father, is wrong. And despite my connection to you, I will fight against you for the sake of the world, for what is right."
Loyalty.
"And moreover, I will stand with the people I admire the most, my friends. They can discern what is right and wrong, what is truly worth fighting for, and above all, they are my family. So never again will I betray them; I will fight with them, defending them from whatever end you have in mind." Kairi clenched his fists, his eyes fixed on his father. A sudden applause sounded, prompting Kairi to glance up, startled. Yaya and Kukai stood nearby suddenly, and upon seeing the huge smile on Yaya's face, his face flushed, but he smiled softly. Honesty. He thought to himself, smiling. I was finally able to show my true side to him.
"Damn, that was inspirational," Kukai pointed out. "We love you too, Kairi! We'll always be there for you!"
"Yeah, Yaya agrees!" Yaya smiled brightly, tears welling in her eyes. "You're the best, Kairi-Kun, and the guardians wouldn't be anything without you. And… well…" Yaya blushed.
"Sorry, we just totally killed the mood, didn't we?" Kukai scratched the back of his head. "We should probably, uh, go back to fighting or something. I think we just kind of left Utau all alone to face the X-Eggs." Utau peered up at them, shooting them a glare.
"What a shame." Seto shook his head slowly. "You would have made a fine businessman, Kairi. You do have a good way of words, and with more craft, you could be charismatic. We could have reveled in the success of this new world together."
"I want nothing to do with you," Kairi hissed callously. "And we will put an end to your plans." Seto sighed.
"Deidre, is it ready?" Kairi's eyes widened, his gaze turning back to his cousin. She looked up from the tablet, nodding.
"Let's go." To Kairi's astonishment, a large humanoid machine suddenly flew downward from the sky, landing adjacent to Seto and Deidre. A large white X glistened on its forehead, shining under the bright sun. It stood slightly taller than Seto, looming around 2 meters tall. It had hollow black crescent-shaped eye-like features and appeared to be gazing downward. Its whole body was black, and a grey cape seemed to be extending downward from its body. Kairi stared at it wide-eyed.
"Meet the Extractor," Deidre mused. "The direct descendent of the old X-Powers. Some of your work actually went to this, Kairi. Why don't we see him in action?" The Extractor's eyes suddenly flashed yellow as it extended its hand suddenly, aiming it at Kairi. To Kairi's horror, his palm seemed to begin glowing grey as if charging for an attack, but he could only stare, preparing for the imminent shot.
"KAIRI!" A voice screamed, before a loud bang sounded. Kairi glanced up in horror, only to see that the attack did not hit him. Yaya cried out in pain, crumbling to the ground, and her character transformation immediately ended. Pepe floated beside her, worry in her eyes.
"Yaya!" Kairi cried, kneeling down beside her.
"What the hell did you do to her?!" Kukai demanded, anger rising. Kairi cradled her in his arms, tears beginning to form in his eyes. Kukai began to lunge forward, but Utau quickly grabbed his shirt, shaking her head slowly.
"They want us to be provoked," Utau whispered, her voice solemn. "Remember our fight against Rima?"
"But Yaya…"
"Kairi will take care of her. We need to focus on these X-Eggs and employees." Reluctantly, Kukai backed away, glaring at Deidre and the Extractor beside her.
"Yaya…" Kairi whispered. He could feel the teenager tremble in his arms. "Are you bleeding anywhere or…?" Yaya shook her head.
"It just… kind of hurts all over," She mumbled. "It's not bleeding or anything, just… ugh!" Yaya cried out in pain, reaching for his hand suddenly.
Politeness. Kairi squeezed her hand tightly back, before letting go suddenly.
"May I take a look?" Kairi whispered softly. Yaya nodded slowly, prompting Kairi to lift the side of her shirt slightly, examining the part of her stomach that was hit. He winced slightly, upon seeing a huge black gash on her hip. Her head was in his lap as she moaned in pain. His eyebrow raised as he studied it. It didn't look like a normal bruise or injury; it was almost black like an X-Egg. He placed a hand on it, prompting her cry out more. He immediately removed his hand, a frown adorning his features.
