A Certain Influx of Time Traveling Mishaps

by NeoShadows

Kamijou Touma's tale has ended. A New Magic God has risen in the future, taken over the world, and set its sights to the past for more power. Luckily, or unluckily for one unfortunate high school boy, those who have inherited Imagine Breaker's will have chased after it. When Future meets the Past, a new story is created. All to the misfortune of a certain Kamijou.

6. Powerless

NeoShadows here again, meaning it's that time of the month again! You're monthly release of A Certain Influx of Time Traveling Mishaps is here to delight. And we got an action packed chappy for ya today!

From the looks of it, we've got three chapters left before we reach the end of the arc, 2/3 of which are already done and awaiting editing while I work on the last chapter and the final battle. Who know's? If I can finish the last chapter and get to the Epilogue chapter, I'll update the remaining chapters sooner than a month. Hopefully I can get my house hunting done in time for me to relax and get back to my old schedule of weekly updates with my other stories.

Now to get to reviews so we can get to the nice succulent meat of the story.

DNA Works : You're getting there, kind of. Whatever is affecting the future children does mess with their emotional states concerning their parents, mostly Touma. But the magic is much more intricate and complex than you would believe. Trust me, it's doing it's purpose, whether it fails or succeeds. You'll see more of that during the next Arc to come.

BlueJack22: Two months? Nah, you'll get the next chapter now! Glad you're enjoying the Zeroes War Arc. As the first arc, and original one to boot, I'm really hoping everyone likes it. Hard to believe it's already been fifteen years. Even harder to believe it took me fourteen to even discover it. I've missed so much.

Lordrednight: Happy to hear! I was actually nervous to dive into ToAru's sect on FF. It was only thanks to ArmorCoreNineBall that I went through with uploading this little story. I hope I can keep you entertained. As for your guess; Nope! I know who you're mentioning, and you're wrong.

Thewookie1: War truly never changes, it's the same even if it's on lowly streets. We're about to see some cursed Hana action! Of course that mean's we got some action in store for our man, Touma! And I think Touma's beyond something as trivial as Level 6. He's not known as The One Superior to God for nothing.

ArmoredCoreNineBall: I've always loved writing fight scenes, so nice to hear that you enjoyed the short battle between Deadlock and Touma. Now we've got a fight between an unruly haired Level 0 and live wire possessed Esper. I've had fun with that one, and Touma's next fight. I'm also glad that I was able to capture Index's structure, that was something I was nervous about getting right.

Itsuki Minami1: Yeah, I've never been a fan of copy and paste fics that show little change to the actual plot. It's nice to mix things up and see what a few ripples will do. And don't worry, I'm far from dropping this fic right now, not when I've already written three chapters this far among with plans for others. For those guessing the future children's parent's, don't worry. I won't spoil it for the others. As for not getting into trouble. . .I can't in good conscious lie to you. I can not promise to behave.

Guest: Eh, I like to respond back to people, even guests. Sadly we won't be seeing Frenda at the moment, that girl's. . .occupied with other matters at the moment. Though that does leave one more person who's watching over little Fremea in all this mess. Ah, glory of Touma's Passive Skill: Event Trigger! Activating events with damsels everywhere for the past fifteen years! Hamazura is the Hamazura-iest!

TazalTerminals: I like that idea, you're certainly thinking close the same wave length as I. Once we get to the Sisters Arc, you'll get a clearer understanding of what's going on.

Anti-Mage29: All the poor bastard wanted to do was get some breakfast was his tub/bed's faucet was fixed. Of course his misfortune would lead him to being involved in some gang war between Skill-Out. And nope! Not forehead senpai's either. But you are right that Toka's mom is from the science side. Swing and a miss.

We're at the end of the reviews for now. I really do encourage ya's to review when ya can! I really do love to answer you guys back, so keep them coming.

Now, without further delay, get to scrolling!

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Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to A Certain Magical Index, all rights are reserved to Kazuma Kamachi.

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Chapter 6: Powerless.

Street_Fighters.

Academy City was a city of technological advancement about thirty years ahead when compared with the rest of the world. They had gone so far as to build city structures that could withstand earthquakes, flooding, the harshest of storms, and in some special cases, explosives. Their technology was decades ahead of all the other countries with super computers that went as far as predicting the weather months ahead of time. It was said that their hospitals were so advance that one could be brought back from the very brink of death with no lasting scars if they visited just the right doctor. Hell, the streets were maintained by a small army of cleaning bots! With so many wondrous and miraculous technologies, Academy City required a small continent's worth of power, which left the city to be powered by several forms of clean running energy such as wind turbines, water dams, solar panels, etc.

It was a city packed with revolutionary ideas and inventions. Some would even say it was the hope for a better tomorrow for all of humanity. With all the good it could produce, it wasn't wrong to say that Academy City was leading the world to a much brighter future compared to others.

Though Academy City worked to develop many breakthroughs, it still none the less worked on other hazardous studies as well. Such as nuclear energy. Yes, it did pave the way for cleaner energy sources, but that did not mean it would ignore other energy sources. Nuclear energy, as hazardous and dangerous as it was, was still a powerful source for producing energy to large cities that consumed more than it could possibly produce. As such, it had its own nuclear facilities that were settled in the infamous District 10 that helped in powering the marvel that was Academy City. Though some frowned upon the facilities, it still held an important purpose. To produce energy for billions.

Among other things.

The Hoshi Nuclear Reactor was one of the few nuclear facilities that generated nuclear energy to produce electricity to the city that housed more than a billion people in one city. In fact, it was the leading facility that produced a majority of the nuclear energy for Academy City. The Hoshi Nuclear Reactor was the main reactor and held over more than a hundred hard working men and woman who went through the trouble of making their way through District 10 to generate energy for all of the city and to keep their own lights on at home. It was good work and some even felt pride for it despite how many looked down on the idea of nuclear energy.

Even though it was centered in District 10, home of those who called themselves Skill-Out, the reactor had never been harassed by the delinquents. Why would they? Like them, just about every one who worked in the Hoshi Nuclear Reactor were Level 0s too. They had no abilities and had never gave Skill-Out any reason to bother them. It was almost of an unsaid rule that no one ever mentioned, to never assault the scientists that went about their own business. What would be the point anyway to jump a couple of scientists for their yen when they could be doing it to an over privileged Esper?

As it stood, The Hoshi Nuclear Reactor was one of the few places in District 10 safe from all the trouble wrought by Skill-Out. At least until today.

Bullets littered the airspace, all noise drowned out by the sound of bangs and explosive. The Hoshi Nuclear Reactor's entrance was under siege by various members of Skill-Out not affiliated with Komaba Ritoku in a hail of gunfire. The security bots and personnel hid behind deployed shields, returning fire at the numerous delinquents aiming to break through. Each bullet hit the security shields with metallic clinks like the sound of metal rain drops. To protect themselves from the security retaliation, the Skill-Out thugs hid behind armored trucks stolen from Anti-Skill, peeking out from the corners to take out the guards protecting their target. Every so often. one of each side fell victim to a bullet and fell back in the mad gunfire. The few corpses on the streets did little to deter either side from the chaos.

Hidden behind a reinforced shield created to withstand the destructive force of Espers up to Level 3, one of the security guards on staff spoke into his radio set with panic in his voice, "This is Fukigen So, security personnel at District 10's Hoshi Nuclear Reactor Facility requesting aide, NOW! The shields won't be able to hold up much longer at this rate! We've already lost seven men and the bots are slowing down! I think someone's hacking into their systems to-. . .Wait, what's going on?"

The security officer grew uneasy as the mad spray of bullets came to a chilling pause. All the firing delinquents seemed to step back and hide back into the armored trucks for shelter. It was baffling. If they continued attacking, they could overwhelm them before helped arrived. Anti-Skill would take a good twenty minutes tops to arrive, more than enough time to breakthrough. So, why had they stopped?

Confusion spread among the Hoshi security staff with unease planting itself in the silence. They weren't sure how to proceed with the situation now. Attacking the gang of Skill-Outs was an idea, but they were heavily armed with stolen Anti-Skill equipment that put their standard pistols to shame. Not to mention they were simply security, none of them were trained to deal with an actual combat situation like this, they weren't Anti-Skill officers! Their training consisted of two week drills to handle trespassers or the very rare chance that someone broke in with a gun. That was it!

Gulping anxiously, the security guard known as Fukigen slowly craned his head over the large bullet dented shield to peek at the Skill-Out's activity. He frowned, as did the rest of his comrades as a single person stepped out from the line of armored trucks out into the open.

A platinum blonde girl in a white frilly blouse with gold buttons, and blue and black checkered skirt stood out in the open street that acted as a divider between the reactor facility and the streets of District 10. She appeared to be a foreigner with her creamy white skin and blond hair with two drill tips falling beside her face; a girl that had no reason to be among thugs and delinquents. Like a porcelain doll sitting in the middle of ragged plush dolls. In a scene like this, they would have rushed out to take the girl away from the dangerous degenerates laying siege to their facility.

It was surreal, the sight of such a dainty girl standing in the middle of a warzone. It was such an odd sight that they didn't even take notice of the threatening grin on her as she spoke into her phone.

"Bring in the Ram."

A blaring horn snapped the security force out of their stupors in time to take notice of the new danger stream rolling their way towards them. The faces of those brave men and woman holding the line blanched at the sight of a heavy armored black platted vehicle popping out of literal nowhere from behind the platinum haired girl and thugs almost as if it had rolled through a mirage. The vehicle appeared to me fusion of a garbage truck and tank as long as a firetruck, with six large wheels the size of an elementary school child, tinted windows, and heavily platted hood designed to plow right through whatever stood in its way. The so called 'Ram' knocked the Anti-Skill vans out of its way as both the platinum haired girl, and Skill-Out, quickly moved out of its way. The security force tried to follow the lead of the thugs, vainly attempting to jump out of the way or seek cover, to no avail.

With a deafening blare, the Ram struck the measly wall created to block Skill-Out with the force of a gigantic firing piston hammer. An explosive burst of metal and wall blew up upon collision, completely tearing apart the defense that had held the Level 0s at bay. The force The Ram had struck with was enough to create a shock wave that sent the security guards flying every which way like ragdolls. The sound of gravel beneath the wheels of the monstrous truck was all that could be heard as it came to a stop in front of the defensive perimeter as everything grew quiet. In a single moment, the entire remaining security force had been completely and utterly wiped out.

With a single command, a measly Level 0 had brought down the reactor facility's security force.

Now that the guards were out of commission, the Skill-Out members walked out from their cover to proceed with their operation, careful to walk by the truck responsible for the carnage that was still parked in front of the entrance. All of which was being lead by none other than the out of placed foreign girl. Mila stood back as the Skill-Out factions went along to secure the facility. She gad other business to attend to before she could continue. Ignoring the groaning bodies and corpses in the wake of the ramming truck, the platinum haired girl began to speak into her phone with a mild frown.

"The Hoshi Reactor has been more or less secured. Teams, report your status."

Static answered back momentarily before several other lines began to respond.

"This is the leader of Devil's Mouth, coming in. We're more than happy to report that Anti-Skill and Judgment are still occupied with those bots under your control. I don't even think they know what's going on yet! Fucking idiots! I'll let ya know when they've gotten control over this mess, until then, we'll continue to monitor those pigs."

"Vile Dogs here, dropping in to confirm that we've still got the tram station leading into District 10 on lock down! No one's even bothered to try and stop us; I think everyone is still distracted by all this hell we've caused."

". . .Drop Out. . .reporting. As much as I hate to say, we've failed to capture the damn scientist, or take out Komaba's boys. The damn bastard's just don't seem to stay down! At least we were successful in spreading all the bad blood, right? I swear, if I ever see the spiky haired bastard, I'm going to take my time choking the life out of him!"

"It's taking us some time, but we in Red Horns are almost finished with setting up those control towers as you requested alongside those in HiJack. It seems whatever you're doing to the other districts is more than enough for us to freely move around and set up those devices of yours. We'll let you know when everything is up and running, Mila-san."

A pleased grin made its way to Mila's face at the reports coming in. Though she was a tad bit upset that she hadn't been able to take out the big figure head of Skill-Out, Komaba Ritoku, and his loyal group, it hardly mattered now. Everything was going according to plan.

Nothing that had happened in the last few hours were a coincidence. The rise of tension and hostility that had spilled over like a glass overflowing with water; all Mila's doing. She had bribed several small time gangs in Skill-Out to simply go wild, to cause as much trouble and chaos as they wanted, creating small events of aggression to get under the skin of the bigger factions who were loyal to Komaba. And with the help of Drop Out, she had begun framing several of those small time gangs along with the bigger factions for the random attacks and murders that could be seen as a hostile takeover. She had created a district similar to a keg full of volatile propane, just brimming with thugs that just needed a reason to go at the others throats. She just needed to provide a spark to fully consume the district with violence.

That's where Deadlock came in. The red suited boy in the Queen Diver acted a bodyguard of sorts for her, along with acting as the muscle when she needed to persuade the bigger factions that weren't aligned with Komaba's Skill-Out. A nameless party that had gone to The Food Stand Spire to spark the match that would create an inferno of outrage with other random Skill-Outs. All it would take was one fight where several other factions gathered on neutral ground to spread the violence.

