Pinkshuchan: LALIHO! It's Pinkshuchan! Last chapter, Miyagi the blacksmith/ weapon's master was introduced and Akihiko and Hiroki had obtained the metal ore that never breaks. However, the moment they left the labyrinth, they had once again bumped into Shinoda. What will happen now that he's here? Will Akihiko beat him this time? Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!

Chapter 9

Battle of Sound

Shinoda stood before them with a smirk on his face and the whip in his hands. How he managed to find them was truly a mystery. Even so, Akihiko knew that they shouldn't let their guard down. No doubt the Damonen Knight had searched for them to even the score and to take Hiroki back. This could not happen.

"I admit that I never thought that you would get this far Prince Akihiko," Shinoda continued, "The fact that you have succeeded to obtain the flame that never goes out and the metal ore that never breaks means that you have grown stronger indeed. I am curious as to how you can stand on your own against me without anyone to help you."

Hiroki stood closer to Akihiko and looked up at him in worry. "Don't do it Akihiko," he whispered, "I can see it in his eyes. He has some sort of trick up his sleeve. If you're not careful, you may just lose your life."

But Akihiko just smirked at him. "You have nothing to worry about," he replied, "When I first fought him, I didn't know what skills he had. Now that I know he's one of the Five Damonen Knights, I know what I'm up against. Trust me! I know I can win!"

Although the silver haired prince said that, it did not help Hiroki. Yes, Shinoda was one of the Five Damonen Knights. But even so, could Akihiko stand a chance against him?

Akihiko walked over to Shinoda. "Alright Shinoda," he agreed, "I won't lose!"

Shinoda's smirk grew bigger. "Alright," he replied, "But to make things truly fair, this is a one-on-one battle. In other words, your allies can't help you this time." He took out another item and threw it high before it exploded. It was like last time when the item created an invisible barrier to stop demons. But could it really stop humans?

Hiroki began charging at the barrier regardless of Miyagi's attempts to try to stop him. But like last time when he was mostly demon than human, it pushed him back. Hiroki fell to the ground. Miyagi ran over to him.

"Are you alright Hiroki?" he asked in concern.

The cinnamon haired man glared at the barrier and growled. "Damn that hunter!" he roared; a lion's roar following afterwards, causing Miyagi to jump in shock.

"What?" said Miyagi, "You roared like a lion! And what does that Damonen hunter want with your friend?"

"It's not Akihiko he truly wants," Hiroki replied, "To Shinoda, Akihiko is nothing more than an obstacle for what he truly wants. He's after me."

"But why?"

"It's hard to explain. You probably won't believe me if I tell you. But I can't tell you now; Akihiko is in danger!"

Hiroki tried to stand up and fight the barrier again, but Miyagi held him back. "We mustn't, Hiroki!" he told him, "That is a powerful barrier. It won't let anything in. This barrier will stay up until the battle is done."

"But Akihiko-!"

Miyagi shook his head. "All we can do is hope that he survives."

Hiroki refused to take that offer. But what else could he do? It was like Miyagi said; the barrier was too powerful for them to break. All they could do is watch and hope that Akihiko makes it out alive. He stared at them with worry in his red eyes. "Akihiko," he whispered in pain.

Both Damonen born stood in a fighting stance with their weapons; Shinoda with his whip and Akihiko with his staff. Not long after did the fight begin with Shinoda making the first move. Akihiko used his staff to block any attacks the whip made, but would occasionally try to dodge any he felt he couldn't block. Same thing with Shinoda whenever Akihiko made an attack. Both had cuts and bruises from all their attacks. They were tied.

Shinoda chuckled. "It seems you have grown stronger since we last met. I am impressed. However, I'm afraid that it will take a lot more than that to beat me. As you know, residents of Damonen has two types of powers; the ability to summon demons, and another differs on the person. What is mine, you ask?" He took a deep breath before he let out a big scream that let out a sonic boom. Akihiko fell backwards the moment the sonic boom hit him. His left shoulder hit hard on a rock, dislocating it. Hiroki and Miyagi would've also fallen backwards if not for the barrier. Even so, they still had to cover their ears from how loud the scream was.

