Chapter 28: Asia Branch Assault
The Black Order: Asia Branch
"You damn IDIOT—!" Fou shouts as she punches Allen and he send flying straight to the pillar.
"Wa-Walker-san!" Roufa calls.
"I can't take it anymore! Cut this shit out, Walker!"
"Wait, Fou-san!" Roufa says. "He- It doesn't seem like he's not in a good condition."
"SHUT UP! I don't give a damn! Why aren't you serious when fighting me?!"
"I-I am..." Allen replies.
Fou then punches Allen's head. "I don't feel any killing intent of whatever shit you have! How the hell can this be the best you've got?!" Fou continues. "You're just scared! And the way you keep defending and never attacking is proof! You damn whip! Coward! A little beansprout like you will NEVER be able to activate your Innocence!"
Allen then snaps and Rikei is holding him back while Shifu is holding Fou back.
"Walker's snapped!" Rikei points out.
"What, you little bastard?" Fou questions. "Wanna fight?!"
"Calm down!" Shifu tells them, "This is turning into a petty brawl, not training!"
"I don't get it either...!" Allen exclaims. "I'm not in this place because I want to! I DON'T GET IT! I don't get it at all! Damn it... Damn it...!" He then slumps down. "For how long... do I have to keep staying here...?!"
~Later~
Allen is sitting in the ledge with his head down and sighs heavily.
'I was so stress that I took everything out on Fou... Man, I suck.' Allen thought and face-palms himself. 'What kind of attitude is that against someone who's been doing so much to help me?! Maybe she won't train me anymore, after seeing how angry she got... Should I go and apologize...?' He once again sighs and puts his hand down. '...But no matter how I try... It might be already too late…'
"How… How was I able to activate all this time...?" Allen then looks at his hand.
'I can no longer remember how it even felt having that ugly arm… None of it…' Allen lifts his head against the pillar behind him.
"Hah... It's pitch black."
Then someone taps Allen's shoulder and he turns around to see Roufa with a light under her chin.
"Wa–lker-saan~" Roufa calls, surprising Allen.
"R-Roufa-san?" Allen says. "You surprised me! What's the matter?"
"Well, I heard you say it was dark so I brought a light."
"Oh, er, that's not what I meant..."
"Here you go!" Roufa passes the light to Allen.
"Th-thank you very much."
Roufa then sits next to Allen. "Your arm… You must feel terrible about it after all the effort you put in it, Walker-san."
"Eh? Oh, no… I actually feel pretty stupid that I'm finding this difficult."
"That's not true! You're trying so hard!"
"Even if I give my all... It's all pointless when there are no results."
"Pointless...?" Roufa looks at Allen "What is it you want to do?"
"Eh...?"
"After making friends, meeting the Noah, keeping them from attaining the Heart, many people died, seeing a 'Fallen', and losing your weapon." Roufa lists. "Has that made you want to protect your friends? Do you feel that you must defeat the Noah at all costs? After burdening yourself with the weight of all the lives you could not save, do you constantly feel that you must fight? That's pushing you forward right now... Is your kindness, isn't it?" Roufa brings her legs up to the ledge. "And yet, while that kindness of yours making you feel obligated to fight... It may also be burying the feelings that are more precious to you. We don't fight for the sake for fighting. Nor do we live for the sake of fighting." Roufa gets closer to Allen's face. "It's because we have things that are precious to us. That's why I think people fight!"
"You..." Allen trails off and Roufa smiles.
"WHAT IS THAT!?" Another Roufa shouts causing Allen looks back and sees a second Roufa pointing at them. "I-I-I'm flirting with Walker-san!? I have a doppelganger!"
Allen points at the Roufa who is sitting next to Allen and looks at both of them.
"What wrong, Roufa?" Shifu asks. "Hm?"
"Huh?" Rikei says.
"Che." Roufa clicks her tongue and it turns out she was Fou. "Ah, she messed everything up!"
"F-FOU!?" Allen exclaims in shock with Roufa and Rikei widen their eyes and drop their mouths.