Of course, at the notice of District 10 being consumed by a gang war, Academy City would act right away to quell the fighting. That was where her new friend, Arden had come in along with Devil's Mouth.

Mila wasn't sure how the fair blond boy had done it, but Arden had created a city wide event that caught the attention of all of Anti-Skill and Judgment. The two main forces that kept the city safe in Light of Academy City had become far too occupied with whatever her partner had done to even notice what Mila was up to by manipulating all the factions to fight. And in that commotion, the other party that consisted of Red Horn's and HiJack, a gang talented in hacking Academy City's computers and networks, could go about another important matter to her master plan without worrying about getting caught.

To make sure that no Anti-Skill or Judgment official got in the way of her plans, Mila had Devil's Mouth keep an eye on them, ordering them to take out anyone who got wind of what was happening in District 10.

And that left Vile Dogs, who guarded the trams that let in and out of District 10. No one would be able to enter the district on their watch. The only way to enter would be on foot, which they had guarded by other nameless delinquents.

It was all coming together perfectly. What was left for her to enter the final stage of her plan was simply the 'key'.

"Continue to keep up the good work, boys! I promise you, it won't be long until we've brought down the corrupt system that has labeled us as worthless. Just be patient. You'll all be rewarded for your hard work soon enough." Mila giggled brightly, stirring the young hearts of those no good delinquents.

Deadlock may have helped to coerce the factions into joining her, but it was the beautiful, soft, cute face of hers that had sealed the deal. Flashing a little leg skin had also helped, along with a flirt or two.

"Ya got it, Sweet Heart!"

"Understood, Mila-chan! We won't let you down!"

"We are at your command, Mila-san!"

"MMMMIIIILLLLAAAA-CHAN!"

'Stupid perverts.' So much for hardened thugs.

While all the other lines cut off, one line was still open.

Viper gulped dryly as he was the only leader still speaking with the cute foreign girl. Unlike the others though, he saw beneath all the fake flirty crap and noticed just how visage she could be.

"S-So, uh, Mila-san? About Dr. Tatsumi and Komaba's boys."

"You're lucky I sent out Deadlock to assure the good doctor's capture, Viper-kun, or else he would be hunting you down." Mila responded with an unseen chilling smile.

She could almost picture the American boy sweating in fear.

"For now, I advise you and your boys to join up with Vile Dogs. I don't want anymore mistakes to occur, understood?"

Mila didn't wait for a reply, cutting off the line with a pout.

There had only been one slip up so far. If she believed what Viper had told her, then they had been all set to capture the doctor before some unknown boy had butted in. Her plans had hit a snag because of some random passer by.

'Hmm, plain features, spiky black hair, talked like some self righteous hero. I wonder?'

Heading into the final stage of her wish, Mila couldn't help but wonder if that normal high school boy had escaped the reaches of her wrath against the city.

---

Standing out front of a run down convenience store in District 10, stood a chestnut haired boy wearing a rich middle school uniform. The boy's once brown eyes were now bleeding red with odd magical circles spinning like clock work in his iris, body clad in sick green sparks, a large clawed hand forming behind his back from tendrils interlocking, and an emotionless expression that spoke of nothing but a clear focus on his target. It was as if the boy was no longer there, and been taken control of remotely by another force. His movements were not his own, almost robotic in nature.

The boy's name was Mikoto Hana. Level 4 Electromaster. Son of both Kamijou Touma and Mikoto Misaka. And one of Kamijou Toka's little brothers.

Toka clenched her teeth as she warily eyed the still sparking Esper. The large hand made of his abilities electricity twitched slightly, giving her all the warning she needed. Taking a deep, calming breath, she moved, breaking out into a run straight for the Level 4 Electromaster. With a crackle, the green sparking hand lunged forward, spreading its fingers out to crush the normal looking high school girl stupidly heading its way. In one motion, the deadly hand moved to grab the girl and squeeze the life out of her.

Hamazura, who was unable to move in his current condition, found his mouth gaping in shock as he watched the unruly dark haired girl flip over the monstrous sparking hand. He was not expecting that. Nor was he expecting what he saw next.

This was not the time. Seriously, they were all about to die at the hands of an Esper who had lost his marbles while a gang war raged on in the very background of this district. And yet, he still couldn't help his eyes from locking onto the girl's skirt as it fluttered in the wind to reveal a peek of her panties.

'. . .Hearts? That's certainly a new one. Kinda expected something more sexy.'

None the less, blood gushed down his face. At this point, no one could tell if it was from his wounds or his nose.

Carefully landing back on the street, Toka craned her head back to find the sparking hand make a U-turn int its lunge for her back. She didn't move, watching instead as it raced towards her with a jabbing motion of its claws. Then, as it was only a few spaces away, she side stepped the jab, feeling the very wind brush her messy hair back. She didn't stop her dodging there, moving to hop back as the hand flew back and struck its palm down to smash her into paste. The street cracked loudly, bits of the asphalt flew up around Toka, a few of which she quickly snatched up with her left hand just before ducking under a wide swipe of the Hana's controlled lightning arm.

Dodging another wide swipe, Toka returned to running after her younger brother who remained rooted on the spot. As she continued evading all the deadly blows heading her way, she began to study the odd behavior her brother was displaying. It was obvious something was wrong with him from the way he attacked them and spoke like some robot assassin. Her eyes narrowed in suspicion as she took a good look of the magic circles spinning around his red eyes.

So, it was must have been the work of that monster of a Magic God then. Magic of some kind was controlling Hana, taking over his mind and forcing him to eliminate whoever the Magic God deemed a threat. It must have been why it had attacked Angela who was protecting Index and then Hamazura.

The Library of Forbidden Books and The End of The Century Emperor. With them out of the picture, many of the events that shaped her future would be twisted and shattered beyond repair. It was almost as if the Magic God had sent over a hit list of targets it wanted rid of. But how? How did the God of Ruin know to prepare something like this so quickly while it was being ambushed in its attempt to enter the past timeline? There was no way it could have known they would attack when they did.

Flipping over another racing arm, Toka was suddenly forced to evade the mid air assault of the hand unfurling itself to stab its six tendrils in a new style of attacking. She sweated, twisting her body around a jabbing tendril before falling into a roll as she hit the streets, just barely missing the other five tendrils following after her and stabbing where she had rolled off. She got on her feet quickly, ready to continue dodging the next set of strikes before she found herself holding back a scream. One of the tendrils bent as it stabbed the streets seconds ago, changing its direction to graze her waist. It was luck that it hadn't hit its mark to impale.

No blood ran down the wide slash like wound by Toka's waist, having been cauterized by the sizzling watts of electricity the tendril was made of. Toka didn't have time to worry about the burning wound since the tendril was still acting with malicious intent. It slithered back, moving to fix the miscalculation and run her through along with the five others of its kind. Toka was quick on her feet, moving to dodge the six deadly vile green crackling tendrils as sweat flew off her face. It was almost like she was stuck in a dance with six other partners, all aiming to mangle her if she made one misstep.

'. . .How the hell is she dodging all that?!'

Hamazura wasn't sure what to make of what he was seeing from the athletic high school girl. All he could do at this point was watch the girl who randomly stepped in to save his life expertly evade all the attacks from the live wire Esper. The stranger continued to dodge the six tendrils almost as if she knew where the attacks would come from. Even with her back turned, she seemed to sense that three of the tendrils had twisted around another to stab her through like a giant spiraling lance and twisted out of the way. The action reminded him of something, something he remembered from one of his classes in school before dropping out.

Precognition. The ability to predict future events using extrasensory perception. It allowed the user to act accordingly to what they believed would happen and change the outcome on what action they chose. It was a rare ability despite it being one of the five attributes tested in the SYSTEM scan for an Esper, with only a few users really developing it into an actual ability of study. In all his time dealing with Espers when he was a student and as a member of Skill-Out, he had never met an Esper with the precognition attribute. Most of the students who had an ability would wind up with an attribute of Telekinesis or Telepathy, while others would be able to control and produce elements with their minds.

When compared to the other abilities an Esper could produce with their Personal Reality, precognition wasn't all that impressive when compared to the strongest Esper in Academy City's ability to freely control all vectors. Anyone would trade it away for a more flashy and destructive power like Pyrokinesis. As cool as it sounded to even a powerless Level 0 like Hamazura who had no ability to speak off, he would still rather wish for a power that helped him beat down all those arrogant higher levels.

Right now though, as he was left to watch some normal looking high school girl dodge the wild and swift tendrils made of green sparks of high voltage electricity like a professional gymnasts in some intricate dance, he would gladly take precognition over a destructive ability.

Little did Hamazura know was the fact that Toka wasn't using an ability to help her avoid all the attacks aimed to eliminate her. See, that was the thing about an Esper's ability. It involved calculations, requiring an understanding of physics, elementary particles, scientific theory, etc. It was safe to say that idiots were unable to gain the ability to bring out their Personal Reality, which might explain the cases of two certain future famous Level 0's. Without a sound mind, one wouldn't be able to perform the calculations that allowed an Esper to use their abilities to their fullest potential.

'Shit, shit, shit, SHITTTTTTTTT! WHERE THE HELL'S TOU-SAN WHEN YOU NEED HIM!?'

And like father like daughter, Toka didn't exactly have the brains or the understanding to discover her Personal Reality. She too was your average Level 0.

Bending her spine all the way back to the point she was sure her shoulder's touched the street to avoid the three stabbing tendrils of sparks, Toka's face grew slick with sweat on her frantic face. The poor girl's heart was pounding against her chest like an over enthusiastic amateur drummer who thought they knew how to rock. Her legs were trembling, ready to collapse at any moment. The fact she was still alive was a miracle she was still having trouble believing.

Toka would have loved nothing more than to stop, to run away from an out of control Esper, but that wasn't really an option for her. It never was. Even though she was no longer in the Academy City she had grown up in, it was still Academy City none the less. Meaning she was still finding herself dealing with Espers for one reason or another. Only in this case it wasn't some arrogant Esper, but her little brother who she had only met a week ago.

Gulping audibly, Toka allowed herself to fall on her back and rolled away from the three tendrils curving down to again attempt to puncture her full of holes like swiss cheese. Quickly getting back on her feet, she moved a few steps back, eyeing all six of Hana's sparking tendrils continue to pursue her. She panted tiredly, refusing to evade the attacks as the tips seemed to glint with fatal intent.

One inch. A single inch stopped the lightning tendrils from running through her as they seemed to freeze, struggling to reach over with audible strain that sounded like stretching leather. Toka couldn't help but grin in victory.

For the past few minutes, she had been testing the reach of Hana's creepy tendrils, seeing just how far they could extend. And for whatever reason, he couldn't physically move when manipulating his lightning tendrils, seeming to focus entirely on performing the calculations to control them. All of that and more she had observed in her dodging. With that knowledge, she could move onto a different tactic.

Attack.

Gripping the chunk of asphalt in her right hand, Toka moved her arm back for a pitch and threw the piece of shattered road at the emotionless Esper. The tendrils seemed to have sensed the action, snapping back to Hana deflect the measly rock with one tendril. It was all they would need for such a straight forward pitch.

Only just as Toka wasn't your average normal girl, it wasn't your average pitch. It was a curve ball.

Having miscalculated the grip of the ball's throw, it was too late for Hana to deflect the chunk of asphalt smashing into his face. The impact was strong enough to cause his head to fall back and blood to trail down his most likely bent nose. Even still, he didn't utter a sound of pain or acknowledge the blow. Hana simply moved his head back, his emotionless eyes staring back Toka's disgruntled expression.

'So, it was wishful thinking that a good old curve ball would knock him out. Just my luck.' Toka thought tiredly. She should have known better, her father's children weren't exactly made of glass despite a few of them being terrifying cannons of destruction. Another bead of sweat ran down her face, hitting the street with a slight plop that was drown out by the lightning crackle of the six deadly tendrils rushing after her. The remote controlled Hana wasn't allowing her a moment of rest.

Falling into her instincts, Toka moved her body to evade the spear like thrusts from the tendrils. Each one snapped, whipped, and rushed at her with the intent to end her life in one hit. And each time they came at her, she just barely managed to dodge Hana's attacks by a hair. Seeming to grow frustrated, the six tendrils spiraled around another to form a large lance like tendril that shot forward like a bullet that cut through the air as Toka seemed to fumble over a chunk of asphalt created by all the wild attacks. Toka's eyes went wide in panic as the lightning spear sped straight at her faster than she could dodge. She shut her eyes, her body failing to move itself out of the way.

"TLSWSISAMAIT[The Lightning Spear Will Separate Into Six And Miss It's Target]!"

Just before the lightning spear could stab through Toka's abdomen, it came apart and returned to six tendrils that rushed past the surprised girl without doing any harm. Toka blinked, unsure of what just happened. She was pretty sure she was good as dead right there. What happened? She scratched the back of her head, eyeing the lightning tendrils that wriggled in a frenzy before she heard someone's voice.

"TLTWCTAF[The Lightning Tendrils Will Constrict Themselves And Freeze]!"

The odd string of English letters seemed to take control of Hana's lightning tendrils, forcing them to loop around themselves like snakes to tie themselves up in a twitching bundle. A second later the force froze the mass of tendrils still, the crackle of lightning being the only sound it gave off as it grew motionless. For how long, Toka had no idea. All she knew was that she was thankful for whoever saved her. Actually, that voice sounded a lot like. . .

