And here we are. Sorry it took so long but... well, you know by now, if I take long it's because of shot motivation.
Raze Olympus : Well... given how he worships Nyx... I can see that happening... :PPP
Xaxiel : Turned him into a toilet too, if you know what I mean...
Mina : Glad you liked it and no problem. People power, I usually go with what readers want, reason why I encourage review because it ain't a story if people aren't getting the entertainment that they want.
Lightlyy : That's protagonist armor bro, it happens everywhere but requires build up and foreshadowing so it not complete shit and an asspull. :P Minato getting NDEs is kinda symbolic because he was Death for a long time but also ironic that he uses them to escape and cheat death and yes, if Minato didn't get them, Theo would have killed Hamuko, yikes. Okay, here's a question, if you had a choice to hang out with fallen messiah Minato or bloodlust minato... for one day, who would you pick, taking into accounts their personalities? :P Feel free to ignore it but I think the question is kinda fun. Thank you and hopefully you keep enjoying.
Shipped : Appreciate the kind words. Yes she is, she's come a long way from the cry baby she was in the starting. The pairing is mad popular despite not happening in the game, glad you like it, cheers!
Here we go... the story ends at... chapter... 120, yyyyeah, most likely.
Ryoji's rush towards the teenagers was stopped briefly when Thanatos bolted past Hamuko and crashed into the God of Death, eliciting two bestial roars from the ageless entity and his reflection as they struggled against each other, with Ryoji trying to push forward and Hamuko's persona struggling to keep him away the teenagers.
"He still has those wounds," Sho noted. "His stamina is probably shit too."
"Ugh," Hamuko felt the burn and took a step back as Ryoji easily started overpowering her persona, manhandling the smaller God of Death. "A little help please!"
Akihiko nodded.
Junpei placed his evoker against his temple.
"Persona!"
Hamuko stood still as the two personas breezed past her and crashed into Ryoji with enough force that the God stumbled momentarily as the three entities started pushing him back, only barely but it allowed Hamuko a little breather.
"Summon your persona!" Akihiko yelled at Sho, barely able to keep standing. Ryoji regained his senses and started busting the three personas, shredding through their bodies with his bare hands.
"Nope," Sho spat back.
"What the hell! Summon it now!" Junpei shouted.
"N-Nope!" Sho growled and bolted, brushing past Hamuko at lightning speed and heading straight for Ryoji who was way busy too busy in repelling the three personas that he never saw the redhead rushing at him, two swords held at either side.
Sho picked up speed and squeezed past the three personas, shredding into Ryoji's frame with his three blades with enough force that the coffin clad beast roared out in annoyance and a small amount of pain-
"Thanatos, NOW!" Hamuko shouted and the other two persona users followed her.
Sho pulled back at the last moment after seeing a surge of purple energy, followed by thunder and fire as the three personas exploded into almighty energy and the elements, exploding against Ryoji at point blank, eliciting another ungodly roar from the God as the spells burned through his already damaged body.
Sho skidded backwards and grinned. "That's my Onigiri!" he yelled at the cyclone of spells and the entity that was trapped inside the mess.
"That means rice ball," Hamuko spat. "Now is not the time for stupid puns and jokes!"
"That means demon slayer, you retard!" Sho spat back. "I made that shit up like 2 minutes ago!"
"No, you did not- WATCH OUT!" Hamuko screamed at Sho, holding her sword up for defense.
Sho whipped around and was smacked on the face with a huge fist which sent him soaring through the air, having caught completely off guard. He soared past the other three persona users and Hamuko growled, eyes fixed on Ryoji who was charging at them.
"He's much slower now," Hamuko said. "We can see him but he's still too fast for us, be careful, especially you senpai."
"I'll be fine," Akihiko smirked. "I damn sure can box better than Minato."
Hamuko smirked back. At least he was confident enough to box. "Junpei, keep mixing. Use your sword but throw some fireballs, okay?"
"Got it," Junpei nodded. "Get ready, he's coming-!"
The three nodded to each other and jumped off to avoid the downward slash of the blade. Ryoji rebounded from the missed attempt and roared, discharging a purple beam of energy that Hamuko narrowly dodged but it kept going and ended up exploding against the capped teen who cried out in pain.
"Shit!" Akihiko threw a small bead near Junpei and bolted, meeting up with Hamuko during the run. "What now?"
"Don't stay too far," Hamuko ordered. "Keep punching and throwing those bolts!"
Akihiko nodded and looked ahead, smirking when a certain someone finally got up and growled.
Hamuko and Akihiko got into range and started swinging, fists and blade aimed for wounds which still persisted despite Ryoji transforming. The God of Death was able to brush them off for a few seconds, easily pushing the two backwards as he reached for his blade but when Hamuko jumped up and kicked him in the middle of his stomach, Ryoji froze and hissed in pain.
Akihiko saw the flinch and crashed into his frame, uncorking a long combination on the exact same place, until Ryoji grabbed a hold of his head and lifted him up.
"Time to die!" Ryoji howled, opening his jaw to fire another almighty attack and reduce him to ashes.
Hamuko collided into his body and impaled her sword into his body and a second later, another redhead ran through the stupid coffins on his back and impaled his back with his two blades, freezing Ryoji in place again. He quickly tossed Akihiko far away and roared out loud again, discharging a vortex of purple energy which blasted the two teenagers backwards, giving him enough time for a breather-
"Shred him!"
Ryoji didn't see the persona coming and his body was wrapped up in flames when Junpei's persona detonated against him, smoldering his bruised body which started leaking out small amounts of ichor.
"Fool" Ryoji grabbed a hold of Trismegistus's throat, cracking his head on the ground and forcing him to dissipate into blue mist. Death pushed through the flames and sent dozens of purple beams in all directions in a berserk rage, forcing the persona users to defend.
"Protect Minato!" Mitsuru shouted, crossing her arms.
Fuuka immediately summoned her persona as Juno spawned, the dome forming around Fuuka and Minato who was just behind her. Her persona took some damage and Fuuka winced, trying to keep her concentration.
"Meh, you've been through worse," Minato said. "Look sharp, they need you."
"They need you too, Minato-kun," Fuuka smiled. "Feel free to say anything you like."
