Chapter 08


The Ōizumichō district was in an area that pushes the edge of the municipal map. The general architecture of Nerima isn't what one would think when trying to visualize a modern metropolis. The ward is predominantly composed of low buildings and rows of spacious houses, with an abundance of park and nature; however, Ōizumichō is where the city really began to turn into the country.

Scarce, full of large houses with longs stretches of lands between them, flat fields of grasslands spreading between the roads, and a number of factories decorated the landscape.

It made me wonder why this Shinnosuke guy had chosen this place for our match.

"Where exactly is this damn place!?" Ranma complained. He was probably more frustrated by the fact there was no higher fence for him to walk on than the distance.

"The Obaa-san from before said there is just on top of this road. Have some patience." Haruka responded. She was carrying a map we'd picked up in an old convenience store a while back, though it must be outdated or something cuz we still had to stop and ask for direction.

We were traversing an empty road that was leading us up and around an elevation. I'm reasonably confident we are in the right place; this feels like a location someone would build a temple on, high mounts and a patch of forest you can't go wrong with that.

"I just don't understand why choose this remote location in the first place. Delinquent aren't known for wanting their actions to stay discrete, if anything, it's the opposite." I commented, making my pondering known.

"Hm? Maybe is about territory? If they're from Nami-Ku in the south, than Ōizumichō would be the fastest way to enter Nerima without taking the metro, and maybe they can't go deeper because it would cause problems with the Nerima's gangs." Haruka offered.

It wasn't an unrealistic scenario.

"You sure do know a lot about delinquent. Are you keeping some dark secrets from us?" Ranma teased.

"Not at all." She didn't rise to the provocations. It's pretty hard to make her blush or stagger once she had her composure up. "It's only logical. Everybody knows there are gangs of delinquents everywhere, make sense that there would be some territory politics between them."

I thought about that for a second. "What even are the Nerima's gangs anyway, are the Vipers one of them?"

"Nope, they're from Nakano-Ku. They've been pushed into Nerima because they're losing territory there."

…This time, I joined in with Ranma in sending Haruka looks.

"What?" She asked, eventually.

"You… Really do know a lot about that, huh?" I said.

"Suspicious…" Ranma added.

The girl pouted just a little. "And whose fault is that! I have never even seen an actual delinquent before meeting you, senpai. Now I'm going to a challenge between them."

"Oh, don't give me that, it's not like you're not having- Hey!" I protested when the implication dawned.

Both she and Ranma began to snigger.

Goddamn Japanese and their stereotypes! Just because I like using gel on my hair, keep my shirt unbuttoned, and walk around with a dented baseball bat doesn't mean I was a delinquent! The sheer gall of these people…

On the apex of the elevation, right before the road started counting down, a set of stone steps showed itself, cutting a path through the vegetation on the side. By the stairs themselves I could tell this temple was several orders of magnitudes smaller than the Temple of the Heavenly Oni in the border of Nerima-Ku and Itabashi-Ku. That place had stairs that could easily fit four or five people side by side, and the way up was marked by multiples torii gates, but this one forced us to form a line to ascend the steps, and the only tori gate I've seen was the main one itself, which marked the entrance to the temple.

Yeah, this Jiyuu-Ji temple definitely seems more like a neighborly place of worship rather than a giant one that doubled as a tourist attraction. I can easily imagine old couples and newlyweds coming to pray and place their offering to whatever Kami it was dedicated to.

It was the size of a children's playground, with uneven stone tiles forming a rectangular platform amidst the vegetation; the main shrine looked like a small hut and was basically the only thing noteworthy in this place. Both the shrine and the tiles were showing signs of disrepair, which make sense, I doubt there was much traffic around these part nowadays with that road by the entrance. I bet this place had a lot more visitors before that had been built.

Not helping the situation was the fact there were twenty-six delinquents loitering around the place. As typical for youngsters of this particular specimen, they were leaving their usual markings of cigarette buds, dirty magazines, and food wrappings all around the place, and a disrespectful little fuck was actually drawing graffiti on the walls of the shrine, fucking, really!?

All laughter and loud conversation stopped when we appeared, turning into glares and mocking sniggers.

One of them, which were practically indistinguishable from the rest, saved maybe for the fact he was kneeling on the ground and had his arms tied to his back perked up when he saw us.

"Nii-san!" He called.

Ah, one of the Viper's guys, who was he again? He didn't look like the guy I saved yesterday… well, he did, but the guy from yesterday had glasses. And he wasn't Touji, the guy from a few days back who'd asked me to deal with Kodachi as revenge for his sister. All left was one of Touji's moral support, so he should be one of them.

The only distinctive guy was one in the back, glaring daggers at me; I would have thought he was the challenger if there wasn't for the bandages all over his body, and the cast on his arm.

Seeing no use in just standing around and glaring, I stepped in.

"I am Ōe Hiroshi, here to answer a challenge by Tsuji Shinnosuke. Is he here!?" I announced firming, making my voice bounce around the place.

"Yes!" The response was immediate, "Damn right, he is!"

Until now, all the delinquents I have seen clearly looked apart; Relaxed clothes, Gel-brushed hairs or mohawks, a tendency to walk around openly armed with blunt and slashing weapon, all aspects that very definitely marked them as what they were. But the guy who came out from behind the shrine was really pushing the stereotype.

He was taller than most gathered here, with a messy mass of black hair falling down to his back. His face was built from fierce-looking features that were locked in a confident grin. He was wearing a modified school uniform that billowed around his legs like a long coat. The only thing missing was the hat, and he would look right out of an 80's hardboiled shounen manga.

"I am Tsuji Shinnosuke!" He announces, thumping his broad chest. "I see you didn't run away, Ōe Hiroshi. Excellent! "

Tsuji Shinnosuke
Leader of the Tsuji troops, third Captain of Ragnarok.
Level: 15.

Well then, nothing seems to be out of the ordinary...

I think I can take him.

"You know, it's not every day I react to a single incident like that." He drops down from the shrine's steps to the solid ground. "But to send three of my new recruits to the hospital like that..." He shook his head. "No, that can't go unpunished."

Then he dramatically pointed a finger at me. "Ōe Hiroshi, The Dandy Fist! You will pay for raising your hand against the Tsuji troops!"

… I felt something die a little inside me, especially with the sniggering now coming from behind.

"I'm sorry, what did you call me!?"

Tsuji Shinnosuke continued to point and glare for a few seconds before his finger twitched downwards a bit and he spoke to the guy on his side with the edge of his mouth.

"Oi, Kenji!"

The bandaged man, who was still looking as if he wanted to stab me with his eyes, momentarily jerked in surprise at being called.

"Yes, boss!"

"You said he used his fists, right?"

""Yeah, boss."

"Then how come is he using a bat now!?"

"… Sorry boss."

"Grrr! Look at what you made me do!"

"Sorry, boss. I'll do better, boss."

After this brief but unbelievable retarded exchange, Shinnosuke cleaned his throat.

"Sorry 'bout that." He said, and then promptly pointed his finger again, his dramatic atmosphere returning as if it never left. "Ōe Hiroshi, The Dandy Bat! You will pay for raising your hand against the Tsuji troops!"

