Episode 3: Rivalry
Disclaimer: Standard Disclaimer applies
Back at Funbari, it was a cold, starless night; a night patrol officer was making his last rounds around Funbari, then he looked up to admire the moon, "Hooo… the moon sure looks pretty tonight" said the patrolman, suddenly, he noticed the moon moving closer towards him, "What the! Whoa!" the patrolman fell on his back, and backed off as the "moon" got closer to him.
The patrolman tried to run but stumbled over again, and resorted to crawling away, but was stopped when he heard a voice, "Where is the one called Hana?" said the voice, the patrolman turned around, to see that the "moon" turned into a young boy, about thirteen, with long blond hair, black coat, fishnet shirt, and gray pants and eerie green eyes, he was also armed with a broad, single-edged sword with a notch by the tip, he had very creepy, cold eyes which pierced through the patrolman like a heated knife through butter.
"Where is he!?!" asked the boy again.
"I… I don't know what you're talking about!" said the patrolman.
"Useless peon! Shadow of Fire!" suddenly, a massive red-colored haze in a vague, humanoid shape emerged, "Burn this peon!" suddenly, the patrolman watched as the red haze created a massive ball of fire, and fired it at him, "Aaaahhh!!!" and in moments, the patrolman was engulfed in a great flame, after that, the fire dispersed and all that was left of the patrolman was a small ping-pong ball sized roll of cooled magma, "You're soul… is mine!" then the boy laughed a maniacal laugh…
Morning…
The Asakuras were in their dining room at Flame Inn, eating Yoh's home-cooked meals.
"So dad… does this mean I can bring Frank out with me?" asked Hana, "Sure, but remember, no funny stuff!" said Yoh, "Alright," and after breakfast, Hana got a pair of long white jeans, and a blue windbreaker and made his way out, "See you later Mom, Dad!" said Hana as he waved to the house, and left.
"He sure is an energetic young boy," said Yoh, "Are you sure it's safe to let him, our son, go with that renegade?" asked Anna, slightly concerned, "Relax, Frank won't do anything to him, he's just a little monotonous, that's all," said Yoh, trying to stifle Anna's concerns, "I hope so… oh, yes, and Yoh…?" Anna turned to see Yoh had already did what she was going to remind him, "Don't worry darling, I got it, I got it…"
What was Yoh doing? He was carrying a six ton barbell over his shoulder and Yoh didn't even seem to be bothered by it at all, and it goes without saying:
It takes an Amazon like Anna to make real men
As for Hana, he was walking with his new friend, Frank, if you're wondering, then yes; Frank was the spirit that possessed Hana in the first chapter.
Frank looked like he was a well-built man in life, but judging from his looks, he was thirteen when he died, Frank wore a red bandanna around his head, a black short-sleeved shirt, blue military pants and black army boots, as for his history, the only thing Hana could get from him was that he was a special agent for the Americans during the Cold War, and that he was taught by some ninja sensei the art of ninjutsu, but that was pretty much all he could get from him.
"Ne, Frank-san?" asked Hana.
"Yeah?" said Frank.
"You never told me how you died yet."
Oh, that… I don't like to talk about it…" said Frank.
C'mon, please?" said Hana.
"NO!!" shouted Frank angrily, "Alright, alright, I was just asking," said Hana.
Hana and Frank made their way to the ice cream parlor, where Hana asked if Frank would to have something to eat, Frank said no, since he was a ghost and that even if he wanted to, Frank didn't want Hana to be too concerned with him.
One week earlier…
"Who are you?" asked Yoh.
"That is none of your concern," said Frank.
"Well, it is to me, here you are, barging into Funbari and letting my son fight against who-knows-what? I would like to think I deserve to… get an explanation" said Yoh firmly.
"Very well, my name is Frank Jaeger, I was around at the time and found your son on the back of a giant bug, and I thought he was in trouble so I wanted to help."
"And you used his body against his will?" asked Yoh.
"There was no other way I could have fought that thing, your son would've been killed" said Frank.
