Chapter XXVIII: The Hardest Battle Has Begun
Many days later, Koudai, Natsuko and Daichi were already in Tsubasa and Sanae's house. When the Kami no Tsukai's parents knew they would have a grandson, Koudai was very excited, just like Daichi, while Natsuko cried with joy. Although Koudai had tried to toast with his son, he remembered that Tsubasa hated alcoholic drinks, but they drank some soda in honor of the baby.
Luckily the elder Ozora brother was now in summer vacations, and when he didn't have to train or play a match, he gave his parents and little brother a tour around the city. Sometimes Sanae went with them, if she was well enough, although Natsuko stayed at home with her if she was feeling too weak.
Daichi often went to a nearby park to play some soccer, but he obviously didn't understand Spanish… But that was why his brother was there, since he always went with him, and out of keeping an eye on his little brother, he often was found giving autographs :P.
Rivaul and his wife went to visit the Ozoras often, and both families had nice nights there, since Rivaul used to bring a guitar, and he was an excellent player. (N de A: Since no one knows what hobbies they have…)
However, sometimes Tsubasa woke up at midnight, drenched in sweat. In spite of the joyful air in his apartment, he had nightmares. The fear he had for days in a row no didn't leave him alone in the nights, and he didn't want to confess it. Not to Natsuko, nor Daichi… Not even to Sanae.
But obviously the last one was the one who worried the most for him. One day, when Tsubasa, Koudai and Daichi went out, Sanae confessed to Natsuko how worried she was for Tsubasa.
-But Sanae, why don't you ask Tsubasa what's wrong?
-Call me dumb, Natsuko-san, but… I don't dare to.
-Why? If you're married, you shouldn't have secrets.
-You see, Tsubasa sometimes gets up in the middle of the night, absolutely drenched in sweat. He's had nightmares even before you lot arrived.
-And, wouldn't it have something to do with what's happening right now?
-I think so –and for bad luck's sake, Sanae fainted in that moment.
-Sanae! –exclaimed the faint woman's mother-in-law. –Oh, Lord… Where can Tsubasa be?
The only thing Natsuko could do was try to place Sanae on the sofa and raise her legs, since she thought that Sanae's sugar level was low, but the truth, unknown to her, was another one.
Sanae didn't have enough energy to live now.
Although she was about to panic, Natsuko took a deep breath and thought things twice… Until she remembered that Tsubasa had taken his cellphone with him. She immediately went to the phone, and dialed the number, which was mercifully written with Tsubasa's handwriting.
-Habla Tsubasa. (Tsubasa speaking)
-Honey, I need you to come right away.
-What happened, mom? Did something happen to Sanae?
-I'm afraid so. There's no time! You have to come back!
The boys' return trip lasted fifteen minutes, but it seemed eternity and a half for poor Natsuko. Although she tried to wake Sanae up, nothing worked at all. But once the doorbell rang, Natsuko rushed to open the door, frantic.
-What happened, Natsuko? –Koudai asked, worried because of his wife's face.
-Sanae fainted and she doesn't wake up with anything.
Tsubasa and Daichi looked at each other, undoubtedly knowing what happened, while Koudai tried to calm down his wife. Immediately, the Kami no Tsukai and his cute little brother ran to the living room, where Sanae was, unconscious.
-Just as I thought… She doesn't have enough energy now –Tsubasa murmured, his fear growing and growing.
-Brother…
-Daichi, I guess you know everything about this, right?
-I knew it from a long time ago, niisan. It's not fair that you didn't tell me about this before.
-I have my reasons, Daichi.
-You mean you HAD your reasons. Remember that I've witnessed everything.
-Yes, and mom did too.
And well, you know it; when things seem to be bad… they worsen, since Tsubasa had a pain attack, much more powerful than before.
-Tsubasa! –Daichi shouted as he saw his brother fall on the floor, feeling the greatest of pains. -Mom! Dad! Something happened to Tsubasa!
In the middle of his terror he had forgotten that Koudai didn't know anything about Tsubasa's secret, but, would the pain attack force him to tell the truth?
Both guys' parents arrived on the spot, and Koudai rushed to help his eldest son, while Natsuko simply stood there, shocked.
-Tsubasa, wake up! –Koudai said, holding his son, who still was suffering the pain attack. –Son, what's wrong?
