To Protect Those He Loves

by Gaim no Kaze

He was an orphan, he knew nothing of his origins, but he found a family, he found something to fight for. Destiny played against him, but he would fight for them no matter what, even if it costs him his life. Kirito harem...no flaming please. (Kind of AU, and carries Fate elements). Current arc - War Arc

59. Chapter 59

Hey, so here it is. The 59th chapter. Thank you very much for your reviews, NinjaFang1331, Guest-Questioner, and Autismguy593. Your reviews are the things that tell me that my story is appreciated, even though I can see the number of viewers in the stats page, I thank you for that.

To everyone else, I'm asking you all to please try to review a chapter if you can. I don't need, nor do I want, long ass reviews. Just a simple sentence, or if you feel that I could have done better, tell me what it is.

Or if you have any suggestions that I could add in to this story, please do so. All I have is a brief outline of what will happen. I don't have the specific details of what the next chapter will be.

I always start writing the next chapter a day or two after I post the latest chapter. That's because I'm always thinking, maybe, or if there's something I did wrong in the previous chapter, and probably someone will point that out. Or if the readers have suggestions, I can try my best to add it in.

So that's why I keep asking for reviews. Its a form of feedback, to tell the writers how well, or how bad, they are doing, and how they can make the story better for the readers.

On another note, my finals for this semester are coming around, so I probably won't have time to work on the next chapter as much as I would like to.

So the next update will probably be around the end of next month.

Hey guys, I forgot to put in the summary for those who skipped the Oberon arc, if you did, so here it is.

So basically, a while after the Aincrad arc, Kirito and the girls were given a mission to guard Nobuyuki Sugou, who was the son of Nobuyuki Ryoutaro, the owner of one of the companies that supported Konoha financially.

They succeeded in the mission, but were annoyed by Sugou's attempts in flirting with Asuna and Hikari, so to speak. And when Sugou met his father, Ryoutaro lashed out at his son for Sugou's behaviour, disowning him, as Sugou is known to be a playboy and his father found out about his very very bad attitude.

Sugou somehow stumbled upon the ruins of Aincrad and got half of Aincrad's remaining powers, while Kirito and Yui received the other half. Sugou got his mind affected by the powers of Aincrad, and after he killed Ryoutaro, the effects worsened until he only remembered that he was known as the fairy king, Oberon.

So Oberon built a fortress with the ruins of Aincrad and created an army of knights. He sent them to look for Asuna and Hikari, causing a series of kidnapping cases of blonde and brown haired girls.

This prompted Tsunade to send Kirito and the girls, along with the members of Team Gai, to check on it. This lead to Asuna and Hikari being captured.

After fights, with Kirito almost killing Oberon, the king used his powers to reset the world, sending the members of Team Gai on a supposedly non-existent mission, and wiping everyone's memories of Hikari, Asuna, Suguha and Sinon, except for Kirito.

Fastforward, Kirito found that Itachi, Nagato, Konan and Yugao, who were on a mission to look for the Gedo Mazo, were fine, as Nagato and Itachi managed to resist the effects..

The five of them rest in Uzu no Kuni, with Itachi sending a message to Bee in hopes that they were fine, which they were.

So the five Konoha ninja went to fight Oberon again, almost losing until Bee and Ay came. Then Kirito managed to breach the throne room, and found that the girls were brainwashed.

Kirito fought the girls, and got his swords broken, and before Oberon could kill him, Kirito received help from Yui and the hologram of Kayaba, unlocking the abilities of the power he received from Aincrad, which allowed him to kill Oberon. But after Oberon died, he managed to trigger portal that made Kirito vanish, leaving the broken shards of his swords and Yui in the throne room.

So that's all for the summary. This chapter will pick up on where I finished the summary.

So without further ado, let's head on to the chapter.

XXXXxxx

In the throne room, the five girls were silent, as they realized what had happened.

Then, at that moment, Ay, Killer Bee, Itachi, Nagato, Konan and Yugao entered the throne room.

Yugao quickly went to her students, "Girls!"

Asuna looked up at her teacher, "Yugao-sensei..."

The other four just stayed silent, not responding. Nagato felt something was off before he noticed Kirito's absence, "Where's Kirito?"

The five girls didn't answer. But that was all the answer they needed. Kirito was gone.

