The Demi-Human Shinobi

Zero days since the Last Death (Eight Deaths)

"Hi, Onii-san…?" As he ran up the stairs that would lead him to the figure in black, Subaru took the metia in his pocket and opened it without hesitation. The previous time he had contacted the receiver of that magical call, at approximately the same time that he was doing so at that moment. Which implied that, if everything went according to what he expected, the demi-human girl would arrive before he died at the hands of the hostile entity.

After explaining the situation to Mimi and agreeing with her on a meeting point, which was exactly the same as the previous occasion, that is, the first place Mimi noticed signs of combat or commotion, Subaru said goodbye and returned the Conversing mirror to his pants' pocket. Now that he was done briefing the mercenary girl, he could focus on running up to the rooftop of the building.

Yes, if his calculations were correct, and he had called her at the same time as in the previous loop, then Mimi would be there on time. But that would not be enough to survive the appearance of the entity. To meet the necessary conditions to get through that event of death and destruction, Subaru needed to find the demi-human who saved him after returning from his first death. With his presence, and the presence of Mimi, to stop the entity, and even to defeat it, was possible.

Exactly for this reason, although there was the possibility that when he reached the rooftop of the building he would meet the same entity that was longing for his death, he kept running without even taking a breath. He did not know when the figure would decide to leave the rooftop, and if his assumptions were correct and it was the demi-human wolf, then it was quite likely that he would not even bother using the stairs the moment he decided to leave.

After all, the beast-man had appeared by his side, almost coming out of nowhere; most certainly he had jumped from the rooftop to the alley. And after seeing him fight against the hostile entity, he could affirm that this was not an exaggerated notion. That demi-human had quite an incredible physical ability, of that there was no doubt. He had fought on equal terms against the powerful entity that had defeated Mimi, so he must have been a warrior or mercenary of the highest rank.

It was then that Subaru realized something... If I remember correctly, Anastasia received a rather powerful guy at the mansion a couple of days ago, before leaving. She mentioned that he was a Shinobi warrior or something similar, and that he had refused to join the Fang of Iron. She was quite disappointed about it… What did she say his name was? Jaibel, Halbel… No, that wasn't it.

Just when the idea of a warrior of great power was beginning to seem familiar to Subaru, he finally arrived at rooftop the door. Dismissing his useless attempts to remember the name of the warrior Anastasia had met, Subaru steeled his spirit and mustered all his courage. Cautiously, he opened the wooden door and leaned out onto the rooftop; which had a terrace from where the whole metropolitan area could be seen.

He was then inside a building that housed a department complex. Luckily for him, entry was not restricted, and thanks to this he had reached the door to the rooftop without any major setback. The building was not particularly tall, it was made up of five floors. And yet, his mediocre physical condition meant that he was already heaving.

Steadying his breathing and wiping away the sweat that had accumulated on his forehead, both from fatigue and nerves, Subaru looked for the figure in black that he had noticed from the alley. It didn't take him long to find the figure. There, standing on a corner of the terrace, with a plume of smoke escaping from his snout, was the demi-human he had been looking for.

Slightly more relaxed, Subaru stepped onto the terrace and closed the door behind him. He had already found the person he was looking for, and now he just had to convince him to support him. Realizing that, Subaru's confident stride came to a halt. How was he supposed to do that? What could he say to that demi-human he did not know at all, to convince him to give him his support? Subaru's mind was a blank.

He had nothing... The occasion the demi-human followed him, he only did it because of his cryptic warning about the appearance of a dangerous entity. Would repeating the exact same thing give the same results? Subaru had strong doubts about this. Beginning with the fact that on that occasion their encounter had been completely different. Subaru was feeling ill because of his return after dying, so he behaved especially mysterious with this demi-human who had offered him his hand.

But at that moment he had gone looking for him himself, so warn him out of the blue about the appearance of the entity could be completely suspicious and out of place on his part. Of course, there was the possibility that this would be enough to draw the attention of the curious demi-human, but Subaru did not want to risk losing the help of the only person capable of avoiding all the approaching deaths.

Grumbling, Subaru realized that he had spent almost a minute standing there, in the middle of the terrace, staring at the demi-human's back. Considering the good senses of demi-humans, it would not be surprising if he had already noticed his presence, so staring at him without moving or saying anything could be considered completely creepy of him. Wanting to avoid leaving a bad impression, Subaru took a deep breath and closed in on the demi-human.

