"Rafflesia? That doesn't seem like a very fitting name. It's a stinky flower that attracts bugs", Gurin said.

"Well, I can assure you I don't smell. My name was chosen because of my affinity to my clothing coloring. Everything I wear is red. That's beside the point. It's not too late to walk away now. After I kill Kumadori, I'll leave this island and never see you again...but once this battle starts, I won't allow you to leave."

Even though she was wearing a mask, Gurin could tell she had some sort of insidious look on her face, just from the sound of her voice. "I already told you, I will not leave. We don't have to fight! Can't you just leave him alone", Gurin pleaded. "Are they forcing you to do this?"

"Of course not. We're some of the strongest members of the government branch. No one is 'forcing' us to do anything. Our special brand of justice involves punishing those who deserve it. Besides...it's just too much fun."

"This is fun, to you?! I guess there's no point in trying to talk you out of this then?"

"None at all...but nice try."

"She's a madwoman...which to be fair, may have been Kumadori at some point too, but not anymore. Everyone deserves a second chance. I just have to stop her somehow", Gurin thought to herself.

"Well, if you wont make the first move...", Rafflesia said, before appearing right in front of Gurin. "Then I will!" She quickly reached her hand forward, and placed it on Gurin.

Gurin gasped, and hoped backwards. "Oh no, she touched me!" She braced herself for what she thought was going to be a numb feeling...but she still felt everything.

"Oh dear, did I psyche you out", she asked. She had a glove on her hand. "Watching you panic is quite the appetizer."

"Hey! Your toying with me! Just like you did with Kumadori. Well I won't fall for it again! Now I can sync with your speed!"

"Won't fall for it again? For your sake, you'd better hope not. Next time I won't be wearing a glove", she said as she removed the white glove from her hand. "Prepare for a bloody dance!" She took out two daggers from her pocket and tossed them.

Gurin quickly transformed into her dragoness hybrid form and took to the skyish area of the mind. "I'll have to go all out from the start if I want to beat you!"

"Do you honestly think I can't follow you?" Rafflesia used her moonwalk technique to take to the sky as well. "I'll knock you out of the sky!"

"Just try it!" Gurin opened her mouth and released a red flame this time.

Rafflesia was caught off guard at the width of the flame. She narrowly managed to avoid it. The sleeve of her Yukata caught fire, but she easily put it out by patting it. "Is that all you have?"

"If I can hit her fast enough, she won't be able to touch me. I just have to hit her with powerful strikes", Gurin though to herself. "Come see for yourself!" Rafflesia hopped towards Gurin with arms held out ready to strike. "Just a little bit further...a little bit further...now!" Gurin swing her spiked tail at her pursuer! The attack drew blood from Raflessia...but unfortunately, the place It drew from, was Rafflesia's hand. "Oh no!"

"Oh yes. That was one touch, dear." Gurin's tail drooped down, past her feet, as if it had suddenly died. She couldn't feel her tail anymore, but that was the only feeling she had lost. "Hm...well isn't that weird? Something was off when I touched you. Its as if there was some form of resistance.

Gurin flew backwards to get some distance, with her tail still unable to move, she had lost one of her methods of attack, though she still had many more. "I'll have to try something else! Oh!" She remembered she had a fruit that she was going to save as a snack for later, but it may be just what she needed to help her.

"I congratulate you for landing a hit. But it will take a lot more." She flung the running blood on her hand to the left of her.

Gurin quickly took out a dragon fruit stashed away in her coat pocket. She bit into the fruit, and acquired the seeds within, before taking a deep breath. "Ptooie!" She fired seeds at Rafflesia as if they were bullets.

"Seeds? I'm not afraid of a few fruit seeds madame", Rafflesia said as she began to block the seeds with one hand. "I suppose its not like you can do anything else to hit me anyway." She had a condescending tone. Gurin could only assume she was probably smiling under that mask!

After exhausting her first round of ammunition, she took in the rest of the fruit and acquired the rest of the seeds. "Then try THIS on for size! FLAMING BULLET BARRAGE!" She ignited the seeds this time, and spit them at Rafflesia. They flew like real bullets covered in flames! Rafflesia gasped, and tried to toughen her defenses! "IRON BODY!" She held her arms out, and let the bullets impact her. They didn't seem to hit her anywhere exposed...but the clothing she wore seemed to be a lot more flammable than she anticipated. Her clothing began to catch fire!"

"It's a beautiful Yukata, but from the looks of it, it's not flame retardant. I can use that to my advantage", Gurin said.

"Don't let that fool you!" Rafflesia quickly extinguished the rising flames on her clothing by patting it out. "ROSE LEG STORM!" Rafflesia sliced the air with her legs. Making petal shaped dices that traveled through the air. It was a flurry of danger headed right towards the airborne dragoness.

She recognized this move from watching Kumadori utilize it for chopping down trees. Gettig hit by those would cut through her! Gurin quickly dodged most of the incoming slices, but some of them grazed her wings, nearly knocking her off balance. This only made her try to move even faster to avoid the more of the leg storm. "Is that all you got?"

"Nope", Rafflesia said as she appeared again in the air. "TAP!" She placed both her hands on Gurin's wings", and just like her tail, they began to go numb. The feeling even began to travel down to her back, as she began fell towards the dark ground, like a rock dropped from a bird. Rafflesia dropped down towards the ground too. Only she landed on her feet. "That's two things I have taken from you. Without your wings and your tail, that only leaves your hands, feet and mouth. You're fast, but you won't want to risk touching me, and your fire I can easily avoid now that I've seen you use it. "If you weren't around when I told Kumadori...one touch will numb the area. A second touch will numb that area even FASTER. If I touch you a third time, your body will go into complete SHOCK, and you'll be wide open...if you don't die from it, that is.