H-he… he actually called me that! And it was even worse now! Seriously where the hell did that come from!? Who came up with this name!?

"Dandy bat."

"Dandy bat!

"… Dandy bat."

Great, now his fucking underlings are repeating this ridiculous title all serious-like. And it's even worse cuz they aren't using Japanese to speak, no the fuckers decided to use English, and they're really fucking bad at English, so the end result was that horrible and comical accent that made it sound like—

"Dandii battō…" That last one came from behind me.

"Oh, shut up!" I snarled at Ranma. The motherfucker was barely containing his laugher.

"Alright, first of all!" I began loudly, pointing my bent baseball bat at my challenger. "Why do you need a hostage? I'm right here, right? You don't need him to drawn me here anymore, or whatever. Let him go!"

I was expecting him to would mock this proposal, but surprisingly, he gestured with his head to a guy, who promptly crouch down to cut the Viper kid's biding.

The kid immediately ran towards me.

"Nii-san! I'm so sorry!" He said.

"It's alright."

"No! I… I told them where they could find you!" He confessed with actual tears gathering in his eyes.

"It told you it's ok, just leave it to me." Fucking kids and their messes.

"Nii-san, thank you! I'll not forget this!" He declared, and bolted down the stairs, leaving the area.

… Did he seriously just do that?

"Rude," Ranma commented casually, I got a feeling he's enjoying this.

"Quite so. He could at least have stayed for the fight." Haruka added the obvious.

Whatever, he only part of the reason I came here. The other part was to keep Ranma from pestering me about chicken out from my first challenge. Another was to earn that sweet, sweet exp from the quest. And the last part, was because I simply wanted to: fighting had become quite therapeutic for me lately, no surprise there, considering I've been fighting something or another practically every day since I woke up as Ōe Hiroshi, so either I'd grow sick of it by now, or I'd learn to enjoy it.

"And second of all!" I raised my voice at the same time Shinnosuke opened his mouth, interrupting what he had to say. I didn't care; I had to know this, "The reason for this fight is because I beat up some of your guys yesterday, right? I want to know if you endorse their actions, trying to break a guy's leg like that."

This will serve as a lighting explanation as to the reason for all of this to Haruka and Ranma behind me… and really pissed the bandaged guy off… in fact, he looks rather panicked now.

Shinnosuke, however… Frowned. He frowned deeply at my question.

"Is that why you attacked my men? Fool! Don't you know wounds are inevitable in a fight between man!?"

On that's rich. "A fight between men!? He was already defeated, and was crawling on the ground pleading your men to not fucking cripple him!" I counted. Feeling my temper rising.

Oh yeah, the bandaged guy looked really agitated now, there is even some glances cast in his direction by the other. Had he not told them the full story, maybe?

"As if one of the Tsuji troops sink so low!" Ah, that confirms it; he is being played. "You going to pay for insulting our honor!"

This time though, it wasn't an empty threat; it was his battle cry as he rushed towards me.

I let my mana wash around my baseball bat, forming an aura-like cover to hold it together, giving it a slight blue-ish glow to its reflective surface. Then, I stepped in and struck at his incoming punch.

However, he quickly tilted his fist to the side, letting the weapon slide across his arm while he stepped into my guard in an attempt to grapple me. I slammed my body against him to interrupt his actions and threw out my elbow at his face, forcing a state of extremely close combat. He had to lean into it to avoid most of the force, and the move made the low kick he threw lose strength and fail to sweep my legs from under me.

Our movements had created a space between us and allowed me to maneuver my bat in a less awkward manner, which resulted in it coming crashing down on his shoulder just as a knee surprised me by impacting my gut.

We both stumbled backward, raising more distance between us. The hit had taken my wind for a bit, but it was nothing too damaging.

"Hey, you can leave if you're uncomfortable." I heard Ranma's voice talking in a low tone.

"N-No, I'll stay." Was Haruka's answer.

As much as I wanted to look back and see what this was all about, taking my eyes out of my opponent when the fight already started was stupid.

"Hahaha!" Shinnosuke laughed while he rolled his shoulders. All traces of his anger fading from his expression. "You're strong… Yes, I decided!" Once again, he dramatically pointed at me. "If I win this fight, you will join my troop!"

"What kind of anime bullshit is this?" I groaned out loud, resting my bat on my shoulder.

Thinking about the impressions I'm having of this guy. I bet that even if I refuse, he will insist on it. So I might as well benefit from this arrangement.

"Urg, fine. But if I win then…"

… Now what to ask of them? They don't have anything I want, and I don't really have anything I want them to do. Right as I was organizing my thoughts, I stepped on a bag of chips that had been discarded on the ground.

Oh yeah, delinquent leave trails behind…

Eh, might as well mess with them.

"If I win, you and your troop will clean this place up!"

There was a palpable silence following my declaration. A palpable feeling of shock and disbelief spread across on the delinquent side, while my own side had met my statement with snorts and facepalms.

"W-What!?" Shinnosuke exclaimed incredulously.

"You heard me. You and your friend made a mess around here. Do you have any idea how disrespectful this is! This is a place of worship for Christ's sake!" I was never, and will never be, the most religious guy in the world, and my new reality had kinda throw my catholic beliefs in a loop, but I would still be angry if I see a butch of low lives vandalizing a church. In my old life, this would warrant a quick call to the police, in this new one, however, a good ol' bat to the face would do the job.

"And not only that! But you will come back in these following days and actively repair this shrine. I want to see a weedless grounds, clean tiles, and brand new wood you heard me!? I want this place spotless!" I added totally because I could.

"Are you an old lady or something!?" Shinnosuke screamed.

"Hey, fuck you! Just trying to put your lazy asses to work on the betterment of our community. God's know your lot've been slacking off." The Japanese in me nodded proudly at these words.

The delinquent leader shook his head in disbelieve, wildly shaking his mop-like hair in the process. "Arg! Fine! Whatever I don't plan to lose!"

"They never do." I sighed in mock pity.

"Shaddup and fight!" Shinnosuke shouted, throwing himself back into the fight.

Once again, he pressed for extremely close range, probably in an attempt to keep me from using my baseball bat. Usually, I'd step back and work to do just that, using my weapon and longer reach to my advantage, but as I considered what to do, another stream of ideas formed in my head, ways to fight using my bat whole's length that I never thought up before, ways to use them even in very close range.

I had experienced something similar in relation to my overall fighting style when I gain the Brawling Mastery skill. So I knew this was my Club Mastery skill at work.

My hand slid over the handle to about the midway dent, quickly using the handle to strike against his face. At his sudden disorientation, I step forwards, making his chest bounce heavily against mine and delivered three more strikes across his torso with my bat. However, it quickly became clear I was holding back way too much because he soon found his footing and locked the arm that was swinging my bat under his armpit. I least out with my other hand immediately, punching his face with a swift jab. But he surprised me again by meeting my punch with a headbutt, making me hiss as the nerves of my arms flared in pain.

He processed to assault me with his free hand and knee. The knee was easy to block by raising my own leg to intercept it, while the hand was dealt with by using my already recovered arm to block it.

