Chapter 15: Sharp edge
10:09 AM (Japan Time), Wednesday June the 22nd…
"… There's nothing out of place… No bug and no error… The system is working fine, too."
"Fine. Wrap up the patrol."
"O. K., Webmaster! Today I feel a bit ironic."
"Very original. Well. As long as it's only "a bit"…"
Omega was walking through a Cyber World somewhere: the ground was made of metallic squares and there was a locked gateway further in labeled "MAIN PLAZA"; another locked gateway to the south was labeled "EXIT #4".
There was a hologram projector built in the middle of the Cyber World which projected a hologram of Uranus.
"Ready?" A hushed voice asked behind the "EXIT #4" gateway.
"Ready!" Four voices confirmed.
"What the…? Someone found the entrance?" Vadous cursed.
"Weird. And we did camouflage it as an abandoned store!"
"The Rama guys…? Or it's Zoan Gate Man again?"
"No. Those voices ring a bell somewhere."
There was a sudden explosion and the gateway was blown up: Omega quickly drew the O – Saber as alarms rang out.
"Warning. Warning. Code A. Code A. Ship personnel please report to the command bridge. Code A. Code A." An auto-voice rang out.
"Found ya! Rock Man!" Five voices exclaimed.
"Five of them… Couldn't be… Those guys…?"
"We are the mighty Cut Man Brothers!"
Jirou, Saburou, Shirou, Gorou and Rokurou ran inside and made their group pose: they freezed on the spot as Omega had his saber ready on his right hand.
"Y-you're…! One of the mysterious Navis…!" Jirou gasped.
"You guys… You were looking for Rock Man?" Omega questioned.
"Obviously!" Saburou replied.
"That guy did…" Shirou began.
"… in a cheating manner…" Gorou continued.
"… delete Ani – chan!" Rokurou finished.
"Did you know what your Ani – chan was gonna do? Blow up a dam, flood a valley and kill all who were there. So?" Omega grumbled.
"Wha~t?" They yelled in disbelief.
"Wait a minute! Weren't you guys deleted two years ago when you worked for Neo Gospel?"
"What "Neo" Gospel?" Jiirou asked.
"Guess those were copies, then…" Omega lifted his eyebrows.
"E~h?" They uttered in disbelief.
"Listen: you have two choices."
"What?" They gasped.
"One: go back. Two: be slaughtered here and now." Omega announced as he took one step forward.
They ran off through the way they'd come in through, screaming, and Shadow Man popped his head inside.
"Good morning. I saw the Non Elegant Troupe of Fun and Comedy Make Their Graceful Retreat." He announced, amused.
"Huff. Shadow Man. Did they run off?" Omega asked.
"Yeah. Almost like Michelangelo was about to have them as breakfast, even..." Shadow Man chuckled.
"Guess some rumors must've circulated of our occasional use of this store even though we always are very discrete. What a blow to the HQ's security." Vadous grumbled.
"Yeah. Maybe we'll have to cut off most entrances and leave just one or two in hardly accessible spots."
"Maybe. Anyway… I'm off. See you around, Oh Blonde Shining Knight Of Grace And Pace." Shadow Man shrugged.
"And tell those guys that I'll slaughter them if they show up here again by blowing up the door!" Omega called out.
"My pleasure. I shall Inflict Fear Beyond Imagination."
He came out while Omega headed over to the door and removed it from the frame to then bring in a replacement one: laser energy fields came up on both sides of it and he sighed.
"This should keep any attackers at bay. Just what have those five guys doing ever since December 2004, anyway?"
"I guess they must've plotted or worked as mercenaries."
"I like Shadow Man's idea, though. Those guys need Michelangelo to chase after them: I'm sure it'll make them think it thrice before daring to show up here again." Omega grumbled with obvious annoyance.
"Yeah. It can't be helped! We've gotta keep the HQ secure, after all! Especially from Twilight and his cronies!"