Sho got up and looked around, noting that the others were alive and well and Minato was safe in Fuuka's persona. "... That sounds wrong, given that she's a figment of Fuuka-"
"Watch out!" Hamuko's shout snapped him to reality and Sho sidestepped the incoming stab, firing back with more spinning slashes as he moved around, slipping the punches and slashes from the gigantic entity.
Sho moved his head to avoid another fist but the next crashed into his body, making him hack out blood as the force pushed him back.
"Attack now!" Hamuko ordered the other two and they ran for Ryoji again, determined to not give a moment worth of rest-
Ryoji punched the ground at full force and a small quake raced through underground, making the incoming teenagers stumble as they tried to regain footing.
"Shit!" Hamuko cursed as Ryoji glided towards them, the sphere of energy in his jaw exploding the moment he got too close. The godly energy crashed into their bodies and sent Junpei and Akihiko flying but Hamuko held on and skidded backwards, immediately looking up to see the bastard rushing for her again.
"Thanatos!"
The two similar entities scuffled again, roaring and screeching in each other's faces but Ryoji was able to gain the advantage and started tearing the coffins from Thanato's back, easily holding him down-
Sho tore into his back with vengeance, slashing his way through the gigantic entity with his three blades which kept moving at a furious pace. Ryoji felt a bit of discomfort and reached back to grab and crush the insect-
"NOW!" Hamuko shouted and her persona took advantage of the distraction, discharging his own beam of purple energy that crashed into Ryoji's chest, drawing out another high pitched howl from the God who reached out and finally ripped Thanatos' head from his shoulders-
"Persona!"
"To hell with this!" Ryoji scowled, taking the incoming personas with his bare hands. He kept pushing them back and started firing more streaks of purple energy for the persona users but just when the two personas dissipated, the users went back to close range, kicking, punching and hacking his massive frame to push him back.
"You are nowhere near strong!" Ryoji screamed out loud as he smacked Junpei to the side and picked Hamuko up by her throat, looking into her soul. "You go first, you red haired bitch!"
Hamuko scowled back at him, trying to wrestle her way out of his grip. "Go to hell!"
Akihiko came back and started punching his body again until Ryoji released the hold around Hamuko who fell down and summoned Thor in mid-air, the mighty hammer crashed into Ryoji's chest but like before, he reached out and crippled the persona within a few seconds but Hamuko endured the pain and backed off, rubbing her throat.
"You goddamn bitch!"
Ryoji was about ready to attack when he heard the voice, making him stop in his tracks. There was only one person who could do that to him and it sounded like he was speaking from underwater.
"Minato?" Junpei looked around until his sight fell on Juno who was being guarded by the other 3 persona users.
"NOW!" Hamuko yelled at the other three and they started firing, catching Ryoji off guard because he was way too caught up in Minato's voice. The God of Death scowled and hissed, not able to believe that the four mortals were pushing him back but after a short while, he punched Akihiko and Sho away, swept Junpei to the side and pulled his fist back for Hamuko.
The redheaded wild card saw it coming and smirked, twirling on the spot to avoid the punch. She was a little surprised that she managed to dodge that but it made sense. Ryoji had fought a war against Minato and he was still feeling the effects of it.
"Persona!" Hamuko shouted and summoned Thanatos again and this time, the collision visibly startled Ryoji who was swept off his feet briefly before he regained composure and smashed his lookalike into the ground.
"He's all mine!" Sho yelled as he bolted past Hamuko, spinning around for a slash like before but Ryoji responded by pulling his blade out and bringing it down for Sho's head, forcing the scarred male to push his blades up to save his skull.
Sho fell to his knees and cried out as Ryoji easily overpowered him, nearly breaking the bones in his arm until Hamuko speared Sho away. "Distract him!" she yelled at the other two males behind her as the redheads rolled away from the battle.
"Caesar!"
"Here it goes!"
Hamuko came to a stop and looked ahead, finding Akihiko and Junpei battling the God of Death with their personas and barely holding on. She stood up and scowled as Sho got up without a word, ready to head over there and-
"Wait the hell up!" Hamuko forcefully turned him around and yelled in his face. "Summon your goddamn persona!"
"Nah, I can't," Sho shook his head.
"Why not?" Hamuko scowled. "He's too powerful for us like this, summon him now and join us!"
"I forgot how," Sho shot back, leaving her in stunned silence.
"... You forgot how to summon?" Hamuko gritted her teeth, nearly slapping him in the face. "That's the most sorry ass excuse ever. I am ordering you to summon, NOW!"
"You ain't a leader," Sho fired back. "I ain't summoning. If he didn't, then neither I am-"
"Do what you're told, bitch!"
Sho stopped and looked up, knowing that it was Minato talking. Sho then looked ahead and saw Minato glaring at him from inside the dome of Lucia. He was pissed and while Sho pissing him off, he was already in the heat of battle.
"Alright, fine, I just remembered!" Sho exclaimed. "I'm doing it because you said so. Not Hamuko, screw her!"
"Just wait till we get back!"
Hamuko looked back and frowned, not sure what he was talking about.
Sho hissed and crouched down, a tornado of red energy spiraling around his frame for a few seconds until the Lunar God spawned behind him, sending a number of shockwaves which alerted Ryoji who was having an easy time with the two weaklings.
"That's more like it," Hamuko smirked and Thanatos materialized behind her as well.
"He won't be able to hold onto that form for long," Sho mused. "Just slow him to a point that he turns back into being an asshole human."
"You have a way with words, you know that?" Hamuko chuckled. "But after seeing that blood thirsty psychopath of mine, you ain't that special, quit trying."
"We'll see," Sho grinned, knowing that his rival was back and more battles between him and Minato were in the future. "Now, let's go!"
Hamuko and Sho nodded to each other and bolted, their persona rushing back them as they ran back towards the battle.
Junpei saw it coming and pulled back, calling his persona back, much like Akihiko who jumped several feet backwards, just waiting for the perfect moment.
Ryoji was too caught up in the battle and didn't see the two entities behind him until they crashed into him, eliciting another screech which was enough for the other two males.