"Oh. I already knew about this. Fou-san can impersonate others." Shifu explains. "She does it a lot to tease the Branch Chief."
"But why did she use Roufa's form...?" Rikei asks.
Fou then stands up. "Don't get the wrong idea, Walker." Fou tells Allen. "I didn't come here to cheer you up or anything! I'm still pissed at you! Don't let this get to your head! Ahh, I sleepy! Being ticked off tires me out!" She jumps off and starts walking on the water. "Look at all the trouble I have to deal with because of that brat!"
As she rambles, Allen smiles.
"Thank you, Fou." Allen says and lifting up the lamp. "For the light."
Fou stops walking "...We'll start again after my nap."
"Okay!"
Suddenly, Fou jolts up and Allen notices.
"Fou-san!" Roufa calls. "Please don't disguise yourself as me again! Are you listening to me?! FOU-SAN!"
"Bak..." Fou calls and repeats before she shouts. "HIDE WALKER NOW, BAK—!"
Then a black portal appears from Fou's chest and Allen stands up.
"FOU!" Allen shouts.
"Heh heh..." Someone laughs. "So you're the 'entrance' to this barrier..."
"How?" Fou says. "It's impossible for a mere Akuma to break through my barrier..."
"It was no big deal." The Akuma says. "I didn't do anything." A Level 3 Akuma appears from the portal. "It was Noah's Ark that let me pass through."
Then Allen's Cursed Eye activates.
Wherever Alice is
Alice is then senses an Akuma and speeds her running to find Allen.
"Allen... Please don't do anything reckless."
Where Allen is
"'White hair', 'strange left eye'. You must be 'Allen Walker'."
"A—H?!" Roufa shouts. "Something came out of Fou-san!"
"It's probably... An Akuma, I think." Shifu says.
"You idiot! It's definitely an Akuma!" Rikei exclaims. "But this Branch has been protected by the barrier for a century! And yet, for it to been penetrated so easily...?! Besides, why does it know that Walker was been hidden here?!"
Allen sees the butterfly on the Akuma's finger and he recognizes it.
'That butterfly...!' Allen thought.
"Wal... ker..." Fou calls. "R... run... This thing's here to kill you. In your current state, there's no way you can win... you must run..."
"I can't—!" Allen yells.
"I won't let him do that." It says and shoots a thread at Allen as it goes through his chest, making the boy to fall off the ledge.
"Wal..." Rikei trails off. "Walker!"
"Walker-san!" Roufa calls.
"Walker, hold on!" Rikei says and sees the thread running through him. "There's something running through him...! This... a thread...?!"
"My Dark Matter allows me to destroy any object." It explains. "That thread will break down any matter into molecules, to absorb them, thus erasing its very existence. And now boy, you shall be erased completely!"
Then Allen starts screaming out of pain from the thread.
"WALKER?!" Fou shouts.
"Master Noah ordered me to bring you to him if you are alive." It tells them. "But he never told me that I must bring you back alive... So I'll take your molecules back with me..."
Allen's body starts to fade away slowly.
"Aah... Walker! He's fading away...!" Rikei points out. "Shit... This thread! I can't cut it! What can I..."
"No..." Roufa cries. "Walker-san, don't go—!"
Then an arrow shoots at the thread cuts it, subsequently, Allen stops fading. The Akuma and the three scientists look up to see who fired the arrow and they see Alice shot it with an activated Silver (bow form) in her hand.
"Who..." Roufa says. "Are you?"
"Take Allen away from here!" Alice exclaims. "Hurry!"
"An Exorcist. Then I'll have you disappear!" It says and aims at Alice before it shoots the thread at her.
"'Guardian Deity, I summon thee'!" Bak says. "'With my blood, I grant you my permission'!"
The symbols on the pillars start to shine and the lights from the symbols hit the Akuma. The three scientists and Alice look at Bak with his hand carved out.
"Chi-" Shifu says.
"Chi–ef!" Rikei finishes.
"Fou, do it now!" Bak yells.
Fou cuts the thread that was coming towards Alice.
"Sure took your time, Baka-Bak!" Fou says.