"Ummm…" Mumbling, Subaru quickly searched for the right words with which to start the conversation. Unfortunately for him, nothing had yet occurred to him; his mind was still empty. Cursing his mental slowness, Subaru decided to say the first thing that came to mind. "Aren't you the Shinobi warrior who went to Anastasia Hoshin's mansion a couple of days ago?"

In the end, that was what ended up coming out of his mouth. Subaru had never seen the aforementioned Shinobi warrior, only heard of him from Anastasia. So he had no reason to link him to that unknown demi-human. No, that statement is incorrect. There was indeed something that had led him to link the mysterious Shinobi warrior and that demi-human. Shinobi, like many things from Kararagi, was a term reminiscent of something from his native country, Japan.

And the name refers to male ninja warriors, a description that definitely fit the demi-human's fighting style. That demi-human was a warrior who used ninjutsu techniques and was considerably powerful. So he also fit that description of the warrior who met Anastasia. Furthermore, it had not been long since the meeting took place, so it would not be surprising if that warrior were still in Kyo. With all that in mind, Subaru had decided to ask such a straightforward question.

"Hmm… I was curious about what you might say, but I must admit I didn't expect that." With a relaxed sigh, the shabby-looking beast-man answered without turning to face him. With his sharp gaze focused on the south side of the metropolitan area, opposite the main avenue, the demi-human let out another plume of smoke from his mouth. "I guess I've no reason to deny it… Are you an employee of the mansion, kid?"

Feeling satisfied by his successful deduction, Subaru decided to continue the topic of conversation that he himself had started. "You could say that, yes. I am an employee of Anastasia-sama and I reside in the mansion." Reminding himself of his position, Subaru decided to speak formally.

"Hmm… I see." Showing no interest, the demi-human smoked from his pipe, yet not looking at him. "May I know what brought you here? I'm not much in sight, so I'm a little surprised you found me so easily."

"Umm…" With nervousness returning to him, Subaru realized that this topic of conversation would get him nowhere. And the situation could be worse than that, since there was a possibility that the demi-human would believe that his goal was to try to convince him to accept Anastasia's offer. That could lead to him refusing any request he made… He had been mistaken in his approach to the conversation.

"I'm enjoyin' my day off. Ya know, kid…? It's been a long time since I've had a chance to come to Kyo, so I'd rather not be disturbed… If you don't have anythin' important to say to me, then you'd-"

"Halibel!"

"Huh?" Taken by surprise by the black-haired reaction, the demi-human finally decided to turn towards Subaru. With her sharp eyes, he looked him in the face.

"I remembered, your name's Halibel! You're the mightiest warrior in this country, aren't you? That's what Anastasia told me." Dismissing the formality, Subaru gazed at the demi-human named Halibel, who was now watching him with suspicion.

"What about it, kid? I never hid my identity from your employer."

"I had forgotten your name and couldn't remember it, that's all. Now that I remembered it, I feel like a weight has been lifted from my shoulders."

"Kid… What the hell are ya talkin' about?" Halibel didn't seem to be bothered by Subaru's attitude, but he clearly wasn't pleased either.

"Halibel-san..." Looking directly at the demi-human, Subaru took a deep breath and prepared to say what he had come to say, he would stop beating about the bush. "A dangerous entity is about to attack the main avenue of the metropolitan area, the lives of many people are in danger, and you are the only one who can deal with it." He didn't want to sound shameless, so Subaru spoke to him in the most respectful way he could, even in his hurry.

"An entity, you say?" Bewildered, Halibel exhaled smoke, thus emphasizing his doubtful expression.

"Yes. She looks like a beautiful white-haired woman, dressed in a black kimono that hardly covers her thighs; however, she is an entity of death and destruction that's especially skilled with the use of wind magic." Subaru did not want to repeat what happened with Elsa and Meili's attack. He had to warn about the entity's assault as soon as possible, only this way he could avoid the many deaths that were about to happen. Even so, Subaru had decided not to reveal that he was the target of the entity, fearing that this would cause Halibel to reject his request for help.

