Extremely intense up ahead. You will be entertained.
"Shit!" Minato woke up with a jolt and started yelling on the top of his lungs due to the hellish pain surging all over body. "Stop…" he said through clenched teeth, punching his own body to somewhat shot the pain somehow. "Stop already…"
Minato stumbled forward and crashed to the ground, holding his gut. "Pills…" he crawled forward and smashed the drawer open, rummaging and throwing useless stuff out to find the goddamn pills.
Minato finally found the pills and his vision blackened momentarily. Gasping, he shoved dozens of pills down his throat and collapsed back to the ground, panting and growling.
Eventually, the pain started lessening and his vision returned but Minato still lay motionless on the ground.
"Are you hurt?"
Minato gasped and look over his shoulder to find the blue eyed child swaying back and forth slightly, apparently contemplating something. "I-I'm fine…" the blunet growled, looking away from the child.
"Someone can help you with the pain…" Pharos suggested, looking at the ceiling.
"Screw her," Minato snapped. "I don't need anyone's damn help."
"Yes you do," Pharos replied. "Have you honestly forgotten about the bond you shared?"
"…"
"The bond that made you a better fighter and a better person," Pharos said. "In the last 10 years, have you ever smile-"
"Shut your damn mouth," Minato punched the floor and glared down the child. "Not one more word or this will get ugly."
Pharos' eye twitched. How was a mortal answering back to him like this?
Minato climbed back on his bed and coughed out a little bit of blood on his hand. "Ugh…" he glanced at the crimson liquid and shut his eyes. "I can feel it, death is coming closer…"
Pharos shook his head and disappeared from the room, taking away the deathly vibe with him.
"Screw Hamuko," Minato hissed. "That weakling had no part in my fighting ability. Screw being a better persona…." reaching down, Minato pulled out a bottle from underneath his bed. This was his only solace now. "Gonna drink till I die…"
The blue haired psycho cringed. "Hopefully without too much pain…"
…
Hamuko glanced at her fist blankly. "I was so close…" she murmured, clenching her hand as a scowl formed on her face. "So close to smacking some sense into that fool…"
"Goddammit," the redhead shivered, trying her hardest to bottle up the building rage inside her but this time it wasn't working. He really did it, Minato actually slept with another girl, spitting on pretty much everything they shared.
All the life and deaths battles, all the sad and depressive moments that they got through together and last but not the least, the unbreakable they once shared.
"What happened to you, Minato," the redhead whispered, looking at herself in the mirror. She looked exactly the same. Minato used to shower compliment after compliment on her appearance not too long ago but now….
Hamuko winced as the damn scar opened up and started gushing out blood again. Groaning, Hamuko grabbed another hanky and tried to close the wound up.
This was all that she needed. Strega, Theo and Sho were already more powerful and the team had lost a powerful member and a dear friend. Akihiko's and Ken's personae evolved but Hamuko knew they were still a notch below Strega.
The only one who could handle them was Minato. While he was smaller and shorter than the enemies, he made it up by his aggression, brutality and constant pressure. But now, for some reason, Minato got his ass kicked from pillar to post by Sho.
"Just what we needed," Hamuko hissed, patching the wound up and sitting on the chair to take a deep breath. "All of us are gonna die if this keeps up."
"That cheating little…." a vein popped up on her forehead and the mark on Minato's neck flashed across her eyes, making Hamuko clutch her head. "Cheating on me…"
"Cheating on everything we had…"
Hamuko grabbed the sword that Minato gave her and tossed it out the window with a growl. "Screw this all!" she grabbed a hold of her naginata and took a deep breath. "I can do this alone. Screw Minato!"
Despite that, Hamuko's rage was at an all-time high. She couldn't help but twitch and scowl in rage because the image wasn't going out of her mind. It was jealousy and hatred all mixed up.
"Loved the damn thing inside of me," she took another look at herself in the mirror. "Not the real me… Fine! I don't need that psychotic bastard!"
Hamuko pulled on her bangs again, disgusted at the warm memories that were rushing into her psyche. Before she smiled at them but now, she wanted those out of her head.
"He's going to burn in hell anyway," Hamuko spat. "What the hell has he ever done for me!?"
"Nothing!" Hamuko said. "I kept him company and treated him like a human being. He hasn't done shit for me! Never has and never will!"
"He looks out for himself and he always will!"
"Goddamn demon…" she sat back on the bed and hugged a pillow before sinking her teeth deep into it. The anger was still there.