He blinked in shook at my speedy recovery, and I use this opportunity to plant a fist right between his eyes. Finally making him let go of my arm.

Let this be said about Tsuji Shinnosuke; the guy isn't weak.

He clearly knew how to fight and had experience doing so. He was crafty, not in the way that actually thinks things through, but in a way that let him react to his best instincts in an instant. He was fast, agile, could hit like a fucking truck, and could take hits like a champ. His highly aggressive fighting style also keeps me on my toes and forced me to react rather than think and consider. He would have been a formidable opponent for me if we had fought a short few days ago.

But that's the thing: a few days ago.

Now I had experienced first hand a fight to the death against a monster that could pulverize my bones with a single hit. Now I had 30 plus points on most of my physical stats, bringing my bodily strength to comfortably sit at superhuman levels. Now I had experienced what a real martial artist can do in the form of the merciless beating Ranma calls 'training'.

Frankly, if I had to rate Shinnosuke right now, I'd said he seats a bit higher than the highest level Kappa I ever fought, and the kappas had the advantage that they were actively gunning to kill me.

A few minutes into the fight, and it became clear who was the superior fighter, and who would win. And it seems my opponent was getting pissed at this realization.

"Stop doing that!" He growled between attacks as I battled his swing to the side and countered by taking a bat to his face. He barely managed to lean out and let it brush his shaggy hair.

Sweat flew from his brow as he pressed his assault.

"Stop!" He said as I pummeled his guard until he kicked me away.

"Stop! Guhg!" He said while he momentarily managed to grapple me, forcing me to bring my fists down on both sides of his torso at the same time.

"Damn it, stop!" He shouted while I used my superior strength to squash his attempt to break my balance and threw him to the ground.

"STOP!" He screams while I met his fury of assaults with my own. "HOLDING BACK!"

Eh?

One of his punches slipped through and struck me square on the cheek, the impact itself hit harder than the pain as my head was thrown to the side, and my body momentarily went limp.

However, I managed to jam my bat on the ground to stop the momentum while my body lashed out a high kick aiming backward almost unconsciously.

My sneaker-covered foot rasped against his hurried-raised guard, making his arms buck and forcing him to step back.

"See!" He exclaimed accusatorially, "You're holding back on me, bastard! You shouldn't hold back in a fight between men!"

I placed my bat on my shoulder while my fingers rubbed my jaw to see if there was anything broken. It was not the worst pain I ever experienced, but it was unpleasant.

Still, it seems I've gotten the wrong impression from my opponent. I had only myself to blame for that one.

"So, you want me to put my back into it?" I provoked.

"Bastard…" He growled, his hands clenching into trembling fists, "Are you mocking my manly spirit!?"

Then, for some ungodly reason, he ripped his top off, revealing his muscular torso to the world like he was a Yakuza game's boss or something.

"Are you sure? I might actually kill you." I said, ignoring the fact he went half-naked all of the sudden.

I was fairly confident that he can take it, I had been trying out my hits on him for the last fifteen minutes or so. If there was anything I could say about him was that he was tough.

His face twisted into a grim. "Heh, cocky bastard, let's see how you deal with this!"

He rushed in with his arms to the side and guard free, almost as if he was provoking me to attack him.

And he was, it was obvious he was planning to do something. Maybe duck under the next swing, or somehow use it to try and take my bat out of my hand; it wouldn't be the first time he attempted.

Whatever he was trying to do, he didn't expect me to actively step into his lunge displaying a level of speed I've been keeping to myself. My hands tightened around the handle of my baseball bat in preparation.

Just like he wanted, I was putting my back into it.

"HORA!"

My bat impacted his front with a loud, meaty sound, his body not deterring my swing in any way. The delinquent leader was sent flying backward, the heels of his feet literally skidding across the ground. To my surprise, he didn't fall outright when he finally stopped.

He actually managed to stay standing.

"Heh! How's that." He mocked cockily.

A second later, his arms flopped limply to his sides. The trembling limbs now spotting deep, red marks on his forearms.

Ah, he managed to defend it… but it looks like both his arms are broken now, or at least fractured. I don't think he can continue on like this.

"Fight's over." I declared.

"As if!" He shouted, rushing towards me again, the crazy motherfucker couldn't even raise his arms.

But never giving up until the end fit the hotheaded teenager impression I'm was getting from him.

He jumped, which was a bit unexpected, trying out a dropkick. Just like him, I decided to move unexpectedly, countering his kick with a high kick of my own, this one taken from my new Martial Art mastery and Muay Thai knowledge.

Our legs brushed together as they went past each other. His current position meant that his leg was brushed away from me, barely scratching my sides, while mine ended up directly on his stomach, his own momentum enhancing the force of the hit.

"GUH!" Shinnosuke gasped, spit flying out from his mouth. I could clearly see the last vestiges of the fight leaving his eyes as his conscience began to fade. But it was only when he went totally limp, that I felt safe to tilt my raised leg to the side and drop him to the ground.

"Fight's over," I repeated even though he couldn't hear. "Good fight."

Quest completed!

+300 closeness with the Viper's gang of middle school hooligans has increased.

Your closeness with the Viper's gang of middle school hooligans has increased.

Your closeness with the Ragnarok gang has decreased.

Your closeness with the Tsuji Shinnosuke has increased.

Your reputation within the Tokyo delinquent's scene has increased.

Whatever you say, Gamer, I certainly don't feel like my closeness with Tsuji Shinnosuke has increased. He certainly isn't in condition to say his piece about that right now.

My victory was met with silence… For about five seconds before Ranma began to talk.

"You could have punched his throat the first time he got close. It would end it faster!" Ranma's complaint made me huff.

"Everybody is a fucking critic."

"No, seriously, did you see the way he attacked you? Like, full of holes. And the throat man, I tell you he must have something against protecting it."

"I get it; you would have fought differently and ended it all in three moves, no need to brag."

"Two, and I just tell it like it is." He shifted his weight on his feet and smiled at me. "Still, good work, pretty intense."

"Yeah." I could see that by the fact that Shinnosuke was constantly in my face and attacking, which forced me to match, counter, and tank his blows with the same intensity. I can only imagine what it must have looked like to someone watching.

And I fought my answer on Haruka. She was… fine, like she has always been, but her cheeks were noticeable paler.

"That was…" She chewed her lower lip for a bit, trying to find the right word. "Violent." She decided in the end.

"Ah, well, it was a fight," I said, feeling a bit awkward.

"B-Boss!" Several voices cried out behind me. I turn to see the rest of the group of delinquents had finally snapped out of their shook and were now congregating around their fallen leader.

"Aaah," Ranma grumbled after a few seconds of just watching them. "Now that I think about it, this was kinda anticlimactic."

"I'm sorry if my life is not entertaining enough for you." I bit back, but sighed in the end. "… Let's just go home. There is nothing for us there anymore."

The fight was fun, the exp was juicy, but I don't see why we should stay.

"Home? But what about that rumor about the mysterious repair jobs?" Haruka asked.

"Oh yeah, that." I thought back to what the girl had said. It did sound interesting, however… "I can't even think about where to start looking?"

