SailorStar9: Chapter 4 goes up and no review. You guys don't love me anymore. *Wails*
Disclaimers: I don't own Sailor Moon and Flame of Recca since if I did own them both, the Planetary Senshi will have equal footing as Sailor Moon and the Domon/Fuuko pairing would be canon. But you don't see that happening do you? However, I do own the pairing, I hope.
Chapter 5: Suspicious Tongues. Fear of the Kotodama!
After the fight, by Koganei's bed...
"Oi, time to face the Uruha Oto!" Kondo declared.
"I've got it right here!" Ganko beamed, rushing into the room.
"Ta da!" she presented a sealed envelope to the team. "Here's the data on them."
"Heh, I wonder who I'll get to fight." Koganei remarked, getting out of bed.
"You can't!" Ganko jumped onto the bed and onto Koganei. "Koganei, you've gotta stay in bed, so you can't! Don't you get it? You have a fever."
"If he's so sick, why don't you treat him like it?" Kondo inquired.
"Oh..." Ganko blinked and released Koganei who then fainted. "Sorry."
"Your exhaustion is the cause of your fever." Yanagi replied. "So get as much rest as you can."
"Yeah." Recca agreed as Ganko jumped off the bed. "Leave tomorrow's fighting to us, and concentrate on getting better."
In the room by the table...
"This..." Recca started as the team looked at the Uruha Oto's photos. "Is them? These girls are the only members of the Uruha Oto?"
"They're so cute!" Domon drooled. "They'd all tie first place if they entered a beauty pageant."
"Study their faces and not their chests, you two." Fuuko retorted.
"Well then, if three girls are our opponents, then we've practically won already." Recca boasted.
"Let's go out and celebrate early then!" Domon suggested.
"Domon!" Fuuko scolded.
"What's wrong? I'm just kidding." Domon replied.
"Don't be overconfident." Mikagami warned. "They've won their first and second round matches without so much as a scratch. They're much stronger than some giant waste of space."
"Ummm..." Domon started. "When you say giant waste of space... whom might you be referring to?"
"Don't make me say it." Mikagami replied. "Who else can it be?"
"What was that, you bastard?" Domon fumed.
"I'm only telling you the truth." Mikagami told him. "Your first match was barely a draw. And because you fell for the enemy's trap, you couldn't even fight in the second round."
"You definitely haven't been any use, have you?" Ganko remarked.
"Yeah. That's right." Kondo agreed.
"Ganko-chan!" Yanagi scolded.
"Shut up!" Domon rebuked. "I was just caught off guard! Even Takanohana lost sometimes, and Ichirou strikes out sometimes, too. I'll definitely win the next match!"
"I doubt it." Ganko replied.
"Doubt it?" Domon echoed.
"Neon's a member of the Uruha Jyushinshu." Ganko explained. "And Aki and Miki are rumored to be really strong too."
"Hey, what is your problem?" Kondo fumed when Domon picked him and Ganko up. "Take your hands off me!"
"You two still haven't witnessed my power." Domon grinned. "That's why you can say such foolish things."
"In the next match, I'll show your my true strength." he promised and tossed the two aside, leaving Recca to catch Ganko and Fuuko to catch the talking fox.
"Domon-kun..." Yanagi muttered.
"He's as arrogant as ever." Recca chuckled as Domon walked out, laughing.
"He talks big, but..." Fuuko remarked.
"You damned plushie! Who do you think you are?" she fumed, grabbing Kondo when the talking fox nuzzled her chest.
"Fuuko, you'll need this." Anhara smirked, tossing the hotheaded wind wielder a mallet.
"Thanks." Fuuko grinned deviously. Picking up the mallet, she turned chibi and chased after Kondo with the said mallet.
"Just don't smash the windows." Anhara snickered.
Turning to Mikagami, she grinned, "You do have a weird way of showing you care, you know?"
"Che." Mikagami snorted.
At night, in the girls' room...
Fuuko had rolled out of bed, only to be awoken by a door slam in the next room and footsteps.
Outside...
Just you watch... Domon promised, training with dumbbells. I'm a member of the Hokage too!
"He's..." Fuuko blinked, having followed him outside.
On the roof...
"Guess you had the same idea." Mikagami muttered, hugging the female ice wielder from behind.
"I'm guessing he got motivated." Anhara noted, looking down at the training Domon.
"You do realize we'll be giving everybody else a heart attack once they see us cuddling, right?" she teased.
"Not funny." Mikagami growled.
Anhara stifled a giggle, "You know I'm… muff…"
Her sentence was cut short when Mikagami turned her around, pulling her close, his lips crushing hungrily against hers.
Anhara bit back a moan, Mikagami's familiar scent invading her nose.
"Tokiya…" she managed to moan out as the ice swordsman pushed her collar away with his nose.
"Not… here…" she protested.
She then let out a yelp in surprise when his mouth latched on her exposed neck as he proceeded to give her a love-bite.
The next day...
"Now to begin the third round of Block A, Hokage versus Uruha Oto." Tatsuko declared. "The Hokage's first fighter, Ishijima Domon! Uruha Oto's first fighter, Aki! First match... begin!"
