Me: Alrighty, boys and girls…(notices Anna glaring at me, gulps)…and itakos, I don't own Shaman King-and, I probably won't ever own it, either.
BlackTerriermon: You can say that again, partner! Besides, if Anna had her way, you'd be running laps with her fiancé for a year!
Me: (glares at BlackTerriermon) And, you'd be joining us, too-or did you forget that added stipulation?!
BlackTerriermon: (gulps, grins nervously) Oh, yeah…I forgot about that.
Anna: (sighs irritably) Why did I get paired up with these two in the first place?!
Yoh: (blinks) Probably because there wasn't anyone else who was willing to do a story of this magnitude?
Anna: (turns to Yoh in shock) …What was that?
Yoh: (grins lightly) Oh…just that no one could pull this story off like this guy can.
Anna: (rolls eyes, points toward door) You're slacking on your training! Move it! (snaps fingers at BlackTerriermon) Informant-follow him!
Yoh, BlackTerriermon: (cries as both head out the door)
Me: (clears throat loudly) Well, now that those two aren't around…on to the story!
Anna: Not so fast, hero boy. (smirks lightly)
Me: (thinks) I'm gonna hate myself for this, but…(out loud) Anything I can do for you?
Anna: (smirk grows wider)
Me: (groans) Why me…?!
Shaman King: The Rematch
Chapter II-The Challenge
"Amidamaru is my friend! I won't 'hand him over' like he's an object!" –Asakura Yoh, Shaman King: Shaman v.s. Shaman
"If that Ren guy comes after you again…you'll be lucky to achieve 100% integration again…" –Kyoyama Anna, Shaman King: Shaman's Ambition
With a wicked smile on his face, Tao Ren already had his weapon poised for battle, as did his personal ghost, Bason. As for his competition…he was precisely where Ren wanted him to be-at his feet, struggling to get up.
"I still can't believe this is the shaman who bested not only me, but my older sister! He looks like a weakling-even with those weights on his wrists and ankles."
Taking his attention off Yoh, Ren looked up toward the hill that Anna and Manta had stopped at, momentarily locking eyes with the young-yet, quite mature for her age-itako.
"That's the girl my sister Jun mentioned to me when she informed me of her defeat…but, why is she here, helping out this poor, pathetic excuse for a shaman?"
"INTEGRATE!! AMIDAMARU!"
"I hadn't expected he would recover this quickly after the first time Yoh defeated him…but, it looks like this time, he might be ready for anything Yoh could throw at him."
The itako momentarily locked eyes with the youngest member of the Tao family and realized her suspicions were confirmed-he had trained ever since his defeat at Yoh's hands and would be ready for anything…
"INTEGRATE!! AMIDAMARU!"
…Except for his opponent integrating with his samurai spirit in 1.3 seconds-even shorter time than his fight against Ren's sister! A small grin appeared on Anna's face as she noticed Yoh pull out a short bokuto-that looked suspiciously like what he had been working on the previous night before going to bed-from his back pocket; instantly, Amidamaru had a tighter grip on his own weapon.
"Manta, it looks like things may have tipped in our favor."
"Yeah, as long as Ren's staff doesn't slice Yoh's wooden sword in half like a toothpick."
"Relax yourself, shaman. I'm not going to attack you. That earlier shot was a test, to see if you had improved since our last encounter. Surprisingly enough, you have, and I must admit, I am impressed."
Yoh narrowed his eyes while circling his opponent, Ren doing the exact same as he was.
"I'd say thank you, but I'd be lying through my teeth. What are you doing back here?!"
"Why did I come in the first place? To become known as the Shaman King, and to fulfill my destiny…I need your samurai!"
Back on the hill, Manta facefaulted in surprise.
"Again?! Can't this guy find something better to do, like join a yo-yo tournament, or do something else besides trying to kill Yoh?"
Without taking her eyes off either Yoh or Ren, Anna responded to Manta's question-even if it did sound a bit farfetched.
"This Ren guy has a point-to become Shaman King, you have to have powerful spirits by your side-and, it wouldn't matter if it was just one or near the thousands-as long as you proved that you were just as strong as the spirits are, that you can use 100% of your spirit's power, and you defeated as many opponents as possible, in front of the Great Spirit, as well as integrate with the Great Spirit, you would be known as the Shaman King."
Manta was, to put it mildly, impressed by Anna's explanation. Though, there was one question he had to have answered.
"So…what would happen after the Shaman Fight was over?"
"Simple." Anna responded. "The world would be remade anyway the Shaman King wants it."
Manta looked back down at where Yoh and Ren were. To his amazement, they weren't fighting…but, it looked as though…
"They're conversing about something, Squirt. I can't tell what it is from here-we'll have to get closer."
"What I want, in order to prove that I deserve your spirit, weakling, is a rematch!"
Now, Yoh was confused. "A rematch? But, why? I was able to beat you and your spirit before-"
"That was a fluke! You had barely been able to achieve 100% integration with your spirit, and you caught me off guard! This time, I won't be so easily distracted." Ren declared, a confident look on his face.
"Oh, really? I've trained since our last encounter, and I'm even better now than I was then." Yoh retorted while holding his bokuto tightly.