"We could ask around," Haruka suggested.

"It's gonna night soon, though." Ranma helpfully reminded us of that fact.

We were starting to make our way back, placing this entire incident to the back of our minds while we did so, but just as we were about to cross the entrance of the temple and began descending the stairs. We heard something very, very distinctive.

"GET THEM!"

I swirled on my heels as I turned around, my grip on my fingers gripping my bat's handle like iron hooks. I was expecting to find the rest of the 'Tsuji Troop' rushing at us in an attempt to get revenge for their fallen leader. However, I found them talking rapidly among themselves.

"What?" I wondered out loud, hearings the delinquent's voices growing louder. I looked at Ranma, who has also turned and assumed battle position. He looked back and shrugged.

Before I could voice my confusion to the delinquents themselves, however, the discussion finished, and all of them looked up at us with murderous glares.

On the fair back, bandage guy was sniggering like a supervillain.

Of course. I rolled my eyes and I moved to intercept the incoming gang.

Fighting against a group of people is much different than fighting against a single person, obviously. As a rule of thumb, you're fucked. There is simply no way to defend against attacks coming from all sides and at the same time. One or more of them will bring you down eventually, and that's if you luck out, and no one grabs you from behind and lock the movements of your arms, basically turning you in a glorified punch bag.

There are several techniques you can use to help you fight better, like keep moving, try to reposition yourself in a more advantageous, try to position the group so they strike themselves rather than you, but typically, unless you're highly trained, have a weapon with you, or have good back up; an one-against-many fight doesn't end so well for the 'one' part.

That was back on my old life, of course. Here, in anime world, things work differently.

Here, the fight went much differently than it would have. Right now my body was blatantly superhuman, I hadn't had the time to test out what exactly what I could do, but I can safely say that my strength alone, the most straightforward of my stat, was high enough that I could break concrete with my bare hand, so the most challenging thing for me to do as holding back.

Tsuji Shinnosuke could take my new strength, but his group was noticeably weaker. Most of my attacks weren't well executed because of the chaos around me, but they carried a lot of punch behind them, causing meaty smacks and cracks wherever they landed. Only the delinquents' own tenacity let them kept going after that. Their attacks, in contrast, didn't hurt or damage me a whole lot. Frankly, the impacts of their attacks gave me more trouble than the damage itself, as it frequently made me mess up my posture or balance.

While what happened wasn't exactly a 'one hit, one man down' situation we see in Kung fu flicks, it was simultaneously more impressive and more brutal

By the end, I gleefully strode to where the bandage dude was whimpering and trying to crawl away and whop him over the head and to the land of unconsciousness.

He deserved a lot more for the troubles he brought me, but he's already injured, so fuck it.

My mangled bat now had some specks of blood on it, making for a ghastly image; I ignored it and placed it over my shoulder, a gesture that was quickly becoming part of my default image.

You familiar has been cleansed.

Hm?

A brief flash descended upon my mind; I caught a glimpse of Minon's falling from a high height and snapping her neck against the ground. The images disappeared a moment later like they hadn't even shown up in the first place, leaving me blinking and disoriented.

Minon is dead?

A surge of panic stab my chest, but I quickly subdue it. No, not dead, cleansed. Popping open my Summon Familiar skill, I saw that the once filled slot was open again, and Minon's Strength Card was completely black, marking it as currently unsummonable.

I somehow knew I could summon her again if I used my skill to refill her card first.

But it didn't change the fact she got 'killed'. Did something kill her? She appeared to be falling from somewhere high, was it an accident?

"Hey, Hiroshi, what are you looking at?" Ranma asked. Making me blink and realize I'd unconsciously turned to look at the direction Minon had been killed.

"Nothing," I said reflectively. "Have you finished with your side?"

Ranma crossed his arm and raised his eyebrow at my admittedly dumb question, behind him, there were piles of unconscious bodies dispatched way more efficiently than I did. It might be possible he had finished a while ago and was just waiting for me.

"Right, where's Haruka?" I asked, feeling a pang of guilt and worry wheeling up in my stomach. The girl didn't know how to fight, a fact that had slipped out of my mind in the moment and- wait fuck! What if she got attacked!?

"I told her to scramble cuz she'd got hurt." Ranma responded, "I saw her circling around the mess. I think she went to take cover by the shrine."

I sighed, relieved that Ranma was keeping an eye on her.

I swear I'd do that myself on the next opportunity.

"Hey Haruka, we're finished! You can come out now!" I called out in the direction of the shrine.

Nothing.

No response, no handsome-looking girl popping up from behind the shrine, or from standing up from behind the offering box, or even coming out from inside the shrine. Just the creaking sound of old, dilapidated wood as it was massaged by the rushing wind of the waning day.

I slowly closed my eyes, fighting against the dread and annoyance my genre savviness was invoking.

Maybe it was nothing, maybe she hadn't heard us, or was playing a prank, or something. I really hope this was the case.

But I can't simply ignore the nagging feeling in the back of my head. A weak, faint feeling I realized it had been there since I arrived in that place, but only now, without delinquents vowing for my head, could focus on it.

No, too weak, could be my imagination playing tricks on me, building up by the fact that Haruka wasn't showing up.

Ranma, too, called for her once. The results were the same.

"She's in the back." He concluded.

"I doubt so," I said as I started to walk toward the shrine.

It became undeniable then because as I approached, the feeling on the back of my head only grew.

Spiritual Senses leveled up!

Shit.

Ascending the steps to the shrine, walking over the uneven tiles of stone and dirt, passing the old, offering box. I noticed that the door was a bit ajar, understandable for someone how wanted to hide or at least keep out of sight. However, it would be questionable if Haruka would be able to squint her body inside, both due to the shrine's modest size, and the altar to the Kami that was most likely inside. Still, it wouldn't be unrealistic to assume she'd at least had taken a look.

Securing my mangled baseball bat with one hand, I pulled the door open.

"Double shit!" I cursed, this time out loud.

"What?" Ranma, who's been accompanying me, asked. Clearly alarmed at my sudden reaction.

"… Do you remember the Illusion Barrier where we fought that monkey yokai? The one that appeared naturally?"

Because I could see what was left of the altar to the Kami inside… through the distorting, transparent surface of an Illusion Barrier entrance.

One I didn't create.

"Eh? What? There is one right there?" He looked at the phenomenon he couldn't see, and then the implications dawned on him. "Wait, do you think Haruka went inside!?"

"It seems like it," I confirmed.

"Wait, wait, wait! You said people could only enter them with you!"

Because that was what seems like it at the time.

I'd done some tests on the limitations and applications of Illusion Barriers before, it was one of the first things I did, in fact. I could create them, and they all leave a bubble-like, transparent portal when I activate my Illusion Barrier Escape skill while inside. Ranma and everybody else can't interact or even see them in any way, shape, or form. I'd even place a bubble in the middle of a crowded school corridor to test that out; everybody just walked through it like it wasn't there.

Haruka was just a normal girl. She shouldn't be able to get inside one at all, or, at least, not so easily.