"This is it!" Akihiko and Junpei braced themselves, knowing the struggle was going to be tiring. Their personas emerged again on the battlefield and crowded Ryoji, making it four on one.
"Ugh," Hamuko hissed. "He's still winning..." she noted as Ryoji started overpowering the nearby Gods, easily throwing them backwards but they kept coming back, only barely shoving him away.
"This is your chance, summon now!" Fuuka shouted into the minds of Ken, Yukari and Mitsuru and they nodded.
Ryoji laughed out loud as the four personas started to fade slowly after barely putting up a fight, "Your puny summoners will follow you to oblivion, very, very soon now-"
"ISIS!"
"Artemisia!"
"Kala-Nemi!"
Ryoji never saw that coming. A little moment was self gloating was enough and in a few seconds, the tables had turned and now it was Ryoji who was being pushed back, struggling to hold himself together as more than half a dozen personas attacked him with weapons and spells, piling the damage on his already broken body-
Thanatos shattered through the coffin cape.
Tsukuyomi cut through his arms.
Isis, Caesar and Kala-Nemi attacked him relentlessly with spells.
Ryoji couldn't battle back in his damaged form and soon enough, he found that control was slipping and the new feeling of exhaustion was pooling into his body, drawing out a tired groan and then a harsh yell of pain as his frame started shuddering, withering away because he couldn't hold his concentration long enough to retain-
"Explode!" the persona users shouted in unison, Mitsuru and Yukari getting in front of Juno to protect the teenagers inside.
"Hold on!" Minato said to Fuuka. "Do not open your eyes, no matter what!"
A gigantic amount of energy detonated as the personas faded into mist and then simultaneously bursted apart into a whirlwind of elemental and almighty energy that consumed Death from head to toe, burning, freezing and electrocuting him for several seconds before it all ended in one giant explosion which sent everyone soaring away from the God of Death.
...
...
Hamuko picked herself up and groaned, massaging her arms to get the feeling back. The explosion was more brutal that she predicted and it almost knocked her out. "G-Guys!" she looked back and saw Akihiko, Junpei and Sho still breathing, looking around to gather their wits.
Ken was seated against the wall, letting out deep breaths.
Mitsuru and Yukari were pressed against Juno. Inside, Fuuka was panting with her eyes wide open and behind her, Minato was cooing over something.
"Most likely me," Hamuko smirked and stood up, squinting her eyes because the attack that managed to whip several layers of dust and smoke, making it hard for her to see.
Ryoji was up, slightly hunched over but he was still standing.
Hamuko smirked. Despite the dust and smoke, she could clearly see that his outline was much smaller than before. The appraiser was back in his human form and she couldn't wait to see and abuse the fresh, new wounds on his body.
"He's back," Sho said, rolling his shoulders.
"Stop copying him!" Hamuko snapped.
"Fuck him and you," Sho snickered. "Ah, finally our efforts paid off."
"He's still strong as hell, I reckon," Akihiko said. "Be careful. Hopefully we don't need to summon our personas now."
"I don't think I can, really," Junpei sighed, swinging his katana around. "Let's do it without personas, I mean, Minato could... so, we can, right guys?"
"Hell yeah," Hamuko cheered. "We can survive this guys, stay close and keep attacking."
"Keep the output to the maximum, even if you aren't throwing with max power," Sho advised.
"Got it, so we'll focus more on volume than power," Akihiko said, putting on brass knuckles before donning on his gloves. "Ah man, if I had my bladefists."
Ryoji stepped forward, scowling and hissing with a number of new wounds on his body and face. "You filthy maggots!" he screamed in utmost fury, momentarily rattling them but they glanced at his wounds and reminded themselves that he was not indestructible.
"Lucky for us, we can stab him all we like and he won't die," Hamuko mused. "Only Minato can kill him so get as wild as you want."
"Alright," Sho placed the third sword into his mouth and readied himself. "Just a couple of minutes left."
"Don't die, keep your guard up at all times," Hamuko ordered.
"Time to me to f-fucking rape your souls, you worthless, scum sucking sons of bitches!" Ryoji lost it and without warning he charged for them, letting out another bestial roar that shook the place but the team was ready for him.
The four brawlers met his charge head on and started hacking and punching as soon as he got close but Ryoji did the same time and responded with strikes of his own and they were way faster and powerful as he managed to rock and wobble all four of them in a few seconds but they kept going, shrugging off the daze and damage.
Ryoji sent Junpei flying backwards in his punch but Akihiko stepped in and hammered his face with a number of jabs and crosses which Ryoji barely felt and he retaliated with strikes of his which Akihiko saw through and moved his head clockwise, avoiding a number of punches until Ryoji front kicked him far away.
Sho got into Ryoji's face and started swinging, grinning at him as he kept firing slash after slash without rest, forcing Ryoji to defend the three swords with his bare hands.
Ryoji caught the two blade in his grip and Sho moved his head, sending the third blade shredding through his already wounded eye, eliciting a sharp scream of pain from Ryoji who released the hold around his swords and came back with his eyes closed, trying to punch a hole into Sho's stomach.
Sho avoided his punch and ripped into his body with a cross slash, digging the blades deep into his flesh but as he expected, Ryoji didn't die like a normal human would and only screamed in pain, headbutting the redheaded male moments later to create some space.
Hamuko took Sho's place and tore into his body with her sword, scowling in his face and Ryoji hissed back at her because they hated each other to the core.
Ryoji shoved her away but Hamuko came right back in his face, slapping him hard once again.
"What did I tell you?" Hamuko spat. "Minato took you to school..."
"Grrr!" Ryoji growled.
"Like a big brother dropping his little bro," Hamuko sneered and then immediately dodged the incoming barrage of punches, getting rocked a couple of times but she shrugged it off and started kicking, timing a body kick every time Ryoji lunged in with a punch.
Ryoji punched her to the ground and pounced on her, nearly choking the life of her throat until Hamuko sent a knee up his stomach, forcing him to disengage. She jumped back forward and kicked his stomach as hard as she could, causing a crack in her own leg but on the other hand, Ryoji gritted his teeth and limped backwards, holding his gut in pain.
Hamuko saw the chance and flooded him with more kicks and slashes, directed towards the new wounds and Ryoji endured her assault for a few seconds until he grabbed a hold of her throat and smashed her into the ground.