Itachi closed his eyes, "I see. He's gone."

The girls just sat/stood there, not having the will to even respond or move.

Ay and Killer Bee just stayed silent. While not close with the swordsman or the other three girls, they knew how important Kirito was to Hikari. And given how Yui was his adopted daughter, it'd be no surprise if she was in shock too.

Then, the whole place started to tremble, as rubble started to fall fron the ceiling.

Yui's eyes widened as she sensed what was happening, which managed to snap her out of her stupor, "Yggdrasil is collapsing! We need to go, now!"

The elder ninjas' eyes all widened in realization and Itachi, Ay and Killer Bee quickly went to secure the door. Yugao pulled Asuna and Suguha up, "Come on, we need to move."

But the other girls didn't respond. Nagato tch'd and pulled Hikari and Sinon up, "We don't have time, sulk later, we have to move! Don't waste the lives Kirito saved!"

That did the trick, as the four girls nodded slowly, following the elder Jounin out of the place.

Soon, the whole place collapsed, leaving nothing but rubble in its place.

(linebreak)

A short moment later, on one of Nagato's summons, Itachi glanced back at where the girls were sitting, "Are they still in shock?"

Konan nodded, "I guess the fact that they lost Kirito was a huge blow to them. They keep blaming themselves."

Ay frowned, "I see."

The Raikage had seen his fair share of people losing their loved ones, so it was normal, but they needed to move on.

Nagato nodded, before he asked, "So, Raikage-sama. I'm sure we're done, as in the seals should be undone. What will you do now?"

Ay nodded, "Right now, I'll follow you back to Konoha. If the situation there is stable, then I'll return to my village."

Itachi nodded, "Thank you, Raikage-sama."

The Raikage hmph'd, smirking slightly, "Well, I also want to make sure that brat is fine."

Nagato chuckled, "I see..."

They then continued to fly back to Konoha.

Soon, the group reached Konoha. As Nagato's summon landed, they were greeted by Izumo and Kotetsu.

Itachi walked to them, "Sign us in, quick."

The two Chunnin nodded, doing a quick headcount before Kotetsu asked, "Kirito?"

Itachi shook his head silently, and the two men got the hint, the atmosphere turning grim.

Soon, after the signing them in, Izumo nodded, "That's all. You should go report to Hokage-sama."

The Uchiha nodded as they quickly left for the Hokage's tower, with Konan and Yugao nudging Hikari, Asuna, Suguha and Sinon before they moved.

In a short moment, after a quick Shunshin, the group arrived at Tsunade's office, which the Hokage quickly let them in.

Tsunade nodded to them, "You're back."

The woman then noticed the absence of one swordsman, "Where's Kirito?"

Immediately, the office became silent, and Tsunade understood what had happened, "I see... Your report then."

Nagato nodded and quickly gave his report.

After hearing what the Jounin had said, the Hokage sighed, "I see..."

The Senju glanced at her goddaughter and Hikari's sisters, along with Yui, "Girls... I'm very sorry..."

The four girls just nodded silently, Hikari hugging the fragments of the Elucidator and the Dark Repulsor tightly.

The Hokage sighed, "Take the next two weeks off, okay?"

The girls just nodded, not responding. Tsunade then looked at Nagato, Konan and Yugao, "Nagato, Konan, Yugao, can you three send them back home?"

The three Jounin nodded and led the four girls back to their compound. Itachi also excused himself, heading back to his compound to look for his brother.

After they left, Tsunade sighed and rubbed her temples. Then, she heard Jiraiya's voice, "So... Kirito is gone?"

Tsunade sighed, "Yes. And its partially our fault."

The toad sage nodded, "I won't deny that. But remember, we weren't ourselves at the time."

The Hokage leaned back into her chair, "Yeah, but it doesn't make it better."

Jiraiya nodded, "How were the girls?"

Tsunade huffed, "How do you think? They blame themselves, a lot. Its not that different than how I felt when Dan died."

The sage nodded, "I see. I'll be going then, the Gedo Mazo is still missing, right?"

Tsunade huffed, "If you eavesdrop on a report like that again, I'll kick your ass all the way to Kumogakure."

Jiraiya chuckled, "I'll take note of that."