"Toka-chan!"

Toka looked back to the voice that could only belong to her sister, Angela, running over to her position. So, that's who saved her. She couldn't help but breath a sigh of relief, noting that despite the injury her sister suffered, she was still well enough to move again. What she had just seen and heard must have been magic then. Even after all that she had seen in their timeline following the death of her father, Toka was still awed by what magic could do. It really was unlike what an Esper was capable of.

'So, I was right. That magic, the spell controlling Hana-kun and what had been affecting Toka-chan, it was all because of that monster!' Angela thought angrily.

Spell Intercept could only work effectively when one understood the nature of the spell or magic being used. It was the perfect counter to those who understood magic down to its very core. And as the daughter of the most famous practitioner, Angela had gained an understanding of it to use it herself when dealing with certain spells as well. For it to have worked this well could only mean one thing. The spell she had studied alongside her mother that allowed all the children to cross into the past was similar to what she was dealing with here.

All of this was that cursed Magic God's magic.

"Target identified. Proceeding to eliminate second Vestige of Imagine Breaker. Altering course of combat style."

Sadly the reunion between sisters was cut abruptly short by the emotionless voice of their little brother. Both Toka and Angel turned their heads to see Hana finally move, crouching slightly on his legs in a running start. In the blink of an eye, he disappeared, crossing the distance between himself and the stunned high school girl in a matter of seconds. The lightning tendrils running through his back dissipated to fading sparks, the magic that manipulated them losing their hold. There was nothing Toka could do as Hana appeared in front of her, his right fist chambered with emerald sparks crackling wildly before said fist was driven deep into her stomach.

Toka's screams of pain filled the air as thousands of volts of electricity spread through her, lighting up her body like a holiday decoration turned on to its highest setting. The entire street corner was illuminated by the green hue of electricity crossed with both magic and science. If this kept on any longer, her body would be turned into a charred crisp! Already she could feel her skin begin to cook like a sizzling chunk of meat on a skillet.

BANG!

A gunshot rang out through Toka's screams, a lone bullet streaking through the air to drill itself between a certain electromaster's eyes. The bullet struck it's mark, flinging Hana's head back as a small spurt of blood flew out as he stumbled back, his fist leaving Toka's stomach. The high school girl nearly fell back to the ground after receiving so much volts to her body. But she held strong, gritting her teeth viciously and fought to keep her eyes open as she stood her ground with trembling legs. A light sheen of smoke drifted off her body, revealing the first degree burns crawling over her skin.

"H-Hana!" Despite the pain, her worry fell straight onto her younger brother. Despair filled her being, knowing that it would be impossible for anyone to survive a gunshot to the head. Glancing back, she found who had fired; the shaggy dirty blond boy who had been attacked earlier. Hamazura grimaced at the furious expression on the girl's face as his right arm fell limply to his side, the small handgun clattering as he did.

"E-Either him, o-or y-you." Hamazura grunted weakly.

If Toka wasn't in so much pain or fighting to stay conscious right now, she would have ran over with a clenched fist and knocked a few teeth out.

Luckily, or unluckily, her dear little brother hadn't been killed by the head shot.

Gaining his balance back, the possessed Esper stared back at the two, shocking them both as they found the bullet that should have exited the back of his head hovering between his eyes. It seemed he had managed to magnetize whatever metals were within the bullet just as it broke the skin. A bead of blood ran down his forehead, the chestnut haired boy still not displaying a hint of emotions even after a bullet had nearly pierced a hole in his face. Footsteps could be heard drawing closer, alerting the Esper of the raven haired nun who was now joining the rest of the party. Seeing that, he leaped far back from the two girls and the down, but still dangerous, Level 0 to gain some distance between them. Emerald sparks flew out his back, crafting the six deadly tendrils once again before they took a different action than before.

"Calculations complete. Beginning creation of the temple."

The tendrils flayed wildly from Hana's back, growing hauntingly still before the tips of each tendril fired several pulses of electricity. A magnetic field had been formed, seeming to draw in streams of iron sand from beneath the street that were molded into odd shapes and figures. They floated above Hana's head as if they were on a flat board while his six tendrils arced up and fired a chain of lightning. The chain of lightning extended from each tip, connecting with another to form above the boy's head a large and intricate circle of occult symbols over the board of iron sand molded figures.

Reaching her sister, Angela stared up at the ominous circle, gulping anxiously at the meaning.

"He created a temple and formed a magic circle. That shouldn't be possible! He's an Esper! He can't possibly have knowledge to perform something so intricate!" Angela shouted in panic as the circle began to give off a vile glow.

Toka was breathing heavily, doing her best to straighten herself out as she stared up at the magical array now growing to extend over all their heads. Like her sister, she started to feel uneasy by the array. She had seen a similar thing before. And the circle had spelled utter hell on earth. Death was the only thing to await them if it was completed. The world around them would burn with hellfire.

A powerful burst of wind blew out from the center of Hana's position as the magic circle only continued to expand. At this rate, it would only continue to grow to extend to Academy City's borders. Maybe even the entire nation of Japan. Or worse, the world itself. Just as it did in their timeline. And that was something neither girl could ever allow to happen again.

Wordlessly, both Toka and Angela glanced back to another and nodded firmly, standing their ground against the bellowing winds flaying their hair. Together, they squared their shoulders, took on a running start, and in sync sprinted forward in the direction of their younger brother. Hamazura flinched back from the stinging winds as he watched the girls run forward towards their death with a shout.

"What are you idiots, suicidal?! Just run away already! What good would it do you idiots to stick around protecting some nobody!?"

That's where he was wrong. Toka and Angela weren't just fighting for the safety of a random Level 0, one that would funnily enough be the key figure to turn the tides of battle in a historic fight against a certain demon, but for the safety of their little brother. As if they could just turn around and run away. That would go against the very will of the man they had once again been reunited with.

Sensing the approaching threats, Hana constructed four more tendrils of electricity from both his arms. The tendrils wriggled madly, growing stiff as commands were sent to their beings that commanded them to intervene the girls running for their master. Unable to move from his position, Hana shot both his arms forward, sending the tendrils racing with the intent to stab through the girls bodies.

The raven haired nun and the unruly haired high schooler weren't deterred in the slightest. Each sprinted through the mad lashing whips of lightning in their own style. Using her natural born precognition, Toka evaded the stabs, slashes, and strikes of the tendrils without ever stopping. And with her Spell Intercept, Angela countered just about every tendril's actions while dodging whatever one's she missed. Somehow, through the wild assault of frying, paralyzing whips of pure electricity centered solely on them, the girls found themselves only steps away from their possessed brother.

In a last ditch effort to fend off the girls, Hana recalled his tendrils to his body. His left arm lost all its strength, falling limply as six tendrils rushed out of his right arm to wrap tightly around the limb and form a massive clawed arm of sparking, muscled lightning. The Esper of out of control lightning swung the massive claw back and threw a mighty straight claw thrust that parted the air with a horrible screech. The thrust came at the girls quick, just moments away from slamming into them like a sparking dump truck running down a hill. But at the last moment before impact, the girls reacted just in time to move out of the way, their inherited instincts passed down by their father saving them just in time.

Hana moved to call his massive arm back, but found his actions stopped as Angela and Toka stepped into his personal space. What happened next could not be stopped.

As one, Angela and Toka dug their feet in, reared their fists back, and with all their strength and weight thrown in, slammed their fists square in Hana's face. A sickly crack of cartilage from the electromaster boy's nose caused the girls to grimace. But they didn't stop, continuing to push through and slam their brother's body back into the road with a thwack.

Blood smeared Angela's and Toka's knuckles to their shame, dripping small droplets of red as the growing spell circle paused and faded away. It was like a switch had been flipped. Without the complete control and focus of its creator, the spell withered away as the sparking Esper was laid back, his body twitching and joints jerking like a machine who's gears were caught by debris. The red symbols in his eyes flickered madly, fighting to continue their control over the boy. With blood running down his nose, Hana slowly stood back up against his will. The force taking over his body fought to manipulate him again, summoning the sparks corrupted by magic once again. It was then that the two girls once again witnessed the backlash of the forbidden union of Magic and Science.

Numerous cuts and lacerations popped up on the chestnut haired boy's skin, spraying blood like a high pressured leak from a water pipeline. The green emerald hue of Hana's electricity began to switch back and forth to its original color, an azure blue just like his mother's. A puddle of red quickly formed around Hana as the force controlling him commanded his twitching body to step closer to the girls with six glitching tendrils aimed to spear them through.

"P-Phase I-Iota corr-corrupted. Host b-b-body damaggggged. W-W-Warning: Commencing M-Mathew Verse 5:18, Now Activating."

Toka panted tiredly as she warily backed away from Hana. Something about the air just now felt disturbing. For a moment, it felt like the air had gone stale. And what did Hana mean by Mathew Verse 5:18? Was that from the bible?

"New Testament, Chapter Five of The Gospel of Mathew, Verse 18; For Verily, I say onto you, till Heaven and Earth pass away, one jot or one dot title shall in no wise pass from the law till all is fulfilled." Like a vocal search engine, Angela answered Toka's unspoken question with a fluid grace come from years and years of study of the holy books her mother had taught her. The raven haired nun frowned in displeasure as she and her sister continued to back away at a quicker pace from their little brother. For good reason.

The road underneath the Esper began to crumble away to nothing, leaving not even the faintest bit of dust behind as the area of the disintegration continued to grow. The air in the space seemed to wither away, banished and leaving nothing behind as a cold frost crept at the edges of the space growing wider with every second. It was as if the very world around Hana was being reduced to nothing.

"I don't think I've ever seen such a spell before! Its reducing the very area of its expanding effect to nothing, crumbling the very earth and voiding the air into an empty vacuum of space. If it has anything to do with Matthew 5:18, than it's activating the failed credentials of the Law of Moses given down by The Son of God. Since whatever is controlling Hana's body can't seem to continue on, its causing the Earth and Heaven's around him to pass away to nothing! At this rate, even he will be devoured by the effect!"

Toka growled angrily at what she was hearing. Just what the hell was going on!? None of this made sense. Her little brother Hana was an Esper, a Level 4 Electromaster who could manipulate electricity to his command like woven fabric, something his own mother who as a Level 5 had yet to do at his age. He was on the opposite side of the world, residing in the world of Science that contradicted Magic. There was no possible way he could ever perform magic so fluidly. Unlike her uncle Tsuchimikado, who was one of the very few Hybrids between Magician and Esper, her little brother had never shown signs of being the same. So, how was he doing this now!?

Just what the hell was going on with her life!? Just days ago, she had been happily living her life, attending A Certain High School, living a normal life as a normal girl who occasionally found herself butting into others business, with a normal mom who was just an average Level 0 Esper herself. Toka's life was normal, and that was how she had liked it. But then That Day had come, and the world had been plunged into the fiery abyss of hell by a god of pure destruction. In the span of twenty-four hours, her normal, average, school life had been turned upside down by her unknown Level 4 electromaster little brother and a busty silver haired archbishop with a sharp, silver tongue, dragging her along for the ride of her life. From there, it had been one incident and fight to the death after the other. All because the role of Hero in their world had been killed.

Hellfire, Magic Gods, Demons, Magicians, Machines of War, Cultists, Espers, and so much more had attacked her in barely a week. And somehow, despite how the how the odds were always against her, Toka had made it through to finally reach the peek of the highest point of Earth, Everest. At the summit of the Magic God's ritual to corrupt the past, the old and new Kamijou Faction had gathered together to capture him and stop him from further destroying their lives. That should have been it. The story should have ended there!

But, here she was, along with the brothers and sisters she had never known existed, dropped off in said past where the younger and more naive versions of their mother's lived. Along with their father.

Kamijou Touma. A man who had many names to the world that went beyond his self imposed title as an average man. He was the hero to the world that was unaware of him in the realm of normalcy. But to the world of the supernatural, he was a Hero. THE HERO. But despite all the titles he had gained, Kamijou Toka had only known him as her father. The same father who was never around when she needed him most, who couldn't stay in her life beside her mother who still held a candle of love for him until the end of days, who was honestly more bum than father, and could be better described as dense even with his age.

But all in all, Kamijou Touma was the father she loved more than anything else. At the end of the day, she would have no other father than her beloved bum of a distant father who would always greet her with the brightest and warmest smiles and hugs she had ever experienced. The same father who had been taken from her without her notice. The same one who had taught her the Thelema that she lived by to this day.

She could still see her father, picture perfect in her memories, standing in front of her with a caring hand stretched out to her, with a soothing smile on his face.

'Toka-chan, no matter what stands in your way, no matter what the story, the event, the circumstances, or what anyone tells you, you just got to ask yourself one thing and follow through with it;'

Toka bit the inside of her lower lip, her right fist trembling fiercely as she stopped in place, watching her little brother's body continue to spray blood from the wounds slicing his skin as the world around him passed away.

'Does it bother you?'

Of course. OF COURSE IT BOTHERS HER!

"HANA!"