"Now you die!" Ryoji said as he held his fist up, only to get tackled away by the other three males who swarmed him with slashes and punches, most of them getting blocked but their combined attack managed to keep him away from Hamuko.
Hamuko got to her knees and breathed out.
"Keep going!"
Minato's shout made her stand up.
"Just a few more, I'll join you soon, don't worry,"
"Hehehe, waiting on ya," Hamuko turned on the spot and looked at the battle unfolding. Ryoji was mostly dodging their attacks and repaying back with twice, maybe thrice the damage but he had trouble keeping up with the insane volume of the three males, not to mention he was a little hesitant to throw at full power because it left his gut exposed for a punch.
Hamuko nodded and joined her friends, finally pushing Ryoji back as the volume of the attacks doubled and a number of them connected on his face and body, making him hack out ichor and blood onto their faces and the ground.
"Disgusting!" Hamuko spat and carved a hole into his stomach when she kneed him with full force, jumping off the ground to generate more force.
Ryoji clenched his fist and started punching back, breaking through Akihiko's guard and sending him flying away. He grabbed a hold of Junpei's face and cracked his head against the pavement, before he kicked the two downed persona users away just in time to avoid Sho's barrage with his three sword style.
Ryoji timed the blade and punched the sword out of his mouth, breaking a few of his teeth. "Fuck!" the redheaded male screamed in pain, gums bleeding because of the force.
"Here!" Hamuko tossed her sword to Sho who caught it between his mouth and ran into Ryoji, digging the blades into his arms and chest.
Sho crouched down slightly and Hamuko jumped up using his back, kicking Ryoji on the side of his head at full force, snapping his head to the side.
"Grrr!" Ryoji grabbed her ankle in mid air and slammed the female against Sho, sending the scarred teen rolling across the ground. "You filthy bitch!" the God of Death hissed and started slamming her against the repeatedly, easily ripping her away when Hamuko tried to claw her way out.
Ryoji held her up and sneered. "That's all, huh? Now that I'm done with you, your filthy boyfriend is next!"
"Pft, yeah right," Hamuko spat and poked him in the eye, making Ryoji lose the grip around her ankle.
Hamuko got on her hands and knees and Sho ran for her. "Let me kick!"
"Aww dammit, fine!" Hamuko stayed in the position, crouching down slightly.
Sho picked up speed and jumped up high using Hamuko's back, slamming his shin into Ryoji's temple because the God was way too distracted with the eye poke from earlier and this time, Sho's kick sent him soaring backwards, making her somersault through the air before he landed face-first.
"I kick harder than you!" Sho exclaimed. "That's how you throw a kick, weakling."
"Pretty sure I kicked the air out of your lungs the last time we fought," Hamuko reminded. "If you want, I can remind you of what went down in our battle."
"You're on, girly!" Sho scowled and then heard another roar. "After we're done with his guy."
"Just a couple of minutes left, we can do this guys," Junpei said in between pants. "Minato did the majority of the work for us."
"I think we're more tired than him," Akihiko panted. "He might not be used to exhaustion but his stamina is much better than ours."
"Don't think that, keep attacking no matter what," Hamuko said and then glanced at Juno. Yukari and Mitsuru were up on their feet, likely ready to fight for the final few minutes. "He'll be joining us soon too..."
Sho rushed past the three upon hearing that and yelled, clashing with Ryoji. "You hear that, bitch? He's coming!"
Ryoji widened his single eye.
"He's coming for that ass of yours, again!" Sho snarled in his face.
Ryoji pulled back slightly and sent Sho crashing to the ground with a straight left. He shook his head and focused his attention on Minato who was defenseless with a kid and a few females to protect him.
"You idiot!" Hamuko shouted at Sho. "You were not supposed to tell him!"
Ryoji bolted for Juno with his fists clenched.
"Whoops," Sho muttered.
"Do not fear," Mitsuru said, pulling out her evoker. "No matter what."
"Yes," Ken said, gripping his spear.
Yukari readied her bow and arrows.
"Senpai, here!" Junpei said, chucking his sword for Mitsuru who caught it in her right hand, getting ready to battle. "Yukari, now!"
Yukari started firing arrow after arrow for the incoming God of Death who tanked and ran through the barrage, shrugging off the puny hits until Yukari aimed better and launched an arrow into his wounded eye, finally making him halt.
"Amada, keep your focus!" Mitsuru gritted her teeth. "Fuuka, keep your concentration no matter what."
"Minato..." Ryoji hissed, remembering what the fool had done to him. "Minato!" he screamed his name and took off running again, pulling the arrow out of his head.
Mitsuru and Ken stepped forward, only to get sent backwards by two punches but Mitsuru brushed it off and blocked his charge with her own frame, crying out as the collision broke her bones but she held on, looking at Yukari for support.
"ISIS!" Yukari immediately summoned when Mitsuru was sent crashing into Juno, saving her from the gigantic gust of wind which struck Ryoji, opening up small scratches and pushing him back momentarily.
"Ken!" Yukari said, clutching the evoker to her temple again.
"I summon you!" Ken cried, shooting himself in the head to summon his persona.
A mixture of Garudyne and Ziodyne gave rise to a towering thunderstorm that spiraled around Ryoji, electrocuting the appraiser who struggled to break free from within as the pain wasn't too great but the little bites were starting to irritate him-
Mitsuru launched her sword into the cyclone and it ended up lodging inside Ryoji's chest, drawing out a roar from within the cyclone.
Ryoji hissed and powered his way out, forcing the attack to dissipate but before he could take one step forward, the other four persona users latched onto him, trying to pull him back as Ryoji tried to reach out for Minato who was staring at him from within Juno.
"Still have another round to go, motherfucker!" Minato yelled into his brain, thanks to Juno. "What do you think I'll do to you now, huh?"
Ryoji froze up and Hamuko reached for the sword inside of his chest. She pushed it down and the blade shredded through his chest towards his stomach but before Ryoji could scream, Sho clasped his mouth shut and the other three grabbed onto his limbs, locking his arms and legs.