"Hmm... You've very specific info about this alleged attack. How do ya know all that?" With Anastasia and Julius it had worked to say that he could not reveal how he had obtained the information, but Subaru was aware that the same would not work with Halibel. So he decided to use as an alibi one of the rumors that had arisen about him among the members of the Fang of Iron.

"I've an extremely rare Divine Protection that allows me to visualize the future. It isn't so convenient as to show me everything, but usually I can get a pretty clear picture of what's about to happen. And in this case, I can assure you that you are the only one capable of doing something to prevent a massacre, Halibel-san. " Subaru decided to use the rumor that his ability was a strange Divine Protection. Speaking as clearly as possible, Subaru then presented the situation to Halibel.

"Hmm... My instincts had already indicated that there was somethin' interestin' about you from the moment I saw ya, but I must admit that I didn't expect any of this. Well, tell me where this dangerous entity you mentioned will appear, I'll go with ya."

"Huuuh!" Exclaimed Subaru, having been taken aback, as he stared wide-eyed at Halibel. He never expected the demi-human to agree so easily. Of course, the first time he had helped him, it had also been in a considerably convenient way, even though it all went wrong for him in the end. "Are you going to accompany me, just like that?"

"I don't see why not…" Shrugging his shoulders while smiling sideways, Halibel implied that his request didn't bother him. "I've nothin' better to do anyway."

"Didn't you say you're resting and didn't want to be disturbed?" Subaru knew the best thing to do was shut up and accept Halibel's help without further question. However, he also had a need to get as much information as possible; he would never know when he would need it.

"Did I say that? I guess I didn't have much hope that you'd tell me somethin' interestin'. But if you're right and the attack you mentioned happens, then I'd be lookin' at an extremely peculiar person." Scratching his snout, Halibel explained his motives. "You said you work for that girl from the Hoshin Company, didn't ya?"

"Ehmm… Yeah, you could say that I have an executive position in the company, in fact." Trying to look his best, Subaru decided to decorate his position a bit; although it was not like he was lying.

"None of that matters to me, kid. Even so, it's true that I declined your employer's offer… Hmm…" As he sighed, Halibel looked up and down at him. "Well, dependin' on how this all turns out, I'll make up my mind."

"Make up your mind? What do ya mean?" Confused by Halibel's mutterings, Subaru questioned him regarding its meaning.

"It's nothin', you'll see what I'm mean later. Anyway, just let me do this..." Halibel then bent down and took something; it was a bottle of liquor. In fact, now that Subaru was paying attention to him, he noticed that Halibel was giving off a slight stench of alcohol; that's probably what he meant by enjoying his day off. Putting the bottle away in his black kimono, Halibel stepped away from the edge of the terrace and stood beside him. He then said, "Okay, I'm ready. Take me wherever the assault's gonna happen."

"Umm, well…"

"Don't tell me that your blessin' prevents you from knowin' the exact location of this entity's attack." Slightly disappointed, Halibel feared that Subaru's ability was not entirely accurate.

"It's not that… It's just that the assault could well happen anywhere in the metropolitan area. For now I think we should head to one of the side-streets, which are less crowded."

"Didn't you say the assault would happen on the main avenue, kid?" Stopping in his tracks, Halibel questioned Subaru about his change in prediction. Realizing his mistake, Subaru decided to shift the focus a bit.

"Yes, if we do nothing, it will happen there…" Giving Halibel an open-ended phrase, Subaru terminated the affair. Halibel for a moment seemed to be unconvinced, but finally shrugged his shoulders again, a sign that he no longer cared, and caught up with Subaru. They were both about to leave the terrace, when it was Subaru this time who stopped. "Thanks for the help, Halibel-san." Crossing his gaze with that of the demi-human, Subaru thanked him for assisting him.

"Nah… No need, kid. I'm just actin' out of my own curiosity, that's all." Inhaling the contents of his pipe, Halibel gave Subaru back a smoky smile. "By the way, I don't think you've told me your name yet, kid."

"Subaru, Subaru Natsuki." He had already gotten used to giving his name in the opposite order to how they used to spell full names in his home country, so he had no problem presenting himself that way. After all, if you said it backwards, it could create confusion; and it would not be the first time that it would happen to him.