In face of the crumbling space of world edging closer to her, Toka stepped forward. She stepped closer to her little brother who didn't even seem to have the strength to even cry out for help. Even as the air stung her skin and her lungs began to struggle to expand with each step, Toka turned to her little brother with a furious shout from her trembling lips.

"ARE YOU REALLY FINE WITH THIS!? ARE YOU REALLY OKAY WITH LETTING THAT DUMBASS, CRUEL, FUCKED UP MAGIC GOD CONTROL YOU!? THE SAME ONE WHO'S RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR MOTHER PASSING AWAY!? ARE YOU REALLY FINE WITH LETTING IT STRING YOU ALONG LIKE A WOODEN PUPPET TO KILL YOUR ONEE-SANS?! CAN YOU REALLY STAND THERE AND STARE AS THE WORLD COMES APART!? DOESN'T IT-"

Twitch. A single involuntary movement in Hana's emotionless face was all Toka needed as she took in a deep, shuddering breath as the very edge of the crumbling world was ready to devour her.

"DOESN'T IT BOTHER YOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!"

Shudder. Hana's lips shuddered against the control of the Magic God's poisonous magic.

Plip. A single tear dropped from Hana's watering eyes, the red symbols flickering pitiably before the Esper boy's natural brown eyes came to life.

And with a crying yell that reached the crumbling heavens and earth around him, the rich boy took control of his world once again.

"OF COURSE IT BOTHERS MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"

Even without the famous Imagine Breaker, the illusion over the boy was shattered like glass. Emerald sparks fought to gain its control and seep back in, but the Esper boy fought back just as fiercely. A massive output of azure sparks banished the magic, zapping the emerald sparks that dyed into a dark, venomous foam of vile energy; like fire burning away a regenerative virus. Hana's fingers flew to his head, clutching onto his recovering mind for dear life as tears fell down his shamed face. He cried angrily, summoning a massive bolt of lightning to drop out of the cloudless sky to strike his body to finally rid the cursed energy of the ruinous god of destruction.

And so, in the district of zeroes, abandoned by the city of science to their own doing, an Esper fell to his knees. The crumbling space returned to normal, reverting back as the influence of the Magic God was rejected. Wisps of toxic magic that cursed Hana drifted off his tired body like smoke, soaking back into the air as he lost the strength to stand. A worn out, exhausted smile grew on his face, his vision growing blurry as he fell.

Hana wasn't sure what had happened. He had memories, memories of waking up on some roof in Academy City. Of walking the streets he thought he knew. And then he heard it; a cry for help. And then. . .a dark emotion. A destructive, angered, frustrated, emotion that possessed him in the moment before his mind grew dim and dark as the emotion only grew. And then nothing.

Whatever had taken over him was gone though. Thanks to the familiar, annoying, yell of a sister Hana didn't know much of. Before his wounded body could hit the ground, a familiar set of arms caught him and let his head rest on the owner's chest. He could see a white robe, dirtied, stained with bits of blood and dirt, and strings of raven hair tickling his nose. As his eyes closed and he drifted off into a peaceful sleep he had been deprived of for far too long, he heard a warm, comforting voice speak to him.

"It's alright, Hana-kun. Your Angela-onee-san's here now. You can rest now. I swear, you won't be alone anymore. Okay?"

With his strength gone, Hana could only weakly nod as one of his older sisters wrapped him up in a cozy, warm, loving hug. Just like his mother's.

Angela sighed tiredly as she fixed her little brother's body to hang over her back. If it weren't for their current situation, she would have joined Hana. Her body was tired from all the running, not to mention the first lunging strike of the Esper boy's tendrils had done a number on her. If it weren't for her protective robes that were designed after a church, she would have died on the spot. At the thought, she turned her eyes back to where she had left Index and Dr. Tatsumi. She grew relieved, seeing them come to rise up from being knocked out from the impact at the spot she left them at.

"Angela? What's going on?" Index asked sleepily, causing a small giggle from Angela's lips. Her mother was just too adorable as a child! She would have loved nothing more than to scoop her up and hug her like a prized stuff animal at a fair, but she had important matters to attend to.

"I'll explain it all to you later, Index. Right now, I think it would be better to find a safe place away from all the fighting. I have to patch up Hana-kun's wounds quickly before he loses even more blood." Even now, after all that they had gone through, Angela could still hear the sounds of fighting between thugs and delinquents rage on in the streets. She would have to set up a People Clearing Field when they found a good spot to rest.

While they were on the subject of wounded people.

"OUCH! Can't you be a bit gentler?!"

"Quit your whining! I thought guys were suppose to suck up the pain and tough it out when they're around girls. Instead you're crying like a little kid who scrapped his knee."

"I got more than a scraped knee for trying to save your life! Is this really the thanks I get!? I swear, I should have just let you get thrown around by that idiot Esper instead of trying to be some stupid hero! I'm just a Level 0 for crying out loud! Don't I at least get some kind of reward?"

"What? Do you want me to gush over your chivalry and give you a kiss like some damsel? Maybe flash you a little skin from my thigh?"

". . . ."

". . . .That better be blood from some wound and not your nose."

Turning her head back as Index and the disgruntled Dr. Tatsumi walked over, Angela found Toka lugging Hamazura over her left shoulder as the two argued. It didn't look like Hamazura had the strength to even walk on his two feet after his run in with Hana. Even after all the fighting had settled between them, the dirty, unkempt blond haired Level 0 couldn't help but glare and stare warily at Hana who rested on her back.

"Why the hell are you carrying that bastard!? Didn't you see what that dumbass was doing? That idiot Esper was going out of control, smashing up everything in sight! And the first thought that comes to mind to you after knocking him out is to carry him around like a baby? Are fucking crazy!?"

"Language."

"Fuck!"

Moving her hand back from punishing the foul mouthed future hero of her time, Angela turned back to the empty streets with contemplation.

"I'm happy that we're all reunited and that the drama's over, but that still leaves us stranded in District 10. Not to mention we have no idea where Kamijou-san is. I hope he's still not fighting that odd boy in the red suit." Angela said worriedly.

Toka frowned. Knowing her father's luck, he was probably caught in all that mess that started this all. That left them with what to do now. If her father was caught up in all this, which was pretty much assured, than the only way to find him would be to follow the chaos to its center. Something she wasn't exactly keen on in her condition.

"So, he's absent? How unfortunate. . .for you."

The sound of small rocket's broke Toka out of her thoughts as something seemed to rocket towards them. Faster than any of them could react, a boy in a red motorcycle suit fitted with countless skating wheels, sped past them. The boy's helmet was cracked, various parts of his suit were burned along with some of his wheels broken. And in their surprise, the red suited boy in the Queen Diver latched his arm around the stunned Dr. Tatsumi's waist. Without another moment to spare, the boy in the Queen Diver rocketed past them with the nuclear scientist in his grasp.

"Dr. Tatsumi!" Toka yelled in alarm as she moved to chase after the rollerblading boy.

Deathlock spun, braking his wheels to stop and aim the pile bunker on his shoulder at the high school girl. The threat of the deadly piercing weapon was enough to stop Toka in her tracks along with the others as he casually addressed them.

"I must say, I saw a lot of interesting things going on. It kinda reminded me of some battle manga with a fantasy setting. If I weren't on such a tight schedule, I would ask what that was all about. But the good doctor and I have a very important meeting to attend to. After all, only he knows of how to open the hidden vault in the Hoshi Reactor. Ain't that right, Orochi Tatsumi?"

Orochi Tatsumi flinched at the full address of his name. The sudden reaction caused Deadlock to glance at him with an amused tone.

"That's right, we know just about all there is to you, Tatsumi-san. Even of where you live, your wife, your kids, their school and workplace, among other things such as allergies and medical history. Even you would understand what that implies, correct?"

Tatsumi's face grew deathly pale. The underlining threat wasn't lost to him. All the fight he had in him dwindled. He hung his head in defeat, nodding weakly.

"We are 0s. This world views as weaklings with no potential, no more a threat than a roach. Yet despite how powerless the SYSTEM deems us, look at all that we've accomplished in a matter of a morning. We've swallowed an entire district in war, cut off any means of escaping by taking over the tram terminals leading in and out, and have raided the secret research vaults that dwell beneath the nuclear reactors. All without an ability to speak of. Isn't that amusing? Care to imagine what those little zeroes could do to a small family?"

No, no he did not. Even the scientist couldn't bare to imagine what such people could do to his family. The thought alone was what shattered what will he had left.

". . .I. . .I understand."

"Good. After all, we can't proceed with Level Eater without it's creator there to see it stirring back up."

Deadlock chuckled, growing confidant enough to let go of the scientist. Reaching for his cell, he brought it to his ear and spoke.

"Target acquired. Bring in the Ram."

From the opposite direction of the group, a large boom echoed as a heavily armored vehicle burst through a small building. The vehicle was black, reminiscent of a dumpster crossed with a tank, platted with armor and six wheels. The Ram drove down the road, flinging the debris around it into the wind as it came to stop behind the red suited boy.

Pile bunker still locked onto the small group, Deadlock signaled the door to the vehicle to open, releasing a small platform to lower down to lift them up. Dr. Tatsumi didn't put up a fight, staring down at the ground despondently as Deadlock lead him onto the platform lift. Seeing the frustrated and angered expression on their faces, Deadlock grinned behind his cracked helmet.

"Unless you're that clown, Kamijou, don't bother following. You may not know it, but there are big things going on, much more than just a bunch of 0s fighting among themselves. The stage we're setting is far too big for small fry like yourselves. But, if you by chance do come across that clown, I would so love it if you steered him our way; To the Hoshi Nuclear Reactor."

As much as Toka wanted to, she couldn't follow after the red suited boy. Even if she could dodge the firing nail, she wasn't sure of the blast radius that could harm those behind her. All she could do was glare at the smug boy in the Queen Diver suit. One that seemed to be all too familiar with her father.

"And why would you want him interrupting your plans? Unless you actually want them to fall apart?" Toka mocked, earning a laugh from Deadlock.

"Because, while I do believe in my employer's plan, I still have unfinished business with that damned clown! And what better place to settle our ideals than at the climax of all this chaos! Just as we had faced another long ago, I wish to do it again! This time, without a doubt! I will prove that my own ideals, my aspirations, my goal, is greater than some illusion born of my hesitation! Even if it means putting my plans at risk of failure! That is how far I'm willing to go to once against clash with that powerless, fake hero!"

The passion Deadlock spoke with was practically deranged. The red suited boy had his own goals in mind that aligned with his employers, that was true, but even those meant nothing to his desire to prove his own desires were greater than Touma's. He would gamble it all just to defeat the unlucky high school boy. It was fanatic desire.

The platform reached its top height, loading both Deadlock and the defeated Dr. Tatsumi to enter the heavily armored dumpster truck/tank. Deadlock left them with one more word of parting before vanishing within the Ram.

"If I were you, I'd go seek cover somewhere safe from all the fighting. Relax, all this nonsensical fighting will come to end. And when all else has settled, this world ruled by those with power will come to an end. The idea of SYSTEM will fall, and we Level 0s will finally be able to proudly stand tall, free to rule our own fates. When it all comes down to it, we do all this for you."

And with that, the door to the Ram shut with a heavy clunk. The wheels of the heavy truck spun, driving away to its next destination. Leaving those powerless figures to watch it disappear in a cloud of dust.

Toka bit her lips to the point she drew blood. Staring down, she couldn't stop her shoulders from trembling in frustration as all she could do was watch the man she had been protecting this entire day snatched away without her lifting a finger to help. Even more, what Deadlock had said to her drove her to a boiling point.

'When it comes down to it, we do all this for you.'

All this? The fighting? The bloodshed? The senseless destruction? Was this all for the betterment of them? What-

"Bullshit."

"Toka-chan?"

Angela stared worriedly at her sister's shaking shoulders. She knew that pose well enough now despite how short their time together as sisters was. It was the same pose she had once seen when staring at the back of her father's back during an unpleasant memory. One that he had quickly resolved with his fist alone.

Index was just as worried, unsure of what they could do. She may not have known Dr. Tatsumi, not at all really, but she still wasn't pleased with the man being forced to accompany such a person as Deadlock. If Touma was here, she knew he wouldn't stand for it.

"What are we going to do? Should we find Touma and tell him about what happened to Dr. Tatsumi?" Index asked softly.

"As if."

Toka's answer had taken both nuns back. The response reminded them of the state they had found the unruly haired high school girl. But to their assurance, Toka glanced back with eyes clear of corruption, instead filled with a strong determination. Seeing those dark eyes, Index couldn't help but compare them to Touma's own. It was uncanny how similar they were.

"Knowing him of all people, he'll find his way over, clues or no clues. That's just the kind of person he is; always stumbling into the center of all the trouble without any say in the matter. But that's the thing. He's not the only one who can butt into others troubles and plans. Even this normal high school girl can do the same, no problem!" Toka grinned widely.

Kamijou Touma was The Hero. Whether he cared for the title or not, whether he accepted it or not, and whether he let it control his actions or not, that's what he was. In time, he would come to gain that title from even the enemies he fought and changed for the better. And that title would never change. But having such a title put too much pressure and weight on his shoulders. Even if he never acknowledge it, he carried that heroic status until his bitter end at an enemy who had done the impossible and slain the hero. Maybe that's why he had lost in the end? In the end, the title of Hero was too much for even him.