"Well, I suppose for that, I guess it's alright," said Yoh, "What would I have to do to make you convinced?" asked Frank, "Hmm…" Yoh was thinking about this, "Let him be Hana's Spirit Guardian" Anna came into the room, "What!" said Yoh, a bit shocked, "If he meant no harm against Hana, then he wouldn't mind being his Guardian Spirit, wouldn't he?" said Anna, "But Anna…" Yoh was interrupted, "I accept, if it is alright with you?" said Frank. This was happening all too fast, but Yoh finally said,
"Fine, just make sure he doesn't get hurt," said Yoh.
"Yes sir" said Frank.
Present time…
"So, Frank, may I ask something about your lifestyle back then?" asked Hana.
"Alright, what?"
"Did you ever eat a snake before?" asked Hana.
"Most of the time, other times I ate mountain goat meat, live birds, and even crocodiles" replied Frank.
"Do you remember how any of them tasted like?"
"Well, the mountain goat meat was pretty good, and the birds didn't taste too bad, although the crocodiles tasted fantastic!" said Frank.
"Now there's a surprise…" thought Hana.
After eating, Hana went out for a walk, after a while, he noticed a group of policemen in front of a house, Hana went over to check on what was going on.
"Are you sure he didn't come back?" asked one of the officers.
"No… he didn't, and I'm worried about him" said the woman.
"Don't worry, we'll find him" said another officer determinedly, but also with a bit of uncertainty.
Hana was overhearing the whole thing, "You hear that, Frank? This looks like an interesting story."
"If you're thinking what I'm thinking, then no, Hana, I promised your father I'd keep you out of harm's way" said Frank.
"Aw, put a lid on it, Frank, besides, I have you to depend on, it'll be fun!" said Hana.
Frank sighed, "Fine, but don't do anything stupid, alright?"
"I got it…" replied Hana.
Hana and Frank continued walking around for a while, trying to find out whoever was the one responsible for the recent disappearances of people as of late.
Hana returned to the baker couple he met earlier and talked to them about the mysterious disappearances, "Yeah, It's been going on for quite some time now" said the man.
"When did it happen?" asked Hana.
"About just a week ago, four people have gone missing overnight, including one of the night watch patrolmen as of last night."
Then the wife came in, "It's really had everyone in quite a bit of a scare, I hope nothing bad happened to the ones who disappeared."
"Hopefully…" said Hana glumly.
Later…
It was beginning to get dark, as the sun was going down, "Hey, Hana, we should be getting back by now, your parents might be worried" said Frank.
Hana sighed, he wanted to know what was going on, but knew he couldn't let his parents worry about him, "Alright, we'll just look again tomorrow."
Hana and Frank turned to walk away when they heard gunshots, "Huh?"
Elsewhere, two police officers, one male and another female, were shooting at the blond-haired kid that had been attacking people, but each time they did, he simply deflected it with his sword, after a while, the cops' guns stopped firing with an awkward click, "No way" said one of them, "Impossible" said another.
"Useless…" then the Shadow of Fire reemerged and burned the other two, leaving only their souls preserved in balls of magma, "Hmph, no one, nothing about him at all… what a waste" he said.
"Hey!" shouted Hana.
"Huh?" the boy turned to face the one who called to him.
"What do you think you're doing!?" shouted Hana.
"These useless peons deserved it, not a single one of them knows where Hana Asakura is…" said the boy.
"Well, no need to worry, because I AM Hana Asakura!" exclaimed Hana.
This did not surprise the boy who was looking for him, but said calmly, "Well then, I hope you wouldn't mind it if we 'did battle'?" he said.
"Wouldn't have it any other way! Frank, you with me?" asked Hana to his spirit.
"I dunno Hana, there's something ominous about this…" but then he was cut off by Hana.
"I guess that's a yes. Alright, are you ready for this… uh, hey, you didn't even tell me your name yet" said Hana.
"My name is Nero, now, shall we get things started?" said the blond boy.
"Alright Nero, Frank, let's do this!" exclaimed Hana.
"Hana, I still think this isn't…" but it was too late.
"Hyoi Gattai!" and in that instant, Frank found himself in Hana's body, "sigh, this is why I hate kids" thought Frank, but for that moment, Nero was dashing for them with his weapon raised, and Frank had to do something, or his debt to the Asakuras would be in jeopardy.