With that said, the man left the office with a Shunshin, leaving Tsunade alone as she brought out a bottle of sake.

Meanwhile, with the others, as they walked back to the Namikaze compound, Yui frowned slightly, thinking back on what had happened.

The portal, or at least, what it looked to be, had a lot of power. Power enough to eradicate the entire area. Yet, when it exploded, the throne room was intact, along with Kirito's broken blades, yet the man was nowhere to be found.

It was possible that the attack was aimed just at Kirito, but even then, there should have been some collateral damage.

That confused the little girl a lot. Soon, they reached the compound, and Yui decided it was better if she kept quiet for the time being, seeing as her mothers were all still in shock.

The girl prayed as she entered her home, 'Papa, if you're alive, please be safe.'

(linebreak)

Everything was dark, but he could feel the wind beating on his face. It was as if he was falling, and for a very long time.

The man was half conscious, barely aware of what was happening, but he knew it was bad.

Then, his body shrunk, gradually, as he fell, until his body was that of an infant.

Then everything turned black.

"Kirito/-kun!"

Several voices called his name. And the faces of four girls, a blonde girl with her hair in twin tails, a chestnut haired girl with long hair, a short black haired girl, and a girl with short brown hair, all came into his mind. But their faces faded just as quickly as they came.

(linebreak)

His eyes snapped open, and the faces of a blonde boy and a blonde girl, two of the people he treasured the most, came into view.

Kirito sat up groggily as the girl pouted, "Kirito! You're slacking off again!"

The black haired boy chuckled sheepishly, "Sorry, I just couldn't help it."

The blonde boy sighed, "It's fine... Let's get started."

Kirito just grinned shamelessly as he got up and followed the boy towards a very huge tree, an axe resting beside it.

The blonde boy was Eugeo, like Kirito, he was an orphan. Both boys were taken in by the church of the village of Rulid, and they had been given the task of chopping down one tree, the Gigas Cedar.

The two boys didn't mind, of course. According to the sisters of the church, the two had been found on the streets when they were mere infants. This was just a way of paying them back.

Plus, they were just 10 years old, so it beat having nothing to do. It also gave them a chance to play out of the adults' sights.

The girl's name was Alice Zuberg. She was the village chief's eldest daughter, with a younger sister named Selka Zuberg. She was also one of the girls in their village studying sacred arts.

Once, by chance, the two boys met Alice when she was walking around in the village, and she had been attached to them ever since.

Normally, her father, the village chief, would never allow something like this, especially not with her always visiting the two boys during her breaks fron studying the sacred arts.

But the man knew that the girl would eventually have to be married off to some noble, when the time came, and he wasn't cruel. So Gasupht allowed the girl to play with her friends, if only to build happy memories.

Now, the three children were standing in front of a giant tree, the Gigas Cedar. Everyone in the world had a calling, so to speak. It was their job, and their duty.

Sometimes, if a person completed their calling, if it could be completed, they could choose the next calling of their own choice.

And right now, Kirito and Eugeo's callings were both one and the same. Chop down the Gigas Cedar.

Kirito gripped the axe, then, with a strong swing, he slammed the axe right into a small gap in the tree trunk. But that was it, nothing else happened.

The tree was known to be a divine object, and people have been trying to chop it down for decades, and they had died without completing their task, for whatever reason.

As Kirito continued to slam the axe onto the tree, with a surprisingly good grip for someone his age, Eugeo and Alice were sitting by a side, waiting for Kirito to finish his 50 chops before Eugeo got his turn.

As Kirito hacked at the tree, Eugeo asked, "Hey Alice, how is your studies going?"

The blonde puffed her cheeks and glared at her friend, poking his side as she spoke, "Eugeo! I'm here on a break!"

The brunette laughed as he shrunk away, "Sorry! I was just curious!"

Alice sighed, "It's going fine, according to my teachers."

Eugeo grinned, "Then that's good."

The blonde nodded before she asked, glancing at the Gigas Cedar, "So, what do you plan on doing? Are the two of you really gonna be trying to chop this tree down for your entire life?"

Eugeo didn't answer, instead, it was Kirito as he finished his 50th chop, "Of course not! We're gonna take this stupid tree down before we reach 20!"

Alice smiled at the black haired boy's answer and nodded. Kirito then heaved the axe up and placed it before Eugeo, "Your turn bro."

