Chapter 27

Usagi stared hard, trying to see through the smoke and haze. She wanted to believe the monster was dead, but she knew better.

That had been too easy.

The air went silent and a heavy, tense weight fell over them all as they waited to see what might happen.

At first, nothing happened.

The dust settled, the charred, skeletal remains of the monster simply lying a distance away, unmoving.

Usagi had just breathed a sigh of relief, had just begun to congratulate herself on getting through the fight without using the Silver Crystal, when an angry red light bathed them all in an eerie, evil glow.

Yep. Too easy.

And then everything exploded. Again. She was starting to go deaf.

At least, it seemed like everything exploded. Usagi felt someone's arms wrap around her and hold tight, keeping her sheltered and upright. Any debris that made contact with her skin felt like a bullet when it hit. She squealed, and the arms held her tighter.

The silence that came afterward was deafening, her ears ringing so loudly she wasn't sure she'd ever hear anything else again. Usagi coughed, trying to clear her throat, and looked up into the face of Shuu Li-Huang. Of course he had been the one to make sure she was sheltered. Usagi gave him the sweetest smile she could muster in the moment, which, she feared, probably wasn't much.

He smiled back, and opened his mouth, but Usagi saw movement and light over his shoulder.

Without even thinking, she blinked, and the crystal was in her hands.

Her quick reaction was a boon. The crystal's light blossomed around them, bathing them all in its pure, silver energy as it fought against an arch of crimson trying to destroy them all at that very moment. Slow to catch on, Shuu made a noise of surprise in front of her, but Usagi couldn't really spare a glance for him as she focused all her energy on countering this attack. The zombie Senshis began launching their own attacks, but they didn't seem to slow the energy down or even affect it.

A boom of emerald green lighting did though.

Usagi felt her anxiety rachet up as an explosion of flame followed, then similar releases of water and light. But even through her anxiety, the fact that her Senshi were with her comforted her just as it always did.

They could do this. Together. And she was going to bring everyone home.

The red energy dissipated. Usagi felt it fade away beneath the crystal's light, and immediately cut off the flow of power, doing her best to conserve where she could.

There were no witty remarks or irritated grumbles as they waited to see what would happen next. Only dead silence. Footsteps echoed across the landscape, and Shuu was there, his stance battle-ready in front of her, everyone else dropping into position as they faced this next enemy. Usagi simply waited with them. The crystal still hovered, glowing, over her chest and between her outward palms, deceptively serene and lovely as it floated, ready for Usagi to call upon its strength.

"I cannot believe you have made it this far. No powers. No weapons. And yet, here you are. And Izanami will face my wrath for giving you such powerful aid," an angry voice snarled.

The angry voice belonged to a man with pointed ears and wickedly arched eyebrows. He had a pretty face, but…Usagi hadn't really met many boss-level bad guys trying to kill her that were ugly. They became ugly. Eventually. He gave an irritated, arrogant toss of his blood-red hair, and put a hand on his hip as he stopped a distance away.

He resembled the original entity that had put them here far too closely, even if they didn't appear to be the same. As she'd feared, this had always been a plot to wear them down. Now, at least, they would know their enemies' true motivation.

"Suzano-O said that the help of the Senshi was required. He did not specify which Senshi or how many," a Venus hissed in a dry, raspy voice.

The demonic-looking man pursed his lips, clearly disapproving, but merely shrugged.

"It matters not. You are of this land and so your powers won't affect me. I can only be harmed by the living."

Here he turned back to the Senshi and Troopers, and Usagi felt everyone tense up. She watched their new enemy, her brow furrowed, and so didn't miss the greedy look he cast at the Silver Crystal. Usagi didn't blink. If he so much as twitched the wrong way, she'd blast him into the next Universe.

"I was promised Kikoutei if I came here and annihilated you brats."

Brats?! Usagi thought. She was a full-grown adult now. Their enemies had stopped calling them brats at least a decade ago. Jerk. In front of her, Shuu clenched his fists and grit his teeth.

"This was supposed to be an easy job, but here I am, without payment. And all of you still very much alive. But no matter. I will take care of that immediately," he continued. He raised his hand, but before Usagi could even react, There was a flash of orange light and then an explosion that blew her hair back. When the dust cleared, the demon was leveling a look on Minako that made Usagi's blood freeze. It must have affected Seiji too, as Korin angled himself defensively beside her, expression fierce.