Nero struck his sword down on Hana, but Frank (In Hana's body) managed to catch it before it landed on them, then Nero pulled his sword back and did a thrust, but Frank managed to jump over him to dodge, then Frank did a kick, but Nero blocked by pulling his sword over his shoulder to be a sort of shield. Then Nero slashed Hana horizontally, but Frank bent back using his right hand as a support to dodge the blow, then he punched Nero in the chest, but to his surprise, Nero didn't even flinch, Nero just shrugged, grabbed Hana's arm and threw him spinning into the air, and landed hard on his back with a thud.
Hana back-flipped back into position to face Nero, who was walking towards him again, "Frank, do something! He's going to kill us!" said Hana, "I'm thinking Hana, err…" Frank was facing a lack of options; he really didn't want Hana to drag them into this mess, but now he had no choice left, he had to do something. Then he ran up to the wall, with Nero following behind, then kicked of and tried to land a heel kick to Nero, but that didn't work either, with Nero blocking the attack with the side of his sword, and this time, he grabbed Hana by the back of his collar and hit him hard on the back with his sword's pommel. (Pommel- bottom end of a sword's hilt)
Then Nero kicked Hana at the sides and sent the poor boy rolling away, gripping his sides in pain.
"You're no fun, I had hoped for you to be a bit more 'challenging' than this, but I suppose I was wrong," then Nero raised his sword into the air, ready to strike down Hana, Frank, in the meantime, was forced out of Hyoi Gattai by Nero's kick.
"Goodbye, Hana-kun…" then Nero was about to land the finishing blow, but was blocked by something.
"Huh?" said Hana as he looked up.
"What?" said Nero when he glanced at who stopped him.
It was Frank, using his sword from the first chapter to block Nero's attack. Then Frank shoved Nero out a few ways before assuming a fighting position, "What's this? A spirit able to act independently without a shaman partner?" muttered Nero.
"Yes, do you have a problem with that?" asked Frank.
"Not at all, but I must admit, why would one such as yourself want to protect this 'boy' when you can have independence?" asked Nero.
"…" Frank was silent.
"Well…?" Nero asked him once more.
Then Frank spoke, "You really wish to know?"
"Yes" replied Nero.
Frank began, "Well, when I was still alive, my mentor taught me something that was all I could ever live for. That something was a phrase, and that phrase was: Loyalty to the end. It was something I was taught so I could have purpose in life, and so I fought, driven by my loyalty, and the belief of what I fought for gave me all the purpose I needed, there was nothing left for me to believe in, even in my so-called 'free-will', after I died, I wanted to find someone, someone, who could give me purpose again, someone to be loyal to," then he turned to Hana, who watched at Frank in awe, "I wandered the Earth, with what little strength could take me, until I found this boy, he had a strong will, I could feel it pulsing around me as I got close, it was then I knew, this boy had what it takes to give me purpose, so I helped him… besides, I don't need a reason to help somebody."
Hana was a little taken aback by this, "Frank-san…"
Nero applauded Frank, "Amazing, you are a one-of-kind spirit indeed, imagine, loyalty to some kid, humph!"
Frank retorted, "Doesn't matter, I just know this kid was meant for great things, and I'll see to it they be realized!"
Nero chuckled before saying, "Alright, alright, I get it, I'll let him live, but first, take a look at these," then Nero drew out a handful of the magma balls, "These little spheres you see here are the preserved souls of everyone I ever encountered who didn't know anything about Hana-kun over there" said Nero as he gestured his head to Hana, "So… now their spirits are trapped in these little balls, but don't worry, Hana-kun, your okaa-san (A/N: Okaa-san is mother, right?) might be able to help free them and return them to normal…"
Nero paused for a moment, then continued, "…If you can prevent their souls from passing over!" then Nero tossed the orbs over Frank, "What!"
But Hana managed to catch them before they broke and banished the spirits to the next life, "I got it!" then Frank said "Good work Hana!" suddenly, a jet of fire was felt behind Frank ,when Frank turned, he saw Nero's Spirit, "Say hello to my friend: Shadow of Fire, this introduction has been brief, but don't worry, I promise that when you get stronger, it'll be more exciting" and then, in a pillar of flame, both Nero and Shadow of Fire vanished.
