Fuyu's Mansion, inside the Capital...

"It seems Night Raid is on the move." One of Serpentine's shinobi host said. "Esdeath and her Jagears are preparing to intercept."

He knelt down, leaning one hand before the Partas survivor. The latter closed his eyes, he felt a gust of wind blow across his face.

"So the day has finally arrived." Fuyu paused before continuing. "Normally, I would let them fight without interruption."

He reopened his eyes, placing one hand on the railing before him. "But I doubt Pyro would let anything happen to his dear Chelsea, nor Akame or Kurome for that matter."

Fuyu turned to face the ninja. "Some of your other hosts have been tracking their movements, correct?"

Serpentine replied with a simple nod. "Night Raid is currently to the East, they have stopped temperately to ensure they are spotted."

Fuyu smiled. "That Najenda, always the cleaver one." He paused before continuing.

"Continue tracking them. I'm sure they will move once they received word of my sister's departure. After that, they'll move to some more favorable location to spring their trap."

"Once they've stopped at an ambush point, have Steven transport Raryu, Norman and the Bloodborn twins to their location. Their orders are to support Pyro and are free to engage any opponent they see fit."

"Steven is not to participate in the battle then?" The shinobi asked.

"No, we can't risk the Jagears seeing his face." Fuyu smiled once more. "Besides, given the circumstances I believe it's the perfect time to implement that plan."

"Understood." The shinobi replied. "I'll inform Joker and Xein Shi to make the necessary preparations."

Fuyu nodded. "Tell them they will be on their own for this one as I'll be shadowing the Jagears. I have too much invested in Wave and Tatsumi to see them both perish at this stage."

"Very well. I'll see it done." And with that, Serpentine's host vanished.

Fuyu crossed his arms behind his back and turned around. He looked over the massive garden outside his home and the city beyond that.

As he took in the breathtaking sight, he could help but wonder how this certain battle will end.

A fight between quite a number of Imperial Arms users was about to take place, and those items seemed to carry a curse.

A curse that once their users engage in battle, not everyone would remain standing once it came to its conclusion.


Almost an hour later, outside the Capital Eastern Gate...

The massive iron gates of the Capital's Eastern Gate opened wide.

General Esdeath along with her Jagears rode out on horseback. As they gained some distance from the Capital's walls, the iron gate began to close.

Hiding in a path of bush and trees were two Revolutionary scouts, quietly watching Esdeath's party rush off towards the East.

"Looks like all seven are heading out." One of the scouts said.

"Just as Najenda predicted." The other scout added as he quick wrote down a report on a sheet of paper. He tired it around the leg of a falcon his partner had on his arm.

The 1st scout removed the black bag on top of the falcon's head, he threw his arm forward causing the falcon to take flight.

"Go now Margue Falcon, bring this information to Night Raid!" He said, watching the winged beast fly off.

"Night Raid's gonna need all the luck they can get on this one." The 2nd scout said.

"They better survive," The 1st scout added. "We need them to set this world right again."

Just as the two scouts were about to leave, they heard the iron gate suddenly stop. The two revolutionaries looked, noting the gate had not fully closed.

Before either could utter a word, another horse rode out of the gap.

The rider had his horse a few dozen feet away from the gate before commanding his ride to halt.

The man looked to the forest where the two scouts were hiding, well exactly where they were hiding, and smiled in their direction.

The two crouched down into the bush, hiding themselves as best they could.

"Isn't that Fuyu, the Flash Demon?" One of the scouts said in a low voice. "What's he doing here?"

"This isn't good, we need to let Night Raid know about this." The other replied.

Unknown by either scout, a figure moved in the shadows behind them. It crept closer and closer until it hovered behind the two scouts.

In a sudden motion, the figure place its left hand on top the closer scout's head. Allowing his Imperial Arms to work its way into the rebel's mind.

The other scout turned his head, looking directly into the masked figure known as Joker.

"What the-?!" He turned to draw his dagger, but it was too late.

Joker quickly dashed towards the man, grabbing his face with the Conqueror's Hand. The scout fell helpless as the Imperial Arms cast its binding spell on his mind.

As this happened, Fuyu commanded his horse to move towards the patch of greenery those three currently where.

"Nice job. Now we have two more agents within the Revolutionary Army." He said as he closed in.

"Do you really have time to praise me?" Jast replied after removing his left hand. "Won't you lose Esdeath and the Jagears?"

"I have some of Serpentine's hosts tailing them. Even if I hadn't, several of his shinobi are watching Night Raid." Fuyu replied bluntly. "Either way, I'll know where they'll end up."

Fuyu smiled. "Besides. I wanted to wish you luck on your own mission."

"I will do my best, but I can't promise how it will end." Joker crossed his arms. "I have no idea what he'll do when we show him the truth."

"No worries." Fuyu replied. "All we need is to plant the seeds of doubt in his young mind. It'll all fall in place after that."

"I hope you're right. We're taking a big gamble with this move."

"Indeed. Well rest assure that fat bastard will be distracted thanks to the personal sacrifice of my very own Luna." Fuyu smiled. "Just make sure this goes without a hitch, otherwise I don't think I'd hear the end of it."

"This is all for the betterment of the Empire." Jast said as he uncrossed his arms. "I don't plan on botching this one up."

Fuyu nodded to his partner. He commanded his horse to turn around. "I'll leave it in your capable hands."

With that last word, Fuyu whipped the saddle on his horse. The latter spurred forward, caring it's rider off to the East.


Some time later...

Najenda sat on a simple folding chair set upon a cliff overlooking a vast lake. In her arms was the same falcon the two scouts sent a little while ago along with the sheet of paper containing their message.

The leader of Night Raid quickly read the report the scouts had sent her.

"So all seven are on the move." She said after reading the report. "Given how Esdeath moves, even if she was to ask around a bit she should be here by tomorrow a little after noon."

Najenda moved her hand back and forth, shaking off the falcon resting on her arm. It flew off towards the mountains passed the lake.

Najenda sat up and turned around, looking back at Mine and Akame standing a little ways behind her. The two were dressed in their bathing suits; Akame with red string bikini featuring a little skirt and Mine with a pink floral two piece.

"I just received word from the Revolutionary spies." Najenda said to them. "Like we planned, try to causally attract attention towards yourselves better."

"Roger." The two replied in unison.

Meanwhile, below them were the rest of Night Raid. Leone and Chelsea splashed each other in the lake while Lubbock, Tatsumi and Bulat watched them from the shore.

"I can't believe we get to watch the girls bounce around in bikinis!" Lubbock said with glee.

"Could you focus?" Tatsumi said with a sigh. "This is all part of the mission man."

"What?!" Lubbock yelled, turning his head to the latter. "Are you crazy?! Or impotent?!"

"Neither jackass!"

"Tatsumi!" Leone called out to the teen. The latter turned, looking directly at both Leone and Chelsea.

"We want your opinion on something." She said with a smile. "So who's swimsuit do you like better, mine or Chelsea's?"

"Ohhh, I'd like to hear the answer to that." Chelsea added with a smirk.

Currently, Leone wore a yellow orange stripped bikini while Chelsea wore a lighter blue bikini with short shorts featuring various decorative designs.

The two ladies leaned forward, pressuring Tatsumi into answering.

"Careful how you answer Tatsumi." Bulat said. "Ladies tend to take these kinds of things seriously."

Despite his mentor's warning or maybe because of it, the young teen hesitated to answer.

Moments passed as Tatsumi tried to figure out a way out of this when suddenly that solution to his problem appeared out of nowhere. Or rather, out of a spiral inferno.

"Well I say its obvious which of the two swimsuits are better." A familiar voice coming from Tatsumi's right said. The latter felt pressure on his shoulder as the Clockwork agent leaned his elbow on it.

"While Leone's certainly shows off the highlights of her body, it's nothing different than what we're used to seeing everyday." Pyro said casually.

"Chelsea's on the other hand shows much more than one would normally see while showcasing off her charms. So I say Chelsea's is the better outfit of the two."

"Oh I see, that makes sense- WAIT WHY ARE YOU EVEN HERE?!" Tatsumi yelled, turning away from the man.

The remaining members of Night Raid standing on the beach took up a defensive stance, not it would do much good given they were unarmed.

Despite the cautious movement, the Clockwork agent held his ground.

"I came here for a social visit." Pyro replied with a smile.

At that moment, two green laser bullets raced towards the latter and past straight through the man.

Pyro chuckled as he turned around, looking into the eyes of the man that tried to shot him. "Nice try, but none of your attacks can hit me at this stage."

Walker let out a tisk. He lowered his twin pistols and, along with Susanoo whom was at his side, cautiously approached the man.

"OK, so we can't touch you." Walker said in a sour tone. "Now what? You gonna torch us all or somethin?"

Pyro smirked. "Far from it. Like I said, I'm here on a social call." He looked up, meeting the gaze of Mine who was spying on the group below.

Quickly, the man morphed his legs into fire and hovered upwards. Pyro paused in front of the pink hair girl. The latter took a few hesitant steps back.

Pyro chuckled at the girl, then moved forward turning his legs back to normal once their was solid ground beneath him. Causally, he walked towards the one he was focusing on: Akame.