Eugeo was about to stand up when Alice spoke up, holding up a small basket, "Before that, let's have lunch, the food will go bad if we leave it any further."

Kirito and Eugeo glanced at each other before they grinned in unison, "Yeah!"

Soon, after a short moment as Alice brought out the food, the three children were happily munching on the sandwiches the blonde girl brought.

Kirito grinned as he took a bite out of the sandwich, "This is really good, Alice. You got better."

Eugeo nodded as he swallowed the bread, "You'd make a good wife someday."

The girl's cheek immediately turned red slightly, although the boys were oblivious to it, as she looked away, "Well, I've been practicing for quite some time now. Sadly, they are only good for a few hours before their Life runs out."

Eugeo nodded as he drew an 'S' and 'C' shaped hybrid symbol with his fingers before tapping on the sandwich, and a small panel appeared before him, showing the status of the sandwich, where its Life had decreased immensely and only had a few hours left.

Kirito took another bite off his sandwich before he said, "Hey, I heard that if you place food in a cold environment, its Life would increase a lot."

Eugeo pondered that thought as he took another bite from his sandwich, "But how do we do that?"

The two boys glanced at Alice, and the girl pouted as she looked away, "Don't look at me! I still have yet to start on water type sacred arts."

Kirito finished his sandwich before he grinned, "Hey, remember that icy cave near the mountains?"

Eugeo nodded, "Yeah, the one near the border, right?"

Alice frowned and said sternly before any of them could continue, "No! Absolutely not!"

Kirito whined, "Why not? We're just there to gather some ice, we won't even go near the border!"

Eugeo nodded, "It'll be fine."

Alice sighed as Kirito nudged her lightly, "Come on."

The blonde girl sighed, "Fine, I don't have classes anyway... Tomorrow morning we go to the ice cave, get the ice, we come back, okay?"

Kirito and Eugeo both grinned and high fived each other, as Alice just sighed as she hoped she wouldn't regret her choice.

Later that night, as Kirito and Eugeo went back to their room in the church, Alice was in her house.

After dinner, Gasupht asked his elder daughter, "So, you went to visit those boys today again?"

Selka immediately pouted at that, though fortunately it was unnoticed by her parents.

Alice nodded, "Yes, daddy."

The man sighed, "Fine, but just make sure you remember."

As soon as those words left his mouth, he felt a hard chop to his head, and he heard his wife's voice, "Give her a break dear, she's still a child."

Gasupht frowned, "But-"

Sadina spoke with a sweet smile, "They are children. Besides, they are Alice's only friends in the village. And its all because of you."

Gasupht only nodded obediently as he saw his wife's smile that screamed, 'If you say anything else, I will shred your ass to pieces, and you'll be sleeping on the couch.'

Sadina then smiled at her elder daughter, "Alice, dear, so how was your play date with Kirito and Eugeo?"

Alice just smiled, "Well..."

Selka giggled, "They were slacking off again, weren't they?"

The blonde girl smiled and nodded, "Well, it was really fun."

Gasupth just sighed and smiled, seeing his daughter so happy. Truth to be told, the man liked the two boys. They were very lively, and Sadina had more than once showed that she wanted them to get with their daughters, once they were old enough of course.

The man couldn't blame his wife. The nobles outside their village, whom the man would most likely have to send his daughters to, were more or less pigs. And to be frank, he'd rather his daughters marry those two boys than those nobles out there.

The man hated to do it, but it was a tradition to wed the village chief's daughter or daughters to nobles, while the sons would most likely receive the mantle as the village chief once they become of age.

Of course, if the chief had no sons, then the mantle would be passed on to whoever the chief deemed worthy. That was how Gasupth got to be the village chief in the first place.

The man had actually considered passing the mantle down to Eugeo, once the boy was old enough, or even Kirito for that matter. The two boys were honest to a fault, and they were obviously the kind to stay their values.

That was something Gasupht respected a lot. But he also knew the two boys were still very young, and they could change any time, so he kept an open mind for now.

As the chief watched his wife tease their daughters, the man smiled, before he cleared his throat, "Alice, you can continue visiting your friends, just remember to come home on time."

The blonde girl beamed at her father and nodded happily. Seeing her sister getting permission, Selka pouted, "What about me?"

