Bloody Roar III: Reunited by Chance, a Reflection of the Past
By Tiger5913
Chapter 12
It All Comes Down To This
The enemy makes his appearance
His silent challenge hovers before them,
Trifling weightlessly in the air
When the smoke finally clears
Which of the fighters will prevail?
Not him again! Uriko growled irritably as she quickly reached for her bag and unzipped it. Digging her hand inside, she pulled out her sheathed katana and a box containing some small, deadly shurikens for her companion, then tossed the bag back to the tree trunk.
"I had a feeling we'd be needing these…" she muttered quietly, rearing her arm back and positioning herself with the slender sword. Wish I had my nunchucks for back up, though…
Next to her, Kenji opened the box and slid a few of the shurikens between his fingers, hiding them from view. Getting into his battle ready position as well, he glared acidly at the silver haired man and questioned, "What do you want, Xion?"
Levitating before them wearing the same attire as before, his lips curled up into a sneer as he looked at Uriko with his blazing red eyes. "The girl. She seems to be somewhat of a formidable opponent."
"Yeah right, you think I'd ever go with you?" A frown spread over her eyebrows.
He smiled, a sinister essence lurking on his lips. "Did I ever say that you were given a choice…?" While the couple shot dirty looks at him in unison, he continued, "Oh, and do not bother me with petty toys…"
With a few hand gestures of his, the katana and shurikens flew out of the teenagers' hands and into some bushes nearby.
"Hey!!" Uriko protested angrily. All right, he wants a fight? We'll give him a fight!
Her gaze focused on Xion; she darted foreword and leapt into the air, bringing her legs up. As he 'sidestepped' her attack, the Kenpo student landed on the ground, hopping a few steps back as she did. Charging at him again, she slid down and struck at his ankles with the heel of her sneakers, causing the steel-haired villain to stumble a little.
With him slightly distracted, Kenji ran up from behind and slipped his hands under his opponent's armpits, then locked his arms up, trapping the foe. Jumping high into the air, the ninja flipped him upside down while staying upright himself, and grabbed a hold of Xion's booted feet. The two of them plummeted back to the ground, and the blue-haired teenager roughly slammed his opponent's head against the hard-packed dirt floor.
Teehee, we ought to do tag team more often… his fiancée thought silently to herself.
Feeling more energized; she proceeded toward the silver-haired man and kicked at his face-level. After the fourth strike, the young woman spread her arms out and jumped up a little to hit the top of his head with her fist. The force of her blow was hard enough to make him bend down slightly; taking that to her advantage, Uriko struck his head twelve more times before socking especially hard and knocking him face-down to the ground.
Fuming, Xion arose and escaped to his safer residence in the air. Raising his hand at the couple, he closed his eyes and an invisible force shot at them. Kenji slightly jerked back as it hit him directly in his abdomen, and stumbled weakly to his knees.
"Ugh…" Uriko winced, a shaky hand going to clutch the area around her stomach.
Before the couple could recover, their foe pointed his fingers toward the sky, and the two of them started to float up. As he swiftly waved his hand to one side, their bodies were turned toward the same direction, and they breezed through the air. Even the wind cringed when each of them flew right into the thick trunk of a nearby tree and fell to the floor soon after contact.
"That's got to be magic…" the ninja managed to stammer as he was staggering to get up. Or… psychic powers…
Getting to a standing position, the Kenpo student squeezed her eyes shut and concentrated while bending her knees. Pulling one arm back, she focused deeply and a swirl of blue mist quickly surrounded her hand. Opening her eyes, she pushed her hand foreword as a thick beam of chilling ice shot out from the palm, rushing toward Xion. Spotting her tech, his eyes widened in slight surprise as he barely dodged it, a small essence of the ice managing to graze against his cheek.
A bit taken back but feeling angry at her, the silver-haired man turned his attention to her, his feet levitating several inches above the ground as he went toward the young woman. Taking that to his advantage, Kenji closed his eyes as he held up two fingers in front of his face. Waving them around for a couple of seconds, he reopened his eyes and pointed at Xion as a line of fire came from his fingertips. Blazing through the air, the flames darted at the villain and singed the back of his maroon-colored coat, burning through the tough material.
As soon as he felt what had happened, Xion immediately turned and gave the ninja a cold glare. A small twinge of fear pinched at Kenji's nerves as he took a timid step back, but then a determined look slowly came over his face and he stood his ground. Bending his knees and keeping his feet spread apart, he arced a hand up near his face and the other one poised stiffly behind his head.
"Useless struggling." Xion sneered arrogantly.
"S-Shut up," the blue-haired teenager hissed in reply.
A sudden swish was heard as shoes squished on the crisp green grass and a figure jumped, flying over the head of the steel-haired foe. Landing swiftly nearby her fiancé, Uriko took her stance beside him, readying herself for battle as she held out one fist before her body.
"At least he's not alone," she said, quickly glancing over at Kenji.
"What are you two, Siamese twins?" Their opponent snorted.