"Maybe so, but I've trained just as much as you have-perhaps even more than you have, which is why in this rematch, there will be another stipulation besides you just giving up your spirit."
"Be careful, Lord Yoh! I sense that there is more on his mind than just obtaining me." Amidamaru warned. With a light nod, Yoh narrowed his eyes, not letting his guard down.
"What is this extra stipulation? Some of us have dinner to get ready for-or, help prepare, actually." Yoh bit back what he would've said next, since he felt, rather than saw, Anna's presence a bit closer to him than she had been earlier.
"Are you certain you wouldn't just rather give up your spirit now and save face instead of me adding this stipulation? It would be a better choice-"
"I'm not gonna give Amidamaru up like he was just a trinket to toss away! Now, what's this stipulation?!" Yoh demanded.
Laughing lightly, Ren couldn't help but smirk while retracting his weapon. "Very well, then-if you insist on acting like a fool, this will only aid you in feeling like one. If you lose this rematch against me, not only will you be forced to relinquish your samurai spirit to me, but also…that young trainer behind you, the one with the beads around her neck."
Yoh gasped in utter amazement, Manta's eyes widened in pure shock, but Anna simply narrowed her eyes in irritation after hearing not only the challenge, but the stipulations, as well.
"I wouldn't go to him if his life depended on it…and, it won't matter, because Yoh's not going to accept his challenge!"
"Hey, Ryu, you sure it's a good idea for us to find our happy place near the river?"
"Of course, Ballboy-now, keep quiet! A happy place doesn't need to be indoors, as long as it's a place where we can truly belong. You should remember that as well as I do."
A few meters away from where Yoh, Anna, Manta and Ren were, was Bokuto no Ryu and his friends, who had been trying to find a place they could call their own ever since Yoh and Amidamaru had sent them away from the graveyard. Their search had taken them to an abandoned Chinese restaurant, but Ren had sent them away from there, too, after his defeat to Yoh. Now, their search had lead them over here, meters or so away from where Yoh had been training.
"Now, here, at the river, where it's peaceful, content, and relaxing…I can finally admit this, boys…we have found our happy place!" Ryu yelled joyfully while raising a finger to the air.
"YEAH!"
"WAY TO GO, RYU!"
"I KNEW YOU COULD DO IT!"
"And, now, we can rest, and relax here, at our new happy place…"
"Yeah-if we ignore the two kids who look like they're about to fight." Ballboy responded grimly. Ryu's eyes widened in shock, quickly touching his shortened hair, or pompadour-that both Yoh and Ren had cut down to size-before looking over at Yoh and the others.
"No way! It can't be! Not them again-those two foolish kids, the one with the headphones and the other with the weird hair, they're the ones who deprived me of my precious pompadour, and…"
Ryu's eyes widened even more as he managed to catch a glimpse of Manta, who was next to Anna, though at the moment, he wouldn't actually see Anna.
"HIM! THE ONE WHO STOLE MY SWORD AND TURNED INTO A ZOMBIE AFTER ASKING FOR YOGURT!"
"So, what do we do, boss?"
"I'll tell you what we're going to do-run away now, and find another happy place!"
That said, Ryu and his friends hightailed it within seconds of showing up at the river, not being seen at all by Yoh or anyone else.
"So, shaman, what's it going to be? Are you going to willingly hand over your spirit and avoid losing the girl, or are you going to put her on the betting table as well?"
Yoh narrowed his eyes and clenched his hands so tightly, the hilt of his bokuto nearly made his hands red.
"Focus, Yoh! Don't let his taunts, or his foolish demands allow you to lose your concentration." Amidamaru advised. Yoh heard him, but was having a difficult time controlling his thoughts, which normally wasn't something that would happen.
"The answer's simple, Yoh-just say no, and clean this guy's clock with everything you have! You can beat him without agreeing to his idiotic demands already-I know it, and so does Manta!" Anna thought, her hands shaking a bit from either frustration or concern for her fiancé.
"Come on, Yoh…you can do this! You beat Ren before, and I have no doubt you can do it again-but, do it on your terms, and not his!" Manta thought, while holding onto his dictionary tightly.
Yoh closed his eyes tightly, not losing his focus, even if his thoughts weren't entirely clear.
"If I accepted, Anna would probably kill me instantly…but, if I don't, how do I know that Ren won't do the same thing?"
"Tick-tock, tick-tock…time's running out, and a decision must be made." Ren said, a hint of anger in his voice. "Will you accept, or will you hand him over without being humiliated?"
Tossing his bokuto to the ground, Yoh yelled out, "Fine! I accept…"
The look on Manta's face as Yoh had said that was one of astonishment…the look on Amidamaru's face was one of amazement…the look on Ren's face was one of pure triumph…but, the look on Anna's face was something entirely different and not one you would see coming from her…
…The look on her face usually comes from someone who's been abandoned…
"So, you've decided to fight instead of just giving him up…that's fine with me-it means I won't have to deal with you later on during the Shaman Fight. To be generous, I'll give you three days to train even more so you can have a glimmer of hope, but I wouldn't cling onto it if I were you."
Chuckling lightly, Ren turned and left Yoh, Anna, Manta and Amidamaru alone with their own thoughts.