Later…
Hana and Frank were walking home, both utterly exhausted.
Then Hana said, "Hey, Frank-san?"
"Yeah?"
"Did you really mean all those things, about the reason why you helped me?"
"Sort of…" replied Frank.
"What do you mean 'sort of'?"
"Just what I said: Sort of"
"Man, you're impossible…" said Hana.
"Aren't I now?" said Frank.
"But anyway, do you really think mom can help these guys?" asked Hana.
"I'm sure, from what I gather, nothing's impossible with that woman." replied Frank.
"I guess so," then Frank and Hana started laughing for no apparent reason, but then they slowly stopped and put a solemn look on their faces.
"Frank-san, gomen, I didn't mean to make you fight so hard…" said Hana apologetically.
"It's nothing, I just fight because you needed my help," said Frank.
But Hana said "No, Frank, I have to become stronger, and not just to defeat that guy, that Nero, but also so I can become a good partner for you, we're in this together y'know? It's what real men do: stick up for their pals"
Frank laughed.
"What's so funny?" asked Hana, slightly annoyed.
"Stick up for their pals, huh? Well, I look forward to your progress, Hana, I just hope you keep up" said Frank mockingly.
"I'll show you, Frank; I'll become the best shaman in the world, just like my pop! You'll see!" then Hana asked, "By the way, how did you get your sword back? It was still at the Flame Inn, how did you get there fast enough to get it and come back to me when it's practically a couple of kilometers away?"
"Umm… no comment." said Frank. (sweatdrop)
Elsewhere…
"Dr. Cutter, why did you send our Axe Armors to attack the Diethels?" asked Telsat.
"Well, you see, Telsat, Hao Asakura is perhaps the only foe in this world that actually stands a chance against milady here, however, when I learned that there were those that could defeat the great Hao Asakura, I realized they were an even bigger threat to our mistress than he ever was, and so I thought we'd have to start somewhere, as the old saying goes: All future threats must be nipped at the bud."
Telsat thought about this, "You do have a point, but our primary concern should be with the current Asakura, Yoh, his wife Anna, and their son, Hana…"
The moment Telsat said "Hana" Stella, in her magma prison, boomed, "Do NOT say that name in my presence, it makes me vexed…" said Stella.
"Pardon, milady…" apologized Cutter, "Forgive me, Stella, I meant no disrespect" said Telsat.
Elsewhere still…
A young boy in China was watching his sister fight against a horde of who-knows-what?
As for the young girl, she was wearing a black qipao with yellow trims and with a Qilin (A/N: Chinese mythical animal, look it up on the internet) head imprinted in between her breasts, wearing kung-fu shoes and wielding a pair of Wind and fire wheels as weapons.
(A/N: Wind and Fire wheels- a type of Chinese weapon which looks like a pair of metal ring-shaped blades which come with a leather guard for gripping, not to be confused with chakrams, as chakrams are purely projectile type weapons like boomerangs, whereas wind and fire wheels are used for both melee and long-range)
The girl finished off her trial, as she looked up with a victorious smirk at her sitting brother up in a tree, reading "Sun Tzu's Art of War" with a calm face.
"C'mon, Jin! Don't be a coward, fight with me!" said the girl.
"Ying, I am beyond simply using brute force, all battles can easily be won with rapid analysis, accurate judgment and superb powers of concentration, I wouldn't need to even lift a sword" said Jin in a calm and cool voice.
"Jin, you're hopeless, father wanted us to continue the Tao Family legacy!" said Ying.
"But he never mentioned that I have to do it the way you and he do it, didn't he?" said Jin slyly.
"Like I said Jin: You're HOPELESS"
End of Chapter
A/N: Haha! Yes, I did it! I finished this chapter, woohoo, took me three days (or was it six?) to finish this thing, had to deal with my exams too, but now, I'm done, okay so I know this chap was a little chaotic, but I had to think this one on the fly, c'mon, cut me some slack!