"Throw him backwards!" Hamuko yelled and placed every bit of power that she had into her arms, much like the others and with a collective yell and a burst of energy, they picked Ryoji up and tossed him backwards, far, far away from Minato who smirked as the appraiser was sent flying through the air.
"Don't let him get to close," Hamuko ordered.
"Right," Sho picked up the third blade and ran for Ryoji again, the others following behind him.
"We did it," Fuuka smiled through her tears. "We can do this-" she stopped when someone clasped her shoulder and gave it a squeeze. "M-Minato-kun!?"
"You did well," Minato chuckled. "You've grown a lot from the wuss that I knew."
Fuuka giggled slightly. "Thanks to you."
"Are you okay?" Mitsuru said, resting against the dome. She smiled at the blue haired teenager. "Like I expected."
"Just a few minutes more," Minato said, having kept the track of time despite the battle. "Let's give it our all."
"We've lasted almost a whole hour," Yukari exhaled. "Another few minutes is nothing."
"Just a bit more," Minato said. "Let me get my breath a little bit."
...
Ryoji picked himself up and looked down at the wound that stretched from his chest all the way to his stomach. He knew he was not going to die by their hands but ever since Minato taught him the meaning of pain, every new wound made him panic.
He had never taken damage like this. He thought he was going to handle the other and then take care of Minato and despite him out-landing them and damaging them more badly, they never flinched and just picked themselves up for another round.
It made sense, as mortals they had suffered defeat after defeat, unlike him, especially Hamuko who had suffered defeats and beat downs as worse as Minato.
"What are they made of?" Ryoji wondered, standing up. Time was ticking and he couldn't believe they had survived a full hour. He thought that he had enough time to cripple Minato and then maybe rape Hamuko in front of his eyes but all those plans went to shit.
He didn't know how and why but Minato, that blue haired bastard that defied him yet again. Before, it was his blessing that made Minato cheat death but now, without the link, he returned from the dead and proceeded to handle him like no one else ever did, no one else ever came close.
"That blue haired bastard!" Ryoji scowled, glancing at his fist. "3 minutes. 3 minutes. 3 minutes..."
"3 minutes is all I need!" Ryoji roared out loud, stopping the tired persona user in their tracks. "I will rip your souls no matter what. This will the last night of your lives!"
"Fuck you," Hamuko spat.
"You little whore-"
"Fuck you, bitch," Sho countered.
"Keep talking you filthy scum suckers-"
"Fuck you bro," Junpei added.
"Time to die-"
"Fuck you, dude," Akihiko finished.
This time when Ryoji charged for them, Hamuko gave a tired smile and gave one simple order : Survive for a few minutes. She knew the team was at the limit, especially after the repeated summoning.
Ryoji clenched his fist and started punching the four mortals at full force, grinning as they hacked out blood and saliva. He paid special attention to Hamuko but to his surprise, Hamuko simply tanked the hits and kept moving, trying to avoid the hits, not putting up a fight.
Ryoji hammered the four into the ground and started stomping on them, looking to break their faces but they covered up and shielded themselves, trying to lessen the damage.
Hamuko rolled away from his stomps and stood up, only to get punched back to the ground. Ryoji pounced on her and grabbed her throat, slowly squeezing the life out of her throat.
"Gack," Hamuko spat the blood in his face.
Ryoji grinned back at her. "Took a while but you'll be the first to go-"
"Hey!"
Ryoji stopped and Hamuko kicked him in the stomach wound before rolling away to safety but Ryoji was not concerned with her because the voice had rattled him. He looked up slowly and there he was.
"You touched her,"
"I've been waiting for this," Ryoji scowled, putting his fists up again.
"I'm going to break your hands for touching her," Minato spat, finally up on his feet. He was taking deep breaths because the battle had left him exhausted but they just had to survive 2 more minutes. "And next time, I am going to castrate you for even thinking that you could rape her."
Ryoji grinned and tilted his head to the side. "Just 2 minutes, enough for me to kill you and maybe fondle her or something before your dying body."
"Pft!" Minato blew a raspberry. "I told you, keep your childish taunts and tricks to yourself. For the last time, I don't give a fuck what you think or say, you little fucking disease!"
"You're up, huh?" Akihiko chuckled. "Sure took your sweet time."
"Protecting Minato was my highest priority," Mitsuru replied. "After all, he's the glue who kept us together."
"You got that right," Yukari smiled and cleaned the sweat off her brow.
Sho stopped next to Minato and punched him in the shoulder. "Finally got your confidence back, huh?"
"Shut your mouth, he was always confident," Hamuko spat, standing next to them.
"I got a plan," Minato said. "Guys, you'll have to distract him for a little while, we kinda need to charge up for this."
"You got it," Ken said, gripping his spear.
"You three should lead the charge because you're less drained but be careful," Minato said and received a nod before the other teenagers, minus Sho and Hamuko crowded Ryoji, swinging fists and firing spell after spell despite having little to no power left in them.
"Hamuko, switch your persona," Minato ordered and Hamuko did just that. "Sho, hold our hands."
Sho growled but did so, holding onto Hamuko's hand who grabbed onto Minato, forming a circle. "Okay, buff as much as you can, focus on speed the most. 3,2,1, GO!"
Ryoji was easily able to manhandle the exhausted persona users but they kept on coming back and strangely enough, they resorted to weapons and punches instead of summoning but it didn't matter too much as Ryoji was strong enough to easily beat their personas down as well.
But at the same time, Ryoji was getting sloppy and wild with his punches because time was slipping and every second was vital to him. He loaded up on his punches and sent the incoming teens crashing to the ground in pain so he could deal with Minato-
And they got right back up, pushing him away from their leader who was busy standing around in a circle with Sho and Hamuko and all three of them had their eyes close with green aura spiraling around them furiously.
Ryoji growled and punched Ryoji to the ground. He stepped up and kicked their bodies, breaking through their ribs with one shot each and after stomping Junpei, he took off for the three persona users, loading on his fist and looking ready to end it once and for all.
"Okay, now!" Minato opened his eyes when he saw Ryoji coming.
Hamuko and Sho took a step back and Ryoji missed with his lunging punch. He quickly regained his footing but by then, the three had disappeared.
"Keep moving!"
Or rather...