Sadina chuckled and patter her head, "Maybe when you're older, okay?"

The younger girl just pouted as she nodded reluctantly. Gasupht smiled before he cleared his throat, "Now go to bed, it's way past your bed time."

The girls both pouted as they reluctantly headed for their rooms, "Okay."

Sadina just giggled as their daughters went to sleep, leaving the married couple on their own as they continued talking about idle stuff.

(Linebreak)

The next morning, Alice had quickly prepared Kirito, Eugeo and her lunch, to Sadina's slight confusion as to why the blonde girl would prepare the food so early.

Regardless, since Alice didn't have any classes for the day, the woman helped her daughter and quickly sent the little girl on her way to find her friends.

A short moment later, Alice arrived at the Gigas Cedar, and to her relief, Kirito and Eugeo were already hacking away at the tree.

The girl decided to sit down by a nearby tree as she waited for her best friends to finish their work. As she sat there, her mind wandered off to a conversation they had a short while back.

(flashback)

A few weeks back, after Kirito and Eugeo had finished their daily requirements of 50 hacks each, the three friends were sitting by the river, as usual, having a picnic.

As they ate, Alice asked, "Hey, Eugeo, Kirito, I've been meaning to ask, do you have dreams?"

The blonde girl knew dreams were very far, for the two boys. It was decided the moment that chopping down the Gigaa Cedar became their calling. But regardless, Alice wanted to know.

Kirito grinned, "Of course, I had one last night, we didn't need to work, and we could just nap all day staring at the clouds."

Eugeo smiled forcedfully upon seeing Alice's exasperated face, "I think she meant dreams as in ambitions?"

Kirito oh'd, "Oh, so that's what you meant?"

Alice just sighed, not bothering to answer him. Kirito however, leaned back on his arms, "Hmm, to be honest, I never thought about it seriously. But, I want to become a knight, I guess."

Eugeo raised an eyebrow, "A knight?"

The black haired boy grinned, "Yeah, that way I can travel all around the world, and at the same time, I can protect everyone, especially Eugeo, Alice and Selka."

Alice smiled, "I see..."

Eugeo laid on the ground, "Dreams, huh... I don't really have one, but if Kirito wants to be a knight, well, someone has to look after him, right?"

The other boy glanced at Eugeo, a mischievous glint in his eyes, "What is that supposed to mean?"

The brunette didn't have time to reply as Kirito started tickling hin for a whole ten minutes, causing everyone to laugh as they continued to play around.

(flashback end)

As Alice waited for Kirito and Eugeo, that conversation still lingered on her mind.

But the girl was pulled from her musings when she heard her friends' voices.

Kirito's voice reached her voice, "Alice! You ready?"

The girl smiled as she quickly stood up, grabbing her basket, "Yes!"

Eugeo grinned, "Let's go."

Alice nodded, an action followed by Kirito as they started to walk towards the mountains, where the icy cave was, along with the borders separating the Human territory and the Dark Territory.

As they walked past the forests, reaching the entrance of the cave, Alice spoke, "Guys, I think we should turn back."

The two boys turned to the girl, and Kirito smiled playfully, "You're not scared, right? We're already here."

Alice puffed her cheeks, glaring at Kirito lightly, "I'm! Not! Scared!"

The girl let out a breath, before she looked at the cave, "No, I just have a bad feeling about this."

Eugeo smiled, "Don't worry, we'll definitely protect you if anything happens."

Kirito grinned and nodded, "Yeah!"

Alice just smiled and nodded before they continued walking into the cave.

As they entered the cave, Kirito commented, "Damn its dark..."

Alice heard her friend and said, "Wait..."

Eugeo and Kirito both turned, as Alice held up one of her fingers, "System Call: Generate Luminous Element."

Immediately, a ball of light appeared right at her finger tips, lighting up the area.

Eugeo gaped at the light, "Woah..."

Kirito nodded, having the same reaction. Alice just giggled, "Well, this is actually a simple art. We used to chant in these ancient languages, but the priests managed to change them into more simple terms."

Kirito stared at the ball of light, "That's so cool!"

Eugeo nodded in agreement, and Alice just smiled, "I still have a long way to go. Come on, the food needs that ice."