Excerpt…

… She… isn't a normal girl… If we go by the Gamer system, which I see no reason not to, her death or permanent injury could cause the literal apocalypse, as the system had helpfully implied in the consequences for failing the quest to save her life.

She is not a normal girl.

"Clearly, I was wrong." I decided.

Maybe I was wrong now, maybe Haruka wasn't in there, there is very real chance that's the case.

But as things stand, we can't afford not to look.

"Let's freaking go then! We have to get her!" Ranma stated the obvious.

"Yeah, but…" I hesitated.

"What!?"

"This one is different," I reported, looking at the bubble of unreality. "It's… yellow."

"What!?"

"It's not completely transparent like the others, ok. There is a yellow tinge on it."

That was the only difference, a golden tone softly framing its undulating edges, it was a very, very small difference, but when dealing with things like that, every deviation has to be taken into accord.

"So what? We're not going in because it isn't in the right color!" Ranma affronted.

"I didn't say that!" I bit back. "Just… let's be careful, ok. We don't know what could be waiting for us on the other side."

"We'll kick its ass anyway!" Ranma declared. "Let's just go already! We're wasting time!"

"Yeah, it's not like we have much choice."

The very definition of diving into the unknown, I guess. Alright, fuck it, let's do this!

It occurred to me that I could have summoned Minon for extra back up. But by then, I was already stepping into the bubble, dragging Ranma with me.

To a world of blood-red skies and a giant black sun.

-0-0-0-

This illusion barrier certainly isn't like any other I've entered before.

Rather than a misty recreation of the immediate area with the ghostly impressions of the people on the other side, this was a recreation of the temple, and only the temple. The rectangular boundaries held only a singular line of trees as mementos of the vegetation that should have been there. And stretched out across an impossible large distance where there would normally be a representation of the Ōizumichō district but held nothing at all.

A bright blood-red color dominated everything on sight, to the extent that it suppressed every other color and made it hard to make out edges, angles, and perspective. As if the whole world was a solid block of red. The only thing allowing us to detect distances and shapes were the dashes of deep black that washed over things like endless shadows, more intensely represented by the soft black rain that fell from the equally black clouds covering the pitch-black sun above. The splashes of the black droplets over the overbearing redness were the only thing giving the world shape, and it drenched our bodies in something I hope was water.

"Great." Grumbled Ranma-chan in an oddly echoy pang in her voice. I spared her a look and noticed that this world's effects had made her shirt blend so seamlessly to the area around her that it made look like her head and arms were floating over her legs. Her hair was producing a similar effect.

I would undoubtedly have made a witty comment about this fact if the situation were less tense.

"Stay sharp. This Illusion barrier is not like the others."

I looked around the place. While there are few things of notice, they were surprisingly hard to make them out, the overwhelming sound of rain also wasn't helping.

"No shit," Ranma grumbled once more before focusing. "So, where's Haruka?"

"I can't see her." Impaired visibility, unknown enemy, really creepy ambiance, and Haruka nowhere to be seen; yeah, I'm bringing out the big guns.

And by that, I meant I produced Ryoga's umbrella from my inventory. I could handle its weight much better now, but I still placed the tip on the ground to help me support it.

"I said we spit and look around—"

"OI HARUKA, WHERE YOU'RE AT!?" Ranma bust out.

"Or we could just try this."

To my surprise, we didn't immediately attract some enemy or anything but instead produced a very high pitch sound.

"Kyah!"

It echoed through the rain.

"Oi, is that?" Ranma choked

No time to think about the implications. I called out. "HARUKA, WHERE ARE YOU!?"

"Here!" She shrieked, her voice thin with terror. The sound made us bolt to meet her as soon as her running silhouette appeared in the rain.

She nearly collapsed in my arms, her whole body shaking in fear. But once she realized she was with us, she immediately started to gather herself enough to control her breathing.

"Hiroshi!" She called out after she recovered some of her composure. "What is this!? Where the hell we are!? What's happening!?"

I kept my hand on her shoulders to help steady her. Frankly, I'm immensely glad I found her safe and sound— and this fast, too, I was expecting for it to be a lot harder.

"I'll explain everything after we get out of here. One second!" I closed my eyes and reached out.

ID escape failed, disparity between levels is too high.

Of course there'd be a catch.

"Shit!"

"What? What was that 'Shit'?" Ranma asked, making herself known.

"I can't get us out until we beat up whatever's in there."

"Oh."

"I'm sorry, who are you!?" Haruka demanded of the strange girl.

"I'm Ranma- Err."

Great fucking way to confuse the girl even more Ranma, time and place, man, time and place-

And then my thoughts screeched to a halt, and I realize just why Ranma had trailed off on her dumb response.

We could see Haruka better now that we're close. The rain made easy for us to catch the sparse details the color contrast allowed. She went out with us this morning wearing a striped shirt and overalls. We could see the shirt just fine due to it's red on black colors, but the other piece of clothing…

"Where are your pants!?" Ranma put things bluntly.

Indeed: there was nothing hiding the black silhouette of a pair of long, runners legs crowned by striking bright red panties around the surprisingly shapely hips.

"I-I-I had no choice!" Exclaimed the half-naked girl, now trying to push her shirt downward to hide her modesty. I have no idea how the color them was translating mine and Ranma's blushes. "It had gotten in my clothes!"

I yanked my teenager eyes from the enticing vision enough for me to process that statement.

"What do you mean?"

*Squeak*

"AH!" Haruka exclaimed suddenly and jumped in my arms, latching herself around my neck.

"H-Hey!" I grunted while warping my arm on her lower back. Do you know how hard balancing a tall, athletic girl and an ultra-heavy umbrella is? Very. "Get a hold of yourself!"

"What was that!?" Asked Ranma whipping her head around.

"I-It's here!" Haruka screamed. *Squeak* "AH!"

"What is this squeaking!" I called, desperately trying to concentrate through the tight body being pressed on mine, damn teenage hormones! Why are you reacting at a time like this!?

"I see it!" Ranma declared. "It's fast!"

"What, god damn it!?" I can't see the shit, and Ranma was blurring her head trying to follow it. 'Fast' is an understatement.

"Keep it away from me!" Haruka continued to scream.

*Squeak!*

I felt it, not the thing, but the growing feeling from before, when Ryoga attacked, a mixture of Goosebumps and a chill and an urge to fucking move coming from a particular direction. Like before, it stunned me for e second.

"Not so fast!" Ranma shouted, throwing a punch so fast that it propelled some of the rain horizontally.

*S-Squeak!?*

"Aha!" The martial artist cried out victoriously, her other hand joining the first to grip a… what?

Squinting my eyes and moving close to see, I could make out a—

"Is that a squirrel?" I asked. The fuck was a squirrel doing a last boss zone of all places!?

"E-Eh!?" Haruka finally detached her face from my neck to glance at the thing. "It isn't a rat?"

Is that what she was afraid of?

"No, it's a squirrel," Ranma said while she relaxed her stance somewhat. "Sheesh, all this drama because of a squirrel! Lameee."

"Hey, now!" The blonde girl said, her voice growing stronger. "How the heck I was supposed to know it was a squirrel!? I was trying not to freak out for the, you know, creepy hallucination! And then some furry thing just got into my pants and started rubbing itself on me!"