"What the fuck?" Ryoji said.
They were running in circles around him, in one direction and their speed was so insane thanks to the constant buffs that they looked like a blur, a purple blur that kept moving around Ryoji who was barely able to make out the three in the purple ring because of the insane speed.
Ryoji kept glued and watched on, not able to believe a bunch of mortals were moving too fast, even for his eyes.
"What is going on-" Ryoji moved slightly, barely took a step and he was struck on his stomach by something, he didn't know if it was a knee, fist or kick or who had done it, Minato, Sho or Hamuko but the strike was powerful and fast enough that he he was stopped in his tracks.
The next time he tried to move the same thing happened, someone from the blur struck him hard on the face and quickly went back to running circles around him.
Next time, on his shoulder.
Then on his gut.
Face.
Ribs.
Back.
Every time he tried to move, he got hit by the three who kept moving in a circle with the purple blur around Ryoji now visibly darkened for some reason. Even looking at it go round and round gave him a headache but it also made him hesitant to move.
"Time is ticking," Minato whispered.
"Tick..." Hamuko said.
"Tock..." Sho finished.
"Grr!" Ryoji started panicking and rushed ahead to break free from the confines of the circle, only to get pushed by more strikes from the three persona users. "Fuck!" he couldn't even see the punches coming. He was stupid to waste his time on the weaker teenagers.
Another attempt by Ryoji was stopped when the three dug their fists and knees into his body before they went back, taunting and laughing at the God of Death for being stuck with no hope of escaping.
"Time is ticking," Mitsuru noted as she stood up. "We're almost there."
"Yeah," Akihiko said proudly, getting a headache just by looking at the three moving so fast. The circle was more red than blue because of obvious reasons by second by second, it was getting darker and darker, like they were preparing another attack.
Ryoji was getting hit repeatedly by the three as they struck him from unknown angles and went back to running around him and now it didn't matter if he tried to move as the three kept attacking him with repeated punches, knees and kicks, battering him as stumbled and desperately tried to get a reading on their movements.
"Just one minute left!" Sho whispered into his ear as he ripped more hooks into his stomach.
"You're going to lose," Hamuko whispered and pulled back, disappearing into the blur.
"It's over, little boy," Minato said, right next to his ear and Ryoji started shuddering, knowing he had failed.
59.
58.
57.
Ryoji lost it and attempted to transformation once again, roaring out to the skies as his true form simply burst through his human form and the coffin clad beast started emerging from the inside, slowly getting larger and larger-
"NOW!"
Minato's high pitched shout rattled him again and the next second, the circle around him dissipated and the three persona users came charging for him at blinding speed, swords wrapped up in dark magic that he had built up from the past several seconds.
Ryoji was still going through and was caught off guard when he was the most vulnerable, defenseless because he was right in the middle of his transformation.
They had caught him off guard and bested him yet again and within the next few milliseconds, he could barely make out them coming out to end the struggle once and for all.
Sho growled and stabbed his two blades into his chest and stomach.
Hamuko bolted and impaled two swords into his arms.
Ryoji moved to hammer them backwards but someone caught him from behind, wrapping him in a full nelson lock by grabbing onto his arms and neck.
Hamuko jumped back and clutched the evoker to her temple. "Summon now!"
Minato held onto Ryoji tightly, sniggering right next to his ear as Ryoji struggled to break free but the damage had left him greatly weakened, especially the wounds that he received in the blasted circle.
For the last time, SEES used the last bit of their energy and summoned simultaneously and their personas spawned in front of them as Minato kept struggling to hold Ryoji in place who was getting weaker and weaker because he knew that he had failed.
He had lost...
To a bunch of mortals...
To a boy who was once his vessel.
The numerous personas meshed together and exploded forward into the form of a rainbow colored beam that burned through the ground and struck Ryoji and Minato head on, eliciting screams from the two teenagers as the horrifically powerful fusion spell tore into their wounds, shredding through their insides-
Minato widened his eye and reached into the sea of his soul, awakening the power of his newest arcana.
"Orpheus Telos!"
Ryoji widened his eyes upon hearing the name, followed by the shattering of glass.
Hamuko briefly saw the reawakened persona but she had no time to coo over the beautiful persona because the fusion spell exploded and a bright flash of light emerged from the blast, followed by elements crashing to the ground like snow pellets.
Hamuko was blown backwards by the force, much like everyone else. She fixed her stare on the two teenagers who had definitely taken much worse.
Another large explosion rocked the dunegon of Monad, the power seeping through the gates and killing a few shadows on the nearby floors.
The whole tower swayed back and forth due to the force and a number of painful screams came from within the dungeon before everything fell silent...
...
Hamuko opened her eyes and crawled forward, looking ahead with one eye close. Like before, the spells had whipped up a sandstorm which made it difficult for her to see but to her shock and surprise, the outlines of the two became prominent and it looked like both of them were still standing with Minato still holding him in place and Ryoji still trying to break free.
"You can rest now," Fuuka assured with a tired sigh. "Ryoji is done..."
"Thank God!" Sho cried and collapsed down.
"Ugh," Ryoji was feeling sluggish, beat up and exhausted but he kept trying to move and break free, cursing the blue haired bastard behind him who was holding him in the damn hold of his.
"What's the matter?" Minato sneered.
5.
"Are you feeling angry and humiliated?"
"Fuck you!" Ryoji scowled.
4.
"Get used to this humiliation!"
"You filthy son of a bitch!" Ryoji howled back. "You've made the worst mistake of your life!"
3.
"Because at the promised day, it will be a lot more humiliating!" Minato swore.
2.
Minato counted down and released the hold around Ryoji, pushing him forward.
Ryoji immediately whipped around and growled, looking ready to jump-
1.
"When you are forced to worship at the feet of your older brother, right in front of Nyx!"
Ryoji made one last attempt to kill Minato, hand reaching for the blunet's throat-
0.
Minato counted and relaxed his stance, knowing they had won for now.
Ryoji heard a gong and was immediately overtaken a vortex of darkness that surged upwards from the ground and shattered through the roof, reaching into the upper floors.
A number of demonic screeches and growls came from within the vortex but Minato paced around the cyclone, bobbing his head and humming 'burn my dread' just to kill time.