The three kids quickly continued into the cave. A short while later, Kirito shievered, letting out a breath, "Its so cold!"

Eugeo nodded, the brunette shivering as well, "W-well, its kinda to be expected, I mean, t-this is an ice cave."

Alice nodded before she handed the basket to Eugeo, "Hold this for me, please."

The brunette complied as she let out a breath, holding up her other hand, "System Call: Generate Thermal Element."

Instantly, a ball of flame appeared above her hand, and Kirito and Eugeo both quickly moved near the flame, happy to receive some warmth.

Alice just sighed, though she still smiled, seeing how her friends acted.

After a short walk, soon, the three kids reached the center of the cave, where all the ice was. But what caught their attention, was the one single light blue sword stabbed at the back of the place.

The sword was fully light blue, not unlike ice. The most defining trait of it, was the blue rose on the guard of the sword. And the sword radiated so much power, that even the children could feel it.

Alice noticed the slightly dazed looks on Kirito and Eugeo and she quickly nudged them, "Come on, we need to get the ice."

Kirito looked at the girl before back at the sword, "But why is there a sword here?"

Eugeo looked at Alice and he could see that she didn't want to go near the sword. The brunette looked at his friend, "Kirito, I think we should leave it here. We said we'd get the ice and go back, right?"

Kirito sighed and slumped down in defeat, "Fine... Let's get the ice and go back..."

The two other kids nodded and they started to gather ice before placing them in the basket.

Then, as Eugeo was picking up a chunk of ice, Kirito suddenly got an idea, the black haired boy grinning mischievously.

All of a sudden, Eugeo felt something very cold slide down his back, and the brown haired boy yelped rather loudly, literally jumping up as Kirito laughed his ass off.

Eugeo turned and glared at Kirito before he started chasing the other boy around, throwing chunks of ice at him.

Alice just sighed, though she couldn't hide the smile on her face. That is, until Kirito dropped a small chunk of ice down into the back of her shirt, earning a loud scream.

After about an hour of gathering ice and playing, the three children were finally done getting the ice.

Alice let out a breath as she checked the status of the food in the basket with the Stacia Window, "It really works! It says it will last until tomorrow morning!"

Kirito grinned, "What did I tell ya."

Eugeo just chuckled, "Come on, let's go back to the river."

Their little game had warmed them up a bit, but the three kids still felt cold in the cave, and they didn't want to stay any more longer than required.

Alice nodded, "Yes, we got what we came for, let's go."

The three started to walk, but then they realized something really bad. Kirito blinked, "Umm, where is the exit?"

Alice resisted the urge to facepalm. Through their game of throwing ice and chasing each other around, the three kids had ventured further into the depths of the cave, with no knowledge of where the entrance was.

Eugeo looked around, "Let's just keep going, we'll find an exit sooner or later."

Alice nodded, "You're not wrong..."

Kirito chuckled and nodded, "Yeah, let's go."

The three 10 year olds started to walk. For the next 15 minutes, they took several turns, using Alice's skill in wind sacred arts to carve markings on the ice walls to make sure they didn't move in circles.

And soon, enough, they reached an exit.

Kirito yelled in joy, "There's the exit! Let's go!"

But Alice felt that something was off, and she grabbed Kirito right before he could rush off, "Wait!"

The black haired boy blinked as he almost fell to the ground, thankfully managing to recover his balance, "What? There's the way out."

Eugeo also saw it, "No, this feels weird."

Kirito blinked and looked at the exit, the three of them moving forward slowly until they could see outside of the cave.

True enough, it wasn't the place they came from.

Instead of a lush green scenery of trees, with the blue sky over them, in front of them was a dry, barren wasteland.

The sky was dark, almost purple, as if the Sun didn't shine down on them. Instead of swallows, there were vultures flying around. And instead of bushes and grass, sand and dirt, and more importantly, skeletons of dead animals laid on the ground.

Kirito's face paled, "This is!"

Alice finished, her face just as pale as Kirito's, "The Dark Territory."

Eugeo gulped, "Guys, let's turn back."

The two other children agreed, but before they could move, a huge tremor stopped them in their tracks, as an object slammed right into the ground in front of them.

The dust quickly cleared, revealing a knight in blue armor, heavily injured from a battle.

Alice gasped, "An Integrity Knight?!"