That was the thing though. The title of hero was worthless. No one needed such a thing to save people, at least that's what her father had taught her. Even a regular girl like her could stand in the face of evil. All she had to do was act.

And that's what she would do. Toka would act to do as her father. It didn't matter if it was her business or not, she would go in to stop whatever bothered her in the slightest. And maybe, just maybe, she would help ease that burden on her father's shoulder just a bit.

With that in mind, Toka turned her gaze to the silent party in their midst. She grinned mischievously at the dead fished eyed Hamazura who stared back at her with a quirked brow. He resided in District 10, right? So, that meant he knew how to get around, even where a certain nuclear reactor laid.

"Oh, Haaaaammmmmaaaazzzzzuuuuurrrraaaaa~!"

Said lowly Hamazura couldn't help but gulp. Why was he suddenly involved? He was just a common delinquent for crying out loud! Why did this have to happen to him! How did this girl even know his name!?

'I need to let the boss or Hanzou know that I've been kidnapped by two nuns and a high school girl! Wait. . .would they even believe me!?'

Poor Hamazura.

---

Fremea Seivulun was not having a fun time. Not in the slightest. And today had started off so well.

Today, her big sister, Frenda, had the day off for once. So, that meant the two sisters could spend the rest of the day hanging out. Such days were a rarity for the two. Fremea didn't know why, but her older sister's work always had her running off no matter the hour of the day. Whatever it was must have been important and secretive, kinda like her big sister was some kind of secret agent. Being a little girl who was ignorant of the Darkness of the world, she zipped her lips and didn't ask questions, least her sister's cover was blown. With her sister always busy, it wasn't often that they could enjoy an entire day to themselves without Frenda having to drop everything and run off to her secretive work.

Having the day to themselves, the Seivulun sisters had decided to start the morning off with breakfast at Joseph's. If they had been normal people, they probably would have been kicked out for bringing in their own food, especially something as cheap as canned fish, but her big sister only had to glare at them once to leave them alone. Her big sister Frenda was cool like that. And so, they had sat down to eat with bright, happy smiles that would last for the rest of the day.

Than that clumsy waitress had dropped water onto her big sister. The nerve. And from that little incident created by the clumsy waitress, and to a lesser extent; that plain, spiky haired boy who caused it all; Fremea's perfect, best day ever had been ruined.

Shortly after returning home to change out of her wet clothes, Frenda had received a message from her employer about an incident that little Fremea didn't know the details of. Whatever it was had to be important to force her older sister to run off and go back to work with an apology. Fremea had pouted like the child she was, but didn't cry. Her big sister was some kind of secret agent or something. She had important things to do after all. And it wasn't like Fremea would be alone.

With her big sister gone, Fremea had decided to visit her best friend/caretaker who lived in the infamous District 10, Komaba Ritoku. Whenever her big sister left her, her friend Komaba would be kind enough to watch over her and even play with her. Even though he was some kind of big shot boss of a bunch of Level 0s, he would still take her in so she had someone to play with. Slightly upset by the change of plans, Fremea still hummed happily as she rode the train to District 10. All she had to do was send a message to her best friend and he would met her at the usual spot to pick her up. It only took a few moments for Komaba to message back that a few of his friends would pick her up this time, probably the dirty minded shaggy blond boy or the nin-nin thug.

But as she arrived at the meet up spot, Fremea had found neither of Komaba's friends. Instead, she found a bunch of common thugs standing over a few familiar faces she had seen in Komaba's gang, silent and bleeding, before turning their eyes to her. Fremea grew fearful, seeing the ill intent in their eyes as she asked them who they were.

The leader of the gang, a boy with spiky hair running far back in green and pink, with a nasty nose ring on his nose and tongue, grinned darkly. The initials VD were spray painted white like an emblem on his green, torn jacket.

"Just some old friends of Komaba, little girl. Oh? Were you the one they were waiting for by any chance? Oh, isn't that sweet. I didn't take that self righteous fuck wad Komaba as a lolicon though. Hey, how's 'bout we bring ya to him? Don't worry, Warui-onii-san won't hurt ya."

Fremea may have been a little girl, but even she knew better than to listen to such a person. Turning her back, she had run away from the thugs who began to chase after her. Her little legs ran as fast as they could to escape them as she took whatever turns and corners she could to lose them. But they were older and faster, it would only be moments before they grabbed her and did god knows what to her.

Breathing heavily, Fremea had run past an empty street with only one of the thugs on her tail. The others had mysteriously disappeared, but she didn't have time to think of why. She was lucky to have only one of them chasing her. But fear still had her heart in a vice. She was tired, she couldn't keep this up much longer. Nearly stumbling in her steps, Fremea tried to find some place to hide or barricade herself in. At least until she could text Komaba or her big sister her location.

Spying an old, abandoned apartment complex, Fremea used the last of her strength to run as fast as she could to its front door. Luckily for her, the door was weak due to years of neglect and abuse, swinging open as she ran in. Inside, she found herself in an empty student dorm that was wide enough for two people to share, completely bare minus the piles of trash left behind by the gangs who wandered in, along with spray paint cans used to graffiti the walls. Her eyes searched for a place to hide, quickly finding the bathroom door. She ran over, shutting the door that was thankfully still in tact behind her and locked it just as the door to the dormitory was broken down again. Her little chest rose rapidly, her breathing heavy with sweat running down her fearful expression.

"There's no where to run now, brat! It's just you and me!" The thug laughed cruelly, his feet sounding like lumbering steps of a giant. She could swear she could hear his grin growing wide with his voice, "I gotta say, you found a nice little spot for us. You know, I was just going to bring you back unharmed to the boss. But than you started calling me a lolicon. That really hurts, you know? But who am I to call a little girl a liar. That's just cruel, don't you think? If a lolicon's what I am, than a lolicon's what I am."

Terror now crushed Fremea's little heart. She heard something disturbing hit the floor. It sounded like a belt. She hurriedly reached for her cellphone, hoping that her friend or sister could make it despite how illogical the notion was. But to her growing horror, she found her cell cracked, its screen unresponsive. The door her back laid on thumbed, a hand grasped the weak handle.

"You're going to make it up to your elder for causing him so much trouble, aren't ya? I think this is a much better lesson to teach you not to run off your pretty little mouth. Oh, I really hope you're a screamer!"

Tears spilled down Fremea's eyes as the handle was ruthlessly broken. No one would come to her rescue. She was all alone. No hero would save her.

The door was opened wide, leaving her to turn her tearful gaze to the cruel, sick, thug who licked his lips down at her on the floor. His pants were gone, his hand reached forward.

"How about you open that little mouth of yours again, you lit-!"

THWACK!

In an instant, those leering, perverse eyes grew wide with pain and shock from a strong impact smacking into his head with the force of a baseball. A metallic clink hit the floor along with a metal spray can rolling at the thug's feet. The pain caused him to stumble to his left, twisting around with a furious snarl at the bastard who interrupted him. Fremea's tears stopped, pausing as she got a look at the lone figure who had come out of nowhere to her rescue.

It was boy with spiky dark hair, a plain, normal face, shirtless with burns and bandages over his body, and raging, angered, dark blue eyes that glared at the thug with his right arm positioned from a throw. Fremea gasped lightly, recognizing the plain, normal boy. The same one who had caused the jug of water to fall on her big sister.

"Y-You bitch! I don't know who you are, but you'll regret what you just done!" The thug spat as he reached for silver knuckle dusters in his jacket.

The normal high school boy's expression grew livid as the thug charged at him with a left swing. Without knowing it, his right hand flexed and balled up with quivering rage.

"Regret? As if I'll ever grow to regret stopping some sick son of a bitch from laying his hands on a little girl! Nothing you could ever do could make me regret saving a crying child! If you think that you could make me ever, for a fucking second, think twice about answering the cries of a little girl, than. . ."

Quicker than the thug could react, the spiky haired boy caught the fist with his left hand and gripped the wrist tightly to stop any notion of moving back. And than, with his right fist, burned, cut up, and taped, drove the knuckles deep into the thugs face with a thundering shout mixed with a pained and strained grimace.

"I'LL JUST SHATTER THAT BACKWARDS ILLUSION!"

The thugs eyes bulged, turning white from the trauma drilled into his face. Compared to the many punches to the face he had taken, this should have been nothing. But the force of the fist could only be compared to what he swore was a sledgehammer bashing into his face. The punch didn't stop, carrying his body back before the spiky haired boy slammed him into the floor with a thunderous thud that shook the litter of the dorm. A struggled groan of pain trailed from his lips before he grew silent. The thug was out cold with one punch, laid out with broken teeth, a twisted bloody nose, and an ugly bruise over his face.

Touma grunted in displeasure as he fanned his right hand. He had been punching a lot of people today, so he was use to it. But due to some idiot bandaging his dominate arm with military grade tape that belonged in mech suits, Touma had been favoring his left hand since he went back on the streets. In his anger though, he forgot about the tape and fired off a much more devastating punch that he wasn't normally capable of. That fact that he hadn't broken a finger yet was surprising, it felt like the muscles in his entire arm were being pulled like taught rope! It seemed that his right fist was accustomed to such damage though.

Again, what exactly did the past Kamijou get into for his right hand to be this weathered for knocking people out? Please don't tell him he really was just some no good punk who got into fights in the streets on a regular basis! This Kamijou didn't want that kind of life!

"NYAAAAAAAAAA!"

Kamijou's identity crisis was temporarily put on hold by the crying, flying embrace of the little blond haired girl he had saved. Small she may have been, as tall as his stomach really, but she proved to be strong, or he was just sore all over. Either way, the girl's embrace brought a grunt of pain from Touma as she continued to hug his waist for dear life.

"Hey! I appreciate the hug of thanks, but this Kamijou-san's not fit for that right now! I seriously think you're strangling my organs! Something's about to breakkkkkk!"

Tears, snot, and muffled words were this unfortunate Kamijou's response from the blond girl rubbing her face in his abdomen. His hands moved to pry her off only to meet resistance as she only hugged him tighter. The exact pose they were in wasn't exactly flattering either when he thought about it.

"Seriously, let go! Do you even know how this looks right now?! If anyone were to walk in on this right now, they would find some sicko with his hands on a crying girl on his lower body! With this Kamijou's rotten luck, I'm bound to be treated the same way as that pervert!"

Sniffling, Fremea reluctantly released her hold on Touma's waist. A small hiccup came from her mouth as she stared up at Touma, causing a look of regret to grow on his. Making that comment right now wasn't exactly in good taste.

"Sorry about that. I didn't mean to be rude or anything. It's just that my body's a little worn out from all the fighting I've run across." Touma sighed as he scratched the back of his head before kneeling down to the girl's level. His eyes quickly roamed over her own, looking out for any wounds on her person. Thankfully he couldn't spot any. It just looked like she was tired from running away from lolicon. Seeing tears still rolled out the blond girl's eyes, Touma gave her a smile and moved to wipe her tears.

"It's alright. No one's chasing you now. So, don't cry. I'm sure you're strong enough to do that, right?"

Fremea had no idea who the stranger was. She had only briefly met him as her older sister chased him out from Joseph's. From what she had heard from him, his name was Kamijou. In the end though, it didn't matter. The random spiky haired boy had saved her from harm, and worse. And unlike the strangers she had run into, his words and eyes weren't filled with malice or ill intent. They were kind, warm, and caring.

"Don't worry, this Kamijou-san swear's to keep you safe."

Essentially, she couldn't help but listen to him and his promise as she nodded. Fremea moved closer to the spiky haired boy, taken him by surprise as she hugged him much gentler. It was only than that she realized just how tired she was after escaping those thugs. So tired. Her legs didn't even have the strength to move from the spot she found herself. And embracing the spiky haired boy felt so nice. She couldn't help but be lulled into cozy embrace as her eyes fluttered tiredly.

"Thank you, Kamijou-onii-san."

No one could blame her for falling to sleep in her hero's arms. She knew without a doubt, by his voice and eyes, that she was in safe hands now.

Touma sighed tiredly as he carried the blond girl princess style in his arms. Poor kid, it must have been traumatizing for her to have gone through what she just did. If he had been even a minute later. . .

The haunting thought was squashed with a shake of his head. At least he made it in time. Though that did bring into question what a kid like her was doing in District 10. Was she one of the passengers that were abandoned here like him? That would mean that her parents or guardians were here too. Which meant he would have to find them. Just another mission added onto his own personal objectives.

"Jeez, can this day get anymore stressful!? What am I even saying; it's me! Of course it's only going to get more stressful! Such misfortune!"

Grumbling under his breath, Touma exited the dorm to make his way back into the streets of District 10. Which was still in the middle of a gang war. Meaning staying out to long would only drag him into another fight, only this time with an elementary schooler in his arms. Again, just his handed down luck.

"Alright, along with finding this girl's parents, I still got to find Index, Angela, and Toka, along with that doctor, and try to get out of District 10, which is in the middle of a gang war, while also avoiding a red suit wearing guy with a pile bunker who want's to settle an old score between him and the past Kamijou. Am I missing anything else?" Touma complained loudly to no one but himself.