As he neared the young assassin, Najenda called out to the man. "You are aware we have standing orders to eliminate you and your group, correct?"

Pyro shrugged his shoulders. "Yeah, but it's not like you could do anything to me in this form. You'd have to wait for stage 2 or higher to have a chance."

Najenda raise an eyebrow as the Clockwork Agent said 'Stage 2', but asked nothing of it.

Pyro stopped a few steps away from Akame. He looked at the latter with a smile. "Hello, Akame."

"Hello...Pyro."

The latter let out a sigh. "Still don't remember me? Well that's fine. I remember you and your sis. That's all that matters right now."

He smiled once more. "You really do look like you mom. She'd be proud if she could see you."

Akame replied with silence.

"Yeah, I don't blame you for not responding." Pyro said with a chuckle. "After all, your parents sold the two of you off to the Empire. So why care for a ma like that?"

"How do you know so much about me if we only meet once?"

"Well I..." Pyro's voice faded out.

How did he know that? I mean yeah Jast and the rest of Clockwork knew but, he felt like he had known before that. Like he experienced it happening.

He tired to remember, but he couldn't find the memories. Had he imagined it or-?

A sharp pain ran through Pyro's mind, making him cringe.

Akame raised her eyebrow, noticing the motion.

"Ah it's nothing," Pyro said, raising one of his hands. "Just a little off today."

He lowered his hand once the pain faded. Just what was that?

For now though, Pyro decided to forget about it. After all, he had something important to say.

"Look, I know how it must feel having your own flesh and blood suddenly turning on you, but there's no reason to feel that you're alone." He said with a smile. "Just know that you have plenty of people here that care for you, not to mention yours truly."

Akame looked at the man for a second, then smiled. "Yeah..." She said before her smile faded.

Pyro let out a laugh. "Been a long time since I've seen that smile." He turned around and began to walk back towards the cliff edge.

"I won't let you two die, much less kill each other. That's a promise." He said before vanishing in a swirl of fire.


The next day...

The members of the Jagears gathered around the town square in a town along the Romari Road. There, the special police force held a meeting while enjoying some crapes bought from a stand not too far from their current location.

"We have witness reports of Former General Najenda heading east with Mine and Akame heading south." Run said. "Their party split up shortly after coming here."

As the young man spoke, Seryu yelled at Coro for trying to eat her own crape. Off to her right, Kurome shoved in her mouth one of the several crapes she held in her hands, munching on it gleefully.

"If they continue East, they would end up in Kyoroch where the Path of Peace is based in. Head South and you'll run into cities that support the Revolutionary Army." Bols added in a serious tone. "Either way, its very suspicious."

"If we hurry, we could catch up with them!" Wave said enthusiastically. "What are we waiting for? Let's go!"

"Always a man of little thinking huh Wave?" Drake said before crossing his arms. The forward half snarled at the later.

"Think about it for a sec." The engineer continued. "These guys are supposta be the same band of assassins no one could catch or even find for that matter. Now after all that, they simply let themselves been seen? Something doesn't add up."

"Agreed." Esdeath replied. "It is quite odd they show themselves given the way they usually operate."

"With what we know, these turn of events seem to be all to convenient." Run added. "This has to be a trap."

"Why would they stand out in the open like this?" Bols asked. "What purpose would it serve?"

"To lure us out and defeat us." Seryu answered.

"So it would seem." Drake added with a shrug.

"Najenda's always been like this." Esdeath said, feeling some nostalgia from her time with the former general. "She fights with a cool head and a burning heart."

"So it'd be too risky to chase after them." Wave said aloud.

"No, we shouldn't waste this opportunity." Esdeath replied. "Night Raid's been playing it safe up till now. They finally decided to come out in the open, we must take them down while we have the chance. I don't care it this is a trap. We'll crush them, trap and all!"

The Pastas survivor looked to her left. "Seryu and Run, help me track down Najenda."

The sadistic general looked to her right. "Kurome, Wave, Bols and Drake, you four go after Akame."

A sinister smile formed on Kurome's face. Finally, the moment she had been waiting for drew near.

She would get to see her big sister again.

"Stay aware of your surroundings at all times." Esdeath continued. "If you feel that the enemy will overwhelm you with their numbers, you are allowed to retreat. Remember, I value each of your lives above everything else so no suicidal attacks."

The general held up her right hand, balling up in a fist.

"These are the last threats to the Capital. So go out there and strike them all down!"

"Roger!" The six Jagears replied in unison.


One hour later...

Wave, Bols, Drake and Kurome rode along the inside of a canyon. Their horses galloped at a fast pace, leaving dust in the air behind them.

"We're about to go up against the strongest criminals in the Capital." Bols suddenly said. "Do you think someone like me can hold a candle to those guys?"

"You'll be alright." Wave answered his friend. "I fought someone from Night Raid before. For some reason, he wouldn't fight back but I could tell we were about equal."

The young man smiled. "I'm sure we can beat them if we work together. Besides, you're Imperial Arms is suited for fighting groups so it's reassuring to know you're here!"

"Is that so?"

"You're one to talk Wave." Kurome cut in. "When all's said and done, I think you'll be the one that holds us back."

"What?!" Wave shot back. "You don't think I can handle it?"

"I doubt you'll last five minutes."

"You're saying that now, but you haven't seen me fight seriously!"

"Oh?" Kurome said with a smile. "Wasn't you crashing threw all those buildings fighting seriously? Do you mean you can cause more pointless destruction Wave?"

"Ohh, now your asking for it!"

"Enough!" Drake shouted. "This is no time for pointless bickering!"

Wave and Kurome turned their heads back to the man before he continued.

"Now listen, you might be eager but unless you stay sharp all that overconfidence is gonna get you killed." Drake said with a frown."I have more combat experience then the three of you combined. Listen to what I say and we'll walk away from this. All of us."

"Whatever." Kurome said with a sigh.

"We'll be counting on you Drake." Bols replied.

"None of us will die, so don't you worry old man." Wave finished with a smile.

Drake heard none of their replies however. The double agent was silently cursing at himself. Again, he said something he didn't need to. Drake knew he had grown attached to these guys and it was eating him up inside.

If only these people knew who the true villains were. If only they knew what he and his comrades wanted to accomplish, then maybe this lot wouldn't have to die.

But they wouldn't. Even if they did, most likely they would remain loyal to the corrupt government and then...

Then he would have to kill him. Every last one.

And it would tear him apart.

'And that's why I'm here.' The voice inside his head said. 'To handle all the little gruesome details you don't have the stomach for.'

"Look up ahead!" Wave shouted, snapping Drake out of thought.

A few dozen feet ahead of them was an odd looking scarecrow.

It was odd because instead of looking like a normal scarecrow, it was shaped like a muscular male with a poorly drawn face and the words 'HOTTIE' spelled out across it's chest.

"Very suspicious." Bols said rather calmly.

"Who the hell puts a scarecrow in the middle of a canyon?" Drake added.

"Let's check it out." Wave said, dismounting from his horse. Kurome followed close behind.

"Careful. This could be a trap." Drake replied.

"You make that sound like there's a second possibility." Kurome said with a laugh.

Wave and Kurome cautiously approached the scarecrow. Drake and Bols dismounted, keeping an eye out for enemy movement.


A little ways away, on the top of the canyon walls were Night Raid's snipers: Walker and Mine. Each set up on the opposite side so they would have coverage from both angels.

"I see the targets." Mine said into her earpiece. The device was a loan from Walker. "I count four. Looks like Esdeath couldn't resist chasing after our boss."

"Solid copy." Walker's voice said out of the small device. "Now listen, just cause they aren't at full strength don't go underestimating them. Prey tends to fight ferociously when backed into a corner."

"Roger that." She replied, scanning the faces of each Jagear with the scope attached to Pumpkin. Her eyes settled upon the only female amongst the group.

One that bared a striking resemblance to Akame.

'That must be Kurome.' Mine deduced mentally.

"Alright squirt, pick a target."

"I'll take the girl." Mine replied, deciding to let Walker's little insult slide.

"Rog. Wait for my shot then fire after." The latter replied.

"Understood." Mine said, easing her finger towards the trigger but not quite on it yet.

She'll do it. She'll kill Kurome and save Akame the pain of slaying her own sibling.

It's the least she could do. After all, Night Raid was Akame's family now and there's no need to put her through unnecessary pain.


Walker let out a sigh after he received the acknowledgement from Mine. He aimed his Imperial Arms at his desired target: The short blue haired man with a scar across his nose who look somewhere around his own age.

Given the way this guy carried himself, the mercenary could tell he'd seen his fair share of combat and as such became a priority target. If he could eliminate those that knew what they were doing, it would make it all the more easier for the ground assault team.

Before Walker could pull the trigger, an energy wave shot out from Mine's position and towards her desired target.

Kurome saw the blast coming and, with a speed unattainable by normal human beings, dodged the shot.

Walker hesitated for a few moments, in awe at how the little girl had superhuman reflexes. He blinked himself back to reality a few seconds later.

"Dammit squirt!" He yelled into his earpiece. "I said wait for my shot!"