Tsubasa obviously didn't answer because of the pain. That only made his father get frantic, and he didn't know what to do.
And just how it began, the attack ceased leaving Tsubasa semiunconscious, panting and exhausted. Natsuko and Daichi looked clearly relieved, but Koudai was very confused.
-Tsubasa, are you OK? –asked Natsuko.
-Mom, how's Sanae?
-The same.
-What happened, son?
-It's nothing, dad… I'm used to it, but this one was stronger than the usual.
-What? It looked as if you had just suffered a heart attack and you still say it's nothing!
-Dad –Tsubasa said, his voice firmer than before. –I know what I mean… and I think it's better for you not to know anything else.
He hadn't finished saying it when he did it; Tsubasa modified his father's memory, and after catching his breath, he ran out of the apartment, taking advantage of the dizziness his father had to leave unnoticed. Meanwhile, Natsuko rushed to mane Koudai sit on a sofa, and though Daichi stayed there at first, he escaped, following Tsubasa when his mother didn't see him.
Once he exited the building, Tsubasa met with the worst scene he could have ever imagined.
Kuro was there… and the Antiarchangels, including Kurai, were there. It seemed they were completely devoid of any will or human feelings
-Justas I feared… This couldn't end like this after Jinko's death… -and Tsubasa focused on creating the barrier, while he summoned the Archangels, including Kai y Shinobu, much to his apprehension.
-At last we are face to face, Messenger of the Gods. You have evaded your fate for a long time, but you will not avoid your demise today.
-You know what, Kuro? No one has ever foretold my fate, and much less controlled by someone as whimsical as you. I'm not going to die, and I won't let myself be beat, Kuro.
-You talk too much for being so weak.
-Well, if you manipulate the others for your own good and don't do pretty much anything except talk a lot and appear when your 'daughter' is hurt then you're talking about the wrong weakling.
That made the Black Guide enrage.
As Pierre would say, touché.
Kuro snarled in rage and ordered the Antiarchangels to attack the Kami no Tsukai with everything. As I said, Santana, Pierre, Hino and Schneider couldn't think for themselves anymore; they were now practically robots. The four of them, with their weapons thirsting for blood, flew towards Tsubasa, but six attacks made Kuro's minions fail their attack.
-Desert Storm!
-Burning Fury!
-Oceanic Darts!
-Northern Lights!
-Beginning of the Ages!
-Shout of the Shadows!
Luckily, the Archangels and Kai had arrived on time.
-Before you can dare to snip off one of Tsubasa-kun's hairs, you'll have to face us! –Ishizaki said, with his Crescent Blade in his hands.
-Guys…
-It's now or never. Let's give these Antiarchangels a lesson! –Hyuga shouted, his Kiai gloves on his hands and ready to fight or die trying.
And one battle cry flew out of Ryou, Kojiro, Taro, Genzo, Shinobu, Kai… and Tsubasa.
Ishizaki against Santana; Hyuga versus Hino; Misaki fought Pierre; Wakabayashi opposed to Schneider; Shinobu against Kurai and the Tsukai fought against Kuro. The former soccer rivals, now enemies for the Earth's fate and future fought without stopping. It was beat or be beat.
At least that was what Daichi saw when he exited the building, since the elevator took a long time to arrive and the boy was forced to go downstairs when he was in a fifth floor.
-Brother! –the boy exclaimed when he saw everyone fighting. And yet, he knew this was the last, the crucial… The Hardest Battle of them all. –Don't you even dare to lose, brother!
Tsubasa managed to hear Daichi's shout, and using his Shout of the Gods to distract Kuro, he flew towards Daichi and shouted him to get away.
-No way Jose! You need all the hope you can have!
-Daichi, this isn't a joke! Leave! –but Daichi was stubborn.
Resigned, Tsubasa returned to the fight, just when Kai had been hit by the Black Guide's Tenebris Aeternam.
-Kai! –Tsubasa rushed to help his young friend. –Can you fight?
-If I don't, I'll die, Tsubasa-kun. I swore I'd fight against the Black Guide, and that's what I'll do!
It seemed that at last Kai had found a new power.
-I call at the Shadows for the Fate cast upon me! Solar Eclipse! –and Charon's Sword shot a shadow ray towards the sky, which Kai pointed towards Kuro. The attack made Kuro fall to the floor, hurt at last, but Kuro rushed towards the Messengers enraged.