Amid Touma's aimless walk for his friends, he heard the whish of air from a heavy object flying past his back. The object rustled his hair as it was slammed into the abandoned, stripped, car at his right. Than he heard it, the disturbing sound of bones cracking from what he guessed was a person wedged into the metal vehicle from the force it was thrown. Touma didn't wish to, but he stopped and glanced back, finding a Skill-Out thug with green and pink hair dented into the frame of the car. It was almost comical if it weren't for the blood now seeping onto the pavement.

"This is your only warning. If you don't hand over the girl now, than you're going to wish you were him."

Touma wasn't sure where he came from, but the one responsible for the thug's state came forward from his left. The spiky haired boy turned around, finding an imposing figure slowly walk over.

The man, or giant, had dark hair cut short, a strong jaw and an intimidating expression with cold dark eyes. The man's build was like a tank, possessing thick muscles that stretched his black leather jacket to the point Touma's was sure it would rip with one wrong move. And his voice was deep, showing no nonsense for joking around. He meant every word that he said.

Touma eyed the gorilla like man warily, knowing that with the added weight of Fremea, he couldn't escape quickly enough. Instead, he waited for the towering man to get closer before making a move.

With all the fighting and dangerous groups running around in some war that Touma wanted no part of, he couldn't exactly trust anyone affiliated with Skill-Out. Even the boy named Hanzou who had treated Touma's wounds had only done it in hopes of him joining their ranks. It was these people who were responsible for all the chaos his friends were now dragged into. Anyone who was a part of Skill-Out would only mean harm.

As the hulk of a man stopped to face him, Touma noticed that he had his eyes solely focused on Fremea. His hands gripped the sleeping blond's body tightly. Again, it seemed another bastard wanted to do her harm. For some reason, these thugs wanted to take the girl for nothing pleasant he could think of. She had already been through enough. He wasn't going to let her go through any of that bull crap again!

Even though Touma had only just met the girl who's name he hadn't even learned, he refused to just let her go. He swore to her after all that he would protect her.

"I won't do that. So, get lost!" Touma said defiantly.

Komaba Ritoku, the leader of Skill-Out, scowled menacingly.

Today of all days was not the best day for Fremea to visit. He had hoped that the men had sent over would be able to pick her up and bring him to him, just so he could make sure she safely made it back home. She couldn't stay here, not with all the fighting. But then he got word of the little blonde girl being kidnapped by Vile Dog's gang that wasn't so keen on his methods.

Dropping everything he was doing, Komaba had gone off in search of his little Fremea and punish all those who would dare to hurt someone he dearly cared for. In his hunt, he had found several of the men who were after her and dealt with them quickly. Now he had found Fremea, but in the hands of some stranger who he had no idea what intent he held. For all he knew, the shirtless boy covered in wounds and bandages was part of another faction that only wanted to threaten him.

Too much was going on for Komaba to be asking questions to some stranger. He didn't have time to chat or reason. Even now, his men were being killed or attacked by the idiots who were fighting for some as worthless as control of District 10. If anything, he would at least try to not break as many bones.

Words were a waste. He would deal with the boy and return to hunting down the person who had instigated all the fighting to put an end to this ridiculous infighting between factions. If he had enough time when it was all over, Komaba would come back to treat the unfortunate boy.

Steeling his resolve, Komaba wasted no time as he threw a left fist at the spiky haired boy, careful not to harm Fremea.

Touma grit his teeth at the incoming fist. He couldn't dodge in time. But maybe he could screw with the thug's aim. Good thing he thought to pick up few items earlier. Quickly fixing the little blonde girl over his shoulder, Touma reached for the back of his waist for the concealed item and aimed it at thug.

Komaba's eyes went wide as a spray of black paint washed over his face, the burning chemicals stinging his eyes and blinding his sight. His body jerked back as he bit back a shout. With his sight gone, his fist flew overhead of Touma's head as the spiky haired ducked and took the opportunity to drive his foot into Komaba's shins. The blow further disoriented the thug and stumbled him.

Touma had no idea where to go, but he knew he couldn't stick around the area for another second. Once again, he was on the run. At least this would all go towards improving his stamina. That was something to be thankful for. Kinda.

Careful to keep the little blonde girl close to his chest as he ran, Touma searched the streets for a place to lay low. He really wasn't sure if he could outrun a guy who had effortlessly tossed a thug into a car like he was as ball. The smart thing to do was to lose the gorilla like man. If it came down to it, which Touma was hoping it wouldn't, he wasn't sure he could last in a fight against the large thug. As it was, the unlucky boy was already wounded by the days events. He wasn't sure how much longer he could keep pushing his tired body. Not unless. . .

A cautious glance was thrown to Touma's right hand, the very hand that was useless when confronted with anything that wasn't supernatural. What he was staring at though wasn't the mysterious ability that laid within, but the still intact military tape wrapped around his entire arm. Hard Taping, that's what Hanzou had called it, right? It was a tape like material that was fastened to the joints of Academy City's infamous Power Suits to better allow it to maneuver the field in ways no mech should. With it, the no good thugs of Skill-Out had found a creative and dangerous method of application to the human body, increasing their own movement and strength to that of a Powered Suit. It was a pretty ingenious technique.

Hard Taping came with a downside though. The tape put a heavy strain on the muscles of the human body, threatening to tear the organic fibers apart with too much use or miss use. And with this Kamijou's luck, he would suffer the negative effects. It was almost certain.

Even now, he could still feel the strain of his right arms muscles from throwing one punch. If he did it again, he was positive he would end up with his arm dangling limply at his side. That wouldn't do him him any good with his current situation. Guess he would just have to save it for a last resort. He wasn't planning on fighting anyways.

In his search, Touma came across a deserted shopping district. Well, close to deserted. From the looks of it, it had suffered from all the infighting in Skill-Out. Numerous thugs were laid out, knocked, badly injured, or worse. It brought a bitter frown to Touma's face at all the bloodshed spilled. And for what? Just why the hell were all these thugs, delinquents, drop outs, and gangster's killing each other for?! What the hell could justify all this?

Biting his lip, Touma forced himself to look away from all the bloodshed and run into one of the department stores. In the back of his mind, he was cursing himself for leaving all those injured behind, but he didn't have a choice. He was sure the gorilla like man was on his tail.

It was only a few minutes as Touma had entered into the department store that the doors were broken through by a heavy object crashing through with the force of a runaway car. Touma grimaced, realizing that there was no way to outrun the man. It seemed that the thug was just hellbent on chasing after him. Whether it was to beat him to a bloody pulp for blinding him with a can of spray paint or for the little blonde girl he held in his arms, he had no clue. Probably both.

Did that mean that fighting was the only way out of this? When it came to one on one fights, he was confidant in his skills. Or rather, the skills he inherited from the previous Kamijou. But the man he was up against wasn't your ordinary street thug. Touma was pretty sure that the gorilla like man could snap him like a twig if he gave him the chance.

It didn't look like the spiky haired boy would get a choice in the matter. As Touma slid to hide behind an emptied jewelry counter top, something flew past him and crashed into several tattered clotheslines. From the looks of it, it had been a busted cash register turned cannonball. Touma couldn't help but gulp. Was the man even human?

"Hand her over. I'm not going to ask again. Little tricks like before won't work twice. Because I won't allow you a chance to try your hands at scoring a lucky hit like that again."

Touma grunted as the side of the glass display he was hiding behind was shattered by another register thrown his way, showering him and the little blonde girl in bits of glass. It looked like there was no point in hiding. There was no escape. Though the situation was looking grim, Touma couldn't help chuckling as he rose up from behind the jewelry display, careful to set the little blonde girl down and away from the shards of broken glass.

"Luck, huh? Is that what you would call it? From my view though, it was no better than poking at a gorilla's eye. Wouldn't you think so?"

Touma walked over the display case to face the gorilla like man wearing a leather jacket and jeans. He could see the black paint spread over the thug's face and his eyes having turned red. The thug stared at the spiky haired boy with a cold glare, seeming to wish nothing more than to beat him to a pulp that wouldn't be recognizable as human.

Komaba didn't respond back. He was past talking with the stranger at this point. He didn't know the spiky haired boy's reasons for taking Fremea, and honestly? He didn't care. The little blonde girl with a smile that made him swear to protect her the day he met her was his responsibility. He would never allow any harm to come to her. He was her Hero. And that role belonged exclusively to him.

No one else.

Whatever that spiky haired boy's reasons, they meant nothing to Komaba's own. He would take Fremea back with him. Even if he had to dye his knuckles red.

Komaba cracked his neck, ignoring the searing burning sensation in his eyes as he carefully adjusted the Hard Tapping over his limbs. He was sure he wouldn't need its boosting effects from the military tape to deal with this small fry. All it would take is one punch.

Touma adjusted his stance, knowing nothing he would say would get him out of this. All the other thugs he had dealt with were the same. They only understood how to talk with their fists. If he wanted to get out of here with the sleeping little blonde girl safe and sound, he would have to suffer a few more hits.

The first to move came as no surprise. Komaba charged straight ahead with a fist cocked and loaded to dish out some serious pain. The gorilla like man moved faster than the other Skill-Outs Touma had faced, showing that when it came to physical prowess, he was no slouch. The man rushed straight ahead in a matter of moments of swinging space. Touma grunted, falling back into his instincts as Komaba swung down his fist that the spiky haired boy swore would have taken off his head. Touma ducked at the last moment, feeling the air tickle his spiky locks and moved to attack next. His eyes went wide in alarm, catching the gorilla like man's left knee rise up to crack his forehead like porcelain. Thinking quickly, Touma caught the knee with his palms to soften the blow. But even the rising knee proved to be as powerful as the man himself, sending the unfortunate high school boy up into the air.

'W-What the hell kind of muscles does this guy have?!' Bewilderment swiftly turned into pain as the stern faced thug launched a spinning kick into the airborne Kamijou's abdomen. The force had completely robbed Touma of his breath, causing him to spit out his very breath along with saliva as he was sent flying like a soccer ball. His body crashed into the section of the store that funny enough sold woman's undergarments. His body flew into an old discarded pile of bras, burying him in the colorful and racy lace. Seemed even delinquents weren't so depraved to loot said items. Than again, if they were never worn to begin with, what's the point?

Either way, Touma groaned below all the soft, risky, worn out lace.

"Of course, I would end up underneath all this filth." he grumbled as he rose up with a slight blush on his cheeks. The blush would probably be due to the white lacy bra clinging to his head. Among others that had found themselves wrapped around him. Thank whatever deity that may have been watching out for him that Index wasn't around.

Sadly there was no time to get rid of the lacy wear as Komaba came charging in.

Touma thought quickly. The man proved to be fast, strong, and could probably take a hit if he had to. In a contest of strength, Touma would lose without a doubt. Which meant he had to figure out a way to either knock him out in one hit, or possibly injure him enough to slow him down when he ran away. Thankfully the gorilla like man's only focus was on Touma and not the little blonde.

Seeing Komaba come in hot, Touma acted without thinking, relying on his body to make up for his shortcomings. His left hand reached for a bundle of bras, and just as the muscled thug came in to swing down a hammer arm that would most likely break something, swung the colorful lace up in his face. Komaba flinched, his already blurry sight blinded by countless colors ranging from red, black, green, and white. The slight flinch was all that Touma needed as the hammer arm paused it's descent. The spiky haired boy couldn't help but grimace and bite down on his teeth as clenched his right fist.

He didn't want to use Hard Tapping, not when the first time he had used it had made his muscles feel like they were being pulled to their limit, but he didn't have any other choices available to him. He wasn't even sure that with the amplified effects of Hard Taping that it would be enough. Just to make sure, he was going to add a little more oomph, courtesy of the little trinket he had picked up from the thug that had been chasing the little blonde girl.

Something struck Komaba's stomach while he had been distracted by the colorful lace that had fallen over his face. His blurry eyes flew open as he felt what could only be described as a police ram drive into his gut. Despite his muscles and hardened body, Komaba still found himself skidding back from the punch that had nearly sent him flying away. His face was twisted slightly from the pain, something he hadn't expected from what he guessed had been the spiky haired boy's fist.

How was that possible? The kid didn't posses any visible muscles that would allow him to throw hits like a man more than twice his size. And since when had the boy's fist become hard as steel?

Clutching onto his stomach with one hand, Komaba glared at the spiky haired boy as he struggled to regain his breath. He quirked a brow, noticing the pained grimace on the boy's face as well as the fact he was clutching onto the right hand that had struck him. It was than that he noticed two distinct details.

One; would be the knuckle dusters in the spiky haired boy's hand. A hand to hand weapon that helped the user force more damage on a concentrated area to better break bones. It was a common weapon found on many of the Skill-Outs that roamed the street. It shouldn't have surprised him to see some nameless Skill-Out use them, especially a pair that appeared to made of something more than brass.

And Second; would be the familiar bandages wrapped around the entire length of the boy's arm. Calling them bandages though would be a stretch. Hard Taping; military grade elastic taping that was fitted for the joints of Powered Armor to allow better movement. But when used on a human body, it allowed one to reinforce the joints and muscles to increase speed and strength beyond a human's regular limits. Using it though put a heavy strain on the body, threatening to tear apart muscles and deteriorate the joints if used wrongly or too many times.