With a war cry. Domon charged at Aki straight on. Aki just smirked and leapt aside to avoid the attack. Domon continued throwing punches at her, to which Aki dodged each punch skillfully.
"Wow, how amazing!" Tatsuko announced. "Ishijima Domon, a rush, rush, rush of punches right after the gong! he's really got Aki on the run!"
On the ring side...
"Today's Domon is looking awesome!" Recca remarked.
"I bet what Mi-chan said yesterday actually hurt his feelings." Fuuko added, looking sideways at Mikagami.
At the ice wielder's snort, she noted, "We can count on Domon for today at least."
In the ring...
Domon was throwing his punches at the fleeing Aki who had jumped aside to avoid his attack. Aki was stunned to find Domon had managed to follow her speed-wise. With a cry, Domon launched another vicious attack on Aki who dodged his physical attacks easily.
On the ring side...
"Look at that speed!" Recca awed.
In the ring...
Domon proceeded to land a punch on a seemingly trapped Aki who leapt upwards to avoid his attack.
"My, aren't you in a hurry?" Aki teased, landing on her feet. "The match has just begun. Why don't we take our time and have some fun? This is our long-awaited match... unless... I'm not your type?"
"Sorry, honey..." Domon replied. "I ain't got the time for that. And I can't have you dulling down my fighting spirit with that cute face of yours."
"Here I come!" he declared.
"Forget all that, and just watch me..." Aki replied, activating her madōgu.
"What the?" Domon panicked, trying to shake the image of a stripping Aki out of his mind. "What the hell are you doing? How could you..."
"Stop it!" he cried, covering his eyes. "What are you thinking?"
"There's no need to be shy." Aki chided, stepping out of her pants. "So, why don't you take a good look at me?"
"Don't! Don't come closer!" Domon panicked as Aki walked towards him. "It's unfair taking me by surprise."
"I'm happy, but please stop!" he pleaded. "I'm sort of committed to Fuuko!"
On the ring side...
"What the hell is he talking about?" Fuuko was startled by Domon's declaration.
In the ring...
"Anyway, put your clothes back on!" Domon begged. "Fighting naked should be against the rules, right?"
On the ring side...
"Naked? Who is...?" Recca blinked in confusion.
"He said naked, didn't he?" Kondo asked.
"Hey, Domon! Are you daydreaming?" Fuuko hollered. "Open your eyes and fight her!"
"Something's wrong..." Yanagi noted. "Domon-kun didn't react to our voices at all."
"What?" Recca demanded.
In the ring...
"You're so bashful, aren't you?" Aki teased. "But do you have the time to look away? Here, why don't you look at me more."
Domon opened his eyes and was shocked to find a snake coiled around Aki.
"What the?" he gasped, taking a step back.
"Look..." Aki prodded. "Nice fangs, right? Once he bites you, his poison will course through your veins."
"You coward." she mocked, sending the serpent around her to attack Domon. Domon fled from the attacking snake.
"What's happening to Domon?" Tatsuko declared at the fleeing Domon who was running away from nothing. "He appears to be running around the ring by himself."
On the ring side...
"Has he gone crazy?" Mikagami asked.
In the ring...
"Stop it!" Domon pleaded, running from the snake that was chasing him. "Keep the damn snake away, damn it!"
On the ring side...
"Snake?" Fuuko echoed.
"Where does he see a snake?" Recca demanded.
In the ring...
"Stop it!" Domon wailed, fleeing from the snake.
On the ring side...
"Cut it out!" Recca retorted. "This is no time to be playing around!"
"Your words will fall into deaf ears because Gorilla-kun can't hear you right now." Neon chuckled.
"What?" Recca hissed.
"The only voice he can hear is Aki's." Neon explained. "He is a slave to her words."
"Just as I thought." Anhara realized.
"Is that?" Kagerō gasped. "It can't be..."
At Yanagi's look, she added, "The madōgu, Kotodama..."
"Kotodama?" Yanagi echoed.
"It's an illusion madōgu that draws magic from words." Anhara explained.
"That's correct." Neon replied. "We may see nothing, but one word from Aki, and he'll see whatever she wants him to see."
"So he sees a snake?" Recca exclaimed.
In the ring...
"Goddamn you...." Domon cursed, tangling with the snake.
On the ring side...
"He must have a simple mind." Miki chuckled. "It's amusing how easily he was caught. I wonder if he thinks Aki is a snake charmer or something."
"Such a strong madōgu...." Mikagami admitted.
"So what's he's supposed to do?" Fuuko asked. "He has to get out of that illusion as soon as possible."
"Impossible." Neon told her. "He cannot escape the curse of the Kotodama."
In the ring...
Domon had fallen to the ground while fighting the snake coiled around him.
Aki smirked at the writhing teen.
On the ring side...
"Domon!" Recca exclaimed.
"Aki will sent him to Hell as he watches the illusions of the Kotodama." Neon grinned.
In the ring...
Domon had been caught within the snake's confines and was struggling to get free.
"Stop...." he begged. "Stop it!"