"I saw a chance and took it! Besides, I got tired of waiting old man!" Mine replied, her voice trembled with shock and fury. Obviously from this inhuman stunt they both witnessed.

"Are you daft or something?!" The mercenary yelled back. "Now the whole plan's gone to shit cause you were a little trigger happy!"

Static was the only reply Walker heard.

He refocused his aim, bringing the blue haired man in his cross hairs. The latter was shouting something to the others.

"To hell with it." Walker said before pulling the trigger.


"Sniper!" Drake yelled.

Someone from high atop the canyon wall took a shot at Kurome.

The young girl managed to dodge the round, which would amaze anyone who had no idea what kinds of experimentation and drugs she had endured and had running through her system.

The Clockwork agent did however and, while it did save her life, reminded him one of the many reasons why he hated the current government.

"Keep you heads down!" Drake continued to yell. "We gotta take him out before-"

The Clockwork agent cut himself off. In the corner of his eye, the man saw a green energy wave heading towards him.

Everything slowed down as he turned his head to face it. As it drew closer, Drake felt his his heart beat skyrocket. Adrenalin coursed through his blood stream.

And yet, despite all this activity, Drake found himself loosing consciousness. For the old soldier knew he would take over.

'Let me handle this, brother.'

And then everything faded to white.


Walker witness not one, but two unbelievable actions today. The man he had targeted managed to dodge his shot with a simple title of his head.

This was unbelievable. How could he move that fast?

The merc cursed under his breath as he brought the man back into his sights. The latter looking in his direction, like he knew exactly where Walker was.

Whatever he could do now was irreverent, in a few moments Susanoo will spring from his cover and attack the nearest target before Najenda and the rest of Night Raid move in for the kill.

When that happens, he and Mine will have to support them as best they could.

As Walker waited for that chain of events to carry itself out, he noticed one key difference about his target.

His dark blue eyes suddenly turned red.


Wave looked back at Drake, the latter had dodged the second sniper shot. How the old man managed to do so was unknown, but Wave noticed his friend's eyes changed color.

Whatever the reason, it didn't matter as long as he was alright.

In front of the four Jagears, the scarecrow place in the middle of the path suddenly exploded. Emerging from underneath was a blue haired, horned man.

This man rushed forward, setting his sights on the closest of the Jagears.

Wave's eyes went wide once he realized the man was coming for him. With little time to spare, the teen drew his sword hoping to block the initial attack.

Susanoo swung his stave forward, aiming at Wave's chest. The latter moved his sword accordingly and waited for contact.

But it never came.

In a flash, a figure appeared in front of Wave and blocked Susanoo's attack. A figure the young man, as well as everyone with the Jagears, knew all too well.

"I won't let you harm this one." Fuyu said with a smile. "Besides, he has yet to give me his reply to a rather important question."


Meanwhile...

A little ways away from the confrontation between Night Raid and the Jagears, in a forest atop one of the canyon walls, a purple tetragram appeared out of nowhere.

It shined brightly for a moment, than vanished without a trace. Leaving a few dozen bodies were it once was.

"Looks like we're a little late." Raven said, crossing his arms. "They probably started fighting."

"Well that's fine." Syura replied with a smirk. "Long as we don't want to miss all the fun."

"Make sure you aren't spotted. Our plans will go all to hell if you're seen at this stage."

"I'll be careful, you have my word."

"Good." Raven turned his head back towards the cloaked men behind him. "Listen up! Once we're done with this detour, you'll be moving to your designated target areas. So try not to die here."

He turned around to face them. "Start the preparations for the ritual. Go now, Sons of Nores!"

The cloaked men headed off to their task. Raven turned back around, looking at his partner.

"Shall we find a nice spot to take in the view?"

"Lead the way." Syura replied with a smile.


Susanoo jumped back, given that his surprise attack failed he had little to gain by remaining directly in front of the enemy.

Where had this new one come from anyway? The organic had never seen anyone, or anything move that fast before. And here he had the title Speed of Lightning.

In a matter of moments, the rest of Night Raid -save Mine, Walker, Chelsea and Lubbock. The latter two were hidden in the forest areas waiting for an opportunity to covertly strike their enemies.- emerged from hiding and gathered around the organic Imperial Arms.

"Snipers failed, so did our sneak attack and we have an unexpected guest." Najenda said with a smile. "Not off to a good start are we?"

"Night Raid!" Bols half-shouted. "And their entire team is here!"

'So the East was a decoy.' Wave thought to himself.

"We meet at last, former General Najenda." Fuyu said with a bow.

"Indeed we do, former General Fuyu better known as the Flash Demon." She replied.

"That is but a name given to me from a dying age." Fuyu replied with a half smile. "General Esdeath has told me much about you. She admires you, in a way."

Najenda closed her eyes. "Honestly, I never expected you of all people to show up here." She reopened her eyes. "Seeing as you are, I doubt I could convince you to leave."

Fuyu chuckled. "My dear Najenda, why would I ever leave when there are so many worth opponents set before me?"

"Very well." Najenda smiled. "We'll have to cut you down along with the others."

"By all means," Fuyu raised his sword arm up, placing his sword a few inches from his face. "If you're up for the challenge."

Facing each other a few feet away were the two sisters Kurome and Akame. They stared at each other, the forward smiling with the latter slightly frowned. They called out to each other in turn.

"Big sister."

"Kurome..."

The younger sister smiled widely, like the innocent young girl she appeared to be. "I'm really glad to see you." She said before her innocent smiled morphed into something more sinister.

"Now if I cut you down," Kurome slowly drew her sword. "I can add you to Yatsufusa's collection."

Akame moved to draw her own blade, but not in time to prevent Kurome from activating her Imperial Arm's special ability.

She raised her katana up towards the sky, moments after several black lightning bolts impacted on the ground. The ground rumbled, like an earthquake was currently taking place.

As everyone who didn't know Yatsufusa's ability wondered what was going on, several figures emerged from underneath the surface. They were being of all shapes and sizes, one of which was entire bone.

"I've became much stronger since last time," Kurome said with a smile. "Now I can make anything into a puppet."

The figure made of bone; a towering dinosaur like beast with an X scar in its chest plate, lowered one of its bony hands to Kurome. The latter hopped on, and the hand raised to the beast's chest.

"Even if it's something like the Ultra-class Danger Beast Destaghoul." Kurome finished as the beast placed it's master on it's left shoulder.

Najenda frowned. 'I took a gamble on Esdeath splitting up her forces, but now I see why.' She grinned her teeth angrily. 'With the power of Yatsufusa, it'll take more than a measly trap to throw her off!'

Her eye darted to Fuyu, whom was holding his ground for the time being. How long would that last was anyone's guess.

'And then there's him to consider.'

"Now then...A battle between Imperial Arms is about to begin." Kurome said as the various members of Night Raid settled into their own battle stances. "I wonder how many are going to die?"

"Who knows?" A unrecognized voice called out. "Let's find out, shall we?!"


Back at the Capital, inside the Palace...

Steven ran down the long hallways of the palace, trying to keep pace behind him was the young Emperor and even further were two members of the Royal Guard dressed in their armor that made them appear more titan then man.

"Come on! Your not gonna catch me at this rate!" Steven called back towards his friend.

"Sl-slow down!" The Emperor yelled back. "You're too fast Steven."

Steven spun around, running backwards. He chuckled. "We it's like my mom's always told me; I run faster than the wind-" The young teen bumped into something, cutting him off.

He looked up into the eyes of the Senator Jast.

"You might be faster than the wind," Jast said with a smile. "But you still have to watch where you're going."

Steven let out a nervous laugh. "Yeah, sorry about that."

"Not at all." Jast looked at the approaching Emperor. "I see you have quite the energetic friend, your majesty."

The young Emperor stopped several feet from the senator, panting. Behind him, the two Royal Guardsmen finally caught up and rested a few steps from the Emperor. Neither of the two showed any signs of fatigue.

"Y-yes well." The Emperor said between breaths. "It is refreshing to have a friend like him." He looked at Steven before continuing. "And quite exhausting at the same time."

Steven smiled, grinning his teeth. "Well at least I'm making sure you don't grow up to look like the Prime Minister."

"Prime Minister Honest is a good man."

"Maybe, but he sure isn't the picture of health."

The Emperor managed a slight chuckle. "Yes well, he insist the opposite."

"Ha!" Steven crossed his arms across the back of his head. "Let's see if he says the same thing after he has a heart attack."

"Hopefully it won't come to that."

"Not at the rate he eats!"

"That reminds me." Jast cut in. "Chairmen Fuyu wished me to pass along a message."

The young Emperor turned his full attention to the senator. If there was one man this boy respected aside from Honest, it was Fuyu.

Jast couldn't help but feel sorry for the young Emperor, to be so naive and taken advantage of.

That would end today, if all goes well.

"He wanted to know if your majesty wished to walk among the commoners and, if so, has made preparations to allow you to do so without being harassed."

The young Emperor's eyes widened. The thought of walking in the city, or even leaving the palace, has never crossed his mind before. Aside from certain special events, the Emperor never left the safety of these walls.

Still, if Chairmen Fuyu was suggesting it...