…
The days kept going on with the usual depression and anxiety hanging around in the dorm. While Akihiko had gotten over Shinjiro's death and matured, the rest of the team was still taking the death hard, especially the juniors.
And then there was this cold war between Minato and Hamuko. The two didn't talk to each other much, it was mostly Minato cursing and throwing insults and Hamuko glaring at him and telling him to shut up.
"Calm down," Junpei gulped, restraining Minato as the females tried to restrain Hamuko. Luckily, it never got physical between them. Usually, Minato was powerful enough to push everyone away and do whatever he wanted but this time; even Junpei alone was able to handle him without difficulty.
"Fool," Hamuko spat and walked out of the dorm.
"Ugh," Minato cringed as the gut pain surfaced once again and the pills were in his room. Minato glared at her retreating figure and limped up the steps to get some pills.
Yukari looked at Minato and then looked back at Hamuko through the window. "Just what on earth happened!?" she had asked Hamuko countless time. Was it a spat? Misunderstanding or did they just fall out of love? But every time she asked, Hamuko either changed the topic or just ignored it.
Mitsuru sighed. "Well, you all should sleep. You do have school tomorrow."
"What about Minato?" Akihiko asked.
Mitsuru pinched the bridge of her nose. Minato was skipping school for the past few week and he lashed out at anyone who urged him to go. Hamuko didn't want anything to do with him so she didn't even try.
"Let him be," Mitsuru bit her lip. "…. What will he do with an education now?"
"Tch," Junpei did the same. "Dammit…"
All of them heard an ungodly scream of pain coming from upstairs, basically confirming Mitsuru's point. The redhead sat back on the couch. "He doesn't have much time left…"
Yukari wondered how on earth Hamuko was going to deal with that. As far as she knew, the redhead didn't know about Minato's health. Yukari had half a mind to tell her and maybe bring the two closer again but she decided against it. It was either going to end up well or Minato was going to lash out at Hamuko again and make it worse.
With a sigh, the brunette said goodnight and trudged back to her room.
…
"Moron," Hamuko took a sip from the can and crushed it in her grip. "Get out of my head, dammit!"
"Hey, Hamuko-san?"
The redhead turned around and cringed. A bunch of fangirls were on the verge of tears.
"Where is Minato-san?"
Hamuko's eye twitched. "He's in hell."
"…" the girls remained silent for a few seconds before they ran off crying much to Hamuko's annoyance.
"Don't come near me again," the redhead yelled at the retreating students. She took a few steps and found a few boys grinning at her.
"Does that mean you're single?" one of them gave a charming smile…. Well, tried to.
Hamuko pursed her lips but after a few seconds she replied. "Yes…"
The males giggled in delight but that was cut short as Hamuko shoved them away and walked past them. "Don't come near me again again…" she warned, glaring them down. There was something about her glare that scared the crap outta the fanboys. It was very similar to the one that Minato gave to them whenever they got near Hamuko.
"Get lost maggots! You all disgust me!" Hamuko spat and the group scurried away.
Rio was watching the entire scene unfold from the other side of the hallway. The raven haired girl sighed. Hamuko was far more aggressive than before. She barely smiled and whenever she did, it was forced.
Hamuko stomped her way back into the club and decided to take her frustrations out in a game of tennis.
…
Theo paced around the room, grinning and twitching with excitement. The clock was ticking; he just needed a small opening. Either Minato or Hamuko were to end up all alone and he was going to strike. Theo was stalking the dorms ever since that day and he liked what was happening there. The two got into spats daily, it didn't get physical much to his disappointment but he still liked it.
Sho was in the room too, lounging on the couch with his blades at either side. Strega had gone out for their daily activities and since both Theo and Sho were independent contractors, they declined Takaya's offer.
Theo started cackling with malice and Sho groaned it annoyance. "Keep it down. I haven't slept in days!"
Theo chuckled darkly and bowed, well, mock bowed. "I apologize."
Sho stared him down and shook his head, he was far too focused on Minato that he ignored the mocking.
Ever since the last battle, Sho couldn't get his mind off Minato. He had gone through the battle over and over in his bed and much to his hate, he reached the same conclusion: Hamuko was possibly Minato's greatest weapon.
"Why are you so tensed?" Theo asked.
"Stuff," Sho replied.
"I can make you feel a little bit better," the platinum blonde male said with an evil smile.
"What is it?"