"Hmm… Subaru… Nice meetin' ya, Subaru!" Smiling, the demi-human patted his back amicably as he motioned for him to leave the rooftop first. "And you don't have to talk to me so formally. You can just call me Halibel. And if everythin' goes well, you may call me Hal-san. He, he, he!" Laughing casually, Halibel closed the rooftop door and left the building with Subaru.

Nervous, Subaru walked along the same street parallel to the main avenue where he had seen Halibel fight. After what happened before his last death, Subaru was not willing to risk entering the depths of the avenue again. Not after needlessly sacrificing the lives of dozens of people, only to prolong his own worthless life.

He knew that the memory of the pieces of those people he had used as a shield, coating him, would haunt him for life. And the memory of the same but with Mimi, would probably join the cast of his recurring nightmares. Thar is why he was striving to get as far away as possible from the innocent pedestrians who were walking quietly along that side-street, oblivious to the danger that was looming over their lives.

The hostile entity could appear at any time, Subaru had no control over it. So he kept moving forward, not stopping to think about whether he was making another mistake or if there was information he was forgetting. Halibel, for his part, was following him closely as he calmly inhaled the smoke from his pipe. Both were completely opposite extremes; one was dangerously relaxed and the other was unhealthily troubled.

Paying no attention to anything other than to keep on moving, Subaru walked at a brisk pace with his eyes locked on what was in front of him. His state of concentration, due to stress, was so deep that for a moment he failed to perceive the hostile aura. With his heart skipping a beat, Subaru stopped in his tracks and started searching for the female figure with his gaze.

Halibel, noticing Subaru's change of attitude, displayed a slightly more earnest countenance. With smoke seeping from between his fangs, the demi-human looked up and saw the figure standing on the corner of one of the buildings located at the side of the street; not unlike the way he had found himself just a few minutes ago. Subaru, just a second later, found her as well.

The demi-human wolf, who possessed extremely sharper and better trained instincts and senses than those of Subaru, had perceived the change in the environment caused by the figure long before him. And yet, Halibel had been surprised by the boy's quick reaction. Grinning sideways, the demi-human took one of his kunais out and got ready to fight. Once again, his instincts had not failed him; he had found an extremely peculiar individual.

"Is it that woman?" Halibel asked, his gaze still fixed on the figure standing on the top of the three-story high building. The question was not due to any doubts about his own judgment, he simply wanted to hear confirmation from the one who had brought him there.

"Yes. Watch out, at any moment she will attack us." Even though his feet were shaking, to the point where it was difficult for him to stand, Subaru replied firmly.

"Are ya sure?" Halibel squinted and insisted whit a mocking tone. "All I see is an astonishingly beautiful girl. Are you completely sure that Divine Protection of yours isn't faulty?"

Halibel, in accordance with her carefree personality, took the opportunity to tell an out-of-place jest. However, he sensed it, his instincts did not lie, that woman was not someone to whom turning your back was a good idea. Halibel was just trying to lighten the atmosphere, that was his style. Especially when he noticed that Subaru was about to break down in terror.

Subaru, who was in the middle of a staring battle with the entity, ignored Halibel's jest. With his heart rate accelerating and his breathing laboring, Subaru watched in terror the entity that tirelessly conveyed an aura of despair. The entity's silhouette blurred, a clear sign that she was about to attack. Emanating hostility and hatred, the female figure jumped from the rooftop and fell just a few feet away from them.

"Die…" Ignoring the shabby-looking demi-human, the entity raised her hand and attacked Subaru. However, before the gust of sharp wind sliced through Subaru, a metallic sound preceded the dissipation of the magic attack. Having moved at a greater speed than that of the wind element's magic cyclone, Halibel diverted the airflow, snatching its momentum and subsequently turning it into a mere breeze.

"I see you're a woman of few words..." Blowing out a plume of smoke, Halibel remarked casually as he pointed to the woman with his extremely sharp kunai.

"Die..." The entity whispered belligerently, emitting an inhuman hostility. With her hand still in front of her, the female figure scowled at Halibel, while she hurled another of her lethal gusts of wind at him.

Frowning slightly, Halibel swiftly dodged the wind mana spells, moving in a way that gave the impression that he was teleporting. His teasing attitude had disappeared, and though he did not emit hostility, it was clear that Halibel was beginning to take the fight against the deadly entity seriously. He nimbly lunged at the entity's back, readying his kunai to stab her.