Once he had finished his attack, Shinoda looked at Akihiko and laughed. "It's like I said; you don't stand a chance against me or any other Damonen Knight out there. You might as well surrender now. You'll still be killed, but at least your death will quick and painless."

Akihiko glared at Shinoda. "Never," he responded, "I will not give in to Damonen," He began standing up again, though it proved difficult with the damage already on him. "Dead or alive, I will fight for my freedom. AND NO ONE IS GONNA STOP ME!"

"We'll see about that!" Shinoda raised his whip and struck at Akihiko, only for the latter to block with his staff using one arm. It wasn't as effective though, as without having both arms to hold it, the staff was flimsy in his grasp. Shinoda easily managed to knock it out and strike him on the chest, receiving a groan of agony from the silver haired man.

"Akihiko!" Hiroki cried out. He felt so useless. Akihiko was suffering, fighting for what he believed in, and Hiroki was unable to do anything to help him. He could only sit there in pain. His eyes stung, wanting to produce tears but couldn't let it out. As for Miyagi, he stared at Hiroki before looking back at Akihiko. He had a gut feeling that the silver haired man wasn't going to go down that easily. He was strong; he just needed to properly release that strength.

"And now," Shinoda continued, "I shall finish you off!" He let out another scream, releasing another sonic boom. Akihiko felt like his entire body could be torn apart. He fell to the ground. But he couldn't give up. He knew he could win. He pushed his body hard enough to fight against the sonic boom. He struggled to succeed, but he was stubborn enough to fight until the very end.

Slowly, Akihiko pushed himself to stand back up. With a long struggle, he managed to get back up on his own two feet. His victory depended on one attack. It was time for him to show Shinoda what his own abilities could do. He held his good arm out and his hand glowed violet with static surrounding it. He let out a few lightning bolts. He just hoped they were strong enough to stop Shinoda's sonic boom and defeat him.

The bolts floated in thin air and pushed against the sonic boom. Back and forth they pushed against each other. Everyone's heartbeats were pounding in their chests. Which will be stronger and cancel the other out? Will Akihiko turn things around?

A lilac purple glow began to form on the lightning bolts and the sonic boom. It grew and grew until it was so bright, it was impossible to see anything. Hiroki and Miyagi covered their eyes from their safe distance. What had happened?

The glow faded. They looked over at the victor with widened eyes. He walked to the loser of the battle in great satisfaction. This was the end.

Akihiko had won.

He held his staff in one hand, helping him keep his balance as he stood before Shinoda, who knelt on the ground with almost as much injuries as Akihiko. He only needed to make one more blow on the hunter before killing him for good. He raised his arm and was about to use another lightning bolt.

"That is enough!"

Akihiko was pushed back from a mysterious force. A well dressed man stood there, helping Shinoda up by lending him his shoulder. The silver haired man knew who that man was.

"Tanaka," he spoke up, "A good friend yet a loyal servant to the royalty of Damonen."

"I am not here to fight you Akihiko," Tanaka replied, "I am only here to retrieve Master Shinoda and take him to a healer. Although he lost to you, he is still a loyal Damonen Knight. Who knows what may happen to all of Elementar if he was to die right here."

Akihiko was unsure of what to do. The injured man before him was the man that not only almost succeeded in killing him, he also turned all of Feuern's citizens into demons to be used against the silver haired man, but they may also be dead with Hiroki being the only survivor. However, even Hiroki was no longer truly human. As an act of vengeance, he could kill Shinoda right there.