"Minato is pathetically weak now," Theo said and Sho widened his eyes. How the hell did he know!? "You can finish him easily right now."
"How do you know that?" Sho panicked a little inside. Holy hell, was Takaya gunning to kill Minato after Theo told him. "Is Takaya going to k-k-kill him tonight?"
Theo raised a brow at the stutter but eventually, he shrugged. "I haven't told him. He'll ruin all the fun and I dislike that. My target is Hamuko but if you want to lend a hand in killing Minato, be my guest."
Sho thought for a few seconds. "Why is Minato so weak right now?" he dared asked, despite knowing the answer.
"I have a feeling it has something to do with the spat between him and Hamuko," Theo said, rubbing his chin. Sho growled in return. He was denying the obvious truth again. "Like it or not, the two had something special once but all that is gone now."
"How the heck is girl responsible for his fighting capacity?!" Sho stomped the ground. "Does he tutor him or something? It doesn't make any sense!?"
"Why do you care?" Theo asked. "What matters is that the two fools are weak and now is the best time to strike. I won't forgive both of them."
Sho looked away and bit his lip. "Beating a weakened version of Minato…"
"…" Theo studied him carefully.
"No, there is no thrill in that," Sho said to himself. "What good will it do? The one who beat me is no longer there. I want to battle him…. not the weakling."
Theo snickered and headed out of the apartment. He was ready to stalk the dorm and find out what was going on now.
Sho sat down on the couch. He honestly had half a mind to stop and kill Theo but decided against it. Deep down, somewhere deep down, Sho had a little faith in Minato, the goddamn demon who was one of a kind.
…
The next day, Hamuko woke up with a scowl on her face. The full moon was coming closer and the two were still constantly getting into spats. Hamuko was really starting to hate the blue haired boy but the safety of the team was also heavy on her mind. This was the last full moon and Hamuko wanted a full team.
"Ugh, no," the redhead got up and shook her head. All the spats and arguments easily taking over the warm memories they had in the past. "Screw him!"
Minato woke up with a scowl as well, his vision was dimmed a lot and his body was barely able to function. "I'm going to die today…" he whispered, looking at the ceiling and then at the mirror. His face was ugly as all hell due to the dark circles and wounds. "Come quickly death…"
"Shit…" Minato clutched his heart as his heart stopped beating for a few seconds. "Tonight is the night…" he laid back on his bed and tried his best to sleep his way towards death but he knew it wasn't working.
He had no idea what to do. He pretty much had no one to spend his last moments with. Minato looked around his room and despite being early morning, Minato found it very dark for some reason.
Hamuko decided to skip school as well. She stayed in her room practicing her weapon and trying her best to block the thoughts about Minato raging around in her head.
The team could feel something horrible about to happen and so did the two fools but neither of them paid any attention to it. Minato was content with dying; he literally had nothing left to do in the world anymore. He promised a long time ago that he was going to face death head on because that was his salvation. He disliked suicide because it was weak but death was welcomed, especially right now.
The team arrived back to the dorm early and went to sleep pretty quickly. The only ones awake were Minato and Hamuko.
Minato was busy fighting back the pain. He was barely able to keep his eyes open at this point.
Hamuko was downstairs, watching TV to ease her mind.
"I need a goddamn drink," the two scowled in unison. Hamuko shut off the TV and Minato stepped out of the room and headed for the vending machine on the second floor.
Unluckily, they arrived at the same time and the two greeted each other with a mutual scowl.
Hamuko noticed several dark circles but she didn't give a shit.
"What the hell are you looking at bitch?" Minato spat.
Hamuko looked away from his neck where the hickey was still fucking visible. He was doing that on purpose, she was sure.
"Leave me alone," Hamuko warned, stepping forward to get a can for herself.
"Pft I wish I did before," Minato sneered. "You would have been dead."
"Shut your damn mouth," Hamuko snapped in return, punching the machine and turning to glare him down. "Just shut up for a goddamn moment!"
"Heh," Minato clenched his teeth. "Make me."
"You sick bastard!" Hamuko lashed out at the blue haired fool. "I hate you!"
"I hate you too, bitch," Minato retorted. "Why the hell did I protect you all those times? I should have left you for dead. Fucked my body up for no reason."
"Says the guy who cried at the beach while begging me to accept him," Hamuko sneered in response. The limits were off. "And then you cried after you returned. Cried when I was in the hospital. Cried when I woke up."
"…" Minato growled but Hamuko didn't stop. She walked closer and shook her head.