So, that explained the monstrous punch. Komaba couldn't help but smirk slightly through a grimace at the sight. Not many would go through using Hard Taping, not even his own men despite knowing its benefits. The strain it would put on a normal human body was too much for them to handle. Someone who was unfit would shred their muscles after one use. But someone like Komaba who was well fit like an Olympic athlete could handle the strain as long as he didn't overdue it. To actually see someone who didn't appear to be all that built handle even one use of the elastic tape was impressive.

'C-Crap! I don't think I can do that again. My arm's throbbing like it's gained it's own heart, one that's heavily crusted with cholesterol!' Breathing heavily, Touma massaged his forearm with a wince. Again, he had used Hard Taping, only this time the effect was a lot more prominent. It felt like the muscles in his right arm were screaming. Still, despite the pain using the tape caused him, Touma clenched his right fist with a crack as he set his sight on the pained expression on the muscled thug.

It had worked. Adding in the extra damage created with the knuckle duster he had picked up, he had actually done some damage. Enough to actually send the man skidding back and give Touma some distance. Now Touma only needed to keep it going. Just a bit more, he only needed to keep that attack going just a bit more. When he thought about it, it really didn't matter if using the Hard Taping messed up his right arm. Not when it could help him protect that little blonde girl sleeping peacefully through all the fighting.

Instead of Komaba making the first move, it was Touma who charged ahead with a roar. This time, Komaba wasn't going to underestimate the spiky haired boy. He had done it twice already. He wouldn't allow the boy to get lucky again.

Both Level 0's reared their respective right and left fists back, clenched with all their might, and threw their fists against another with a mighty crack of knuckles meeting knuckles. This time, Komaba decided to utilize the Hard Taping wrapped around his arm, applying more force behind his own blow to meet Touma's. Twisted grimaces marred both their faces, the added backlash of the elastic tape and the fists meeting their own sending a splitting sensation to crawl up their arms. Yet they didn't relent in the slightest. Pulling back their fists, they went back on the attack in a game of bloody knuckles, throwing rights and lefts in a barrage of wild fists that countered the others. Each time their knuckles met, another crack of bone rang out like firecrackers.

Feeling the strain grow, Komaba backed up from the next straight right delivered by the spiky haired boy. Instead of throwing another fist, he crouched down and leaped up high into the air, catching the boy by complete surprise. Spinning back, he then shot down with an ax kick that would undoubtedly break the boy in two. Touma couldn't dodge that, instead enduring the falling leg with his forearms throw up to block. The sound of cracking bone made its way to his ear, causing a muffled yell of pain from the unlucky boy. It felt like the bones in his forearm had suffered some kind of fracture. Sucking in a deep wince, Touma shoved the pain down and quickly grabbed onto the larger man's ankle. And with all his strength, along with the added boost of Hard Taping, swung the stunned gorilla like thug around like he was swinging a weight.

Face twisted in agony from the strain the action put on his muscles, Touma finally let go of Komaba to send him flying into the men's clothing section of the store.

Displaying great reaction speed, Komaba flipped in his flight course, landing to skid on his feet to have his back against an old clothing wrack. His glanced back at the metal rack and grabbed it. Locking onto the gasping, sweating pained faced spiky haired boy, he then proceeded to launch the wrack like an Olympic pole.

Touma's eyes grew with panic as he watched Komaba perfectly throw the clothes wrack at him with scary precision. Seriously, was this guy even human? Why the hell would Esper's pick on Level 0s when there was a guy like this around?! Was this gorilla like thug even a Level 0?

Just barely evading the metal wrack flying past him, Touma went on the evasive as Komaba went on a launching spree of throwing whatever he could find around him at the spiky haired boy. From clothing wracks, torn up seats, registers, and chunks of broken wall and furniture, Touma dodged them all as he made his way over to the leather dressed thug. Getting closer, Touma spied a flying chair heading straight at him, spun around it, and at the last moment as it was about to pass him by, grabbed onto one of its legs with his right arm. Locking his own sights on the muscled thug, he continued his spin for momentum and sent it back. The added benefits of Hard Taping sent the chair flying like a missile, catching Komaba off guard as it struck.

That was enough to stun the big man, allowing Touma to run into his personal space with a rising uppercut to the gorilla man's chin. The blow threatened to break Komaba's jaw as he grunted deeply and stumbled back. His left hand flew to his chin, gingerly grasping it as blood slipped past his fingers from the torn skin. He didn't have much chance to recover as the spiky haired boy jumped up in his charge to bring down his right fist for a falling punch.

This boy wasn't as normal as he appeared. Komaba now realized that. No one else had been able to perfectly dodge his attacks or even match him in strength. The added benefits of Hard Taping clearly helped to damage him, but the boy was actually able to endure its backlash. Not to mention that reaction time. The way the boy fought told him of something important; this wasn't his first brawl. The way the spiky haired boy moved, countered, hit, and evaded him told a story of countless encounters like this. Someone who appeared to be just a common thug like the many other Skill-Outs was capable of keeping up with him at this pace.

Yes, the boy wasn't to be treated so lightly. Komaba couldn't fight him if he took him as anything less than a high school boy. It was time to stop holding back.

Touma's grew stunned, finding the muscled thug disappear in a blink of an eye. How d-!

"I've played with you for far too long. Apologies if you die."

Appearing with pure speed behind him, Komaba held Touma in a grapple form behind. Utilizing the full extent of his Hard Taping wrapped around his body, he had ran under the boy and jumped up to attack him from behind. He had only been using Hard Taping to reinforce the muscles in his arms and to a lesser extent, his legs. But now he was employing the full effects to his entire body's joints and muscles.

At his current state, the boy would no longer be able to hit him.

Touma didn't even have the chance to scream out in agony as Komaba flipped them both over in their descent and drove his skull into the carpeted floor. The force Touma had been hit with caused his body to bounce once before he found himself laying on the floor with frozen expression of pain and shock. He couldn't even breath as he choked on the pain coursing through the entirety of his head. Blood seeped out to puddle around his head, the impact of his skull smashing into the floor causing a large tear of skin on the front of his skull.

He couldn't move, only the occasional twitch of his fingers was all he could muster. With one hit, Touma had been incapacitated.

Landing back on his feet, Komaba spared the unmoving boy a spare glance. He couldn't help but be a little disappointed. It had been some time since he had fought someone who could force him to go all out, if only for a moment. The boy was good, but clearly he was just an amateur with some well honed instincts. Nothing he couldn't barrel through when he was serious. And while Komaba himself was hurt, it was nothing he could ignore until he had the chance to treat the wounds with some first aide.

With a slight grunt of discomfort due to the strain of Hard Taping on his body, Komaba set his sights back to the jewelry display case where he knew a certain little blonde slept. He had wasted more than enough time on one random delinquent. He needed to get Fremea to safety and than deal with the Skill-Out war on the streets as soon as possible. As the leader of Skill-Out, he had a duty to protect the streets of the kids who followed him.

"A-And j-just whe-where do you t-think you're. . .going?"

Komaba paused mid step, back facing the boy who had somehow gathered the strength to stand back on his own feet. An annoyed scowl came to his face, not sparing the heavily panting, bleeding, and bruised boy a glance as he spoke.

"Stay down, boy. This has nothing to do with you. I'm only after the girl, you are of no importance. So, just lay down and rest. If you push your body any further, you'll only break it beyond repair. Even an idiot would know when to stand down." Komaba said sternly as he took another step forward.

"Sorry, but I can't do that. Even if I wanted to, I can't. I just fucking can't!"

Against his better judgment, Komaba stopped and glanced back at the heavily wounded spiky haired boy. The muscled, gorilla like thug, with a permanent stern expression, grew still, finding himself taken back as he got a good look at the boy's expression.

Touma's eyes were hard as stone, showing an unyielding determination on his bruised, blood stained faced. His right arm looked like it was struggling to stay up, positioned for another chambered fist. Everything about the boy spoke of the many fights he had found himself in since this morning. He looked no better than the Skill-Outs outside the shopping district that had fallen in some pointless fighting. And yet, he stood tall, his body battered and bloody, with a right fist ready to continue breaking through whatever he stood for.

It was beyond a shadow of a doubt that the spiky haired boy Komaba was facing wasn't your average delinquent. No run of your mill delinquent could display such will and determination, they would have run away by now. It was enough to bring some doubt to Komaba's own determination.

Why? Why was the boy fighting so hard? What could he possibly be fighting for with such tenacity? What was so worth breaking his body like this? Just what had bore this kind of stoned, unmoving, unrelenting strength?

With a step forward, Touma walked over to the gorilla like thug, ready to go another round.

"I don't know your reasons for wanting the little blonde girl. I don't know what you could possibly gain from taking her. And I don't understand the circumstances that have lead to this girl being chased by a bunch of no good dumbasses, but it really doesn't matter. That girl was crying, she was being hunted down by some piece of shit that wished to do nothing but harm, all alone with no one to save her only to be targeted again! SHE WAS CRYING! AND THERE WAS NO ONE TO RESCUE HER BUT SOME NO GOOD HIGH SCHOOL IDIOT!"

The face of relief, joy, and tears on the little blonde girl's face was burned into Touma's memory. He had seen that face before on a certain day in July in a certain hospital room on the face of a certain silver haired nun. It was the face of someone's world being saved. Saved by some powerless boy with no memory, a fake impersonating someone greater, someone who was regularly called an idiot, and had no special talents other than a right hand that rejected even god's blessings.

The big muscled thug was right; this didn't involve Touma at all. None of this crap surrounding him involved him in the slightest. When he left this morning to grab a bite with the girls, the last thing he wanted to do was get into another fight with some bastards who were up to no good. All he wanted was a normal day without anything going on. Was that so much to ask? But no, the misfortune he was handed down by someone who's shadow he was always struggling to maintain dictated that something would go wrong.

But as much as Touma wanted to complain about all the misfortune he had found himself in, he couldn't allow his stroke of bad luck to be used as an excuse to turn away from someone who needed to be saved. No matter how frustrated, wounded, tired, burdened, troubled, or dead on his feet Touma found himself, he just didn't have it in him to ignore the softest cry for help. Whether that was the past Kamijou, or current Kamijou's feelings, he didn't care. All that mattered was that he could still raise his fist against whatever injustice he faced.

This average high school boy stood face to face with a man who was leader of a gang of zeroes, someone who was strong enough to even outwit Espers with his raw strength, and experienced enough to fight on the same level as said Espers with the tricks and tools up his sleeve. And despite the almost none existent odds of winning, the high school boy charged ahead without any concern of wrecking his right fist with another punch.

"I don't care for your reasons for taking the girl, but I refuse to give her up as long as I can get back up! I swore to protect her from anymore harm! As long as I can clench my useless fist, I won't allow another tear to roll from her cheeks! That's the least this poor Kamijou can do to protect the smile of a single girl! So, raise your fists, Gorilla-san! Because this no good high school boy has still got some fight left in him!"

On instinct, Komaba moved to meet the right fist with the full force and impact of his left fist, empowered by the full potential of Hard Taping. His thoughts were jarred from what he was hearing, seeming to come to a misunderstanding, one that he didn't have enough time to clear up as both Level 0s moved to take the other out.

Right and left fists flew past another, skimming by the other's forearm as they locked onto the face of their targets. Whoever struck first would be the decisive winner in this clash between abnormal zeroes. Nothing could stop them now.

If not. . .

"STOP!"

For the cry of a little girl.

The cry was enough to pause both zeroes fists from being driven into the other's face. Both Touma and Komaba were wide eyed in disbelief, staring straight at the other's knuckles that were only an inch from striking as a small buffet of air splashed over this faces. It had taken all their strength and focus to stop as the small cry had broken them out of their clash. A small body had suddenly hugged Komaba's legs, crushing them tightly in their arms as a small blotch of tears stained the gorilla's like thugs leather jeans. Both the zeroes could hear the small sobbing of the little blonde girl hugging Komaba's legs in attempt to stop him.

Fremea pleaded to the man she regarded as her best friend, crying out for him to stop.

"Please, Komaba-onii-san, please don't hurt Kamijou-onii-san anymore! Please, stop fighting!"

Komaba's expression was surprised, causing the muscled thug to slowly drop his fist as the little blonde girl tightened her embrace. Her words alone were enough for him to relax his taught muscles. A sense of relief washed over his face as one of his arms fell on Fremea's head to gently pat her like some fragile kitten.

Touma blinked in confusion at the scene. Eh? Wait a minute, wasn't the little blonde girl suppose to be running away from the thug? Why was she hugging him like he was her friend? That didn't add up at all! Wasn't he suppose to be protecting the little girl from the mean old thug? Komaba? Why did that sound familiar? And why the hell was the supposed gorilla like thug petting the girl's head like she was a cat?! Just how hard did he hit his head?

"Is this boy a friend of yours, Fremea-chan?" Komaba softly asked the little blonde girl, receiving a teary eyed nod in return.

"Nyaa! He's the hero who saved me from some lolicon that was chasing after me! If it wasn't for him. . ."

Komaba's expression twisted into a horrifying scowl that caused Touma to dryly swallow. Even if he himself wasn't the one the scowl was aimed for, he still suffered under the killer intent pouring out of the thug. It was terrifying to say the least.