To her credit, the blonde simply tossed her own hair in a careless manner, stepping one foot forward and putting her hands on her hips.

"Not today, asshole. I have absolutely no idea what a Kikoutei is but we're sending you home empty-handed", the blonde quipped. Beside her, Seiji tensed, an uneasy look coming across his features before it vanished again.

She didn't have time to give it more thought however. The demon rose to his full height, looking slightly battered – a sign that felt encouraging.

"I admire your enthusiasm. I didn't realize you were so eager to die. Please, allow me to correct the oversight now," he snarled. He opened his palm, facing it up towards Venus, but his attack slammed into a wall of ice that appeared faster than Usagi could blink. On her other side, Ami panted, but only for a moment. The slight, blue-haired Senshi tucked her hair behind one ear, her heavy, assessing gaze on their opponent.

He grunted in irritation, and rolled his eyes.

"Fine. If you're going to insist on teamwork, then you can all die together!" he spat, and that was Usagi's cue.

This time, however, the attack slammed into the light of the crystal so hard Usagi felt it in her bones. The strain was present immediately, but she'd been through worse, so much worse, and even thinking about Chaos gave her the confidence she needed to know she could sweat this battle out all day. She wasn't letting up without everyone whole and safe.

"GANTETSUSAI!" an angry voice roared, and the earth shook, boulders and dirt and ...bones lifting before everything slammed back to the ground and then exploded. The light of the Crystal dissipated, as did her enemy's attack as the entire world seemed to shift on its axis for a moment. Her ears ringing, Usagi clutched the crystal in nervous hands, holding it close as she tried to make sense of what had happened.

When everything settled, she could see Shuu standing in front of her, panting, his weapon clutched in one hand without his armor – just as Touma had done before – but this time, he held it tightly, and it didn't fade. He didn't exactly look solid on his feet, but he looked way angrier than Usagi had ever seen him. He was normally so happy and fun, she'd forgotten he was a warrior too.

The gentle, cheerful guy that'd carried her for miles and tried to make her laugh fixed a murderous look upon where their opponent only now was getting unsteadily to his feet. Shuu thumped his staff against the ground and leaned on it a bit. Usagi could see sweat pouring down his face, but he didn't seem to acknowledge his weakened condition as he snarled.

"I don't care who you are or what you're doing here, but if you come after my friends, I'll end you. You aren't the first guy coming for Kikoutei, and you won't be the last."

The rest of the Troopers nodded, expressions grim.

"You…I was told there would be no weapons. No magic. How dare you!?" the demon spat.

Makoto blinked.

"Are you…pissed off because this is a fair fight?" she asked, trying to clarify. Minako inhaled sharply through her nose, turning an assessing stare on their opponent.

"What, are you terrible at fighting or something? You weren't gonna take us on unless you could cheat?" she added with a careless toss of her hair for theatrical effect. Seiji closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Minakooo…" he muttered under his breath. Minako batted her eyes at Korin, making a big show of innocence.

"What?" she demanded. "I'm just asking. He's really getting mad that we can fight back. What kind of pathetic monster only takes on helpless, unarmed opponents?" She turned back to the demon. "I bet you kill fluffy bunnies for fun, you monster."

"Do you dare insinuate that I am weak?!" the demon snarled, his hair drifting upward as the tension in the air increased.

"I really wish you hadn't done that," Seiji sighed.

Minako shrugged, then winked, flashing him a V. "Sometimes, an angry enemy is a sloppy enemy."

Ami nodded. "Yes. Or at the very least, will show their full hand much faster, so we have a good idea of what we're dealing with," she murmured, low enough for only their group to hear. Rei snorted, tossing her hair.

"So far he only seems to be full of hot air," she grumbled. In a flash, the monster's attention was on her, and the energy released. Rei was prepared – she launched her own attack, neutralizing the blast. Her vibrant purple gaze stayed on the demon, taking in his every move.

"Rei." Mars tipped her head in Ami's direction to acknowledge she'd heard her.

"Try one of your ofudas," Mercury advised quietly. Obediently, Mars snapped one of the papers out, her eyes flashing as she chanted under her breath. With a roar, the demon launched another volley at her, attempting to take her down while she tried to build up power.

"CHOOOOORYUUUUUHAAAA!"