"You said it yourself Minato," Hamuko said slowly. "Without me, you would have died a long time ago."
"You goddamn bitch!" Minato finally hit the limit and aimed a lunging right for Hamuko that the redhead managed to dodge but it did connect with her cheek.
The scar opened up again. Hamuko touched the wound and stared blankly at the blood.
Minato's gut started to pain. He needed pills. He really wanted to stay here and kick the crap outta Hamuko but he knew he couldn't do it without the pills. Quickly turning around, Minato ran for his room.
Hamuko hit the limit as well. This was the last straw. "This ends tonight…" she knew Minato was stronger than physically but now, she didn't give a crap. Hamuko couldn't handle the pain and rage anymore. Minato insulted her, cheated on her and now, he punched her as well.
The redhead ran for his room.
The door to Minato's room was smashed open and Minato was second away from opening the drawer. Hamuko saw red and ran at Minato who barely turned around and saw a fist flying at his face.
Hamuko cracked Minato right on the side of his head with a right that knocked Minato to the ground instantly. Her punch hurt like hell despite the fact she was a girl.
Hamuko wasn't done with the fight. Without giving Minato a breather, she jumped on him with clenched fists to finally vent out all the pent up frustrations.
Minato was cracked right in the middle of his nose and the wound on his forehead opened up which sent blood rushing down his eyes, making it difficult for him to see.
Hamuko punched him again holding his head against the ground. "I will kill you!" she yelled at him and started unloading with more brutal shots, repeatedly punching Minato's face, pounding it into a bloody pulp.
Minato didn't have the capacity to fight back, his body was completely drained and Hamuko wasn't slowing down at all. She was repeatedly punching and bashing head with her fists and elbows while she mounted him. Minato found it impossible to slither away from the weight on top of him.
Hamuko completely forgot all about the past and kept raining down blows with a look of disgust and hate on her face. "Damn you! Damn you! Damn you!" she screamed, digging her nails into Minato's and started clawing it open.
Minato screamed on the top of his lungs but the redhead ignored it and dig her nails deeper into his skin, opening up several gashes on his face without remorse.
She clawed, ripping and dragged her nails all over his face, further worsening the wounds from before.
"You cheated on me, you piece of shit!" Hamuko yelled at him, ignoring the ghastly condition of Minato's face. "You spat on everything I ever did for you…"
"Ugh…" Minato could only see blood but he knew Hamuko was extremely pissed and wasn't planning on letting go.
Hamuko pulled roughly on his hair and started punching him again. Her knuckles were starting to hurt but she did care as the redhead kept slapping and punching Minato's face into a bloody mess.
"D-Damn you…" a single tear travelled down Hamuko's cheek as she punched him again and stated to pant.
"Why did you…" Hamuko punched him again.
"…" Minato didn't respond, his vision was black again but he could hear her voice and still feel her punches.
Pharos was watching from the side with an expression of shock and utmost fear. Death relished destruction and blood but watching Hamuko beat Minato into a bloody pulp made him shiver. It was gnarly, it was horrific and it was brutal and it sickened DEATH.
Hamuko looked at Minato's face, his eyes were still open and he was barely breathing. Blood was all over his uniform and all over her fists as well.
Hamuko let go of his bangs and slowly backed away while glancing at her bloodied knuckles and clothes. She couldn't believe it. She had nearly killed Minato out of all people by her own free will.
"…" Hamuko blinked, Minato was still lying in a pool of blood like a dead man. He was breathing but he wasn't moving. There were ghastly gashes all over his face and she could literally see his skull from the cut on his skull.
"I did that…" Hamuko shivered and backed away, still glancing at her bloodied fists.
"…" Minato didn't move, the pain was too great to speak or move right now. Hamuko beat the utter shit outta him. Even if he hated her, he never knew things would go this far.
Hamuko wiped away the tears that started cascading down her cheeks. Their relationship was finally over. The bond they fostered in the last several months had ended in the most brutal way possible. There was no repairing the relationship now.
"Minato… Why did you…. Why did this….." Hamuko sobbed and ran out of the room.
Minato heard the dorm door slamming shut. Hamuko had run out of the dorm but he didn't have enough time to think about that.
Hamuko ran out of the dorm, the atmosphere of the dorm was suffocating. She couldn't handle a single second there anymore. Without caring for her weapon and evokers, Hamuko kept running away from the dorm.
Theo smiled and let out a sick cackle. He enjoyed it and now, this was his time to strike and finish it all.