"Hallucina—HAH! Check it out Hiroshi; she thinks she's hallucinating!"

"This is what a normal person would think, yes." I sighed.

I swear Ranma, your female voice's a sexy raspy purr that sounded like liquid chocolate to the ear, but it can really get on someone's nerves if you tease them like that.

"Who even are you!?" Haruka demanded.

"I told you, dummy. I'm Ranma—OUCH!"

It appears that the squirrel has, perhaps predictably, sank its teeth on Ranma's gripping fingers. She lashes out with a movement that would have laughed at any other squirrel to the stratosphere, but this one not only managed to cling on her hand, but to circle up her arm and into her shirt in a clean, but somewhat hard-to-see movement.

"GAH! What in the world—Hya!?" Ranma cried out. It was tough to see due to the colors, but I blinked as the pair of heavy breasts began to violently bounce in her shirt.

"AH, S-STOP IT!" She continued to shout, finally overcoming her initial shock enough to pat around her chest area, trying to grab the running rodent. "ARG! This-This thing-Kyah! It bit me!"

"See! That's what happened to me! Who's lame now!?" Haruka shouted vindication heavy in her voice.

"ARHHHH! STOP YOU DAMN PERVERT SQUIRREL!" Ranma was wiggling in a way only someone with squirrels in their pants would— Shirt, in this case. She fell down on the wet ground and I swear the Phineas and Ferb's song began to play in my head.

"H-H-Hiroshi! DO SOMETHING!"

At my friends' cry, I double slapped my face and focused. Right, Ranma got squirrel Happosai in her shirt. What to do.

"What do you want me to do, anyway!?" I complained.

"ANYTHING!" Ranma shouted back.

And that would be the time to raise the super heavy umbrella over my head and start to comically beat Ranma until she is blue and purple. A true display of anime trope and what anyone of the Ranma 1/2's cast would do. However, I only follow anime tropes if they amuse me, and I don't fancy laying the mother of beatdowns on Ranma if she doesn't deserve it.

So instead, I reach down to my writhing friend and completely rip her Chinese shirt off. Making Haruka gasp behind me.

*Squeak?* The squirrel looked up at me from his place between Ranma's sizable cleavage, confused as it to why it could feel the rain again. Right to the point where I slapped it to the ground.

"Kya!" Ranma let out a feminine gasp while her breasts bounced over the impact of my slap.

"GAH!?" Haruka gasped for another reason.

"Gasp." I vocalized calmly, not wanting to feel left out, "There, fixed it!"

"You ripped out her shirt!" Haruka squeaked tightly.

And speaking of squeaks, the pervert squirrel was now squeaking angrily at me from its place on the ground. The only thing left was a little rodent fist shaking in my direction to complete the image.

Yeah, this is not a normal squirrel.

Ranma let out a breath as she sat up. "Bah. Thank Hiroshi, should've thought of that."

"T-That's your reaction!?"

Ignoring poor Haruka for a bit, I rose to my feet and offer a hand to pull Ranma up. After both our fighting force we back in action, we did the obvious thing and loomed over the perceived threat.

Of course, Ranma was only looming cuz she was pissed at it, but I? I could see its name tag.

Semurahamaru
Kami of small delights
Level: 50

A freaking Kami!? Seriously!? A perverted squirrel Kami, at least it fits with Ranma1/2. Though, this level… this might end up turning into a monty python's rabbit situation if I'm not careful.

Still, the rodent seems to be getting worried under our long and unnaturally dark shadows, and I don't think the red sky behind us is helping the matters. It kept shaking its head, looking at me and Ranma while slowly stepping back. If I hadn't deduced this squirrel wasn't normal, this abnormal show of emotion would have convinced me of it.

"What is all this ruckus!?"

The grouchy voice that echoed was so unexpected that it almost sent us stumbling. Both Ranma and I snapped our head to where it had come from at the same time that Haruka fell on her ass with a scream on her lips.

An enormous thing has surged from gods known where and was now towering over us like a freaking mountain. A long shadow had darkened it to the point that it looked like a giant rectangular block with what I could only barely make out was four legs.

"Ranma!" I hissed.

"I see it!" She said, already on battle stance and sizing the thing up, and there was a lot to size.

A boss battle. A boss battle that I hope can to avoid.

"Who are you!?" I asked, raising my voice to pierce through the rain. Ranma gave me a look and decided not to rush in.

A protuberating appeared in the shadow, raising itself and turning weirdly to our direction. It wasn't until three baseball-sized spheres of bright red opened that I realized it was its head. Then it breathed, letting out a burst of intense heat followed by a trail of flames that turned to vapor under the rain.

It can breathe fire too? Greattt.

"Hiroshi! What the hell is that thing!?" Ranma snapped.

I can't see its name, title, or specimens, nor I can see its level. It's not that it doesn't have a tag telling me these things, is that it was too high for me to have a proper look, much less when it was raining like that.

"Hum. What you brats looking at?" It spoke. Its voice sounded ancient, like, it had all the wear and tear of an old man on the verge of dying, but still loud and clean and, if not full of vitality, firm. A contradiction in form of noise. "Ah! I get it. It's these blasted colors! Mō-Mō, move away! You're blocking the damn view."

A low, grave noise echoed around us, blasting the chilly rain and unexpected heated air in our direction.

"Was that… was that a 'Mooo'? Is that thing a cow!?" Ranma's incredulity was palpable in her voice.

My mind wondered about the correct word to the sound a cow makes for a single moment before focusing back to what was important, just in time to process the massive, hulking thing moving to the side.

It's dark, unnaturally long shadow was like a perfect blanket over everything it covered, but now that it'd moved, the place where it once stood was overtaken by red, thus revealing a new, much smaller figure in black.

The details were hard to make out, but it was an old man. A very, very old man. His body was of an odd, pear-like shape, with a somewhat bloated belly with gaudy limbs hidden beneath a very loose kimono sticking out of it, all weirdness in his body was also accentuated by his hunch over posture, making his chest sink backward under the half-open gap of the outfit.

His face was something that barely seems human; thought putting like that might be a bit rude. It has clearly been affected by the ages, a crosswork of wrinkles and age lines scrunched up the skin of the oddly elongated head, there was a noticeable sag in the cheeks and forehead, making his eyes look like sunken holes rather than proper eyes. He doesn't seem to have any hair in his head, but his facial hair was sharp and long enough to make Shaolin masters proud.

I got the impression of a man that aged way past what most people should.

"Who're you, old man!?" Ranma asked. She was still holding her battle stance. Good thing too.

Because I doubt this guy is human.

"Humph!" The old man grumped nasally. Stepping forwards a bit. Only then I noticed the rain was shirking around him as if to not daring to get him wet. The odd phenomenon allowed me to clearly see his tag. "The state of youth of this age… You will address me as honorable elder, do you understand, brat!? And cover your bosom! Have you no shame!" He chastised.

Tōtōsai
Ancient Yokai Blacksmith.
The Father of the Fangs.
Level: ?

