Firestorm – Flame of Recca After War

War of the Ancient World

"Fuuko..." Raiha started. "Everyone..." He set his face on the people around him. He looked at each to the eye, in hopes that his next words would draw the attention he desires. "I am... not from this time as well."

Episode 14 - Raiha of the Jyushinshuu

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO KUREI?"

Mori smiled sarcastically at Kaoru. "Before I answer your question, I wanted to ask you something. How do you think I became a billionaire?" He paused for a bit, wanting the message to sink in. "I became a billionaire because I think like a billionaire... and billionaires make sure that they plug all the holes that could keep them from their goals. I would deceive, if necessary. Kill if it is the only way. I will do anything it takes to get what I want and protect it from those who would attempt to take it away. While Recca was attempting to summon Resshin, I had to make sure that the new dragon wouldn't be able to thwart my plans. So I purposefully planted my own cells to Kurei as I strike him."

Kaoru suddenly remembered. While Recca was busy summoning all the dragons, Tendou Jigoku was beating Kurei up. At that time, none would have noticed that Mori was planning something. On the front, he showed overconfidence. But his mind was playing games with his enemy. He wanted to play safe-too safe. It was indeed a mind by those who are adept in safeguarding their wealth.

"When Tendou Jigoku was defeated, I thought I would die as well... but the cells I planted in Kurei's body happened to be one with Kurei, and it didn't dissipate like the rest. When Kurei opened the time portal, I knew it was the trump card. The very moment you step into the soil of this time and place, I have started to orchestrate my return." Mori paused, watching the horror on Kaoru's face as he unveiled the story. "In my own capacity, I am unable to control Kurei. He is far too powerful for me in my current state, so I transmitted my presence to any evil madougu I could find within the area... and I found Bakuju-just the perfect madougu to use."

Kagerou looked at the hourglass. "Forty minutes... no sign of Kaoru."

"When Kurei wore the Bakuju, it was a perfect chance for me to take control of the body and use Bakuju's power to speed up my recovery. While Bakuju eat away Kurei's consciousness, I capitalized on it and started attacking his mind as well. We were successful, but it was a feat neither one of us could do alone. When I recovered enough of my strength by converting the cells in Kurei's body as my own, I summoned the Tendou Jigoku of this time, and it responded."

Mori pointed the sword at Kaoru once again and fired another projectile. Kaoru screamed anew and coughed out more blood. Kaoru breathed more heavily. Both his eyes are shut tight in pain. I can't die... I can't die just yet...

"At this time, the Tendou Jigoku is waiting for me at the portal from where Kurei and you entered. When I'm done with this town, we'll merge together and destroy the world I used to be in." Mori smiled sadistically, almost certain of his victory. "Kaoru Koganei, you have done so much to make things right. But at the end of the day, all your efforts will yield to nothing."

Kaoru struggled to free himself from the zombies. He had to live on... or else, everybody will die.

Darn it. If I knew that Kurei is already beyond saving from the very beginning, I shouldn't have given the Koukai Gyoku to Kagerou.

"KAORU KOGANEI, ON THIS DAY YOU WILL BREATHE YOUR LAST!" Mori yelled at the top of his lungs. He pointed the sword to Kaoru's heart. "Goodbye, Koganei." He paused and smiled. Then he drilled the sword into the boy.

"Hey miss..." Raiha stuttered. "I have a bad feeling..." Kagerou's heart began to beat faster. She glanced at the hourglass. "Forty nine minutes..."

Mori looked around. His stab failed once more. "Who goes there?" He demanded. The Ensui was broken. Apparently, as he sends it down to Kaoru's heart, it was shattered by an invisible force. Kaoru was surprised as well that he's still alive. I am saved? He too looked around, but there was none for him to extend his gratitude. Before he could open his mouth, the zombie pinning his arms suddenly fell down on its back. Its head flew out of the neck. Surprised, the zombie at Kaoru's feet attempted to defend itself, but it was immediately sliced in half.

"Run!"

A female voice?

"Run! Go now. You know where my son is. Go and save him."

Kaoru mustered his strength and pushed himself up the ground. He tried to stand, but his feet was shaking. He realized that he could not even stand up straight anymore. Exhaustion has taken its toll. Further, his injuries have crippled his movements. In front of him, she saw a part of his savior's body. She was holding a Kaigetsu. Her other body parts are invisible to the eye. Kaoru then understood. He had fought someone like this before. Oboro, he thought. "Thank you..." Kaoru whispered. Picking up the Kougan Anki, he ran away with what's left of his strength. He knew that the woman was no match for Mori, but the consequence of staying is dire. He had to run. At least, there is a slim chance of saving all that can be saved. It was a decision he had to make in a split second. The only hope he has, is that the mother can stall long enough for them to let Raiha escape. Raiha... you need to change the future... so that Kurei will never attempt to go back to past. Mori chased from behind but was cut down by the woman. "You will never touch my son."