"Obviously enough! I'm off to sealing up all but Entrance #0!"
"I did check the outer perimeter but insofar the gateman of hell and his cronies aren't around." Vadous reported.
"Fine. Guess he's scared to ever come here and get eaten. Hmpf."
"Yeah. Fitting for such cowards… Let's not lower the guard!"
10:24 AM (Japan Time)…
"Too easy! Easy money indeed!"
Ancient was loading some wooden crates into a green non-descript van parked inside of a garage somewhere: he looked amused.
The crates had no label but were slight large as if to indicate they held something large inside of them.
"Sabotaging the security systems to get inside of this confiscated weaponry warehouse was easy. Now we can sell these and make a good business out of them." He muttered.
"The Net Saviors will have to walk around with SWAT armor, even, and this will become like Mexico City." Ronin Man grinned.
Ancient's Link PET beeped and he checked it.
"An urgent call from Priest – sama… Hello?"
"Ancient. What do you think you're doing?" Priest questioned.
"I am sorry?" He feigned misunderstanding.
"Didn't Annihilator Man bring orders to go investigate that sect named "The Last Summer"? I didn't say anything about selling weapons to terrorists. And Present didn't, either, nor did any other member. So? Will you explain that?" Priest questioned with a hint of annoyance.
"Eh… I thought that…!"
"You "thought". While I allow free thought… I don't allow for the members to go out of bounds. Ancient. I hired you to look into sects and similar organizations given how you were part of one: I didn't hire you to steal weapons from a police warehouse." Priest was getting annoyed.
"Eh… That is…" He trailed off.
"Last chance: go investigate those guys ASAP or you get fired. Say bye to that salary and to the Annihilator Chip. Which one?" Priest challenged.
"Eh… Crap. Tight spot…!" He muttered.
"You have 180 seconds starting NOW. If there's no reply then I'll consider it as "no". You have been warned!"
He fell silent and Ancient began to sweat in nervousness while looking around: his hands shook and he looked unable to decide anything.
"130 seconds left." Priest warned.
"Ancient – sama…!" Ronin Man called out.
"Damn…! But… This business would make me win more than I usually get so… I'd lose the power bonus if I did that…!"
"105 seconds."
"But they used me as a mere investigator…!"
"Hum. It certainly was not a job fitted for us…" Ronin Man muttered.
"80 seconds."
"… Grah! I can't decide which is better: having a lot of money or losing the Annihilator Chip…! I guess the second is nothing compared to the gains I'd get with the first one…!" Ancient muttered.
"50 seconds."
"Yeah…! Besides… We weren't even told the emplacement of the HQ, so it's no big deal." Ronin Man shrugged.
"25 seconds."
"I decide! I follow my road!" Ancient yelled.
"Well then… Annihilator Man will be there to pick the Chip. Go ahead and do whatever you want. Your usefulness is over." Priest shrugged.
"Hmpf! You people are just one of multiple parties I used to my personal profit!" Ancient boasted.
"And you no longer have the codename "Ancient". You keep on being your civilian ID: Torinaka Eyuda." Priest added.
"Hmpf!" Ronin Man made a smug smile.
Some "Dimensional Converters" emerged inside of the room: a "Dimensional Area" formed and Annihilator Man materialized.
"Hand over the Annihilator Chip and here you have a new Link PET: the other has compromising data." He ordered.
Ronin Man switched Link PETs: the new one had just the Kanji for ronin written in black against a white background, and its colors were blue and black; Torinaka gave Annihilator Man the Chip and picked the Link PET.
"Good. Farewell." Annihilator Man calmly announced.
He dematerialized and retrieved the "Dimensional Converters" along the way: Torinaka shrugged.
"Whatever. I'll make a fortune out of this!" He muttered.
"I wonder about that." A familiar voice rang out.
He gasped and turned around: the shutter had been lifted open by a small percentage and Dark Miyabi was standing in front of it while having his arms crossed.