"What do you think?" Steven asked. "Sounds like a perfect opportunity for an adventure."

"I'm not so sure..." The Emperor replied. "I never considered going outside the palace on a whim before. The Prime Minister never advised me to do so."

"And for good reason." One of the Royal Guards spoke up. "Outside the palace walls, there is the constant threat of the rebels. Even in the Capital, they operate in the city. Night Raid is but one such group, who knows what others operate in the city?"

"You have a point," Jast replied. "But ever since Esdeath and her special police force have take to the streets crime is at an all time low. Even as we speak, they are off chasing Night Raid who I must point out are far away from the Capital at present time."

"That still doesn't mean his highness will be safe." The other Royal Guard said.

"Do you have such little faith in the work General Esdeath has done to keep the Capital safe?"

"General Esdeath is not here."

"No, but the fear of her wrath remains." Jast felt a single drop of sweat run down the base of his neck.

All he had to do was convince the Emperor to travel outside and then his guards will have no choice but to go along with his decision.

He had the Conqueror's Hand but using it on the Emperor would make him no better than the Prime Minister. If nothing else, the Imperial Arms was a last resort. One Jast hoped he didn't have to use, but given the uncertainty of his majesty combined with these two Royal Guards who were very stubborn when it came to their jobs it didn't bode well.

"Listen you-"

"-I agree with Senator Jast." A deep sounding voice said, cutting the guard off mid sentence.

Everyone turned to the source, shocked at who out of everyone in the palace suddenly appeared.

"C-commander Budo!" The Royal Guards said in near unison, snapping to attention before the commander of the Royal Guard.

"Your majesty," Budo continued, glaring imitatively at the young Emperor.

"It is the role of every great leader to hear the voice of the masses. To do so is to know what your subjects are thinking, of what opinions they have of your rule. Knowing this will aid you if you desire to make this Empire a better one for the people you rule."

"I see..." The young Emperor lower his gaze to the floor.

What his loyal bodyguard said made sense but still he was uncertain. If only Prime Minster Honest or Chairmen Fuyu where here to advice him. Then again, Fuyu was the one who suggested this. Even if it was told through another person.

"Besides, isn't this the same as what the hero king Arther the White used to do in that story you once shared with me?" Budo added, referencing one of the many stories Chairmen Fuyu told his highness over the years.

Many of his tall portrayed great heroes and champions of justice who brought prosperity to their lands and joy to their countrymen.

The young Emperor idolized the men in these stories. Even if they were nothing but fiction, the boy wished to become someone as grand and just as those men.

With that, the young Emperor made his decision.

"Very well." The young teen looked at Senator Jast. "I shall take Chairmen Fuyu's offer and venture outside amongst my people."

Senator Jast bowed. "A wise decision, your majesty." He raised his head. "I know of a guide who can lead us out of the palace without anyone noticing us leave."

"Make sure you disguise yourselves well." General Budo added. "While it is true that thanks to the efforts of General Esdeath and her Jagears that many of the criminal minds have been suppressed, there are few who would resist the chance of striking at your highness."

Steven stepped forward at that point, arms wide as he smiled. "I have a number of foreign cloths at my house! We can disguise ourselves using those!"

"Well, I suppose that could be fun." The Emperor replied. "I never dressed in the cloths of a foreigner before."

"Today's just filled with first time things for you, huh your highness?"

Budo turned his gaze to the two Royal Guards. "As a precaution, you two are to accompany them as well. Disguise yourselves in the garbs of simple mercenaries so no one suspects a thing."

"Sir!" The two saluted their commander before storming off to carry out the task.

Steven grab hold of the young Emperor's hand, gently pulling him along as the two headed off to the forward's house.

Senator Jast moved to follow after them.

"I know exactly what you are trying to pull. Showing the young Emperor the true face of the Capital." General Budo said as the latter was right beside him, causing Jast to halt in his tracks.

"I support your brave undertaking and will do everything I can if questions are raised during your time of absence."

Budo turned his eyes towards the latter, staring at him intimidatingly. "However, should anything happen to his majesty..."

"I understand." Jast replied. "I wouldn't be doing this otherwise." He continued on his way, leaving the Commander of the Royal Guard to himself.

As the Clockwork agent went, he smiling at his good fortune. Here in the source of the corruption plaguing the Capital, he found an unexpected ally.


"Who knows?" A unrecognized voice called out. "Let's find out, shall we?!"

Everyone who heard the voice turned towards the direction it seemed to come from.

A top one side of the canyon walls stood a masked man. The mask he had on was an uncolored wooden one that seemed to be designed by some sort of tribesmen or at least was influenced by tribesmen when designing it.

He wore a black cloak on that covered the top of his head, dark green pants, a black sleeveless shirt and black shoes. Attached to each of side of his waist hung a sword; One a katana while the other appeared to have it's hilt crafted from the scales of some animal or Danger Beast.

After a few moments, the hooded figure held his right hand outward.

"Members of Night Raid, and the Revolutionary Army you serve." The figure spoke, notably his voice was different from the first one that spoke.

He held out his left hand, holding at the same length as the first. "Members of the Jagears, who serve this corrupted Empire."

The figure paused before continuing. "We are the sons of the God Nores and we declare war on each, and every one of you."

As he spoke, other hooded figures appeared on the canyon wall. One, two, then a half a dozen, then a handful more.

In perfect synchronization, these new arrival balled their their right hands up before raising them high above their heads.

"Now rise, oh faithful servant of our god!" They shouted in complete unison. "Rise and strike at our enemies!"

The ground rumbled once more, followed by the ungodly screams of some unknown beast.

Seconds past, the ground ceased its rumbling and yet it didn't. The air still quacked, beating with the same intensity as the ground moments before.

The same screech from before echoed along the valley as the rumbling in the air intensified.

No, it wasn't rumbling. It was the beating of wings.

Casting it's shadow upon those within the valley was a beast the likes not one person had seen in over a millennia.

It was mostly bone, similar to how Kurome's Destaghoul appeared, the only flesh on its entire body was that between the bony beast's wings. Its skeleton face glowed an eerie dark purple. Two white purple stars shone in the beast's eyes, these were the closest thing it had to eyeballs.

A dark purple star glowed in the winged beast rib cage, indicating this monstrosity was a living thing unlike the puppet Destaghoul. It had a long spiky tail, and four pairs of claws; two beside it's chest, two below it's stomach or at least where it would be.

"Behold heathens!" The masked hooded man shouted, throwing his right air up to the sky. "The mighty Dracolith!"

The beast roared as the man shouted it's name. It held it's position for the next few moments, wings beating back and forth creating powerful rushes of wind.

Then, at a speed seemingly impossible for it, the Dracolith rush head first towards the Destaghoul.

Kurome's eyes widen for a moment. She turned her head to her puppet. "Fire Destaghoul!" She shouted.

The Danger Beast opened it mouth. A moment later, a blue energy beam launched out of it and towards the Dracolith.

The winged skeleton opens it mouth and roared. A dark purple energy beam shout out of its mouth and rushed to meet the incoming blue beam.

"Everyone move now!" Najenda shouted to her subordinates.

"Do the same if you value your skin!" Drake yelled to the Jagears.

As even one in the valley rush to move away, the two beams collided sending shock waves all throughout the canyon. The two energy attacks contested with one another for a few seconds, each trying to push the other back.

The light from the beams created massive shadows on the canyon walls, they danced wildly as the two attacks contested with each other.

"There's no way..." Kurome said, eyes twitching from her surprise.

She had an Ultra-class Danger Beast under her control, the same class that's used as material for Imperial Arms, and yet this Dracolith matched Destaghoul in terms of firepower!

What exactly is that creature anyway? Sure there are dragon-like Danger Beasts in this country, but nothing that looked like a living skeleton.

At that moment, Kurome caught a glimmer of light in the Dracolith's eerie purple lit eyes.

She heard sharp noises that sound like bones snapping. A moment after, she saw the beast snap off his bottom jaw bone. It's lower jaw swung down, yet despite not having anything holding any more it did not fall to the ground.

The Dracolith let out its threatening roar once more as the purple energy beam shooting out of its mouth doubled in size.

The surge of added power rapidly pushed the Destaghoul's blue energy beam back towards its caster.

Kurome jumped off her puppet moments before its head was blown off along with a good chunk of its upper chest and shoulders. The remains of the Danger Beast fell forward, crashing into the ground.

"Just what is that thing?!" Kurome half yelled as she drifted towards the ground.

A little ways away, Akame was watching her sister carefully. Patiently waiting for a opportunity like the one that presented itself right now.

"Now's my chance!" She said, dashing towards Kurome. She timed her pace so she'd reach the latter's position just before she'll hit the ground.

Akame stopped, sword in hand and looked up at her younger sister. The latter, having noticed her approach moments before, smiled at her. Kurome swung her sword at her sister once she was within striking distance.

Akame moved her hand, blocked the initial blow and pushed Kurome away. The latter landed a few feet from her sister. Akame dashed forward, striking at her sister with a series of quick slashes. Kurome block them all, even managing to launch a few strikes of her own.

The two sisters clashed blow for blow, neither landing a successful blow. Several minutes passed before Akame saw an opening in her sister's defenses.

