Chapter 18: Simple

The massive man was walking calmly in the streets of Bonesborough. Taking in the sights of the magical land he was in, thinking of all the wonderful possibilities this place harbored. "If something will make you stronger, you must do it", such was the core belief of the man called Jack Hanma. And to such a person, any and all possibilities are cause for excitement, no matter what consequences may come from it. He was, after all, "the man that gave up his tomorrow".

He had heard rumors of many things he could use. Apparently, there were ways for even humans to use magic here, through the use of special drawing called "glyphs", not unlike the practice of alchemy in their world.

But he was more interested in one other thing he had heard of, and there was one particular person he had to look into if he was to consider this possibility.

As he kept walking, he heard some commotion coming from further down the street. He went to investigate, and to his delight, he found exactly what he was looking for.

There he saw Gouki Shibukawa, that monstrous grandmaster of Aiki, fighting the exact person he was looking for: Edalyn Clawthorne.

"Interesting. She is fighting Shibukawa. This is perfect."

"Is it?"

Jack turned around to see a young teenager staring up at him, about 16 years old. He didn't know this girl, but something about her felt oddly familiar, like he was talking to someone he knew.

"… Yes, it is. "

"You are Jack Hanma, right? I've heard a lot about you from my master."

"…"

"Are you sure about this? If what he told me about you is true, you are considering curses as a way to get stronger, aren't you?"

"… In there, you can see someone who is standing up to a legend. If she can hold her ground, there is no doubt that curse has made her stronger. It is that simple… Say, what's your name?"

"Luz"

"Luz… I see… I know who your master is now, you talk just like him. And before you say anything else, allow me to be clear: I gave up my future long ago, so long as I can become stronger, there is no such thing as a cost too high. Do not confuse fighting for some sort of sport. Unless you do everything you can to become stronger, you are just half-assing it."

"…"

Before they both turned their attention to the fight, Jack said one last thing:

"I will not allow you people to look down on us fighters."

…

…

Eda was flying a few meters above the ground, not sure of what to even do. Whichever way she chose to approach Gouki, he would most likely have a way to counter it.

She considered flying straight at him, no good.

She thought of coming from the side, bad idea.

Maybe from the top? Unlikely to work.

By its nature, Aiki was built to counterattack anything that came from any direction. She knew this, and even used it a couple of times before. It worked wonders against just about anyone, even wild beasts. At one point, she even shocked herself when she managed to completely topple over a massive Slitherbeast that was charging at her at full speed. Never in her life had she ever even come close to taking down a thing like that, but thanks to Aiki, it was a simple as redirecting its own hulking mass straight into the ground.

Humans, man. They're scary!

But surely, it couldn't be perfect. After all, even Shibukawa wasn't undefeated. She had heard stories of one of the few times he was taken down. Specifically, he had told her of 3 times he had lost a fight: When the murderous Yanagi took out his eye, when the monstrous Jack Hanma bit him to near death, and when the talented Ali Jr. knocked him out.

…

Actually…

…

Eda came down from her flight and started to walk calmly towards Gouki.

"Hoh hoh! Fukurou-dono, you come at me from the front? I suppose any option is as good for you as any other option. Let's see what you got for this old man!"

He had that trademark smile that made him look like a devil.

But in Eda's mind, the solution was as simple as it could be.

Gouki's smile faded quickly as he noticed the bizarre way she started to move. She started to sway side-to-side in an eerie and unnatural manner. Her joints were quickly becoming loose and started to move around freely, like her tendons were turning into thin rubber. Her limbs started to flail around like they didn't even have bones.

Had he been anyone else, he would have been caught off guard. But he was familiar with this technique.

Everyone was staring at Eda, confused at her odd movements. Jack and Luz, however, were paying very close attention.

Then, Eda struck with her right arm. Shibukawa stepped back to dodge it, and just as he suspected, there was an extremely loud crack at the very edge of her strike.

"Benda. The "whip hand". I know that accursed move way to well, fukurou-dono- "

And before he could finish, a massive cut in his chest ripped open.

Shibukawa was shocked. He was certain he had dodged her hand.

"You sure, pops? I doubt you've seen it like this!"

Everyone was so confused, they all saw Gouki step back, by all accounts, he had dodged that, right?

Even Luz couldn't comprehend what had just happened.

"What a nice blade! Quite impressive!"

Out of who knows where appeared Musashi Miyamoto.

"Indeed. A blade like that is quite deadly. Perhaps, even sharper than one made of steel."

Jack was liking what he was looking at very much.

It was then that Shibukawa and Luz realized what happened, as they looked at Eda's hand and saw this "blade". Moreover, they saw all the "blades" she had:

Claws,

Fangs,

Talons,

Many different blades that came with her body. To not call such sharp and deadly weapons "blades" would be foolish. They were such simple yet deadly structures. If raw force can't take down aiki, then deadly cutting would certainly work.

Musashi then spoke:

"I sure am envious. "The blade that never leaves your hand", how long have I searched for it? And yet, you fighters of the modern world, time and time again flaunt your loyal swords like you wish to remind me of my everlasting loneliness. Your fists and your feet. Your fangs, and now even your claws… I stand here, staring the sword-less style I tried to attain for so long… If only I had been born with claws instead of fingers."

Gouki stood still for a moment, with a somber look in his face. Until a massive smile came.

"Good! Good! Amazing! This is what I wanted! Today, it finally happens! The greatest test Aiki has ever faced! We can take on massive men, rikkishi, even beasts with no problem! But can Aiki surpass the bladed arts? We shall see!"

"Woah there! I wouldn't go as far as to say these are blades, man. That was an accident! I was trying to hit you with a benda! I didn't mean-"

She scrambled to try to apologize for what was actually an accident, but Shibukawa was way too excited to listen anymore, she knew that when he got like this, talking was pretty much useless.

She took her stance again, unsure of what to do.

She was doubting again. She could try to do that again, but it would take a miracle for that kind of lighting to strike twice. She started to scramble for ideas again. She was nervous, desperately thinking of what to do. His smile was growing wider and wider, she was getting scared. Maybe she could-

And everything got cut short when Jack suddenly stepped in between them.

The massive man caught everyone's attention, as he turned to face Eda. Shibukawa was about to protest in anger, but Jack simply turned and raised his hand to stop him.

"It will be a minute."

Shibukawa was shocked, but sensed no aggression from Jack.

"… Fine."

He was pissed, but also curious as to what was going on. He sat on the ground to wait.

Jack then turned to Eda.

She had only vaguely heard of this person before, and he was certainly much more intimidating than she could have possibly imagined.

He then lifted a finger to his mouth and pulled back the side of it, revealing the titanium teeth he had become known for.

Eda looked at those things, trying to understand what she was staring into.

"… Weapons are weapons. You are an amateur, like a lion. But even you should be able to use your own weapons. This is life and death, survival. Reject it all you want; the natural world will never change."

After that, he stepped out and left the place entirely. His mind had been made already, regardless of the result of this fight.

Eda thought about what he had said for a moment, and then resolve struck within her.

She then crouched down, she got low, as low as she could possibly go.

She put her hands on the ground, her wings spread wide. She was in all fours, and there was a completely different feeling in the air.

Bearing her fangs

The air felt light

She was focused

Because it was simple

He got up, and ready

No longer smiling

For he knew how simple this was

In her mind, she thought:

It's as simple as killing.