The attack was blown back by a tsunami of water, which then overwhelmed their opponent. It was kinda funny to see him fall on his butt in all the newly made muck. He jumped up, eyes glowing, but Rei was ready then, and she flicked her wrist, the attack going straight and true. It hit the demon's forehead and the creature froze in place.

Rei turned an expectant stare at Ami, who was nodding.

"Mina-chan, Mako-chan," the blue-haired Senshi intoned in a soft voice.

Obediently, emerald lightning and brilliant orange light flared, moving towards their enemy in tandem with Ami's soothing blue and Rei's fiery red attacks. There was another explosion, this one more dramatic than the last, and an angry roar.

There was no preamble this time. The attack came at them out of the haze, but Usagi was ready. She bracketed the crystal in her palms and focused both her gaze and her energy, meeting the attack with her own.

The force of the two attacks meeting cleared the dust from the air, granting greater clarity to what was happening between them. Usagi forced herself to take even, measured breaths. She reminded herself that she might have a long way to go before this enemy was defeated, and she dug for the inner strength to give her the endurance she might need.

With another roar, the demon doubled down on his attack. Feeling strained but determined, Usagi met him blow for blow with the power of the crystal, struggling to drive her attack forward and end this. Multicolor lights began to flare in her peripheral vision, and she smiled as she saw the Senshi's powers racing out to meet the enemy, twining with her own.

Their zombie counterparts seemed to launch their own attacks – effective or not, and Usagi felt grateful to have them there.

Even if they were still seriously creepy.

"CHORYUUHAA!"

"RAIIKOOZANN!"

"SHINKUUHAA!"

"GANTETSUSAI!"

"SOUENZAN!"

The earth shook beneath her feet as their combined powers went blindingly bright, the explosion so massive it blew her off her feet and sent her tumbling head over heels across the open field. She lay where she fell for a moment, trying to get her ears to stop ringing as she blinked up at the sky and waited for the spots to clear from her vision.

She was pretty sure their final battles had never been so explosive, but it was difficult to remember right now with her brain rattling around in her skull. Groaning, she rolled over, trying to get her bearings and maybe sit up.

And yelped when she found herself face to face with a grinning skull. She vaulted upwards like an Olympic gymnast and sprinted in the opposite direction.

"Why is it always skulls and zombies and monsters?!" she wailed, looking behind her to reassure herself that there wasn't an army of skeletons trailing after her. Of course, not watching what was happening in front of her was equally perilous. She collided with what felt like a boulder, hard.

With an oof, she bounced off, flailing her arms to keep her balance.

"Whoa, hey! Easy!" a familiar voice called, two hands gently embracing her shoulders. Tearily, she looked up at Shuu, letting out a relieved gasp and jumping at him, wrapping her arms around his neck and clinging tightly.

"Shuuu!" she wailed "There are skeletons everywhere! What if they come to life too?! I don't wanna get eaten by a skeleton!"

She tried hard not to cry, but exhaustion was setting in quickly now, and she really, really, really was at her limit. She needed to go home. Now. Anxiously, she bit her lip and looked around, waiting for the next attack.

Instead, all the Senshi zombies were gathering around them, forming a ring. She couldn't help but whine in her throat and cling more tightly to Shuu. She cleared her throat nervously.

"Please don't eat us," she whispered under her breath.

Shuu's arms tightened around her gently.

Usagi watched as the Troopers and living Senshi slowly rose, dusting themselves off with a wince or two as they faced the zombies now surrounding them.

"Nobody's eating anybody," Rei growled, sounding angry as hell as she stood, trying to brush off her scarlet hakama. "Unless it's me, biting the head off the next thing that comes near."

The Senshi and Troopers surrounding her took a giant step back.

"The enemy is destroyed. Leave this place in peace. Farewell, or ill, Senshi and Troopers, may we never meet again," the zombies all hissed at the same time. The hair on Usagi's neck rose.

Did they have a school where the undead learned how to do that kind of stuff?!

Wait.

Usagi rewound the tape in her brain and played it back again. They'd said go.

Go.

They'd done it! Just like that? That seemed…too easy. What about this Susano-O person?

Usagi let go of Shuu's neck and turned to him, wanting to see his reaction.

"Shuu! What—"

Her voice trembled and she stopped speaking mid-sentence. There was nothing where he'd been standing almost moments ago. Her arms were still warm.

But Shuu was gone. The Troopers were gone.

The Senshi were standing on the sidewalk in front of the Hikawa shrine.

And they were alone.