The girl started to move forward, but Kirito and Eugeo noticed it and quickly tried to pull her back.

The blonde girl blinked and snapped her head back at them, "What are you two doing?! I need to help!"

Eugeo shook his head, "No, you can't break the Taboo Index, Alice!"

Kirito nodded in agreement. But Alice glanced back at the injured knight, who shook his head as he saw what they were doing.

But the blonde girl couldn't do it, she just couldn't leave someone who needed help alone.

Forcefully shaking off her two best friends, Alice rushed over to the injured knight, kneeling down by his side.

The knight coughed as he scolded, "You shouldn't have come over here, you broke the Taboo Index."

Alice placed her hands over the knight's chest, "You're injured, you need help."

The knight sighed, "Thank you... I'll do what I can to lessen your punishment, girl."

The blonde girl nodded, "System Call: Transfer Human Unit Durability: Self to Right."

Immediately, a green light glowed in Alice's chest, and it extended down to the knight through Alice's right arm, as the knight's health was restored.

Soon, the knight's wounds were fully healed, and Alice let out a breath as she smiled, happy that she had helped a person.

Then, suddenly, a dark voice reached their ears, "Singular Unit Detected, ID Tracing. Coordinate fixed. Report complete."

Everyone turned just in time to see the face of a blank man vanish into a black hole, and the three children's faces paled.

The Integrity Knight sighed, standing up, "I'm sorry, girl. Go home, and enjoy the last few hours there. There will be another knight that will come to get you in a few moments."

Kirito gritted his teeth, "But she helped you! Can't you help here?!"

The knight looked at Kirito before he looked down, "I'm sorry kid... I'll try to lessen her punishment... But... Rules are rules."

A loud roar then caught the knight's attention, and he looked up, seeing a dark dragon battling a smaller dragon.

The knight yelled, "Hoshigami, come!"

The dragon roared in response, blasting the larger dragon with fire before it landed in front of the knight.

He mounted the dragon, but not before looking at the children, Alice having ran back to her friends, "I'm sorry, girl. Go home, and spend the last few hours with your family... I'll do whatever I can."

With that said, the knight shot into the sky, drawing his sword, roaring as he charged the dark dragon.

The three children could only stare in awe as the knight and dragon fought like their lives depended on it, which was true, before the three kids quickly ran back into the cave.

(linebreak)

A short moment later, the three kids were back in the village. The encounter at the border had freaked them out, and they didn't have the mood for a picnic anymore.

As the three sat by a bench in silence, after a long moment, Kirito asked, "So... What now?"

He looked at Alice, who just stayed silent, unsure what to make of what had happened.

Eugeo also glanced at his best friend, before he answered, "Maybe that knight will help us, and Alice won't need to get punished."

Alice closed her eyes, "If only it were that simple... I... I broke the Taboo Index..."

Kirito narrowed his eyes, "But you saved an Integrity Knight! That has to mean something!"

Eugeo nodded in agreement. But before they could continue, a loud bang sounded through the village, and everyone gathered around to see an Integrity Knight dismounting his dragon.

Alice just looked down, placing down her basket. But Kirito grabbed her hand, "Wait, Alice. We're not sure if he's here for you."

Eugeo nodded in agreement. But Alice didn't believe it one bit, even if she didn't pull Kirito's hand down.

With Gasupth, the chief had easily noticed the Integrity Knight landing in their village, and had approached the knight, "Sir, may we help you with anything?"

The knight wore a blank whitish grey armor, with a bow and quiver of arrows behind his back. The blank armor meant that the knight had been given his position recently. Regardless, he stared down at Gasupth with an intimidating presence.

The knight spoke, "Just a few hours ago, we received a report, that one Alice Zuberg, broke the Taboo Index by crossing over the border to the Dark Territory."

As soon as those words left his mouth, Gasupth's face paled. The man wanted to question the knight, but he knew, Integrity Knights would never lie about the Taboo Index, especially one as serious as this.

Not waiting for a reply, the knight walked over to where Alice, Kirito and Eugeo were. The two boys instantly stood in front of the knight.

The elder man looked down at the boys and sighed, "Step aside, boys."

He didn't really like doing this, especially to a little girl like her, but he had a job to do.