Mori grinned at the opposition before him, regenerating his torn limbs to full health. "Heh heh... how amusing you are. A noble deed to protect your son."

Present Day...

Everyone is trying to hold back the growing number of zombies coming out of the portal. Without their madougus, stopping the assault a lot harder. "Recca, they don't seem to want to stop coming out." Domon whined. "Shut up. we've got no choice but to fight to the death. If we fail, everyone else will die." Recca responded. "I don't know what to do. I don't even know if we will live to see tomorrow."

"Fifty five minutes..." Kagerou announced. Time is running out. She stood up and folded her sleeves. As she looked at the little guy, a flashback came upon her.

"Mom?"

"Yeah?"

"You can open the time portal as well right?"

Kagerou nodded.

"Take this." Kaoru handed the Koukai Gyoku to Kagerou. "I will try to stop Kurei from destroying the village. Take Raiha into safety. I will meet you in one hour. If you didn't see me come, it means I failed to stop him. Consider it that I was a casualty of war. Please use the madougu to remove Raiha's memory of me and what had happened here. Send him to where you sent Recca and Kurei. That way, he can start anew. His past is not as important as his future. I want to give him a good life. I want him not to share the same fate of the Hokage clan... and I want him to save that time from the mistakes Kurei did."

"But... if I erase his memory, then-"

"you will also have your memory of me erased." Kaoru injected. "Please, mom... please..." Kagerou let loose a sigh. She didn't have much choice as well. If she had, she would have objected. "Okay... I will do as you say."

Kagerou glanced at the hourglass once again. "One hour and ten seconds," she sighed. "Raiha. It's time." Kagerou raised both her hands and began chanting a spell. From mid-air, a hole begins to form. From the surface of the hole, a vortex began to spin. It started growing larger... until it formed the time portal she conjured to save Recca. Just as she completed opening the portal, Kaoru came into the house and fell to the ground, panting.

"KAORU! YOU'RE-"

"I'm fine." Kaoru affirmed as he tried to get up to the vertical position. He knew in his mind that he's not fine. But there's not much time left. "Raiha..." Kaoru looked into the eye of the boy. "Kurei made a terrible mistake. He opened a portal into your time, and because of that... the entire world hangs in the balance." Kaoru slowly removed the handkerchief tied around his wrist. It was the same one Kurei used to bind up his wounds when he attempted suicide. Kaoru started writing on the handkerchief with his blood. "Do not seek revenge."

He looked at Raiha once more and folded the thing he wrote on. "Raiha... when you meet Kurei in where you are going... keep a close eye on him and never leave him."

"BUT HE JUST KILLED MY DAD! WHY WOULD I WANT TO HELP HIM?"

"The guy who killed your dad was not Kurei. Kurei is already dead and gone." Kaoru paused, breaking a tear. He had failed to save one more life. Kurei perished thanks to his vengeance. When the Hokage clan intended to murder him, they had a good reason if hindsight is given. Kurei threw the entire world into this mess. If he didn't exist, then nobody would do it. "The enemy possessed his body. It was the enemy that destroyed the village, not Kurei."

"BUT..."

"Raiha... please... trust me on this." Kaoru wiped away the blood on his chest and the scars from Raiha's lightning bolt began to show. "Raiha... can you do this for me, as a compensation for what you did to me?" Raiha was silent. The bargain was something he cannot refuse. He took the handkerchief from Kaoru and placed it in his pocket. "Okay... I will do what you say."

"Show it to Kurei. Perhaps, if he recognizes a double of the handkerchief he used to bind my wounds, he will be convinced." Kaoru paused for a moment. Then he continued "Raiha... you mustn't die." Kaoru started sobbing. This will be the last time he'll see Raiha. The boy who travelled with him for the past few days had been the one he loved like a younger brother. He had never been a big brother to anyone else before. Never, until he met Raiha. In his younger years, Raiha had his own share of effort in taking care of him. He remembered how Raiha reasoned with Neon to spare his life when he betrayed Kurei. In this time, he returned the favor. He held the little boy's head next to his and hugged him with all his might.

"Kaoru... we don't have much time."