"Dammit! I thought I had her for a moment. I guess its not a surprise that she is strong. If she touches me again its all over. She doesn't realize that I do have one more attack than she's probably anticipating. Hey Rafflesia! I'm going to start fighting seriously now! My arms and legs aren't numb yet! All it takes is one good...", she looked over to Kumadori whom was still grounded. He didn't seem to be struggling as much as he was before. Perhaps the paralysis was wearing off. There was some sort of look in his eyes...was he trying to tell her something?

"Wait...iron body. Of course! I don't know for sure if I'll be able to pierce it. If I can't, she will touch me again, and...I can't let that happen. Kumadori is counting on me! Think Gurin! There's got to be a way to beat her.

"Very well! I'll come to you then!" She drew the blade again, and charged at Gurin! "I'll cut EVERY scale off of you and make them into a DRESS!" She thrusted the dagger out in front of her, with the intention of piercing Gurin through the heart!

"Gurin! Catch the fish", Kumadori yelled.

Gurin closed her eyes at the sudden shout, and almost instinctively, Gurin held her clawed finger out! Suddenly, a loud *SHING* was heard. The sound of steel colliding with another force rang throughout the area. Gurin opened her eyes, no longer expecting the pain of being stabbed in the chest, only to see that a single nail, on her finger, had intercepted the blade Rafflesia thrusted. "Huh?"

"What!? How is that possible!? Of course! You have been teaching her the forbidden moves", Rafflesia said as she looked over to a smiling Kumadori.

"GET AWAY FROM ME", Gurin shouted as she slashed her hand upwards. She made a direct hit to Rafflesia's face, and managed to knock her mask off!

Rafflesia recoiled from the attack...but after she flinched, she returned her gaze to Gurin. Her eyes were a fierce crimson color, that matched her crimson lipstick. Her face was twisted into a scowl, that only looked more menacing now that she had three scratches across her face. "Now, its personal! ZAP BULLET!" Rafflesia thrusted her finger out, and stabbed Gurin right in her stomach!

"Gurin no!" Kumadori yelled. He tried to get up, but his legs still felt wobbly. Even his hair was still drooping.

Gurin gasped, as she looked down, to see the blood dripping from her abdomen. "T-that's the third strike. Oh no! Nono!"

"That's the third strike, dear! You're finished!" She removed her fingers. "I told you this would happen if you got in my way, but you just wouldn't listen. "And as for you..", she began to say as she looked over towards Kumadori. "This has gone on long enough. I didn't expect to acquire two targets, but I did. Her drive to help you was a thing to behold, but in the end it didn't help her. Just then, her Snail transponder alarmed.

"Hey, Raflessia. I didn't get to show you everything I can do yet", Gurin said. She was lying down now due to her body starting to go numb...but something was happening to her hair. It was moving! Kumadori took note of this, but there was no wind blowing through the area.

"Your still talking? How bothersome. I guess I'll just get rid of you...what!?" She looked down and noticed that something was entangled around her legs. Something...fuzzy...no, it was hair! It was Gurin's hair. "What the hell!?"

"Kumadori taught me quite a few things. And this has to be one of my favorites." More strands of hair wrapped around Rafflesia's wrists. "Your fingers aren't long enough to reach these!"

"Gurin! You learned how to utilize the hair bind!"

"Yes. I cant quite control everything with the life return yet, but I can at least move my hair. And That's all I need to finish this. I gave YOU a chance to prevent this fight but YOU didn't listen!" Gurin's eyes flared again through her green glasses, as she opened her mouth. A flame began to grow right behind her sharp teeth.

"What!? What are you doing!?" A hint of panic appeared across Rafflesia's face."

"Come...Come in. T-this is Hatchet", A voice said over the transponder. He was coughing and still injured, with slurred speech. "Everyone! IF you can hear me...we have a problem. The danger isn't our targets! There are people helping them! If you see anyone around them, kill them as well! The mission for this island has...been...", that's all he said. From the sounds of it he might have fainted again.

"My comrades! Have they too been rescued? They have been RESCUED!" Kumadori managed to raise his arms again. It would seem that the Shock-Shock fruit only lasted for so long. "But, by whom?"

"This wasn't supposed to happen! This mission was supposed to go FLAWLESSLY!" Rafflessia struggled to try and break free, but there wasn't much she could do, whilst restrained.

"SURE FIRE!" Gurin released a burst of flame from her mouth, that engulfed Rafflesia! At the same time, she released her grip.

The force of the flame, launched Rafflesia into the darkness. "This, will NOT go unpunished. I will make you pay for this", Rafflesia thought to herself, as she disappeared from the area.

"Gurin! You...you did it! You repelled her! I no longer feel her in my mind!" Even the darkness of the area, began to illuminate. There was a sort pink flare to it now.

"Oh. Well what do you know? I did win. Your...safe...now..." Gurin reverted back into her human form, but she fell to the ground.

"Oh no! The third touch! Gurin!" Kumadori crawled over to her. Even with the little strength he had returning to him, he crawled as fast as he could. "Gurin please speak to me!" He hoped she would respond, even though he felt she might not. He feared she might even have left the world.

"My scales...", she uttered.

"Pardon?"

"I figured it out. It was my scales. They protected me a bit from her touches. The third touch didn't send me into shock, because of my armor", she said as she looked up and smiled.

"Oh thank heavens!" Kumadori managed to lift her into his arms. The moment he touched her, it seemd the strange area began to revert back to normal. To the outside world. They must have left his mind right then and there.

"Wait! Rafflesia! We have to be careful. She might not be finished!"

"That's of no concern right now! I must get you to safety. Come, there is somewhere we must go", Kumadori said. He finally managed to stand up, albeit a bit wobbly.

"Somewhere we must go? Where is that", she asked.