Chapter VI – Hit And Run
Searching for the villagers was an easy task. All he had to do was follow the yelling and the rioting on the other side of the village. Something was up and Jin went to investigate the scene.
"You're the killer, aren't you!"
"You must be out of your damn mind!"
"You son of a…"
A large droplet of water fell on the arguing individuals who pointed at one another. It was obvious that these people were getting highly paranoid. Jin tried to stop them with a Water spell but all it did was add to their short fuse. They ganged up on one particular man who seemed almost defenseless. To halt their assaults, Jin got in their way and blocked their attacks with his sword.
"What's going on!" Jin demanded.
"Move out of the way, kid! This guy's history!" one threatened. But with Jin not budging from his position, the angry crowd pushed forward. He struggled against a number of opposing forces while the man behind Jin whimpered and wailed as he grabbed Jin's right leg. He begged for help while crying out, "I'm innocent, I'm innocent!"
Reluctantly, Jin had to break up the fight using a Fire spell. The mob jumped back before the leader of the group explained their actions.
"Kid, this guy's a criminal. There's no doubt he's the one pulling the strings."
Jin looked back at the half bald, long nosed man who was on the verge of tears. He was clinging on to Jin as he was about to die. Jin turned around and kicked away the weak hands around his leg. After a hard stare, Jin kneeled down to reach the crawling man's eye level and, as if he was sympathizing with him, asked him calmly if he is the mastermind behind the mystery.
"No, I say. I'm innocent!" he cried out hysterically. "I don't kill…"
"Liar!" the crowd chanted. "He lies!"
"It's not me, I say! It's…"
Paying close attention to his words, Jin and the rest of the impatient crowd awaited for further explanation. But they did not get any as the man stopped halfway. The mob's leader spoke again and demanded to know who the killer is.
But before the man was able to speak another word, a chain with a hook sounded from afar and rapidly pierced flesh. The confessor coughed up blood and looked down at his bloody torso. Jin, the closest to the victim of a distant assassination, saw blood spurt onto his face and saw the sharp end of the sickle just bits away from striking him. Jin's eyes widened in disbelief and felt the chill of fear crawling up his spine.
Then, the chain retreated and pulled the dying man with it. A concrete building was in the way, and the man met his horrible fate as his head collided with the outer wall. The chain continued to pull away and Jin figured that it would go back to the user of the weapon. He leaped on to the top of the house and followed the chain into the dirt road just outside the village walls. However, he did not see the wielder as the chained sickle continued to glide. The boy continued to track it down and finally, saw the user hidden under a cloak. The individual was riding a Chocobo for a quick escape. Jin ran after the oversized bird but realized he cannot keep up with it by foot. Quickly, he summoned Quetzalcoatl and tried to fly towards the killer.
He caught up to the Chocobo rider but was noticed. Jin tried to halt the Chocobo from going any further by sending forth a shock wave from his blade. But sensing the attack, the cloaked individual countered with the same chained sickle and sent it flying towards Jin, completely negating the wave attack. The Rainbow got caught but Jin used his physical strength to pull the sword and the chain, forcing the ground attacker to fall off the Chocobo and roll on the dirt road. Jin dismissed the lightning serpent-bird and went forth to reveal the so-called spirit. Without struggle from the opposition, Jin took off the hood and saw a familiar face. Stunned by who it was, Jin stepped back several times as the killer got up and greeted Jin with high honors.