Well fuck, not only his level is the troublesome '?' but he also has two freaking titles. What the fuck does this mean!? Can this even happen!?

Wait a second!

A youkai blacksmith named Tōtōsai? That sounds like—

IT'S THAT DUDE FROM INUYASHA!

"What was that old man!?" Ranma shouted, making Tōtōsai the blacksmith grumble.

"Ranma, hold on," I said before she could add any more rudeness.

Now, how to go about this? I can't call him by the name or give any indication that I know him, and I certainly can't mention Inuyasha. The problem is that I can't explain how I know that without spilling the beans about everything, and I don't want to lie about a reason to know either. Lies like that never last and end up provoking troublesome situations in the future.

So the only option is to act like I don't know him, which… was true.

I never actually met him, and I don't remember the Inuyasha anime that well. All the knowledge I have only served to color my opinion about him, and he looks different than he did in the show, a lot… older—Wait!

Older…

Oh god.

"Hum? What are you looking at, youngster?"

"… Sorry." I tried to remember the proper way to address yokais from my memories of Japanese folklore. There isn't a set rule, but the main thing seems to be politeness. "It's my first time talking to a Yokai. I ask for forgiveness if I caused any disturbance. We just wish to retrieve our friend."

And speaking of it, where's… Ah, Haruka still on the ground, looking at Tōtōsai and the giant, possible cow-like thing with wide eyes. I think she's in shock.

"Another indecent girl I see, and if I have to guess, you're also involved with the other ruckus on the other side." The old blacksmith commented and continued to grumble. "I had just managed to fall back to sleep! Have you come to bring yet further torment to this poor old man? Oh, the shame!"

He's not like I remember… from the few recollections I had. I remember who he was, but it has been too long since I last watch the anime to remember how he acts. Plus…

I think- no, I'm certain that this isn't the Tōtōsai I knew; If my hunch is correct, then this is a Tōtōsai that outlived the anime.

From the Sengoku era to now, 500 years, he lived all this time, that means…

No, I'll think about the full implications of that later.

"If you are referring to the fight outside this dimension, then I participated in it, I apologize for having disturbed you then too," I said, trying to appease him.

"'Dimension'? Huh, you speak like a foreigner. I'm Tōtōsai of Adatara, youngster with indecent females, who are you?"

"My name is Ōe Hiroshi, Tōtōsai-san, this is Saotome Ranma and Tenou Haruka. We are honored to meet you." By that point, Haruka started to get to her feet. She still needed to grasp on mine and Ranma's waistbands to pull her trembling legs up, however.

"Hey, old man, how are you making the rain avoid you like that?" Ranma asked bluntly, she was more relaxed now, but still made no movement to cover her large tits.

Tōtōsai scoffed her disregard for modesty and apparently decided to drop the subject. "I've befriend it. Now, can one of you explain what that ruckus was all about?"

"On the outside, or here on the inside?" I began. "The ruckus on the outside happened because some guys challenged me for a fight, and the one here happened because of the squirrel."

It occurred to me that, unlike what I've been expecting, we probably wouldn't have to fight anything in here. Going by what I knew about Tōtōsai, it's unlikely that he would start anything, and that giant cow monster doesn't seem to be violent despite its size and fire breathing. Currently, it was sitting on the side, pulling a tall tree branch while munching on its leaves. I don't think it's very smart.

"Where is that damn squirrel, by the way?" Ranma asked.

"Ah yes, Semurahamaru, he was melted back into this oumagatoki. It was using it to survive until today, but something changed recently. I was surprised when he managed to take a physical form." Tōtōsai's wrinkled hand caressed the length of his long goatee. "Must have thought the maidenhood of these girls were offering, but now the perceived power must have run out."

The old yokai turned his back to us and walked to there the frame of the temple stood. It was a bare foundation with four columns and a roof. Settled on a circle under the roof, was a futon, a micro television, and countless others object big and smalls that I couldn't make out due to the shadows, but I reckon by the anvil and the boiler among them that they were related to blacksmithing.

"You live here?" I asked, unsure where to go from here.

Tōtōsai sat on the center of his belongings with difficulties, each vertical movement he made seems like a struggle, his thin legs trembled so much as he was lowering himself that I thought they might snap for a moment.

His sunken regarded me for a long moment before he finally spoke.

"Passing through." He shifted to the side, laying an elbow on his knee and his head on his raised fist. "No matter where I go. Be it the haunted meadows of the world of illusions, the ever-shifting landscapes of the land of legends, dreams, and gods, or even the rotting scenery of the world you humans have inherited, people always find me, they always ask for my creations. So I always move."

Ok I… definitely caught the subtle meaning of his words

"We don't wish for anything from you. As I said, we are just there to get our friend." As a show of goodwill, I raised the ultra-heavy umbrella to my shoulder and let it slid down into an inventory screen, disarming myself of my most dangerous weapon.

"Are you…" A voice started behind me. I could feel Haruka tightening the grip she had on my shirt. On the other side, she did the same with Ranma's waistband, it was an uncomfortable place to grip, but the martial artist made no comment. "Are you the one fixing the broken things… Around the area, I mean."

Oh yeah, there was something like that.

The ancient yokai shrugged. "It's a hobby." Was his explanation.

He's fixing things around the neighborhood, seemly at random and with no incentive, from simple fixes like everyday cracks on the stonework to complicated endeavors like the whole electric system of a car. How he's doing it I don't know, I'd never related a blacksmith to an electrician but nevertheless; he's assuming responsibility for the acts.

Maybe he could…

"Ah, there is it." Tōtōsai leaned in, making the shadows dance across his face. His voice had turned cold. "You want something from me."

I nearly choke on my breath as I felt the weight of his words. But I can't deny that it's true.

"What is it? What is it you want from the great Tōtōsai? A sword that inflicts incurable diseases in each cut? A spear that can pierce through heavens as easily as it would a man's chest? Perhaps a mace able to grind mountains to dust?" The yokai rambled, his tired voice growing louder and tenser with each word. I could see his fist clenching over the fabric of his kimono, trembling in fury. "Come on, off with it! Tell me what you want so I can add it to the piles of denials I've been accumulating over the centuries!"

Shit, there it goes all the goodwill we could possibly have build. Still, if he really wanted to know.

"I want you to repair my baseball bat."

He immediately began to reply, only to shallow back his word and stutter. As if too shocked to react.

"Repairs!" He choked out. "You wish to purchase services of Tōtōsai of Adatara, the father of the fangs, the one who armed the heavenly ones, to make repairs!?" Without waiting for a response, he threw his head back and laughed. Laughed so hard his thin chest trembled and heaved, only to be interrupted by a coughing fit.

"What was that about?" Ranma asked me in a hushed, but quiet tone while the old man recuperated.

"I really am trying to fix my bat." I saw no reason to lie about that.

"Yeah, but couldn't you've done it without provoking the cow? Haruka is here!"

Ah…

Yeah, the cow demon, Mō-Mō, I believe, was now looming a bit too close to us, close enough that put us well inside the range of its flaming breath. And I agreed with Ranma, picking a fight with Haruka so close would be unwise.