"Hurry and bring him over here! That means you too, Lakefield!" Bak orders. "With this level attack, I can only stop the Akuma's movements for a few seconds!"
When they reach to the stairs, they see several scientists are evacuating and they continue to run.
"This is really bad!" Rikei exclaims. "What do we do, Chief Bak? Besides Walker is really transparent!"
"He must have been broken down to a great extent. Damn it!" Bak curses. "Handle him very carefully so that he doesn't receive any sort of shock to his system. The entire structure of Walker's body is being held very shakily right now. Even with the smallest impact, he might... break down to an atomic level!"
Rikei becomes extremely nervous since he is carrying Allen.
"Be really careful!" Roufa tells him.
"Walker's life is in your hands, Rikei!" Shifu adds.
"Bak-sama!" Wong calls.
Bak sees Wong running towards them.
"Wong!" Bak calls.
"All section leaders from the northern district have evacuated."
"Okay, good!" Bak says. "What about the other thing?"
"All preparations are in order."
"Fou, Fou please! We're counting on you!"
"I know, Bak..." Fou replies.
When they reach to a passage that connects to the northern district of the Asia Branch, Bak passes Fou to Wong.
"Ch-Chief! What are you planning to do!?" Rikei asks.
"I'm going to block this passage and isolate the Akuma in the northern district!" Bak says.
"Eh?"
"We of the Chan Family, the descendants of my great-grandfather, are capable of controlling the power of the Guardian Deity of this Branch."
'I summon thee!' Bak thought.
The rocks start to grow and begin to attaching each other.
"The rocks are growing!?" Rikei exclaims.
"Fou!"
"All right..." Fou says and walks over to Allen who is opening his eyes and touches his head. "Walker, hang in there. You're gutsier than you look, so I know you'll be fine."
Fou then changes into Allen and Allen fully opens his eyes.
"I'm sure you'll be able to activate your Innocence. Keep doing your best."
"Fou...?!" Allen speaks. "What... are you...!?"
Fou then jumps backwards before the rocks become a wall.
"Since I'm a Guardian Deity and not an Exorcist, I probably won't be able to defeat it." Fou says. "But I'll buy more time for you somehow. So you'd better get outta here!"
"Stop, Fou!" Allen calls. "Bak-san, please stop her! I'll go! I'll go, so Fou, please!"
Then the wall closes up after Fou goes through.
"DO—N'T!"
The wall fully forms and Allen gets off Rikei's back.
"Fou..."
The other side of the wall
Fou turns her hands into scythes and stands in front of the Akuma.
"Oh? So you came back." It says. "I was looking forward to chasing you down. How boring, Allen Walker!"
"Bye-bye..." Fou whispers. "Bak..."
In the passage way
Allen slams Bak on the wall.
"Stop it, Walker." Bak says.
"Please open it, Bak-san!" Allen pleads. "Please open this!"
"I can't." Bak refuses.
"Walker, calm down!" Rikei says.
"Allen!" Alice calls.
"Are you just going to let Fou die?!" Allen exclaims.
"You... and the other Exorcists..." Bak says. "Are only hope. When even one Exorcist dies... Do you know how much of an effect that'll have on this war? There's nothing we can do about Fou."
"No way..." Roufa says.
"If you care about her at all, Walker..." Bak continues. "Endure what's happened now... and keep moving forward."
Allen stays silent after hearing Bak's words. "...Stop pretending to be so calm about this." He tells him. "You're actually feeling sick to your stomach right now, aren't you? You've broken out into hives and you're crying."
"Ah, no, this..."
"I understand your feelings completely, Bak-san." Allen let go of Bak and touches the wall. "I'll open this myself."
All of them are surprised at Allen's words.
"If you won't open it for me, then I'll will and continue moving forward!" Allen declares. "If I can open this by myself, you'll have no problem, right?!"
"'Problem'...?" Bak repeats. "Of course I'll have a big problem, you idiot! Wong, Rikei, hold him down!"
Both Wong and Rikei jumps on Allen to stop him.
"Excuse us, Walker-kun!"