Not lagging behind, the female did a forward somersault, propelling herself with her own wind magic. Her feet had not touched the ground, when she launched another gust of wind. However, Halibel was not her target. Subaru, who had been putting distance between himself and the fighters, was still the female entity's top priority.

Sensing the attack aimed at him, Subaru soon jumped aside, falling to the ground in the process. Even so, his caution proved unnecessary, since Halibel had already gone ahead to prevent him from being hit by the deadly cyclone. Using the edge of his kunai to take the momentum from the magical wind stream, Halibel stood by his side and looked back at the entity.

"She seems to be focusing on you…" Halibel muttered, slightly disconcerted. Subaru then considered that the best decision would have been to warn him that he was the main target of the entity's hostility. As he was about to tell his companion about it, Subaru was stopped by another gust of wind, which left a deep mark on the ground just inches from him. "This girl doesn't have a power that can be taken lightly. She'd well be at the level of the strongest warriors on the continent, or maybe of the Great Spirits… Hmm…"

Because of his pondering, Halibel seemed to have begun to understand something. However, he was unable to sustain that train of thought, as he was attacked with another gust of wind. Disappearing from Subaru's side, Halibel reappeared in front of the entity. With a deft motion of his wrist, Halibel attempted to slash his opponent's leg.

Trying to move away, the attacker slipped backwards using wind to propel herself. Still, she failed to completely avoid the edge of Halibel's kunai. Grunting in anger, the woman surrounded herself with a wind dome that prevented anyone or anything from approaching her. With blood flowing from the wound on her leg, the female began to look around erratically, while whispering insistently the one word that defined her.

"Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die!" Leaving Halibel aside again, she charged in Subaru's direction.

"Damn… I guess I'll have to use it." Halibel, who had been damaged by the air dome, had multiple cuts throughout his body. However, because the beautiful-looking attacker had tried to dodge his thrust before creating the air dome, the distance between them had prevented the damage received from stopping him from fighting.

Without hesitating for a second longer, Halibel narrowed his eyes and in a blink his body split into four figures. The four people who replaced him looked exactly like him, wearing the same scruffy clothes and possessing the same casual expression. That was the technique Halibel had been saving for a moment of emergency; cloning himself.

At the speed of the wind, the three clones and the original Halibel leaped towards the female entity, who was heading towards Subaru with a determined stride. The black-haired man, having seen everything from the ground, tried to stand up. But the fear that arouse from his chest, caused by the attacker's aura of hostility, was once again keeping him from doing so.

Everything was happening extremely slowly in his mind. The hostile figure walking toward him with a sphere of wind surrounding her, and the four Halibel's approaching from behind. Despite the fact that everything was happening at a lightning speed, his mind, accustomed to danger, was processing everything as quickly as it could to give him the opportunity to find a way out of the current situation alive.

But there was nothing he could do... He could only wait. Would the attacker kill him? Or would Halibel catch up with her in time and stop her? In his adrenaline-stimulated brain, only those two options were contemplated. Therefore, when something out of his calculations happened, Subaru's mind froze for a moment, unable to process what took place.

"Subaru Nii-san! Waaaahhhhhh!" The entity was unable to end his life for the fourth time in a row, and that was not due to Halibel's contribution. Mimi's alarmed cry was preceded by a strident sonic boom that engulfed the hostile figure and threw her away from Subaru.

"Hnk!" However, Mimi's desperate action was not executed without adverse consequences. Stifling a shriek of pain, Subaru grasped his left ear, which had been almost grazed by the sonic attack. Not that Mimi's scream had made contact with his ear, she had not been so grossly careless. Even so, the blood that was gushing out of his ear was a sign that Subaru had not been unscathed by the girl's intrepid action.

"Onii-san?" With a high-pitched buzzing noise inside his left ear, Subaru heard the girl calling out to him; or at least he did so with his right ear. With a look of relief on his face, Subaru turned to her still clutching his bloodied ear. But he was no longer doing it out of pain, but to prevent Mimi from seeing the blood gushing out of it.

"I'm glad you made it in time, Midge." Showing her a slightly sore smile, Subaru patted her on the head. With the appearance of Mimi, finally all the pieces were placed on the board, now the result only depended on how they were played. And his opponent was the providence that kept hurling obstacles in his path towards the happy ending he longed for.