"Miyabi! You lowlife!" Torinaka cursed.
"Hmpf. So you got fired. I'm not surprised. You no longer hold any leads to Rama but you nevertheless can be convicted of stealing police-confiscated weapons. And being caught red-handed. You lousy 3rd rate thief."
"What! Lousy, 3rd rate! Me! How dare you! You'll pay for this affront, Miyabi! Showdown! Ra~h!"
Torinaka tried to punch Miyabi on the face but he calmly stepped to the left and he hit the shutter instead; Miyabi suddenly gripped his left arm and used a judo technique to throw him into the ground: he then picked a wooden plank and hit him behind the head with it to knock him out.
"Good. Shadow Man. Take care of the rest: the police are on their way here to pick this guy up." Miyabi commanded.
"Delighted. Fool Who Carved His Own Downfall Due To Greed And Arrogance… One less fool to worry about, anyway!"
11:06 AM (Japan Time)…
"… We get called here and I know who's called us."
"Yeah. It was obvious!"
Netto walked into a concrete pier within the Densan City Harbor and found Present waiting there: he'd removed his coat to reveal a sleeveless gray shirt underneath it: he had his arms crossed and a Duel Stage was set in front of him in the ground.
"Present." He drily muttered.
"Indeed." He merely replied.
"Axe Man." Rock Man icily hissed.
"Hmpf." Axe Man made a smug smile.
"We're standing by." Blood Shadow whispered.
"If that guy tries anything funny then we butt in." Sigma added.
"I'm counting on you guys. Plug In! Rock Man EXE, Transmission!"
Rock Ma entered the arena while Axe Man lifted his weapon and let the edge of it shine in the light.
"I've been waiting for this moment." He announced.
"Does Priest really except you to win or he's expecting you to collect useful combat data?" Rock Man calmly questioned.
"Hmpf. Who knows?"
"Obviously: he ordered the second thing. I think he'd rather have Annihilator Man face me."
"Showdown!" Both announced.
"My normal HP is 1550! If I were to go full mode then they climb up to 3100! Come!" Axe Man announced.
"I'm not going to be intimated so easily."
"Soul Unison, Fire Soul! Slot In!"
"Double Fire Arm!"
Rock Man aimed for the face and Axe Man, out of instinct, had to use his left hand to block it: Rock Man jumped atop his right shoulder and focused his Fire Arms' output into the axe's handle: it melted so the axe fell into the ground and got stuck there: Rock Man quickly aimed for the upper torso next before jumping away.
"I barely talk and I get 250 HP damage… And my main weapon has been destroyed…! Warrior's Blade!" Axe Man grumbled.
He took out a tournament sword along with an octagonal metallic shield and charged towards Rock Man while aiming the blade for his neck: Rock Man crouched and jumped into the air while aiming for him.
"Battle Chip, Hell's Burner! Double Slot In!" Netto announced.
Rock Man quickly aimed to both the front and the back while bathing Axe Man with his overpowered flames: Axe Man roared and tried to jump and hit Rock Man with the sword but he blocked it.
"Shirahadori." He announced.
"Shit. Those two attacks drained close to 500 HP off me… I've lost 750 HP and this guy is unhurt!" Axe Man growled.
"Axe Man! Composure. Coolness." Present commanded.
"Roger, sir! Warrior's Punches!"
Axe Man tried to use his bare armored fists to hit Rock Man but only hit a Straw Doll which then countered with an attack of its own; Axe Man turned around and tried hitting the real one; a chibi doll showed up and four shuriken got embed on his back: he roared and madly swung his fists.
"A combo…! I've been drained of over 1080 HP in barely two minutes and I haven't gotten to hit him!" Axe Man cursed.
"Damn. They've changed their strategy! They incite you to attack and counterattack instead!"
"What!"
"And my Folder is either Sword – Type or Breaker – Type! Bothersome meddling guy!" Present was losing his coolness, too.