"NYX!" Ryoji shouted to the skies.
"Bring her along the next time," Minato said. "I've got enough of sadistic love for both of you bitches."
Mitsuru stood up and smiled. "We did it..."
"We survived," Hamuko breathed out, still on the ground, too exhausted to get up.
Minato looked up at the vortex one last time and smirked, briefly able to make out Ryoji's demonic face among the darkness. "On the promise day, little boy..." he said and stalked off, flipping Ryoji the birds one last time with his back turned.
"Can't believe this," Yukari nearly sobbed, not able to believe they were still alive. "I thought I was going to die for sure."
"That's Minato, man," Junpei smirked. "He's too special for even Death and shit."
Minato stopped next to Hamuko and hovered over her. "Hey."
"I was waiting for you my darling psychopath," Hamuko murmured and held out her arms, ordering him to pick her up. "Carry me."
"Sure," Minato bent down and slid one arm behind her back and one behind her knees, picking her up like old times. "Like old times." he said, easily able to hold her up despite being exhausted and damaged.
"MINATO ARISATO!"
Minato shrugged and looked back, noting the cyclone was threatening to fade.
"I am coming back for your soul!" Ryoji swore. "I swear on Nyx, I am going to give you a fate even worse than death!"
"Next time bitch, next time," Minato smirked and the vortex finally dissipated and Ryoji finally vanished for the time being but as the cyclone dissipated, something was dropped from high up, something that fell to the ground with a small clink.
Mitsuru moved over and stared at the thing with a bit of caution. Upon closer inspection, it looked like a normal white mask with a deadpan expression, maybe a little bit of smile at the end.
"What is that?" Akihiko asked.
"Looks like a mask," Mitsuru said.
"We'll worry about that later," Minato groaned and soon as he said that, the place stated rumbling because the Dark Hour was just about at the end, just when the bit of dark mist started dissipating.
"GET US OUT OF HERE!" Sho screamed, not wanting to end up in the school.
Fuuka smirked and nodded. "Escape Route..." she managed to say with the last bit of focus and the team teleported away from the tower, leaving a pool of blood, ichor and broken weapons but most importantly, they left the accursed dungeon with their lives which was a miracle because they had fought against the God of Death.
...
Minato stepped outside the tower and chuckled, the blizzard had died down a little but for once, the blizzard wasn't his concern.
Something terrible had happened up in the skies.
"The moon..." Mitsuru whispered.
"... It's falling!?" Ken gasped.
Minato glanced up and narrowed his eyes at the yellow moon which definitely looked like it had fallen off it's axis because it looked out of place, like it was actually falling down...
"What the fuck?" Sho blinked in surprise.
Hamuko rested her head against his shoulder and sighed. "Well, that's what he get from defying the God, I think."
Minato rested Hamuko on her feet and looked over to his friends.
"Well guys," Minato smiled and stretched, drawing out cracks from his rusty body. "She said it perfectly, we've defied fate in a way."
"We fought against Death, of course that's defying fate," Minato said and took a step forward, holding out his hand. "I'll be truthful, Nyx will be horrible, more than Ryoji... Are you in, or are you out?"
Hamuko looked ready to speak but someone interjected before she could speak.
"I'll be honest," Sho said and walked over to Minato. "I hate this sentimental bullshit but the only reason I joined was so I could protect- I-I mean, beat people up and taunt you for being weak."
"Heh," Minato smirked and Hamuko swooned over his slightly twisted smile. "I knew that."
"Now that you're okay, I should leave but eh..." Sho smacked his hand on top of Minato and grinned at his old rival. "An unbeatable enemy sounds too good of a battle, I'm in this, gonna follow you to the end."
"It pains me to say this but after that happened to you," Mitsuru bit her lip. "The Kirijo Group is to blame... And for that, I will follow you to the end, no matter what happens." she did the same and placed her hand at the top.
"Same here," Akihiko smirked and followed. "Like Sho said, an unbeatable enemy is interesting, can't wait to test our new strength against Nyx."
"And you know what?" Junpei laughed and did the same. "With Minato around, Nyx doesn't seem so unbeatable. I'm with you bro, to the very end!"
"Going to support my best friend no matter what," Yukari cheered, putting her hand at the top. "To the end, I promise."
"Me too," Ken stood on his toes and barely reached the teenagers. "Senpai is like a man of miracle, I'm sure we'll be fine."
"Me too," Fuuka smiled. "I won't let Nyx destroy our bonds of friendship. I'll follow you, Minato-kun, no matter where."
Hamuko nodded and placed her hand on the bottom, directly beneath Minato. "I'll follow you to the end and beyond, I promise!" she declared. "With you around, I'm sure we'll beat Nyx, just like we beat Ryoji."
"I appreciate it guys," Minato smiled. "In one month then, we start the operation : Fuck Nyx."
"Minato-" Mitsuru tried to protest-
"I'm the leader here, dammit!" Minato scowled. "In one month, Operation : FUCK NYX. We'll live to the promised day and beyond!" he looked around and got nods from his friends. "Nothing is going to stop our team, on the count of 3, Go SEES!"
3
2
1
"GO SEES!" the teenagers screamed at the top of their hearts and lungs despite the exhaustion on their bodies. They looked at each other and smiled, knowing that their leader had returned and there was just one battle left on the horizon.
Their leader had brought them hope and that was all that they needed.
Just one month.
They were going to survive against Nyx no matter what.
Hamuko jumped on Minato and ordered him to carry her through the storm.
With one last look at the tower which was no doubt the final stop, the weary teenagers took off for their dorm, eager to get rest and get back to training for the promised day. Minato opted to hold the strange mask and he quickly hid it inside the closet just for safety because he had a bad feeling about it.
...
After everyone went to sleep, Minato stayed awake, just waiting for the right moment. When he was sure that everyone was sleeping, the blunet got up and fished his knife out, glancing at the blade which was drenched with that disgusting black liquid, the blood of Ryoji.
"What a week," Minato got up and despite being bone tired, he was able to walk, not minding the pain because the revival had taken care of most of his wounds, even his wounded eye which Makoto had stabbed and Ryoji had punched repeatedly. "I am a man of miracles... as long as they're beside me."