"I'm so sorry, Yaya-Chan."
"N-No, you're fine." Yaya tried to smile, but she moaned instead. "Yaya promised Yukari after all that she'd protect you, right?" Kairi's eyes widened, tears beginning to fall down his cheeks. She reached up, caressing his cheek lightly. "You know, tears don't suit you Kairi-Kun." Yaya frowned slightly. "Aw man, that didn't work. That was a lot cuter when Nagi-Tan said that to Rima-Tan. But Yaya tried at least." She moaned in more pain, clutching Kairi's hand tightly.
"You're going to be okay," Kairi reassured, softly. "I won't allow you to suffer. Everything will be okay, Yaya-Chan." He smiled crestfallenly.
"Yaya…" Kairi looked at her. "Just Yaya, okay?" She smiled, though the pain made it wane. Kairi studied her for a moment. He took a deep breath.
"Hey, Yaya?" Yaya looked up at him. "This… this is long overdue, but I need to…" Yaya moaned, prompting Kairi to hold her tighter. "You have been my guiding light for so long. Through everything with my father, despite everything I have gone through, you have been my source of comfort, Yaya, the girl who could make me feel special despite everything. If it weren't for you, I would still be lost somewhere as a member of Easter." Yaya smiled weakly, and he could see her consciousness was slipping. "What I'm trying to say is…" He took a shaky breath, tears rolling down his cheeks.
Benevolence. "Yaya, I love you."
"I love you too, Kai—" Yaya's eyes suddenly closed, unbeknownst to Kairi's shouts. Tears poured down his face, as he immediately checked for her pulse, sighing in slight relief as he could still see she was breathing.
"What did you do to her?!" Kairi shouted uncharacteristically, rising to his feet, with Yaya still in his arms.
"She was shot with X-Energy," Deidre explained. Kairi could detect a sense of remorse in her voice, but he didn't care.
"How could you?!" Kairi exclaimed, a sob escaping his throat. "How could you hurt the girl I love?!" Seto frowned.
"Love is a foolish emotion."
"No. I will never forgive you for this!" Suddenly, an egg floated from Kairi's pocket. Despite his watery vision, his eyes widened upon seeing the familiar egg crack open, revealing his samurai chara.
"You have rediscovered the Eight Virtues of Bushido, the code of the Samurai," Musashi spoke. "Rectitude. Benevolence. Politeness. Honesty. Loyalty. Character. And now, you have regained your Honor too, Kairi. You have rediscovered your path, and I am here to fully guide you once again."
"Musashi, I…"
"You would like to join your friends and fight for the fate of the world, I presume? To protect the one you love?" Kairi nodded.
"My own heart, unlock!" Kairi announced, gently placing Yaya down. Kairi transformed into Samurai Soul, landing in front of Deidre and Seto.
"I will not let you get away with this anymore!" Kairi demanded.
"Welcome to the fight, Kairi. Glad you can be useful now besides just saying some bold words and professing your love," Saira mused.
"Thunder Blade!" Kairi yelled, ignoring her, and running forward, slashing through the Extractor. It simply pulled the blade out of its chest, tossing it carelessly to the side. It turned to the sky and shot X-Energy upwards.
"What are you—" Kairi's eyes widened. "You're trying to summon the Embryo! That is the purpose of this machine!"
"So, you're caught up too, I take it." Deidre smirked. Kairi picked up his sword, gripping it tightly. He turned back to Yaya for a brief moment, before charging forward to the machine once more.
"Starlight Navigation!" A globe crashed into the machine suddenly, causing it to stop shooting its X-Energy and crash to the ground. Kairi's eyes widened. Everyone glanced up, as a familiar pinkette stood behind the machine, clutching a giant globe. Luca stood beside her, her hood pulled downward.
"My name is Amu Hinamori. And I will put an end to your plans!"
Not sure how many people are still reading, but please drop a review if you are! Thank you all so much for your support, and I will hopefully have the next one up in a week or two.