"Yeah, we are," the ninja replied in a smart-aleck tone of voice. "You got a problem with that?"
"I don't like to be pestered by little insects," Xion remarked, holding up hand and shoving the other male fighter away with the same invisible force as before. "I am just here for the girl."
She narrowed her eyes. "Oh yeah? Well, guess what? I'm not going with you!"
Shutting her eyelids, the young woman whirled her outstretched arms around as a bright light flashed from her body. When it dimmed down, she revealed herself in beast form, sharp feline claws poised to attack on command. Uriko exposed her pointy white teeth as she opened her mouth and hissed at the villain. Large, sensitive ears poked out from the midst of her auburn-colored hair, focusing on the various little noises in the area. Meanwhile, the blue headed ninja leapt over Xion's head, landing behind him.
Following the Kenpo student's example, he reared an arm back and slowly brought it foreword in a strong uppercut, preparing to morph like she had. As he knocked his opponent into the air, Kenji felt his shirt burst open and the broken pieces of fabric fell silently to the floor while mahogany fur sprouted from his body from the smooth transaction of his morphing. His light brown eyes were replaced by a shade of dark blood red and the familiar beak of a mole elongated from his mouth. Very shortly after that, the long vicious claws grew out of the base of each wrist and his fingers clenched together instinctively.
His transformation complete, the mole zoanthrope followed his tech by jumping up into the air after Xion. Clutching the foe closely to him, the two spun around in circles while descending quickly toward the ground. Crashing to the floor, Kenji hopped up onto his feet and clasped his hands together respectfully while his victim stayed grounded temporarily. Nearby, his fiancée let out a silent cheer in her mind.
Flipping up into a standing position, Xion levitated before the ninja. The look on his face appeared a bit strained, but it quickly flashed away when he thrust both of his hands foreword and the mole arose from the ground. Yet as he was floating up, Kenji could tell that the effort was a bit more faint than the last time he and Uriko had gone airborne and had been flung into the tree. Noting that small weakness, he struggled against the hold, although to no avail. He slashed at the air with his long claws, while his large green eyes reflected his irritability.
With Xion concentrating on the blue-haired teenager, Uriko sprinted at him, jumping into the air and kicking him in the back. Falling to the floor, his solid concentration was broken and the invisible hold that was on Kenji disappeared. Descending toward the ground, he managed to retract in the air and back-flipped, landing on his feet. Flashing the young woman a grateful look, he hastily darted to her side.
The ninja tried to explain Xion's weakness with gestures, since he couldn't speak verbally in beast form. The female cat nodded, understanding, while her wide crimson eyes glanced briefly into his dark green pupils. Looking at each other, the two of them nodded in unison, silently agreeing to something. A few feet away, their foe was on his feet, glaring questioningly at them.
Going first, the young mole zoanthrope dashed at the steel-haired villain and leapt over his head. Providing a distraction, Uriko mewed as she crouched down into a typical cat's sitting position, and scratched at Xion's ankles. Just as he was going down to strike her, sneering at her meek attack, Kenji rushed at him and jabbed one clawed hand straight into Xion's abdomen.
He yanked out his hand swiftly, while blood spilled out onto the ground and stained the tips of his claws. Surprised expressions came over the couple's face as their opponent grimaced, then held a hand over his stomach. A blue aura surrounded his body and when it faded away, the wound was halfway healed.
Oh man… the Kenpo student thought in slight amazement.
We both have to do our Rage Moves before he heals himself completely… her partner turned to look at her and angled his head in silent question. As soon as she nodded, he poised himself to perform his tech.
Double Inferno, he commanded silently. Raising one arm, Kenji held it before his face and slashed by Xion, leaving a trail of fire burning on the grass. Turning around to face his opponent, he clasped his hands together and surrounded the silver-haired man as fire escaped from the palms, engulfing him in hot flames. Two faint images of the ninja appeared briefly, and sliced Xion together, reforming into one as Kenji went back to his human form.
Guess it's my turn, Uriko thought, waiting for the foe to stand up.
As she was about to execute her own Beast Drive, she was stopped abruptly when spotting Xion get up, just seeming a little bruised, and starting to corner her fiancé. Growling, she put her tech on hold and pranced toward the two men. When she leapt into the air, trying to tackle him from behind, the evil villain raised one hand up.
Hitting an un-seeable wall, the feline was blocked and she fell to the floor, her head coming in contact with the roots of a tree. Shaking her head dazedly, Uriko blinked, trying to focus her eyes. By the time she could see clearly, it was too late to protect herself from the group of rocks that had floated through the air and plummeted down upon her.
"No!! Uriko, watch out!!" Kenji yelled out.
She raised her hands over herself in protection; one of the larger boulders fell past her barrier and struck the side of her head. Feeling a little dizzy, the Kenpo student wavered, leaving her open and vulnerable to the next two rocks that slammed into her forearms. Getting injured from them, she shrunk down near the ground as the last few rocks approached her.