Even now, he could feel the essence of Death flowing through his veins but unlike before, he wasn't disgusted by it. No matter how much he tried to keep his other self in the shadows, it was undeniable that Death itself was a part of him now.
At first, he was heart broken because when Ryoji had attacked them first, he spent hours crying because after all the time he spent with Pharos, it pained him that that brotherly bond that come down to this.
"No more crying," Minato spat. "I'm not wasting my tears on him anymore. He drew the battle lines and he'll pay for it."
Minato opened the window to his room and jumped out, landing easily on his feet. He pulled his hood up and ran through the storm, heading for the mall and the Velvet Room.
The Dark Hour was over and yet the streets were deserted due to the heavy storm and snow. Minato clicked his tongue and quickly made his way into the back alley, kicking the door open because after that had happened, there was one thing he needed to do.
"Welcome!"
The voice greeted him like ususal and Minato opened his eyes.
"What did I tell you, Minato?" Igor smiled proudly. "Miracles. Ressuruction. Bonds. You are a Wild Card, you were born with it, Death had nothing to do with it."
Minato was respectful enough that he bowed his head slightly as a sign of respect. "I should have listened, I'm sorry. You didn't help worth a shit but still, thank you for believing in me."
"Minato-san!" Elizabeth shouted. "I always believed in you too! I also believe that I was the one who helped you worth a shit-"
"Ah yeah," Minato nodded at her and smiled, bowing his head again. "Thank you, without you and Igor's support, I would have failed."
"What are you going to do now?" Igor asked.
"I am going to fight Nyx," Minato clenched his fist. "She might be unbeatable and all but I'm nothing less than a God either."
"That might be true," Igor nodded. "The fusion of the World Arcana and the remaining vestiges of Death... You are no mere mortal anymore."
"I feel fucking awesome," Minato said. "I'll still train till the 30th and no matter what, I'm ensuring the survival of my friends and Hamuko."
"Well done," Igor smiled and clapped. "You are truly a remarkable guest. I thought you would have insulted me like before but it seems the bonds have changed you."
"Nah," Minato smirked. "I can see clearly now and I'll focus my rage and bloodlust on bitches who deserve it."
Elizabeth opened the tome and presented it to Minato. "Would you like to buy free personas? Limited offer!"
Minato smirked and rested his hand on the book, a loud echo resounding in his psyche.
"You are worthy!"
The Gods and demons said in unsion and Minato opened the tome up, looking at Elizabeth with a small smile. "May I?" he asked.
"Of coruse," Elizabeth said and handed the compendium over to Minato who flipped through the pages, spotting a number of different personas until he stopped flipping when his sight fell on the one persona he wanted...
"Thanatos..." Minato muttered and grabbed a hold of the page, startling Elizabeth.
"Minato-kun-" she made a move to stop him but Igor held his hand to stop her.
Minato kept glancing at the page with a blank stare. After all that had happened between him and Ryoji, he couldn't stomach summoning Thanatos again. He was by no means running from his past but that persona was a sign of the bond between him and Ryoji and he wanted nothing to do with that.
There was no bond between them.
There was no bond between him and a monster like Ryoji.
Minato tore the page off and crumbled it, stomping it to nothingness under his boot. After that, he selected a number of powerful personas and handed the compendium back to Elizabeth.
"Can I stay here for a while?" Minato asked.
"As long as you like," Igor replied.
Minato bowed his head and moved to the corner of the room, getting to heal the reamining seplls.
Igor looked at Elizabeth who shrugged. "I believe I don't... give a shit... as he says."
"Do what you want," Igor sighed and Elizabeth happily skipped towards Minato, clasping his shoulders with a giggle.
"I'm sorry for what happened to Theodore," Minato said, having wanted to say that ever since Elizabeth saved his life. "I really am, I'm an only child but I know the pain of losing."
"He's free, Minato-san," Elizabeth smiled softly. "All thanks to you."
Elizabeth started channeling a small number of healing spells into his body to speed up the process.
"Thank you," Minato smiled. "I'll make it up to someday, I promise."
"Can you take me to Shirakawa Boulevard?"
"Sure, why the hell not- Wait, what the fuck!?" Minato stopped healing and his eyes popped out of the sockets. "What the hell did you just say!?"
Elizabeth giggled, a trollish grin spawning on her face. "Just kidding. Just focus on the spells, my dear guest."
"You troll," Minato muttered and went back to healing himself with Elizabeth helping him with magic of her own.
When he was done, Minato thanked Igor and gave Elizabeth a hug for her help before he stepped out and looked up at the moon. Despite the Dark Hour being over, the moon was still looking out of place which was sure to bring horror and dread to the people of earth.
A number of disasters and panic awaited them.
"Eh," Minato clipped his headphones and started walking his way towards the cemetery, after years and years of dodging the grayevard, he finally found enough courage and resolve to visit the graves of his dead parents.
"After so many years, I've done it," Minato cheered to the skies because for the first time since the accident, he felt free, focused and determined without his past haunting him or holding him down.
"I've made it...!"
... I have no idea why it got so long. 10k words. Wanted to stop at 5k but it just kept on going on and on. Hopefully it didn't drag but the end to the battle required struggle and something big. If you are keeping up with dragon ball you can guess the attack Minato, Sho and Hamuko used. I thought it was awesome, really.
An end to the Ryoji arc. Always wanted to write him as an antagonist and don't get me wrong, he's still one of my favorite characters in bloodlust, there has to be a fucked up psycho breathing down necks because while this may not be as brutal as my other fic, the story is still supposed to be suffocating.
I also loved writing Sho, his hilarity is not even out of character because he's just like that, cracking bad jokes and getting a hard on due to battles. :PPP and yes, the moon is falling... no, I'm not kidding. Shit about to go down.
100th chapter coming up, man... can't believe I made it here. No co-authors nearby for now but I promise, you'll see the end, just send the reviews, favs and follow are cool but eh... it's like buying a product and not giving feedback and only reading... well, that's like... window shopping...
See you in the milestone chapter, just send me your thoughts, cheers my psycho friends! Thank you once again for the continued support over the years. Means a lot.