Meanwhile, Ishizaki fought his hardest against Santana. The Archangel of the Earth's weapon was quite hard to control. At least it was harder than controlling the Brazilian's kathars.
-Santana, wake up! I know you can hear me, because you heard me last time! I don't want to fight, but you're forcing me to!
A rock would've answered easily. Santana used his Apocalypsis in silence, and Ishizaki countered it with his own attack. Both of them had the same amount of power, and exploded in midair, making them retreat a bit.
Ryou was quite tired now, but he didn't give up in his efforts of making Carlos react. He knew that the Antiarchangels weren't deaf, and he made what he could to make them shake off their trance, but it seemed it was impossible.
Once again Santana attacked with his weapons, and this time Ryou couldn't avoid it. However, the Archangel of the Earth, completely determined, got up and attacked with his Crescent Blade, injuring his rival in the same he had done.
Misaki with his Shinobi Blades and Pierre with his cloak fought furiously. It seemed that the Archangel of Water was letting his fury fight for him, since he looked like a tornado fighting. Pierre was fighting with his all too, and both of them were very injured now, but Taro was completely determined: he was going to make the murderers of his buddy and his girlfriend pay for what they did.
None of them uttered a single word, except when Taro used his powers to attack. But it seemed they now fought on the same level, since their attacks exploded in midair.
But Pierre feinted and attacked the White Archangel's back, making him fall. Nonetheless, Misaki got up and hit Pierre with one of his weapons. He immediately used Wataru's attack, the Hatred Blast, and attacked again.
Could that be the same Misaki we knew? Or was his fury so great he turned into a lethal warrior?
No one, not even me knows that.
Hino and Hyuga faced each other, although Kojiro had a disadvantage. Hino's Shijin Shield was a great obstacle he had to rise above, but the 'Tiger' rarely gives up.
-Shoot… That shield has me between the sword and the wall, if I can make a small pun… Burning Fury! –and from the Archangel of Fire's hands flew an explosion of fire and thunder, which sadly hit the shield. Hino counterattacked with his Armageddon, which luckily Hyuga evaded. But while he avoided the blow, Kojiro saw that Ryoma had let go of the Shield for a moment… The best chance to use the Kiai Technique.
"This one's for Rairyuu…" –and Hyuga used air blows, at last hurting Hino. And though a big part of the blows hit the Antiarchangel, he avoided the last ones and threw his lethal shield towards Kojiro, injuring one of his wings.
He fell to the floor, writhing in pain, but he used his Phoenix Flame, and he flew upwards, avoiding Hino's weapon and punching his face.
Genzo and Schneider weren't as face to face as the others because of his weapons. Both of the attacked at the same time, but Genzo was clearly injured.
-This is going from bad to worse… But at least I have to be glad that Schneider is as mute as a rock –the Archangel of the Wind murmured between his teeth, avoiding Schneider's weapon and attacking with his own. However, Schneider used his Oblivion, and it almost hit Wakabayashi, if it hadn't been for him using his Northern Lights and nullifying the attack. Both of them exploded, making the Japanese and the German guys retreat. Once again Schneider attacked with his weapon, but Genzo drew back, and remembering that the chain of his weapon was longer than Schneider's, he attacked, hitting his enemy's stomach.
-This one's for Tooru, Herman and your own sister, Schneider… Northern Lights! –and the attack hit Schneider squarely. In spite of the attacks he had got, the Antiarchangel was still in the air, his face completely emotionless and his eyes turned into two chips of ice.
Shinobu was having a rough time against Kurai. He was really hurt, and it seemed that Kuro's evil 'child' was savoring the fight. But, what could he do if he was alone against Kurai?
"They say that only angels and Archangels make miracles because of divine intervention, but, where are the miracles when you need them?"
Unlike the Antiarchangels, Kurai was a chatterbox, but she mostly was laughing evilly. She was pretty much like a cruel little girl who delighted in torturing a little animal… And Shinobu was his victim.
The deadly yo-yo hit the last Black Archangel, critically injuring him and making him spit blood.
-Rats… If no one helps me, I'll be the next one down –Shinobu murmured, falling to the floor and acting dead to recover his energies.
Kurai could be extremely powerful, bloodthirsty and wishing to know it all, but she was too naive. She thought that the Black Archangel was dead, and when she saw the Black Guide fighting against two good guys, she decided to finish Tsubasa off…
But something stopped her attack.