Kirito glared up at the knight defiantly, "No! She crossed the border to help an Integrity Knight! Why must she be punished?!"

Eugeo nodded and wanted to add more, but several adults came and pulled them away, allowing the knight to look at Alice.

The knight nodded, "You're coming with me."

Alice just nodded, following the knight to his dragon as she tied her up with chains, linking her to the dragon.

Kirito growled and forcedfully pushed the adults away, running for the dragon, "Alice!"

Eugeo did the same, grunting as he started running towards the dragon, his hands outstretched to grab Alice.

But right before they could reach her, several villagers pulled them back, pushing Kirito and Eugeo down, holding them back from chasing after Alice, at the same time, warning them of the consequences.

None of their words reached the boys' ears, as they growled/struggled against the adults.

"ALICE!"

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A few months later, the village returned to its normal routine.

But there was one difference. Alice wasn't there. And the impact of that change was huge. The village chief had rarely been seen smiling, and the two balls of energy that accompanied the blonde girl were only seen going to or back from the Gigas Cedar, and in their rooms.

The village as a whole was also affected. Everyone knew Alice, to a certain extent. The girl was kind to everyone, especially Kirito and Eugeo. Having someone like her taken away from the village was a huge blow.

No one blamed Kirito and Eugeo, of course. They were kids, and if they used them as scapegoats, that would be unfair to them.

So everyone just moved on with life. But some people move on, some don't.

Kirito and Eugeo were two of those people.

Unknown to everyone in the village, the two boys had made an agreement. They would each do 200 hacks on the tree per day, and then train themselves so that they can enter the Sword Mastery Academy in North Centoria.

That process repeated for the past few weeks.

Today was no different. But today, was also a day that would change the lives of the two boys.

After finishing their daily chops for the day, with the tree having a much deeper dent than before, and a much lower durability unit, the two boys were training using two wooden swords.

Kirito swung his blade at Eugeo, who clumsily parried away before spinning and aimed a slash at Kirito's abdomen.

The black haired boy dropped to the floor, avoiding the attack before he rolled away.

Then, Kirito quickly sprang to his feet with impressive speed for a 10 year old boy before he parried Eugeo's sword.

As the two boys trained, unknown to them, a middle aged man was watching them from behind the Gigas Cedar.

The man hard short grey hair tinged with blue, and he had a familiar long sword behind his back.

The man smirked, 'Well, I'll be. I was just checking how they were doing for her, but it seems they really do have potential.'

The man decided to make his presence known as he walked out, clapping slowly, "Kids, I've gotta say, I'm impressed."

Kirito and Eugeo were both scared by the man's sudden appearance. The black haired boy asked warily, "Who are you?"

The man grinned, "Me? Well, I guess you can call me Bercouli."

Eugeo blinked, "Bercouli? Like the legendary hero Bercouli?"

The man blinked, before he chuckled, "Well, something like that."

Kirito grinned, "Your mom must have loved that story a lot to name you after him!"

Bercouli chuckled, "Yeah, I guess so."

The man then looked at the wooden swords in the boys' hands, "Anyways, I saw how you two were moving, you have potential."

Eugeo blinked, "What do you mean, Bercouli-san?"

The man smirked, "Just Bercouli is fine. I'm a swordsman, and I believe you two have what it takes to enter the Sword Mastery Academy, and become an Integrity Knight."

Kirito and Eugeo both blinked, and they both yelled in unison, getting right in the man's face, "Really?!"

Bercouli was slightly taken aback by their response before he chuckled, "Of course, that is, if you have the right guidance. You two have the basic grip of a sword, but you two have no technique, and I doubt you will if you continue to just swing like that."

The man paused a bit, letting it sink in to the boys, before he continued, "So, I want to train the two of you."

He smirked, pulling his sword out and slamming it onto the ground, "So, whaddaya say, boys?"

Kirito and Eugeo glanced at each and shared a grin, before they turned to Bercouli and spoke in unison, "Yes! Bercouli-sensei!"

The man smirked, "Good. We begin now."

XXX

Done. So that's the beginning of the Underworld arc. I'm changing quite a bit from canon. Here, Kirito will be with Eugeo right from the start.

And they will both be aiming to get to Alice. And I'm sure you all know what Alice is doing now, if you watched the anime.

So, review please, and until the next chapter.