Kaoru helped Raiha up. Kagerou pointed the Koukai Gyoku to Raiha. Before she uses the madougu, she gave Kaoru a look of her own. "After I use this, everything else will be up to you." Kaoru nodded. "I have one thing to ask. Why don't you go with him and be the one to save Kurei yourself?" Kaoru smiled. Kagerou has made a wonderful point. He could save his life and Raiha's. Kagerou is immortal anyway. She won't die until four hundred years later, after Rasen lifts the curse. "I want to protect my present friends and the world in the other end of the time portal Kurei opened. If I jump in with Raiha, I will forever bear the guilt of knowing that they will all be consumed. I will fight... and even if I have to pay with my life, I will gladly give it away for the sake of my friends on the other side of the portal." Kagerou smiled in return. "Your answer is fitting with that cross around your neck." "I am a Christian. I always try my best to live a life consistent to what my God wants me to do."

"Heh... heh... God, how I wish I could meet him." Kagerou responded, switching her focus to Raiha. "I have a lot of questions to ask him when I do."

A bright flash of light bloomed in the house. Kagerou erased Raiha's memory of Kaoru. Her memory was erased as well in the process. When the light stops shining, Kaoru grabbed Raiha and threw him upwards. He then grabs the Koukai Gyoku from Kagerou, who seemed clueless of what had just happened. It worked. "Kagerou, don't forget to close that portal you opened." With that, Kaoru immediately left.

Kagerou was surprised at where she is. Morever, a stranger knew her! How did this guy know my name? She lifted her hands and closed the portal. "What's happening here?"

Present Day...

Raiha stares at the handkerchief he held for a long time. A trail of blood can still be seen from it. "Do not seek revenge." Tears rolled down his eyes, his voice shaking. He started sobbing as memories of the past started to come together. "What's the matter?" Fuuko was curious on Raiha's condition. He had been acting weird. Now, she's about to get her answer.

"Everyone... the Kaoru who went back in time with Kurei in this portal is the same Kaoru who saved my life many times in my younger years."

"WHAAAAATTTT?" Everyone around Raiha was dumbfounded after hearing what he has to say. Raiha had met Kaoru in his youth?

"He gave me this handkerchief with words written with his blood." Raiha showed it to all around him. Do not seek revenge. Recca examined it. He took a close look at it and turned the cloth back and forth. "Raiha is telling the truth. This is Koganei's handkerchief... and the writing is his own." "Why was it written in blood?" Tokiya asked. "When Kaoru wrote this, he was severely injured. He said that the enemy possessed Kurei's body and that Kurei is already dead. He gave this handkerchief to me and told-"

"YOU'RE CRAZY!" Recca interjected. "You're saying Kurei is already dead and Kaoru is next in line?" Raiha was silent. Of those around, he was the only one who knew the genuine information. "Kaoru is still alive when I was sent to this time. As for Kurei, Kaoru was the one who told me about his fate. I can only take it by face value."

"Everyone," Fuuko yelled. "We have to get into the portal and help Kaoru."

"Don't." Raiha warned. "At the other side is Tendou Jigoku. You're powerless against him with your madougus. Now that you don't even have them in your possession, you will surely die."

"But-"

"Kaoru can stop him." Raiha reasoned. "He was holding the same madougu as Rasen when we parted ways. He must've used it to erase my memories. He could also be using it against Tendou Jigoku anytime soon." Raiha paused. Everyone around him was silent. He hopes to let his message sink in. "I trust Kaoru. He can make things right again. All we have to do is to stand our ground until he wins."

Kaoru... I'm sorry. Kurei never really had the chance to read what you wrote. It's too late...

198X, Japan...

From outside Tsuki no Miya, a portal opened. A young Raiha fell down from it. As he composed himself, he looked at the great structure before him. He inserted his hand into his pocket and drew out the handkerchief Kaoru gave him. "I wonder what this is..." He unfolds the cloth and read the words... "Do not seek revenge." He scraches his head, not knowing where or how it came into his pocket. As he shifted his focus from the cloth to the house, a young boy exits from the door.

"Master Kurei!" shouted one of the bodyguards.

"Kurei huh?" Raiha thought to himself. "I've heard of that name before. Something tells me I need to go talk to him." Raiha jumped in from where he was. He ran to Kurei who saw him coming from afar. It was a story anew. A friendship that would grow until even after the two parted ways. Raiha will grow to be a loyal bodyguard of Kurei. When Kurei organized the Jyushinshuu, he was the first to volunteer... because he knew for a fact that Kurei is an important person who was vital in shaping his life before he came into this time. He couldn't recall everything. Only bits and pieces of the memory put together. Their friendship developed... and Kurei has shown genuine trust and respect for him. For Raiha, it was a new beginning. When all bitter memories are buried in the past, there the wheel of life spins anew.

End of Episode 14.

Author's note: Next chapter is Kaoru vs Tendou Jigoku. Don't miss it! Please R & R :)