"That sounds more like the Darkloids." Netto shrugged.
Axe Man ran towards Rock Man who calmly waited for him while folding his arms: an explosion happened beneath his feet and it made him fall into the ground in face-up position.
"Grah! Stealth Mine…! 1400 HP drained…! Only 150 left in normal mode…! Present – sama!" He growled.
"Che. It can't be helped. Annihilator Chip, Slot In!"
Axe Man was surrounded by the familiar white glow and Annihilator Man's chuckle rang out.
"Good job, Rock Man! However! I'll show this guy's true power from now onwards! Blade Dance!" Annihilator Man proclaimed.
Eight swords materialized around Axe Man and then shot forward: Rock Man calmly jumped forward as they landed around the spot where he'd been at a second ago and then ran towards the enemy.
"Battle Chip, Shooting Star Shower! Triple Slot In!"
"What!" Annihilator Man gasped.
Rock Man drew the rod and countless incandescent shooting stars bombarded the ground around Axe Man with all of them forcing him to shield himself: Rock Man wasted no time on turning his left forearm into the Fire Arm, jumping into Axe Man, and pressing the muzzle against the armor: the intense heat began to melt some of it away.
"Guo~h!" Annihilator Man roared.
Rock Man kept on attacking and didn't mind the explosions ringing out: the terrain began to be filled with craters and smoke as Rock Man didn't give Axe Man any breaks: he then jumped away as Axe Man collapsed into his knees from the high damage.
"This attack's base power is 80 per Battle Chip: each Battle Chip shoots five attacks, so it actually clocks at 240. 240 per 3 make 720. Add the 25% bonus of the Fire Soul and you'll get an extra 180. Total damage: 900. And the Fire Arm summed up 150, so… 1050 HP of damage for you. You've lost close to 2500 HP by now and you've got around 600 left." Netto made some calculations aloud.
"1050 HP…! And that's coming from a Soul Unison at a lower power than the Omega Soul…!" Present gasped.
"It's not "lower power": the Omega Soul combines high-attack techniques in continuous attacks and sums up quickly. But Flame – Attribute Battle Chips with the Fire Soul can turn into deadly techniques, too. I've gone over countless forms of battling over these 4 years and something ever since I got my first "Soul Unison"..." Rock Man calmly exposed.
"I should've expected it…!" Annihilator Man growled.
"Battle Chip, Air Hockey! Slot In!"
"Take that!"
The Air Hockey began to bounce against the walls of the Duel Arena and hit the still debilitated Axe Man several times, around six in total, before deleting itself.
"You're Sword – Type and you get 2X damage from Breaker Type Battle Chips, so… Each hit is 40 per 2… 80. 80 per 6… 480 HP drained, summed to the 2500 you've lost insofar… You've lost close to 3000 HP and you only have 100 HP left by now." Netto calculated.
"That's… impossible…!" Present cursed.
"There's nothing "impossible": that's skill." Rock Man replied.
"Why, you…!" Annihilator Man hissed.
Axe Man stood up and ran towards Rock Man while roaring but Rock Man calmly aimed his Fire Arms at him.
"The End. Double Fire Arm!"
The blasts of fire hit him and Axe Man roared before he was logged out and Rock Man cancelled the Fire Soul.
"So!" Netto grinned.
"Shit." Present scoffed.
He picked his coat and jumped into a motor boat parked next to the pier; it shot towards the harbor's entry as Netto picked up the Duel Stage.
"…"And then there were none"… This is starting to sound like that novel's title, even." Netto muttered with a hint of sarcasm.
"Mwah, hah, hah! Sherlock Hikari Jr. Strikes Back!" Sigma chuckled.
"Jeez Stop making puns." Blood Shadow sighed.
"O. K. Let's go make a report 'bout this."
"Sure. And then let's go wander around for a while." Rock Man suggested.