And yet he was afraid. Tanaka himself looked worried about what would happen if Akihiko killed Shinoda. Although despicable, Shinoda was still a Damonen Knight. The roles of the Five Damonen Knights were to protect Elementar should anything involving the demons happen. What would happen to Elementar itself should any Damonen Knight fall now.

He sighed and turned away. "I'm not letting him live because I want him to," he told the older man, "I just don't want to see anything happen to Elementar."

Tanaka gave a sincere smile. "I thank you Prince Akihiko." Without another word, Tanaka disappeared with Shinoda. Akihiko, sapped out all his energy, fell to the ground. With the battle done, Hiroki assumed that the barrier was gone and ran to his friend's aid like the latter did for him, with Miyagi following behind.

"Akihiko!" the cinnamon haired man cried out. His worry had now fully consumed him. Nothing else mattered; he just hoped that Akihiko was okay.

"We shouldn't stay here any longer," Miyagi warned them, "Demons could be coming for us whether we expect them or not. We should take him back to town to rest."

And so, Hiroki and Miyagi carried Akihiko back to the town and in Miyagi's blacksmith workshop. Once they were inside, they carried him to the back bedroom and laid him down. Akihiko couldn't believe how weak he felt at this moment. He had to assure them that he was fine. But his wounds said otherwise. He was lucky to be able to survive the fight and win against Shinoda. But there was no way he was going to be able to continue until all his wounds were gone.

"I can keep going," Akihiko kept trying to tell them, "I'm not going to let these wounds stop me."

"Face it Akihiko," Hiroki replied, "You can't even stand properly. We will continue on when your wounds have healed. Shinoda was a difficult opponent for you. You were lucky this fight, but if he or any other Damonen Knight were to find you…" He couldn't continue. The thought was too painful.

Miyagi, who had been quiet the whole time, finally spoke up. "I can only understand a little bit of what's going on," he explained honestly, "Akihiko is a prince of Damonen, right? And he is obtaining his freedom. While I know that Damonen law is strict, am I to assume that even a prince will be sentenced to death if against Damonen's laws?"

"I will assume so," said Hiroki, "Even though Shinoda was originally after me, considering I was the only one of the test subjects to change not as a demon, but as a half demon, the moment he knew about Akihiko and the fact that he was a prince, he wasn't hesitant to kill him."

"Nevertheless, Akihiko is still alive and able to continue to fight for his freedom."

Everyone turned their heads to see the infamous Aikawa standing there with a smile on her face. Akihiko knew it; she was the one in the guise of the old woman that lead them to the Metal Mine.

"Congratulations Akihiko," she continued, clapping her hands, "Not only have you obtained two of the five items and gained alliance with not only the Lion Child but also the Weapon's Master, you have also defeated one of the Five Damonen Knights. Then again, I knew you could do it."

Akihiko sat up and stared at the red haired woman. "Aikawa, the way you speak, it's as if you know everything that's going to happen to me."

"Do I?" she asked, "I never thought so."

"If that's the case, does that mean you know where all the items are and who my future allies are going to be?"

"Possibly."

"So then you can tell me who my next ally is and where I can find them. Along the way I can obtain the items."

Aikawa giggled. "You really want to know? Alright, I guess I'll tell you." Your next ally is…" Akihiko leaned forward to listen. "…Your next ally."

He felt duped. "Thanks for nothing," he growled as he crossed his arms.

She looked at him with an apologetic look. "I'm sorry Akihiko, but I honestly can't tell you who your next allies are; not because I don't know, but because it would ruin the entire point of the alliances. Your alliances, if I tell you, will feel more forced. You'll have to figure out who will be next on your own. I can tell you one thing though. Everyone's lives will be changed the moment you make an alliance with all your allies. For better or worse will depend on what you do." And with that, she disappeared. What did she mean by that? Akihiko knew he would figure it out as soon as he continues his journey.

Pinkshuchan: Phew! Yay! New chapter out! I've had a lot of things to do so I'm glad I've had the time to get this done. What is to happen next? Read and Review!