Heaving a labored sigh, Komaba shut his eyes to gather his thoughts. So, it was a misunderstanding? To be fair, he may have jumped the gun early. All he had seen was just another delinquent with his little Fremea in his arms while she had been chased by members of a rogue Skill-Out gang. He had seen red and attacked first. It hadn't matter who or why the spiky haired boy had Fremea in his arms, all that had mattered was that she was returned to him.

Komaba was man enough to admit when he made a mistake. And clearly he had made a big one. From what he had just learned, the boy had actually been protecting Fremea from Vile Dog's, one of the rogue factions that weren't in line with Komaba's own rules and beliefs. In his eyes as a regular old high school student, the spiky haired boy had only seen a giant, ruthless, thug who was after a little girl for his own reasons. Of course he would fight back to protect her. Komaba would have done the same. The gorilla like man had even heard mention of why Touma had been fighting as they threw their last attack.

The misunderstanding had lead to their fighting. Two stubborn wills that refused to back down had fought. And it would have ended on an ugly note if they had kept going.

Patting Fremea's head one last time, Komaba opened his eyes to stare at the badly beaten spiky haired boy who stared at them with confusion. This boy who appeared no different than any other delinquent walking the streets had protected the very girl who had caused him to take control over Skill-Out to better protect her. It was funny to think such a plain looking boy could stand up to him.

"You were protecting Fremea-chan this whole time, were you?"

Touma eased his own muscles at the question, nodding firmly.

"Pretty much. I was in the middle of looking for my friends who were also left stranded in District 10 when all of sudden the streets were full of fighting among other Skill-Outs. Than out of nowhere, I see this little blonde girl running away from some Skill-Out spouting a bunch of crap he was going to do to her when he caught her. That lead me to running after him and knocking him out. I think you know what happened next." Touma sighed tiredly as massaged his aching right arm.

Komaba stiffly nodded. Right, he had threatened him with a flying thug wedged into a car. Anyone would go on edge and run away at that.

Realizing the situation had cooled down, Touma grew curious at the close connection the little blonde and the gorilla thug had. When he thought about it, it was like staring at a picture of a gorilla holding a kitten. It actually brought a small smile to his face. The bond kinda reminded him of his own with a certain freeloading silver haired nun.

So, that meant this was all a misunderstanding. They didn't have to fight after all. Guess he should asked more questions as to why the man was after Fremea than run away. Maybe than he wouldn't have wound up so sore and bloody. Again.

"You were just trying to protect her too, huh? Man, that's embarrassing. Here I thought you were just another pervert. Sorry about all that, I really didn't want it to come down to fighting in the first place." Touma apologized as he scratched the back of his head.

Komaba grunted, feeling ashamed himself for harming someone who had protected Fremea when he had failed to.

Letting go of Komaba's legs, Fremea stood in front of Touma and looked up with a bright smile on her face.

"It's alright, Kamijou-onii-san! Komaba might not say it, but he's sorry too! He's kinda like a mother gorilla when someone tries to harm me, or make fun of me. He goes all ape and beats people down with no remorse, cracking skulls like drums! You should see him go wild! No one ever messes with us again after he's done bloodying up their faces, nyaaa!"

"You're a little girl! Someone your age shouldn't be talking about things like bloodying up thugs with such an innocent smile on their face! Learn to speak your age!"

"Essentianly, you want me to gush about ponies and stickers? What normal girl does that?"

"Every last one one them! Why are you even hanging around someone who's obviously part of a gang? Shouldn't girl's your age be playing with other little girls? Since when do they play around with macho men who roam the streets of gang territory with a scary, stern expression permanently etched onto their face? That kind of scene sends warning bells ringing!"

Komaba scowled at the jab, displaying irritation aimed at the rambling high school boy.

Fremea huffed, puffing out her chest with a beaming grin.

"Why be a normal girl when I can be me? I'm nothing like the other elementary school girls my age, I wear a training bra, nyaa!"

"Why?! Why did you feel the need to add in such useless, boasting, red flag waving comment!?"

Scooping up the boastful little blonde with a red beret in his arms, Komaba sent a warning glare towards the ticked off Kamijou. It really was like seeing a protective gorilla caring for a kitten.

"Hey! Don't look at me like I'm some lolicon obsessed pervert! I'll have you know this Kamijou-san prefers mature manager dorm onee-sans, damn it! The last thing that would cause this Kamijou-san's heart to flutter is this brat!"

"Nya, nya, nya! Are you saying that this adorable Fremea-chan doesn't stir your heart!? Even the almighty leader of Skill-Out is weak to my charms! I'm way better than some old hag!"

"Say that again! I dare you to look down the beautiful, elegant, caring grace of dorm manager onee-san's again! Just see what happens, you nya-nya brat! And did you just casually mention something dangerous!?"

Did she just say 'Leader of Skill-Out'?! Did little Fremea just offhandedly mention that the gorilla like man he was fighting with was the leader of the biggest faction of Level 0s in Academy City? The one who was leading all the thugs, delinquents, punks, and gangster brawling it out on the street in some kind of war? That Leader of Skill-Out?

"Such misfortune." Touma sighed dejectedly as his head dropped.

Of course he would wind up fighting the very man who controlled all the people he had been fighting so far. Did that make Komaba his enemy? In all honesty, the imposing man didn't seem all that bad. No one who treated a little girl like Fremea so kindly and protectively could be the apparent ruthless leader of Skill-Out.

Before Touma could find out if what the little blonde french girl had said was true, their attention was diverted towards the sound of explosives going off outside the department store. The cracked, battered glass to the store was shattered by the force of whatever blast had occurred outside, blowing smoke and heat into the building that slowly swept over the three's position. Komaba moved to cover Fremea, guarding her from the toxic smoke as she lightly coughed. Shouts could be heard outside, the sounds of another fight growing in the background from the various fighting factions of Skill-Out.

"Just what the hell are they even fighting about!? What's the point of turning all of District 10 into a warzone if they're just killing another!?" Touma shouted angrily as he shielded his mouth with his left arm.

Komaba clicked his teeth, peering through the dying smoke to the fighting outside the department store.

"It's all the fault of some outside force. Someone's pulling the strings behind the scenes, manipulating all the factions with a series of misunderstandings that blamed the others for senseless attacks, creating war among Skill-Out. At least that's what one of my men had informed me. All this fighting is in due to some careless figure taking advantage of all the chaos for their own means. None of which I can guess is good." he spat in frustration.

Outside force? Touma thought back to what the delinquent named Viper had said before. All of this was just a ruse, a cover for a much bigger operation centered in District 10. All with the intention to prove that Level 0s weren't just fodder figures, powerless numbers with no real worth. Underneath all the senseless street brawling, there was a much deeper plot underway. And from the looks of it, it was all going according to plan.

Another clue was added on. Earlier today, he had been attacked by someone named Deadlock, a figure from his past that he had previously fought to. . .What? Touma frowned deeply, holding his forehead as a slight pain split his head. Protect from what? Why had he been fighting a guy like that? There was. . .there was someone he had been protecting, right? For someone reason, he couldn't remember what they were talking about, only that they had been enemies once upon a time. Why?

Ignoring the blank space in his memory, something he was sure was due to his memory lost, he put together Deadlock's goal along with the revelation that someone was orchestrating the small war between the factions of Skill-Out. It couldn't be a coincidence. Whatever Deadlock was plotting involved the mysterious figure that invoked all the senseless fighting. Which meant. . .

"Damn it, that means Index and Angela-san are caught up in all this too!"

Deathlock had been after Dr. Tatsumi, something about the doctor being needed for whatever his employer had in mind. And Index, Angela, and even Toka were running around the streets with said doctor that was being hunted down. Touma had hoped that they could run away, hide somewhere until all the fighting had calmed down until he found them, but it was now obviously clear to him that they wouldn't be safe. Even if they left District 10, as long as they accompanied Dr. Tatsumi, they would get dragged into all the chaos. Which put them in the dangerous center of all this.

The sound of a small rumbling in Komaba's pocket brought his attention to his cell. He frowned, recognizing the number as he answered.

"Hanzou, what is it? . . .Hmm? Kidnapped? What do you mean Hamazura was kidnapped by a couple of nuns?" Komaba grunted in disbelief.

Touma's heart stopped as he slowly turned towards Komaba. Did he just say nuns?

"You're serious? . . .What? Where is that? Why would they go there? And why drag Hamazura with them? How does he even get kidnapped by nuns of all people?"

"Nya, they probably showed him their bare thighs, causing him to go unconscious. Show Hamazura even a little bit of female skin, and his nose starts leaking red! It's like a broken faucet!"

Komaba sighed deeply, nodding along to whatever was being said on the other line.

"I understand. I'll meet you there as quickly as I can. Bring whatever people we have left. I think it's time we've put an end to all this mayhem."

The person on the end seemed to speak for a bit longer before the line died. With that, Komaba shut his cell and frowned as he looked down at Fremea. What he was about to embark on next was no place for children.

Fremea seemed to understand, puffing out her cheeks stubbornly as she stared up at the very man who had been there for her since a gang of Espers attacked her school.

"Nya, I know what you're thinking, Komaba-onii-san! Don't you think that I'm just going to go hiding now after all that! Besides, I don't think there's a safe place around here you can hide me away. There's no safer spot than being by your side, nya!"

Komaba struggled to argue with the bratty french girl. It was true, he couldn't think of anywhere he could tuck her away, not without worrying that another person would attack her. There was just something about little Fremea that caused trouble to follow her, leaving her in the position to be saved again and again. There truly was no safer and more secure place than having her stay by his side. Sadly, it wouldn't be the first time he had gone into a fight with the girl hanging around him.

"Fine, just stay close and don't wander off. Just leave everything to me." Komaba grinned slightly at the pleased little blonde girl.

"Nya!"

With that settled, Komaba prepared to go off and stop all the fighting at the root of the problem. He fixed Fremea to hang over his large shoulders, a familiar spot that she loved to rest on. He was ready to go off on his own, until he heard the spiky haired boy call out to him.

"Wait, I'm going too."

Komaba scowled, turning back to face the badly wounded Touma who was lucky to even be standing.

"This doesn't concern you. This is a matter for those in Skill-Out, the true 0s who only wish to protect their kind from the unjust nature of this world we've been locked into. Not to mention you're in no condition to be dragged into another conflict. You want my advice? Go home. Return to your average life and leave this to those with the strength to fight."

"Don't give me that shit!"

Even if he was wounded, tired, and ready to fall over in exhaustion, Touma pushed on as he glared at the imposing man. As if he could just run back home. Not until he had his friends back alongside him!

"I heard what your friend said, that one of your guys was taken in by two nuns! There are only two nuns in this city, and they're my friends! And for some reason, they're getting involved in all this mess created by some asshole that's playing this district like a damned board game! And you want me to go home? Screw that! I don't care where it may lead me, if it means finding Index, Angela, and even Toka, I would dive into the gates of hell without a second thought! If you think you can just tell me to leave and pray for them to make it back to me safe and sound, than I'll shatter that ignorant illusion!"

Again, Komaba found himself taken back by words of the average Level 0 before him. The words carried a certain power that made even him back down to. The spiky haired boy spoke of a determination that would not crumble no matter the force it faced. Whether he agreed or not, Komaba was sure that Touma would follow.

He couldn't help it. An amused smirk grew on Komaba's lips.

"If you follow, know that I won't be able to protect you. You're on your own. I won't have dead weight hanging off my shoulders."

"That's right! Even if you're super cool, sauve, and charming, we won't have anyone who can't pull their weight coming along, nya!"

"Just what kind of picture of this poor, unlucky Kamijou-san do you have in mind!? And as if you're one to talk, Weight-chan!"

"NYA?! Who you calling dead weight, Kamijou-onii-san!? If you didn't have such a glittery macho face, I'd kick you, nya!"

"G-glittery?!"

Komaba sighed, cracking his neck as he moved to exit the department store and continue on with his mission. All the while the little french girl hanging on his shoulders argued with the spiky haired high schooler following along.

This was not how he expected his day to be going. The crudely drawn picture Fremea had drawn him made no mention of this. Though she did get the part where his fists were bloody right at least.

---

The final stage is in sight. All the actors are now in route for the grand finale to the tale of Level 0's act of revenge against the city who robbed her of her wish. And a certain unlucky Level 0 has a VIP seat to the opening act.

An important question must be asked. How far will one go for one wish? How much despair must one endure? How much blood must be paid? How much suffering must be wrought? Just what are you willing to for that single wish to be granted with all your heart?

This was a fun chapter to write for me, almost close to the final battle I'm currently tapping away at. I've always loved writing out battle scenes, it's one of the reasons I got into writing in the first place. And we've got plenty more to come as the curtain begins to rise up for the grand finale.

Hopefully I can finish the final chapter and get to working on the Epilogue before the end of the month. I really want to upload faster than once a month, but I don't want rush anything. Trust me, I end up changing a lot of things on a chapter I finished a month ago for the better when I'm editing it for a few days. It's worth the wait.

Meanwhile, I got to continue searching for a new place to live. Last house a I found was a No. Sharing a house with two girls who already live there sounds nice, but not if you're moving in with your family. If I was on my own. . .still no. Trust me, I got my own brand of bad luck that would act up. Life ain't no anime. How I wish it was though.

Anyways, remember to Read and Review! It's common courtesy.

NeoShadows fading in and out.