What stopped the deadly being's attack?
-Sa, Sanae! –everyone including Daichi who was out of the barrier exclaimed. She was extremely weak, and looked clearly exhausted, but she was more than determined to stop Kurai from hurting the most important person for her in the world.
-I won't let you hurt my husband, whoever you are… -she said, Bastet's Staff in her hands.
-And who do you think you are? –Kurai said, giggling.
-I'm the only one of the Archangels who can beat you. I may be extremely weak now because of you, but I'm the only one who can fight you.
How was it that Sanae knew about Kurai?
-No one can beat me! I am invincible! Death Wave! –and the attack hit Sanae, who didn't budge of the place in spit of being hit by the blow.
-You'd love to believe that… Heart's Call! –and though Kurai's Death Wave had made a great amount of damage, it was nothing compared to the effect Sanae's attack had on her dark side, and since they were both the same person, it also hurt the Archangel of Love, but in a smaller quantity.
Kurai was very injured, physically and in her Everest-sized pride and ego. For the first time in her existence (out of Sanae that is) someone was able to hurt her.
-You're not going to get away with this… Death Wave!
-I don't make the same mistake twice –and Sanae avoided the attack. The little energy she had let her avoid the Death Wave and land next to Shinobu, tired.
-Sanae-san… Are you OK? –the Archangel of Chaos asked, worried.
-I'm merely tired, Shinobu-san.
-No small wonder, Sanae. That woman in red is… Part of you.
-She's part of me?
-Yes… and it seems that as long as you have weakened, she, I mean, Kurai, has become more and more powerful.
-So she's called Kurai… -and a light bulb went off in her mind. Now she knew what was she missing. Kurai was part of her all right… She was her dark side.
-Shinobu, that's it! Kurai and I are the same person. She's my dark side, and if she's become so strong, it's because of Kuro's influence.
The Black Guide paled a lot when it saw that Sanae had found the truth, while it kept on fighting against Tsubasa y Kai.
-Stop saying those weird things! –and Kurai rushed to attack Sanae, enraged, but Shinobu interfered, using his Primal Chains. At least it worked so the Archangel of Chaos, his energy a bit recovered, could get Sanae away from there.
-Shinobu! –the Kami no Tsukai exclaimed.
-Tsubasa-kun, don't distract yourself for God's sakes! I'll take care of Sanae, even if it costs my life! –the ex-D.J. answered, while he avoided Kurai's yo-yo once more.
-But, Shinobu-san… -murmured Sanae.
-No buts, Sanae. I'll take you to safety; this is no place for a future mother.
And when he had left her in a safe place, something pierced Shinobu's armor and almost got Sanae, who fell to the floor.
-At last –she heard Kurai say triumphantly.
-What…?
-Sanae… Are…you OK? –Shinobu said brokenly.
-Shi, Shinobu-san! Kurai, Kurai pierced you completely…
-What? –and the Archangel of Chaos looked at his armor, almost completely destroyed. He could see one of the deadly toy's blades pierce his stomach.
Of course, Kurai wasn't going to stay there and admire the view. She tried to retrieve her yo-yo, but Shinobu didn't let her. He grabbed the toy's string, as sharp and hard as piano wire, while he had his Chaos Whip in his other hand, ready to attack.
And as quick as he could, he turned around and attacked with his weapon.
Kurai let her weapon toy go out of sheer surprise, while the whip hit her on her delicate and evil face. Once again she saw her black blood, and shrieked shrilly like a banshee.
The shout stunned almost everyone inside the barrier, making all the fights stop for a moment, although the Antiarchangels took less time in recovering.
-Are you so dumb and naïve so as not to recognize your own blood? –Shinobu said, while a puddle of his own blood formed at his feet. He didn't have much time left and no one could heal him.
-My own… blood… My own blood? –Kurai cried, terrified. -Masaka!
-Well, believe it… Sanae-san, use what remains of my energy to beat this monster… And please, don't let anything happen to my wife or to the baby she's expecting…
-What?
-Avenge the others… And don't let the New Genesis happen! –and Shinobu disappeared in the middle of that shout, turning into pure energy. He turned into part of Sanae…
Who began her evolution in the middle of the sadness she felt because of her friend's death.