Seeing what had happened, the ninja started to run toward her but was blocked when Xion stood in front of him, placing the invisible hold on the mole zoanthrope again. His arms suspending in the air, Kenji gritted his teeth and struggled, but he was a little weaker now that he was back in human form and stayed imprisoned.
"Let-me-go, damn it!!" he shrieked, frustrated at his futile attempts.
Underneath the rubble, Uriko heard his distressed cry and thought faintly, I've got to get up… have to go help Kenji…
She pushed meekly at the boulders trapping her, but could barely get a couple of them off her. Ugh, I'm so tired… this'll take forever… Kenji can't wait forever…
Morph again. A part of her mind stated matter-of-factly.
A smile subconsciously made its way to her lips. Yeah, morph again… Suddenly, her large red eyes widened in confusion. W-wait, what…?!
Morph again! Came the booming voice.
I-I can't do that! She shot back silently. I'm already in beast form!
Morph again! Was the only reply she got. Frowning, the brown-haired girl succumbed and closed her eyes, searching inside for implications of a second morph.
All of a sudden, she found it; a mental picture of the form flashed up in her mind and she gasped inwardly.
T-that form again… Uriko shook her head rapidly, refusing the beast form.
Just do it, a part inside of her urged. For Kenji!
Swallowing nervously, she nodded slowly; shutting her eyes, she began to concentrate on transforming.
Several feet away, the blue-haired ninja spat at Xion's face, landing a hit on the side of his right cheek. Angered by his defiance, the foe stepped foreword and raised Kenji higher into the air, off the ground level. As he was about to be flung to one side, a sudden bright flash of light interrupted Xion's task and the mole zoanthrope wavered slightly.
Both of the men turned around to find out what had caused the soundly distraction. Electricity fizzled in the air, emitting from a slender person that was standing in the middle of the rubble. The flash of light had been supported by a vibrant wave that threw the rocks off the young woman. Floating a few inches up from the floor, the figure levitated foreword into view as the dust slowly began to clear.
When the hazy brown clouds faded, the two fighters saw a tall woman wearing dark pink boots. Her short neon green hair formed two shapes on the top of her head, the stylish shapes resembling large cat ears. Covered by magenta-colored leggings with pink arm sleeves to match and a white top, the gaze of her glowing, forest green eyes settled coolly on the men.
Kenji shivered slightly at the sight, but then thought, wait a minute… I-I feel like I should recognize that person…
*****
"No!! I don't wanna!" A young girl screamed her refusal.
"Do it, you little brat!" The harsh voice demanded her obedience. "Or else we'll… 'Mess around' with your little sparring partner!"
Her small brown eyes widened in fear at the sight of another male child being dragged roughly into the room. Two people in lab coats each clutched one of the boy's arms and the person that had been ordering her went over to the other kid. Standing right next to him, the cruel villain grabbed a hold of the boy's stringy black hair and yanked hard enough so that his face was brought up to look at the girl.
He let out a small cry of pain, but held in the rest and shouted to her, "Don't listen to 'em, Riko!"
"Shut up, you ninja numbskull!!" The boy received a hard slap to his face and early signs of tears were welling up in his eyes.
"Kenji!!" His female companion cried out.
"Quit calling him that, you ingrate!" Their vile punisher scolded loudly. "His name is Bakuryu!"
"No, it's not!!" The eight-year-old boy yelled. His protest earned a powerful blow to his small back from a heavy board, and it was delivered by one of the people that were holding death-grips on him.
"No!! Stop hurting him!!" She started to run foreword to rescue him.
"You want us to stop? Then morph!!"
Little drops of angry tears began to trickle down her face, but she reluctantly obeyed. Closing her eyes, she concentrated on transforming, while the others watched her. Within the next few seconds, she began to morph, and when it was completed, the older viewers laughed in triumph. The two lab technicians let go of the boy and carelessly pushed him toward the girl, who was now in her first beast form of a grown woman.
"R-R-Riko…?" the young male zoanthrope questioned bewilderedly, his trembling voice barely audible.
"Kenji…" her voice was now deeper, and more mature-sounding than her younger, childish version.
He took a small timid step toward her and stopped, looking at her with fearful light brown eyes. "I-i-is that you…?"
Scanning over herself, her now-green eyes widened at her new features… the magenta and white outfit… the larger distance from the ground… her chest and longer arms… Shocked by the appearance, the young girl shook her head rapidly in denial and instantly changed back into her normal self. The minute she was in her eight-year-old form again, the boy ran foreword and gave her a tight but slightly awkward hug. The white material of their full-bodied outfits clashed when he threw his arms around her slim, shivering body.
"Oh, no, we're not finished yet!" The annoying voice commanded. "Get back in that beast form; you still have another one after that!"
The two of them were forcefully pulled apart and the boy was dragged away from her as the attention focused on the girl, and making her turn back into the tall woman.
*****
"Uriko…" the ninja whispered, realizing with a chill who that woman was.
End of Chapter 12