Without a moment hesitation, Akame struck at the opening knowing that all she needed to do was scratch her sister and this would be over.

Before she could land the fatal blow however, a blond-haired bisento user blocked her sword. Akame recognized the interfering male instantly.

"Natala!" She said, calling the name one of Kurome's closest friends.

The latter didn't reply, but Akame didn't expect one since he's been dead for sometime.

She back away from the puppet. It stared at her for a moment before dashing forward, striking at her with quick and powerful blows.

Akame evaded or dodged each blow, she choice not to counter for the time being as she still had mix feelings on fighting the corpse of someone close to her sister.

"Stop this Kurome!" Akame called out as she evaded another strike. "Put him to rest! Natala's your best friend isn't he?"

"What are you talking about?"

TING!

Kurome dashed forward, clashing her sword with Akame's. She smiled at her older sister. "It's because he's such a close friend that I want him to always stay with me."

Kurome's smile widened. "I want to add you to my collection too big sister. That way, it can be like the old days and we can stay together forever and ever."

Akame grinned her teeth. Her sister's been twisted further than the last time they meet. She knew it would come down to something like this from how their last meeting ended, but still...

"Don't kid around Kurome!"

Kurome tilted her head, giving her sister a sad smile. "That's too bad."

"Akame look out!"

"Kurome get out of there!"

Tatsumi and Wave yelled to their respected companions. The two sisters turned their heads, noticing what their friends were warning them about.

Flying straight at them was the Dracolith, mouth wide open, roaring at its prey.

Natala instinctively move in front of Kurome as his distinct desire to protect her remains even after becoming a corpse, though in this case there was little the man could do to fulfill that desire.

The winged beast closed in, ready to swallow the three whole when a massive fireball collided into the living skeleton.

The force of the blow knocked the Dracolith into the canyon wall, crashing into the hard rock and becoming half buried in the process.

"Well, I think that'll work for a dramatic entrance." Pyro said with a smile after suddenly appearing behind the two sisters. "But damn, never though I'd see something like that today."

Half of Pyro's body morphed into flame as someone took a swing through him. Pyro turned, coming face to face with the masked man.

"Oh? What you're so angry I shot down that pterodactyl you had to come down and strike me from behind?." Pyro smirked. "How spineless of you."

"You have me wrong." The masked man replied. "I was simply confirming a theory."

"That right?"

Before Pyro could add anything more, Akame and Kurome dashed towards the masked man. Together they struck at the masked man. The latter quickly drew his other sword and blocked both strikes.

Akame and Kurome applied more strength into their hands, pressing their swords forward. They couldn't push the man back though, not even an inch.

At that moment, Akame's eyes widen as she recognized the swords this mysterious "Son of Nores" held.

"You recognize these don't you?" The masked man said, noticing the motion. "You're old Shingu from your time in the Elite Seven, along with another used by your strongest member."

With a single thrust, the man pushed Kurome and Akame back several feet. The forward glanced at her sister, noticing the shocked face she had on.

"In my right hand," The masked man held his right hand up. "The katana Shingu which inflicts wounds that never heal: Kiriichimonji."

"In my left hand," He held it up, showing the blade held in his hands "The sword Shingu that increases the user's strength for three minutes: Water Dragon Sword."

The masked man lowered his hands. He tilted his face up, giving his opponents a full view of the mask he wore.

"And upon my face, the mask Teigu that brings one's abilities to their full potential: Balzac." He shifted into a fighting stance, crossing his swords before his face.

"Together, these three grant me the power to seal your fate!"


Elsewhere...

General Esdeath, Seryu and Run had been riding East for sometime now. Surely they would've meet up with Najenda and her group by now and yet there wasn't a soul on these road.

"We should've seen Najenda and her group by now." General Esdeath said. "Something's wrong."

As soon as she finished speaking, hordes upon hordes of rough looking bandits popped out of every where around the three. These men quickly surrounded the three, chucking and smiling widely at them.

"Looks like they were right." One of them said. "Kill them quickly."

The other bandits chuckled even louder, those on the front lines gradually shifted their stances.

"Well, this is quite the predicament." Run calmly stated.

Seryu frowned. "These villainous scum are working for Night Raid aren't they?"

"Most likely." Run replied.

"Run, Seryu." Esdeath called to her subordinates. "Kill most of these weaklings, but leave a few of them alive." She smiled. "I have a few questions I'd like to ask them."


Despite the sudden appearance of these new foes, the Jagears and Night Raid began to engage each other soon after Akame rushed after her sister.

Susanoo faced off against the old Flash Demon. A true contest of speed to be sure.

Najenda squared off against one of Kurome's puppets: A red haired male wielding a whip. From the way she carried on, it looks like that guy was someone she knew.

Tatsumi was fighting against Wave, some ape like Danger Beast and a red skinned or masked man with a black ragged cloak. A destined rematch.

Bulat faced off against the dark blue haired man who for some reason can change his eye color.

Leone faced Bols and some bald headed, nicely dressed man with a tattoo on the side of his head, sunglasses and used riot shield.

Now Walker didn't know the particulars about Kurome's Imperial Arms, but all of them were limited in some way. So far she thrown out six corpse puppets, one of which already laid down in defeat.

He had no idea if that number was the absolute limit of how many puppets she could control at once or how many she had total, but it was a safe bet to say it's close.

If nothing else, he knew the corpses will be useless once the puppet master's taken out.

The only thing stopping him from taking such a step was the fact that Kurome, Akame and that blond puppet were currently fighting that mysterious masked man.

And they were losing.

Somehow, this man not only blocked or evaded every single attack those three sent at him, he kept them on the defensive. The speed of this guy's attacks were unreal. Even Kurome and Drake's surprisingly speedy dodges paled in comparison.

Sometimes the guy moved so fast you could see him in two places at once.

To top it all off, that Pyro guy was just standing still watching it all go down. Sure he took down the Dracolith but if he wanted to save Akame and Kurome from dying he wasn't being very convincing right now.

"That bitch!" Mine's voice came over on his earpiece.

Clearly, she still frustrated by how Kurome easily avoided her shot. That or she was annoyed by how outnumbered her teammates were thanks to Yatsufusa. Most likely the forward though, given the little girl's personality.

"Give me a moment I'll take of this in-"

"Negative. Focus one these new arrivals." Walker cut her off. "I'll take out Kurome."

"Ah but why?!"

"Cause you fired prematurely and messed everything up." He bluntly replied. "Besides, only one of these unknown enemies jumped into the fray. Which means you should have a clear shot to take out at least one of'em."

A few seconds passed before Mine replied. "Roger..."

Walker let out a single amused huff. 'I swear, if anyone in this group gonna make me grow some grey hairs it'll be that piece of work.'

He crouched down, bringing his weapon up to bare.

The merc looked through his scope, keeping Kurome in his sights. He tracked her, doing his best to anyway. Seriously, whatever drugs the Empire gave her were really efficient.

Somewhere along the line, that blond corpse moved into his sights. It turned its head, staring with his lifeless eyes.

Looking directly at him.

"No way..." Walker muttered.

Natala aimed his bisento towards the top of the canyon.

The weapon rapidly extended, creating a bridge between the canyon wall and himself. A new figure appeared out of seemingly nowhere and dashed up the weapon to the top of the canyon.

Walker cursed as he quickly hopped to his feet, turning Lock-On back into its twin pistol from. He raised them and waited for his approaching opponent.

The mercenary's eyes widened as he realized who it was coming after him.

Dashing towards him was a long, blond haired girl with green eyes and looked to be in her mid-twenties, early thirties tops.

She wore a brown single piece with orange outines over top a white long sleeved skin tight shirt and black skin tight pants, brown gloves with matching brown boots, a brown cowboy hair with a orange stripe along the inner rim and a dull red scarf.

The cowgirl held twin magnum pistols in her hands.

She stood before Walker, smiling as she aimed her twin pistols.

"Doya..." Walker whispered. He turned his head slightly, giving off a tisk. "So your still brimming with confidence. Even as a corpse."

Walker raised his head, tightening the grip on his own pistols.

"Alright girl, I wanted to keep this strictly business." He said in a serious tone. "Now, you've gone and made it personal."


A few minutes ago...

Bulat stared at his opponent; a short blue haired man with red eyes and a scar across his chin. He had metal gantlets attached to wires that connected to something behind his back.

There was something about this man that seemed familiar, but he couldn't quite remember.

"So you're still alive huh Bulat?" The man said with a smirk. "Well that's good. Now I can pay you back for helping my brother."

"Brother?" Bulat asked with a smile. "Sorry to disappoint you, but I don't know what you're talking about."

The blue haired man shrugged his shoulders. "I can't blame you there. The war you meet my brother was so long ago, but its the same war that made you such a big shot in the Imperial Army so I know you remember that bit."

"Wait." Bulat frowned. "You're talking about the war with the Southern tribes aren't you?"

The man clapped his hands once. "Bingo! Now here's your prize!"

He extended hand forward. A moment after, a massive bolt of lightning shot out of his metal gauntlet and towards Bulat.