"Hamuko-sama," the redhead froze in her place. That voice. She recognized it all too well. Theo was here and Hamuko wasn't in any shape to battle.
The redhead slowly turned around and saw the former attendant grinning at her.
"Oh no…" Hamuko shook her head. She had no evoker or sword to help her.
Theo stared her down, chuckling at the amount of blood on her uniform. "You look beautiful in red."
"…" Hamuko clenched her jaw.
"Run," Theo snickered. "Tonight is the final night, I assure you."
Hamuko took a step back and shivered. This was the end. She was going to die after beating the crap out of the boy she once loved. This was a nightmare. The whole night was a nightmare.
Theo charged for Hamuko and punched her right on the face, knocking her to the ground.
"Ugh…" Hamuko scampered and ran, hoping to get away from Theo but the male merely released a cruel laugh and ran after her. Tonight was the end.
…
Minato finally moved under Pharos' eye. The blue haired teen shivered and clasped onto the bed and supported himself to stand. "Ugh…" he lurched forward and collapsed onto the bed.
Minato didn't bother reaching for the pills and just laid on his back, slowly wiping away the blood from his face. His body had completely shut down during the assault from Hamuko. "T-That bitch…"
Pharos' skin started to crack apart again, revealing darkness behind. "Brother…"
Minato didn't respond and kept cleaning the blood from his face. Death was so close. So, so close. He could feel it, this was the end.
"She is in danger,"
"Shut the fuck up, you little prick," Minato yelled at him. "That bitch should die in the most horrific way possible."
Pharos growled and his eye colour shifted to an eerie black.
"Get up and save her," Pharos commanded much to Minato's ire.
"Go fuck yourself," Minato yelled at him. "You little piece of shit. Who the hell are you huh!? You little bitch. Quit annoying me or I'll fucking kill you!"
Pharos widened his eyes at the word 'kill.'
"Pity," Pharos hung his head.
Minato lifted his head up slightly and cried out in utmost horror when something horrific jumped on top of him and grabbed a hold of his neck. The bed underneath collapsed and Minato started shivering as the entity above him brought his face closer to the near dead blunet.
"Behold Death mortal!" Pharos gave a blood-curdling scream that made Minato's pale a ghostly white colour. That wasn't Pharos; it was something so demented and horrific that he couldn't put it into words.
Minato sucked a breath in violently and felt the cold embrace of death all over his body followed by a sensation like his soul was forcefully being pulled away from his body.
Minato couldn't help but cry and scream in unbridled horror when Pharos tightened the hold around his neck and looked Minato dead in the eye. He had never felt fear like this. It was out of the world, he wanted to cry for the rest of his life after seeing the true form of Death.
Minato's eyes lost the vision again and his soul finally left the body.
"…" Minato stopped struggling and his hand went limp.
Heyo! That was too intense. I even tried to put a little humor but that didn't work as well. I don't know the laws in Japan but Hamuko should be charged for manslaughter after what she did to Minato. She completely beat the utter shit outta him and now Pharos (you know the actual death) pretty much did this to Minato. Poor guy but he deserves it. :P Hamuko owned his verbally and physically and literally made him her bitch... like she said in the previous chapters.
If this was old me, the fight scene would have been super emotional and the two would have made up and sucked each others faces to end the chapter but I ain't the same guy anymore. Yes, this was hurtful to read but I assure you, you will enjoy what comes next. Suspense, thrill and epicness, that's all I go for now.
So close to finishing the last build up arc of his fic. Just 2-3 chapters left for the arc, so damn close. I can't believe this story will be coming to an end soon, been 3 years but a huge fucking thanks to everyone who supported this from the starting. You guys are awesome! o/
To sherry : thanks for the long ass reviews. I love those. I can't really answer the suggestion because I don't know myself. :P Some time it takes a day or sometimes it takes a week but I assure you, you will get consistent updates till late august/september because holidays! \o/ ... Unless something happens like I break my arm or something. Thanks a lot for the praise, my co-authors aren't present but they love the support too. Pleasure to write for the readers. Cheers and hope you enjoyed this!
To the rest, I'm kinda short of time so thanks a lot like usual. Blood Lust has come this far purely due to support. :P I can't write for the fun of it anymore, if you guys want it, I'll write because I appreciate those who take time to read my crappy stories. :P
God I rambled. As usual, do review because this chapter was kinda special. Tell us what you think.
See ya later. Thanks for reading.