"A—GH! Why , Bak-san?!" Allen asks. "You really want to save Fou don't you, Bak-san?! As proof even your hives are sprouting up everywhere!"
"Forget about my hives!" Bak yells. "Because you were attacked my Dark Matter, your body is being broken down into molecules! You think you can fight like that?! I can just punch you here and now, and your body might crumble to bits! What kind of an idiot would let you go in that condition?! Listen to your orders, Exorcist!"
In Allen's mind something snaps and he narrows his eyes.
"Are you sure about this, Bak-san?" Allen asks. "I'll tell Komui-san that you've been stalking Lenalee." Allen whispers.
Then an imaginative arrow goes through Bak's head and Bak steps backwards. Also Alice face-palms at Allen's maturity and sighs.
"Wha...!"
Allen then looks back. "I pretty sure you won't get off easily. I can't guarantee that you'll live."
"Wa-Wa-Wa-Walker?! Are you trying to blackmailing me?!"
Allen looks at Bak again. "There's no use in trying. I will not withdraw! When we first met, you asked me if I still intended to return to the battlefield. I replied with a 'yes'!"
"That's because I wanted to confirm if you were still willing to fight as an Exorcist!" Bak says. "With your Innocence not even restored yet. In your current state, you're just a human!"
"You're wrong!" Allen shouts. "You're wrong... I... When I met that Akuma... Earlier... The blood that I thought was frozen within me pulsed excitedly through my entire body. The heart that I thought had stopped beating within me... I could feel it throbbing faster and faster. The feeling of my blood growing warmer as it traveled within me felt pleasant..."
"Walker? What are you saying...?"
"That's when I realized it. Before when you said that my entire body is figuratively like an Anti-Akuma Weapon... you may have actually been right. The thing that my heart was helplessly longing for all this time... was an Akuma!" Tears falls from his right eye and tears of blood falls on his left eye as his Cursed Eye activates. "I'm not a human anymore. I am an Exorcist. Please, let me return to the battlefield." The claw of Allen's Innocence appears behind them. "To the Akuma."
Rikei and Wong look behind them and the claw slams above them, causing a bright light.
"UWAAH!" They shout.
"KYA—H! WONG! RIKEI!" Roufa calls out.
When the light dies down, Allen disappears.
"I'm okay!" Rikei assures.
"Huh? Where is Walker-kun...?"
Behind Bak Allen is standing in front of the wall and he turns around.
"I'm going." Allen says. Thank you, Bak-san."
"...Wal..." Bak trails off.
"Wait!" Alice shouts out.
Bak, Wong and the three scientists looks at Alice who is walking towards the wall.
"I'm going with you, Allen." Alice tells them. "Without me, you can't do anything on your own."
"Would you stop saying that, Alice." Allen calls without turning around. "The situation right now isn't the same thing like back then."
"All right, all right." Alice says and she reaches to the wall.
Bak closes his eyes and clenches his hand.
"Guardian Deity."
The wall opens up and Allen and Alice go through.
"His very existence is an Anti-Akuma Weapon..." Bak says. "At only the age of 15, he's become by the Akuma..." Bak then remembers the words when he met Allen. "That was not what I meant by it, Walker." A tear falls on his face. "I'm sorry."
The other side of the wall
Fou is floating on the water with both of her arms and leg missing and the Akuma is standing above her.
"What a waste of time." It says. "What does master Noah want with this trash? He made me use the Ark for this. Allen Walker... What are you?"
"I'm just a brat..."
The Akuma aims at Fou at close range.
"Oh really. Then be destroyed."
The Akuma fires the thread on Fou's head and she screams. Above the Akuma, Allen and Alice fall on its back and the Akuma looks behind him. Allen's hand starts is sparking and the Akuma whips his arms at the two, but both of them evades it and they quickly step on pieces of rubble from the damage of Fou fighting the Akuma.
"Walker..." Fou calls.
The Akuma grabs his shoulder where Allen touched and it looks at Allen and Alice.
"What are you two?" It questions.
"Exorcists." Both Allen and Alice answer.