The latter was caught by surprise. He instinctively raised his arms to block. The bolt hit and every fiber of Bulat's being hurt, mainly his arms. Smoke started to emanate off them.

Bulat lowered his hands slowly. He smirked at his opponent. "That was a cheap shot."

"I wanted to see if you haven't lost your edge." The man replied while carelessly shaking his firing hand. "Now that I know, we can have some fun!"

He dashed forward, catching Bulat by some surprise.

"What the-?" He yelled, raising one arm to block his opponent's right hook.

Bulat was stuck on the defensive as the Jagear member continued to pound him in a volley of punches.

Each blow ached through the ex-commando's body. His arms screamed with pain as they have yet to recover from the previous electrical attack.

"Let me tell you a story." The Jagear casually said between punches.

"You see, a looooonnngggg time ago. There was a man, my brother, who joined the Imperial Army. He enlisted in time to participate in the Southern Subjugation Campaign and was sent to the front line along a bunch of other clueless idiots that mostly ended up dead at the end."

"However, my brother was smart. The higher ups noticed his talents and assigned him to the Engineer Division. Specifically the 31st Engineer Corps. Ring any bells yet?"

Bulat vaguely remembered that unit. One night that unit suffered surprise attack and nearly wiped out. He was sent to assist and...

He eyes widened with his realization. The first soldier he saved that night was the spitting image of the man before him.

That soldier had dark blue eyes, this one had red eyes. Twins perhaps?

"You remember don't you?" The man smiled. "That's good. Drake'll be happy."

"Drake's the name of your brother?" Bulat said after finally managing to counter against this Jagear's onslaught.

The man smiled, easily dodging the blow. "I think I'll let you come after me for a bit."

Bulat frowned. His opponent was treating this like a game. Despite that, Bulat decided to play along for now. Unleashing his own volley of punches and kicks at his opponent.

"Continuing where I left off," The blue haired man causally said between dodges. "Thanks to a certain someone, Drake managed to lived to see the end of the war. Now this, is where things get interesting."

The man paused for a moment, allowing himself to smile.

"After the war, my brother's Corps was sent all around the Empire. Helping to keep down the sparks of revolt or so they were told. Truth was, over half of there assigned target areas where the homes of civilians that ended up on Fat Bastard Honest's bad side."

"They were all executed in cruel, explosive ways. Anything from setting off explosives inside a building, causing it to collapse in on itself and crushing everyone inside to placing people inside mine fields and watching them try to work their way out. Heartless prick commander of there's even had'em kill the woman and children with the same methods."

"One fateful day, good'ol Drake finally figured all this out. How they were killing innocent civilians who at most were only guilty of voicing their opinions. So, my brother tired to stop his unit from destroying their next target."

The man let out a chuckle before continuing. "Turns out he'd be too late to do a damn thing. He watched as this isolated village on top this large cliff with only a single bridge connecting to it blow up in smoke from artillery fire."

"Course the bridge got blown to smithereens so no one escaped. I mean, who the hell builds a village in a place like that anyway? All the people that died were idiots for living there in the first place."

Bulat threw a faster than normal punch at the Jagear, one that almost hit the latter. Both men stopped, looking at one another for a few silent moments.

"Touched a nerve?" The Jagear said, breaking the silence.

"Is there a point to this story or are you simply trying to piss me off?"

"Ohhh I'm so scared." The Jagear rolled his eyes. "Please spare me. I mean it's bad enough I work with my soft-hearted brother I don't need to fight someone like that too."

He stared up at the sky. "Then again, it would probably ease my conscious knowing there's one less pussy in the world."

He placed his hand on his chin before continuing. "Ah but I have orders not to kill you Night Raid guys, plus you saved my brother's life so I need to repay you for that."

A vain popped out of Bulat's head. He threw another punch, aimed at his opponents face. The latter caught it with his free hand, he didn't even look in Bulat's direction.

"Oh well. I shouldn't kill you, least not now. That'll upset bro too much and man, he's got enough on his mind." The Jagear sneered. "Maybe even a little action if he plays his cards right, but given how Drake acts with the ladies I might have to step in."

The Jagear glared at Bulat. "Sorry, got off track." He said, letting go of his opponent's hand.

Bulat took a few steps back. This guy wasn't normal, especially given how he talks.

"Let's finish this story shall we?" He smirked, placing his left hand on his waist.

"After realizing he couldn't save those people, after hearing the screams and occasional body parts that flew in the open sky on top of realizing how corrupt this Empire truely was, something broke inside my dear brother."

The man smiled widely, showing his teeth. He moved one hand up to the side of his head, tapping it with one finger several times.

"You see, his brain created a second personality. One to cope with all the mixed emotions he'd been feeling at that point. All that rage, helplessness, and etc, etc. Oh, and if haven't figured it out at this point. That split personality's me."

Bulat frowned. "So that's it." It made sense. Given how this guy acts like he was there telling this story. That's cause he was, and yet he wasn't.

The Jagear smiled. "The name's Rak, pleasure's all yours."


Susanoo swung right with his weapon. His opponent simply jumped over it.

The organic swung once more in the opposite direction, this time Fuyu bent over far enough that the stave passed right over him.

Susanoo struck a third time, bringing his weapon straight down. Fuyu smiled, bringing his sword up and blocking the stave.

"Well this has been fun organic, but I'm afraid our fun has come to an end." He said, nudging behind his opponent. "If you'd take a look, you can see a much bigger threat that requires your attention."

The organic didn't look at first, but after hearing the rumbling sounds Susanoo turned around.

Rising from underneath piles of rock and rubble was the powerful Dracolith. In a few minutes, it would be free and without a doubt cause chaos on the battlefield.

'Not good.' Susanoo thought. He turned around, looking at his smiling opponent.

"What makes you think I can handle such a beast?"

Fuyu stared into the organic's eyes. "An educated guess." He replied as he sheathed his sword.

Susanoo simply stared at him. One could say this was his equivalent of letting out a sigh and shaking his head in disappointment.

The Partas survivor let out a chuckle. "Look, I know for a fact that I cannot do a thing against something like that. I'm not like my sister. I don't have any special powers."

He turned his head, looking at the still Pyro. "The only one I've seen able to effect whatever that thing is would be that man." Fuyu looked back at Susanoo. "That said, I have no idea if he will or not."

"And what makes you think I will?" The organic replied.

"To protect your comrades." Fuyu said with a smile. "Or at the very least your master, right?" He placed a hand on his waist as he held up his other hand.

"I know all you organic type Imperial Arms have a sort of trump card that increases your abilities exponentially. If you use that, I doubt that winged beast would stand much a chance against you."

"So in truth, you just wish to see my trump card." Susanoo replied bluntly.

"Maybe." Fuyu said with a shrug. "Or maybe I'm perceptive enough to understand what you're fully capable of."

Susanoo stared at the man for a few moments. This time one could say it was his equivalent of wondering what this guy was playing at.

Deciding not to waste anymore time, Susanoo quickly dashed off towards his master. Leaving Fuyu alone to do whatever he so pleased.

Exactly what the man wanted.


"Arg!" Tatsumi slid across the rocky terrain, having received another blow from his opponents.

It was a problem fighting Wave alone, but the latter had help in the form of a giant gorilla Danger Beast and a swift red faced cloaked man.

Thanks to his armor, the latter's attacks didn't phase him much so at least there's that but due to his odd movements Tatsumi couldn't land a blow.

The gorilla act like a tank and a shield, dishing out powerful blows while absorbing every blow Tatsumi threw at him. Since it was already a corpse they can't die, so the only way to stop them was to destroy their entire body or at least make it unusable.

That's what the young man believed anyway, but it's proven difficult to even attempt that.

Wave was about as strong as he was, and the man wouldn't let up.

"Prepare yourself Night Raid!" Wave shouted, extending his index forward. "It's time to pay for your crimes against the Empire!"

"Well said Wave." A familiar voice said. "But do you mind if I fight this one for a little? He has caught my interest."

Tatsumi and Wave turned their heads towards the voice.

"Chairmen Fuyu!" Wave said. "That remains me, I never got the chance to ask this but why are you here?"

Fuyu smiled, casually approaching the four of them.

"Oh I heard my sister was out and about trying to crush Night Raid and I though I'd follow to watch. Course, I've been interested in the group for some time and thought I could fight one or two of them."

He stopped in between Wave and his group and Tatsumi. "That said, I already fought one but seeing as this one has a similar Imperial Arms to your own Wave, I though it be worth while to see how I fair against such an opponent."

Wave frowned. 'In other words, this is a test to see how'd you do if I ever fought against you.' He still hadn't decided his answer to Fuyu's question and honestly, probably won't for some time. This sort of thing was rather unnerving, but then again the Chairmen could be telling the truth.

"Alright." Wave crossed his arms. "I could use a break."

Fuyu let out a laugh "Right. Like you worked up a sweat with those two by your side."

"What are you saying? That I couldn't handle his without them?"

"Oh no. That's not what I'm saying at all. It more like what Kurome thinks of you." Fuyu tilted his head back to the teen. "Just look around. All of her puppets are engaging the enemy."

"Not all of them! Some are protecting Bols and even Kurome has a bodyguard!"