"Ehk." Tōtōsai finished with a dry cough very characteristic of an old man. "All my age, I'd never…"

Well, he certainly seems to have lost the heat he was building up and went back to being a grumpy old man, that's… good, I guess. I open my mouth to speak, but he interrupted me.

"Now say what you wish to say, Semurahamaru…"

*Squeak!*

"Ah, it's there!" Ranma exclaimed, pointing at the squirrel perked on the youkai's shoulder.

The thing began squeaking in Tōtōsai's ear. Its squeaks that once sounded so prevalent now barely made it out the rain.

Hum, the rain seems less intense somehow.

Ironically, that fact made it harder to see the world.

"I see, I understand now." The old yokai said, and then sunk on himself with a breath. His eyes or the holes where his eyes laid hidden by flesh turned toward me.

"You've done a service for my little friend, boy; his first offering in 68 years. I've decided." He shifted, holding out a hand. "Give me this baseball bat you wish to see fixed."

I couldn't follow the line of reasoning, but I wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth.

It was weird, putting words to what happened next. I remember taking a step forwards under Ranma's protests, something about stealing my shoelaces or something he'd experienced before, but then, not even two steps in, my bat slip from my hands as the squirrel, moving at higher speeds than what he displayed before, took it to the blacksmith in my stead. Seeing a large, broke down baseball bat being carried by a tiny squirrel to an old yokai was admittedly a weird sight.

I would have protested, or at least approached to see the process. But my shirt was pulled from behind, not strongly, just enough to halt my steps. I look back, expecting to see Ranma, but instead, I found Haruka staring at me.

The black and red contrasted on her expression. Shit, I've forgotten how terrifying all this must be for her.

"Tōtōsai-san, I think I should-" Come back later, was what I meant to say, just so I could take Haruka out of here and back to normal reality, but I didn't get the change was something came spinning towards me. I caught it reflexively.

"There."

I…

The metal bat gleamed if the spark of red over its black surface was any indication. I don't understand how he'd done it so fast, It took only a minute, perhaps even less.

But then again, maybe it was yokai bullshit; I suppose I'll never know.

"Right," I said, gripping the immaculate handle tightly. "Right, thank you," I repeated and drew back. What I gave Haruka wasn't a hug, it was a shoulder to steady herself, Ranma was doing the same on the other side.

"I have an… ability to get us out, but to activate it, I need to be the strongest thing in this place…" I said out loud as an explanation for my friend and to hopefully prompt a suggestion to the yokai, honestly, without my skill, I don't know how we would get out.

"Yes, this Twilight told me about it. Try it again, that odd thing you did, you should be successful this time."

God, his words, his mannerisms… This was a friendly yokai, a friendly yokai from a series that I know off, and that is at least non-antagonistic towards humans. I could stay for a bit. I could ask him so many things.

But Haruka comes first.

So I took both her and Ranma by the shoulders, almost instinctively drawing them close to me before activating the skill.

And just like that, we were gone.

-0-0-0-

I stepped out of this Illusion barrier like I've done to so many others in these past few days. This time, however, my mind was heavy with the revelations…

In a way, I've learned more things from my talk with the Shiori, we'd talk for a long time about many things, and even now I still processing what she'd said.

This time though, this time was different, I haven't learned things from a pleasant, date-like meeting, I experience them, for the first time I got I taste of the world I now have context for.

Inuyasha was real, just like Ranma ½ and Campione. Yokais, true yokais, not those mysterious mindless beings from my Illusion Barriers are real. Natural Illusion Barriers can exist; they are called 'oumagatoki' by the locals, and they… They're alive… in some manner of speaking.

I felt it granting me permission to exert my exit ID skill upon it. I… Frankly, I don't know what to think right now.

"Ah!" Fortunately, the first thing I saw after stepping back in the real world proved to be enough of a distraction.

"Rin?"

The Taimanin was kneeling on the ground immediately in front of the temple, most of the clothes that once covered her topside were discarded into a pile near her, leaving out a sweaty white bra tautly spread over her mammoth-sized bosom. Normally something like that would've garnered my complete attention, but I couldn't look away from her naked arms when I noticed them, for they're gleaming with countless rivulets of bright red blood that tattooed the entirety of the two limbs with jagged lines.

The source of the blood was a series of finely carved glyphs that descended over her skin, markings of an unknown form of kanji the Japanese part of my was trying to decipher, by the slightly bloody kunai on her side I say it was self-inflicted. The same markings were being drawn in the blank scroll spread open in front of her, she seems to be drawing with her fingers, using the flowing blood was ink.

Needless to say, it was quite unexpected.

I saw her eyes going from shook to surprise, then blurry with tears. "Aruji-sama!" Rin exclaimed while she threw herself at me. Her body hit my waist, but it wasn't enough to throw me off, her bloody arms circled tightly around me. "A thousand, thousand pardons Aruji-sama. Oh, unforgivable, if something had happened to you and yours this one would, this one would." She cried against my skin, her body trembling with the tiny spasms of her half-muffled sobs.

"I-I back, we're back, what." Haruka was whispering against my shoulder. She hadn't processed Rin's presence yet. "I-I don't feel so good."

"What the hell is this? Who is this lady!?" Ranma, however, was quite aware of her. "W-why the hell is she half-naked!?" She shouted, completely ignoring her own topless state, her large breasts, not as large as the ones mashed against a dangerous part of my body, brushed against my side as she looked up at me. "Oi Hiroshi! Do you know who the hell—hehhh!" She blinked at the distance between us, her nose scrunching in a cute frown. "Oi, bastard, why the hell you are holding me!?"

Well fuck, is this what being overwhelmed feels like? Too many things happening at once and you don't know what to address first. It fucking sucks.

"NII-SAN! WE'VE COME TO SAVE YOU!"

Of course it wouldn't end there.

The viper guy that we 'saved' early and had hauled ass as soon as he was free of bound appeared again in the temple's entrance, leading 18 other Vipers delinquents ready for a fight.

… Okay.

At least he wasn't escaping like it first seemed, but his timing really sucked. Something that became clear now that he and the rest could see the prone bodies of every Ragnarok delinquent littering the grounds. They we're too late.

A series of 'woooah' and "Ohhhhh" broke through the crowd as they finally looked at me. I could see their weapons falling from their limp fingers, and their eyes growing bigger and filling with sparkling stars. Some of them even began to whistle.

I frowned, why in the world are they acting like that—

"And who the hell are those guys?" Ranma exclaimed a question. Her cheek had unconsciously brushed against the arm I had over her shoulder while she turned to look at the new arrivals. "Urg, do we have to fight them too?"

I… closed my eyes.

At my left, a slightly off girl without any pants was slowly leaning more on me as the stress of the day got to her. At my right, a completely topless girl was brushing her cheek on my arm while shamelessly displaying her 'assets', one of it still clearly mashed against my side. And on my waist, with head lodged on a position that would make for an interesting vision for any onlookers, an unbelievable hot milf loudly choked her sobs, her enormous breasts swaying pendulously beneath her.

"GAh!" Choked a Ragnarok grunt who had recently awaken to the sight. He pointed a fearful finger at me. "D-Dandy bat!"

Fucking hell.