"Mwah, hah, hah… I'll treat ya to a ride in the rollercoaster!" Sigma joked.
"Sure." Rock Man lifted one eyebrow.
"Rock Man! Don't believe everything he says!" Blood Shadow groaned.
"OH YEAH! LET ZA TIME HIT ZA TOWER!"
Cloud Man's hologram formed in front of Netto while making his classical smug smile and looking like he wanted to taunt.
"I gotta say something! LET ZA AXE HIT ZA WOOD!"
"You're not telling me you're incentivizing the guy to go after Wood Man next, right?" Blood Shadow questioned with some skepticism.
"Nature VS Man!" Sigma made up a stupid motto.
"You be quiet." Rock Man sighed.
"What, Rock Man… Your good mood got blown away?"
"By the wind? Yeah. So be quiet for a while and do us a favor." He rolled his eyes, and sighed.
"Rock Man! Freeze Man – sama says he wanted to turn you into snow powder back when your first meeting!"
"Well. That's true. My battle technique was lame, my Battle Chips were weak and I wasn't trying to draw up any plan." He shrugged.
"So you admit you weren't THAT good?"
"I never said I was invincible. Unlike someone else." He glanced at Netto with a slightly annoyed glare.
"Oi, oi… Don't look at me like that, Rock Man!"
"You're so dry, really! Dry Man controls ya~?" Cloud Mam joked.
"Who knows? Maybe Cosmo Man would know the answer."
"Oho? Interesting stuff happened, Bloody Shadowy!"
"What now." Blood Shadow complained.
"I heard the Cut Man Brothers got into the HQ and Commander Omega made them run off."
"So it was like Search Man said: the ones involved in the "Neo Gospel Summer" were copies."
"Truly!" Cloud Man confirmed.
"Let's go back home already. I can't stand this jerk."
"Next time… I'll be the one to frighten Higure Yamitarou!"
"Sure, sure." Blood Shadow shrugged.
"So! You were able to defy the Grim Reaper, brats?" Twilight's voice sneered through Cloud Man.
"Yeah. How about you do the same… Using muscle?" Netto taunted.
"Wha~t? Are you trying to say I'm WEAK? Damn them all!" He growled.
"Gotcha. You're easier to taunt than a bear." Rock Man added.
"A bear! Me! Don't put me in the same league as those things!"
"Cosmo Man was bragging about it the other day. That your'e invincible because you're as strong as a bear." Blood Shadow smirked.
"What! Golden Man! Explain yourself, you lowlife!"
"T-that's… I was merely trying to scare off some thugs who didn't recognize your authority within the Secret Empire, sir!" Cosmo Man gulped and admitted.
"You actually said that? Sheesh!" Freeze Man grumbled.
"I thought you were smarter than that. Hmpf." Yamato Man fumed.
"Look who talks!" Cosmo Man growled back.
"SILENCE!" Twilight roared.
Everyone shut up while a growl could be heard over the line; Cloud Man's face was filled with angst as if he expected to be scolded too; the growl turned into a hiss of anger and Cloud Man's face turned paler; if he could sweat, he'd probably be doing that right now.
"It's useless to waste my energies here! I must save them up for the next battle against kyoudai… Consider yourselves lucky! Mutant Man! Bird Man! Golden Man! Spear Man!" He threatened.
None dared to argue back; hurried footsteps rang out followed by a door violently opening and closing.
"Metto~?" Several Mettols' voices rang out.
"So? Did you find anything USEFUL?" Freeze Man hissed.
"Wha! Huh, well, yeah… Some wannabes trying to steal money from our businesses… They got beaten up so I guess they won't try again…" Zoan Gate Man nervously reported back.
Cloud Man sighed in relief and vanished along with the voices so Netto and the others shrugged as if it'd been nothing.
"Meh! Ignore that pathetic idiot. We've got more important stuff to do!"
"That's the spirit, Netto – kun! Let's think of presents for the party!"