"Yes, but that's one each. You have two."

That's when what Fuyu tried to tell Wave finally hit the latter. Kurome didn't believe in his abilities so she set two of her puppets to protect him. She's been underestimating him from the start.

He hung his head down. His teammate had so little faith in him it was pitiful. Wave crouched down, ashamed and wondering what he did to create such a false image.

Fuyu turned his head back around, confident that Wave would be 'occupied' for the next few moments. "Now then, shall we begin?" He said before vanishing.

He reappeared directly in front of Tatsumi. The latter was taken by surprise at how fast Fuyu was.

"Don't hold back Tatsumi." The man said in a whisper. "We need to make this look good."

Tatsumi hesitated for a few moments. 'Right, officially he's a member of the government. If we didn't fight seriously, people might suspect him.'

"Don't mess with me!" He jumped back. "Just because you were once a legend in the Imperial Army doesn't mean a thing to me!" He extended his right arm out, in a flash Incursio's spear manifested in his hand.

Fuyu smiled. 'Looks like he understands.' He thought, drawing his sword and placing it before his face.

"I like that spirit of yours, assassin." The Chairmen moved his sword arm down to his side. "Let's see if you have the skill to match your determination!"

The two held their ground for a few long moments. Each waiting for the right moment.

When it came, the two rushed at one another. They clashed blow for blow, each clash sent sparks of light and fire into the open air.

The show of force snapped Wave back to himself. He stood up, watching the battle with growing interest.

"So tell me, how do you feel about your superiors response?" Fuyu asked. With the constant clashing of their weapons, the latter didn't have to worry too much about Wave overhearing their conversation.

"You mean about how they ordered us to eliminate Clockwork?" Tatsumi replied. He paused a moment before continuing. "It made no sense. Why do they want to kill you guys? We have the same goal, to make this world a better place! I just don't understand."

Fuyu smiled. He pressed forward, forcing Tatsumi to block his next blow. Nearly face to face, Fuyu leaned towards the teen.

"Then why don't you find out?"

Tatsumi blinked several times, not that one could tell underneath his armor. "What do you mean?"

"After all this, or rather your mission, why don't you head down to the Revolutionary HQ and question the reasoning behind these orders?"

Tatsumi's eyes widened. He thought about that before. Usually Najenda would go to the HQ from time to time, so he knew it was possible just that the thought never crossed his mind before now.

"Do you really think they would answer to someone like me?"

Fuyu chuckled. "Tatsumi, you're a member of Night Raid. A special cover operations squad. If that status alone won't grant you an audience then I don't know what will, aside from becoming the commander of Night Raid. Oh, and it's about time you make a move."

"Oh right." Tatsumi pulled his strength into his arms. He pressed forward, pushing Fuyu back. The latter jumped back, smiling.

"Not bad!" The Partas survivor said. "You actually managed to overpower me for a moment there!"

"Just you wait!" The young assassin yelled. "I'm only getting warmed up!"

"Is that right?" Fuyu sneered. "In that case, its only fair I start fighting seriously."

The Chairmen disappeared for sight. Before Tatsumi could blink, Fuyu kicked the latter in the back. Tatsumi fell face first to the floor. Quickly, he flipped over and came face to face with the tip of Fuyu's sword.

Tatsumi looked into Fuyu's eyes as the latter simply smiled at him. "Checkmate." He said, holding his sword in place.

The young assassin gulped. This was a situation that didn't favor either of them. He knew Fuyu won't strike him down, but had the perfect chance to do it now. Tatsumi couldn't make any moves without Wave suspecting anything.

Now they were stuck, unable to do a damn thing.

As the teen's mind raced, trying to figure out how they could get out of this situation, Fuyu withdrew his sword. The latter promptly sheathed his blade, then turned his gaze to Wave.

"Alright, I've had my fun. You can continue Wave."

The latter blinked several times. "Uh are you sure?" He asked. "Cause to me it looked like you had him."

"Oh I did." Fuyu replied casually. "Remember what I said before? I said I wanted to fight a member or two of Night Raid, not kill them."

"Yeah but, their our enemies!" Wave took a step forward. "It's our job to eliminate people like th-"

"Wrong. This is, in no fashion, part of my job." Fuyu cut the young man off. "It is the job of you Jagears to bring criminals to justice. I'm just a politician."

The Chairmen started to walk away from them. "All this is a form of entertainment. Have fun."

Wave and Tatsumi watched as Fuyu grew further and further away.

"I can't believe he did that." Tatsumi was the first to break the silence.

"You know what?" Wave said, dropping his arms. A single tear dropped out of his eye, but no one could see due to his helmet. "I don't care anymore."


Leone smashed her fist into the bald bodyguard's riot shield. The corpse puppet sailed backwards across the ground, but managed to stop himself after a few dozen feet.

Unknown to the Night Raid member, this corpse was once a famous bodyguard known as Woll.

He became a part of Kurome's collection thanks to the unfortunate coincidence that Woll had been protecting one of the many targets the young girl was ordered to strike down. Impressed by his skill, the young assassin revived the bodyguard for her own usage.

Bols aimed his Imperial Arms towards Leone, firing a small, fast fireball. The latter quickly jump out of its path.

She snarled at her opponent. This was proving harder than she thought. The bodyguard proved more of a hassle than she liked. He blocked everyone of her attacks and, since it was already dead, any normally fatal blows didn't phase it in the slightest.

"Ah crap." Leone said. "Never thought I'd have such a hard time fighting a dead man."

"If you don't mind me asking," Bols spoke, lowering his flamethrower. "Why did someone like you join the Revolutionary Army?"

"You really care?" Leone replied with a grin.

"Please. I would like to understand why we're enemies."

Leone raised her eyebrow. She stared at Bols for a few moments. "Your serious..."

She paused for a few moments before smirking at her opponent. "Alright, but don't blame me if this changes you view on the Capital or something."

"Of course." Bols replied with a nod.

"You see, I grew up in the slums of the Capital." Leone started. "Many of my friends become addicted to harmful drugs or died of starvation. I've even seen groups of nobles come down from the royal palace and beat up children for sport."

She placed her hand on her chest. "Seeing how messed up the Capital is, I decided to fight and change it to a place where none of the things I've seen or lived though would ever happen again!"

"I see." Bols tilted his head downward. "So you fight for a noble goal."

He lifted his head up, looking at Leone. "Thank you for answering my question. It's truly a shame we ended up on opposing sides. I would've like to help realize your goal."

Bols shifted his feet, inching them further apart. "Unfortunately, I must burn away that dream along with yourself." He raised Rubicante, aiming it towards his opponent.

"Despite how I feel, this is my job!"

What happened next was something neither Leone nor Bols expected.

A swirl of fire appeared directly in front of the masked Jagear, a hand came out of the flame and grabbed Bols by the throat.

The flame spiral vanished, standing in its place was the Clockwork agent Pyro. He stared at Bols, eyes pulsing with anger. He lifted the latter off the ground.

"Your job huh?!" Pyro shouted. "What a piss poor excuse from a bastard like you!"

Bols moved both his hands to his throat, pulling at Pyro's hand wrapped around his neck.

Woll dashed towards Pyro, aiming to free Bols from the man's iron grip. The latter turned his head, grinning his teeth angry as a vain popped out of his forehead.

"DON'T INTERFERE CORPSE!" He screamed, raising his free hand toward the approaching puppet.

A large mass of fire rushed towards the bodyguard, the latter halted in his tracks, raising his riot shield. That would do little to help however as the corpse puppet was consumed by the flame.

With the interruption taken cared of, Pyro moved his head back towards Bols.

"You must have known this day would come." He said in a claim, angry tone. "The day you would receive atonement for all your sins."

Bols felt a surge of realization. This man before him was a testament to what he knew would eventually happen one day: A reckoning.

The Jagear knew for all the people he burnt alive in the name of the Empire, he had a number of enemies out there. Friends and loved ones of those he killed, others who view his methods as inhuman, that list goes on.

Bols knew it this was inevitable. He would have to answer for his sins, and at one point in his life he would've happy accepted his punishment.

There was one thing that stopped him from that now: His family.

His beautiful wife whom he was married to for six years and their lovely daughter.

They were his reason to live, to fight. He had to return home, for those he loved.

Bols squirmed, desperately trying to break free from Pyro's grip. "I can't...I won't...die here!" Each word was difficult to speak, but it was the only way he could show his determination to survive.

A vain popped out of Pyro's forehead once again. It pulsed widely as the man tighten his grip.

"Are you freaken kidding me?! You think you'd walk away after everything you've done?!" He shouted before slamming Bols into the ground. The latter's Imperial Arm tinging as it bounded up and down.

Pyro leaned forward, almost face to face with the man he absolutely loathed.

"I hate people like you. People who think they have the right to live after committing countless atrocities."

He stood up, releasing Bols from his iron grip. The latter coughed and gagged, massaging his neck as his lungs filled with fresh air.

Pyro waited for Bols to stand before continuing his rant.

"What about the lives of everyone you killed in the name of this corrupt government huh?! Have you ever stopped to think how much they wanted to live?! About how they wanted to make it home to the loved ones they cared about?!"

Bols looked into the man's eyes. There was no doubt in the Jagear's mind. This man before him had lost people he cared about by the incinerator's hands.

"I know. I didn't want to kill many of those people." Bols replied with some effort. "They were my orders, I had no choice but to follow them!"

Pyro shook his head, giving the masked man an angry smile. "Your wrong Bols. Everyone has a choice, but you made yours long ago and now I'm making mine."

"I understand how you feel." Bols said, placing his left hand on his chest. "At one time I would gladly accept my fate, but now-"

"But now you have a reason to live for right?" Pyro cut in with the tilt of his head. "Your family right? That wife and daughter of yours? How old is she now? Five? Six?"

Bols's eyes widened. "How did you-?" He cut himself off, clenching his fists. "Don't you lay a hand on them! They have nothing to do with my past!"

"Aye." Pyro said without emotion. "I agree with you on that." He paused, placing his hands in his pocket.

"My grievances are with you and the politicians that turned this once glorious Empire into the system of evil it is today. I will not lay a hand on your family Bols."

Pyro's face morphed back into a display of the overwhelming anger he had toward Bols.

"As much as I want to put you through the same hell I've been through. To show you the pain of losing everyone you ever cared about vanish in a ball of fire, I will not. Cause if I did, I would be no better than you or the bastards the ordered you."

The Clockwork agent moved his hands out of his pockets. Casually, he began to walk towards Bols. "For that, you can feel grateful murderer."

Bols let out a releif-filled sigh. For some reason he felt this man was speaking the truth. Still, he had to do everything he could to survive and-

Quicker than Bols realized, Pyro dashed forward and grabbed the forward by his masked face. He lifted the struggling man up in the air, grinning his teeth in infuriating anger.

"For my mother, my father, all of my friends, and everyone else you murdered that day!" Pyro shouted. "This is the judgement you deserve Bols!"

Bols pulled at the man's arm, clawing, punching, anything and everything he could to try to set himself free. Despite his best efforts, the Jagear could not loosen the vengeful man's grip.

Bols started to feel a surge of heat come from Pyro's hand.

Knowing that there was nothing he could do, the Jagear's mind filled with memories of his family.

Various images flashed from happy days long since passed; the day of his marriage, the birth of his daughter, along with a number of other joyous events.

A particular memory come to the front of his mind, one of the most important memories of his life:

One bight and sunny afternoon. Bols was playing ball with his daughter in the yard behind their house. The little girl ran back and forth, chasing after the red rubber ball.

After a few minutes of the repeating cycle of throwing or kicking the ball, watching his daughter chase after it, and then running back to hand it over, Bols noticed his wife appear in the doorway to their house.

"Honey." She said in a calm, loving tone. "It's almost time for you to leave."

"Awh." Their daughter said as she ran over, ball in her small hands. "You have to leave already daddy?"

Bols crouched down, chuckling as he gently patted his daughter's head. The latter closed her eyes and laughed joyfully.

"Yes, I'm sorry but daddy's a busy man." He said. "I have an important job that I need to do for the Empire, but I promise that as soon as I come home we'll play some more."

"OK!~" His daughter replied, quickly twirling around. "I'll be waiting daddy!"

Bols stood up, he turned his head to his loving wife. "I'll be back soon."

"Be careful." She replied with a smile.

Hours passed before he would return. That day, Bols and his squad were ordered to burn down an entire village. They were told the villagers came down with an extremely harmful and dangerous pledge that needed to be contained at once.

Truth was that this village was another one of the many protesting against the Capital, their heavy taxation and their unreasonable laws.

This particular village also happened to be the home of a particular someone, but Bols nor any of the incineration squad would ever learn of this truth.

When Bols returned home, the sun had already set. He quietly entered his house, tip towing towards the kitchen.

"I see you're finally home dear." His wife's voice called out to him.

Bols turned towards her, placing his right hand behind his back. "Ahaha, yes. Sorry for coming back so late."

His wife smiled at him. "You can't help it sweetie. You're helping the Empire."

Bols nodded a few times. "Right, sorry. I just feel bad for leaving you two most of the day and-"

"Is Daddy home?" The tired sounding voice of his daughter said.

The young girl came into view a few moments later. She rubbed one of her eyes as she slowly walked into the room. No doubt she was asleep.

Bols turned towards his daughter, he crouched down and extended his arms outward. "Daddy's home sweetheart."

Slowly, Bols's little girl walked towards him. She wrapped her arms around his chest, the latter wrapping his long arms around her.

"Daddy~" She tiredly said. "I missed you."

"Daddy missed you too." Bols replied, holding his daughter close. He rose up, holding his child in his arms. Bols turned to look at his wife, the latter smiled at him.

"Daddy," Their child said, regaining her father's attention. "What do you do at work anyway?"

At that moment, Bols felt his heart sank. His work, he knew his daughter would ask this one day. Bols told his wife about his work shortly after they married, even though it was against his better judgement.

Thankfully, the love of his life still accepted him for who he was and not what he did. She understood the work he did was for the betterment of the Empire, despite the methods they used.

Bols turned his head back to his wife. The lovely woman looked into his eyes and nodded. With a slight sigh, Bols looked back at his child.

"Do you really want to know?"

His daughter nodded.

"Alright..." Bols crouched down, looking at his child eye to eye or at least as close as he could manage. He placed his hands on her little shoulders, took a deep breath and exhaled.

"You see...Your daddy's a member of the Incineration Squad."

The little girl tilted her head in curiosity. "Inciner-ation?"

Bols nodded. "That's right. It's a squad that specializes in burning things...and...people." He looked away from his daughter as he said the last bit. Bols paused, took a quick breath and turned back to his child.

"That's what I do. I burn people alive for a living."

His daughter stared at her father with tired eyes, remaining quiet.

Bols felt his wife place a hand on his shoulder, he reached for it and placed his own hand over it.

"It's alright dear." She said to him before looking at her daughter. "The people your father kills are criminals or people too sick to risk keeping alive. He helps keep our world a safe place."

"So the people you kill are bad guys daddy?"

Bols nodded. "That's right. Some of them anyway."

"And the other people who aren't?"

"They were people that had very, very bad sicknesses that no doctor could cure." Bols calmly answered. "Your daddy had to burn then to make sure no one else would get sick."

"Hmm." The young girl looked at the ground for a few moments. When she looked back into her father's face, she smiled. "Then it's OK, isn't it daddy?"

Bols felt his heart skip a beat. "Y-you really think so?"

"Yeah." She nodded. "If daddy and mommy say you killed people to help keep us safe, then it's OK." She smiled, showing her teeth. "I still love you daddy."

Bols felt tears coming out his eyes. He hugged his daughter, crying. She wrapped her little arms around her father, closing her eyes as she smiled.

Tears flowed from the eye slots of his mask as Bols snapped back to reality. Most of the tears evaporated before they made it half way down his face.

A single thought passed through Bols's mind.

'I'm sorry.'

He felt the blistering heat coming off Pyro's hand sore to even hotter temperatures. Bols could feel his mask slowly burning from the unimaginable heat.

Pyro tightened his grip, crushing Bols's skull between his hands. (Not literally.) Fire began to rush out of his hand, a living example of his burning hatred of the man that took near everything from him.

"DEATH BY INCINERATION!" He screamed as flames rushed from his body, consuming Bols whole.


A little ways away, Tatsumi and Wave were locked hand in hand. They pressed against each other, trying to push the other back.

The ape-like Danger Beast as well as the clocked tribesmen were occupied with other battles, finally giving the young assassin the one-on-one fight he desired.

Wave wasn't worried about his lack of support. In fact he hoped for it. This was his chance to show Kurome what he was capable of!

However, this thought vanished from his mind once he caught something in the corner of his eye. Wave turned his head, his eyes widened at what he saw.

The fireman General Esdeath fought a while ago, the same one that claim to have killed Dr. Stylish, stood in front of someone on his knees and set ablaze. It took the teenager a few moments to figure out who it was.

"Bols..." He said in a mutter.

Wave felt devastated, one of his friends was dying. He couldn't stop it, he was powerless to do so. Hell he didn't even notice his friend needed help in the first place!

But there was something he could still do for his friend.

Wave released his hands from Tatsumi and quickly dashed towards his friend's killer.

"BOLS!" He yelled, roaring a battle cry.

Pyro turned his head back, calmly staring at the infuriated teen. He placed his hands in his pockets, silently waiting for Wave.

Wave grinned his teeth angrily. How the man causally acted, like it was no big deal pissed the Jagear off to a point he never reached before.

"YOU'LL PAY FOR THIS!" He shouted, letting his anger take hold of him. Wave pulled his right fist back preparing to strike.

"I SWEAR YOU'LL PAY!"


And here ends this entry to Akame Ga Kill: Clockwork.

So dark way to end it here. I somewhat cried as a wrote that Bols memory bit. I'm not ashamed to admit that.

Needless to say, there's a lot of differences between this ambush and the one in the anime. Hell, this here's about half the battle.

Lots of interesting bits in this entry as well. So if anyone has a question on a particualr bit or something feel free to ask in a review, I'll happily reply.

Till next time, for the conclusion of this battle.