The snake then came down on him, biting his shoulder, causing him to scream in agony.
On the ring side...
"Shit..." Recca cursed. "I don't get it. What's happening to him right now?"
In the ring...
"You poor thing." Aki mocked. "So scared. Fine. I'll release you from the snake."
At her activation of her madōgu, the snake coiled off Domon.
"When did you get dressed?" Domon pointed out after he was released from the illusion.
"It hurts, doesn't it?" Aki asked. "The wound that snake gave you hurts so much that you can't keep quiet."
In response, the wound suddenly opened, revealing the bite marks.
"Ouch..." Domon hissed.
It only started hurting after she said something. He noted. Was I so afraid that I didn't feel it?
"Now, the poison is paralyzing you, right?" Aki smirked.
My arm is already getting numb. Domon realized.
"I'll bet you're completely paralyzed now." Aki added.
"You've become so sweaty." she grinned, noting the beads of sweat coming from Domon's body. "Are you hot? Fine... let me cool you off. Enough to freeze you."
"What?" Domon gasped as a snowstorm blew in. "It's snowing inside the dome? What the hell is going on? This girl... she can control snow too?"
"Cold..." he shivered.
"What's going on?" Tatsuko asked when Domon knelt on the floor, shivering. "Ishijima Domon has suddenly fallen to his knees."
"My arm hurts as much as the cold stings." Domon remarked.
On the ring side...
"Domon!" Fuuko gasped.
"Freezing? Another illusion?" Recca realized. "How can he feel the cold?"
"Look at Domon-kun's arm!" Yanagi gasped. "His injury is bleeding. Is that the wound he received from the illusionary snake?"
"You're right." Kagerō replied.
"Huh?" Yanagi turned to her.
"Domon-kun must have been bitten by that snake." Kagerō replied. "That is the power of he Kotodama. It forces his mind to believe that his body was hurt. Therefore, his body will hurt itself."
"What a horrible madōgu...." Recca remarked.
"Unless he realizes it isn't real," Kagerō added. "Domon-kun just might..."
"No, even if he does realize it," Neon corrected. "Unless he has enough mental strength to reject it, he'll never escape the illusion. Your gorilla friend will most likely freeze to death."
"What did you say?" Yanagi gasped.
"Let's stop the fight." Mikagami advised. "Allowing him to continue is risky."
"Wait a minute!" Fuuko stopped him. "Domon risked just as much as everyone else for this. He's still holding on because he wants to win. He has his pride. He might realize it's an illusion... and then he'd be able to snap out of it."
"Impossible." Mikagami snapped. "It's impossible with his will power alone. I'm stopping the match."
"Wait, Mikagami." Recca voiced. "Let's wait as long as we can."
"What?" Mikagami hissed.
"He's one of us." Recca reminded him. "He can overcome this. We have to believe him."
"Believe in him?" Mikagami echoed. "How long will you watch your so-called friend suffer?"
"What'd you say?" Recca demanded, gripping onto the swordsman's shirt.
"This is no time to argue." Anhara chided, coming in-between them.
Looking at the warring pair, she added, "We have to believe. This is all we can do, for now."
"She's right." Fuuko agreed. "Domon's still fighting against the cold."
"Domon!" Recca shouted as the oversized teen fell over.
In the ring...
This is bad. Domon thought, collapsing in the snow. I can't feel my arms or my legs. An I gonna die here? With no wins at all...? Hanabishi... Mikagami... even Fuuko would laugh at me. It's unbearable...
"Look here." Aki prodded, a flower in her hand. "A flower. I'll use it to mark your grave. Your pain should be at its peak."
Now the pain is back... Domon gaped as the wound on his shoulder reopened. Even though my body was starting to feel numb. As soon as she said...
Wait a minute. he realized. Every time this bitch... whenever she says something, that orb flashes and...
"I'll relieve you of your pain." Aki declared, tossing the flower in the air as she jumped.
What if... Domon mused. Everything I've seen is... it's can't be! If that's so...
That decided, he stood back up.
"If this is a dream, then wake up!" he hollered, punching himself.
On the ring side...
"Impossible!" Neon gasped when she realized Domon had broken out of the illusion.
In the ring...
"How 'bout that?" Domon yelled.
"Die!" Aki declared, coming down on him.
"What?" she was shocked when Domon stopped her blade with his hands.
On the ring side...
"Domon-kun!" Yanagi beamed.
"Alright!" Recca exclaimed. "He got out of the illusion!"
In the ring...
"I understand now." Domon told the fallen Aki.
"How could you....?" Aki asked.
"Whenever you said 'Doesn't it hurt?', I felt severe pain in my body." Domon retorted. "I thought it was strange that my body reacted immediately to what you said. But now that your trick has been revealed, you're finished. Prepare yourself!"
"I can't allow that." Aki replied, standing back up.
Jumping back, she added, "If I increase the power of my Kotodama to its limit, you won't escape from its illusions, even if you know they aren't real."
"What?" Domon gasped, shielding his eyes from the sudden burst of light when Aki unleashed the maximum power of her madōgu.
"This ends now!" Aki declared. "The flames of Hell shall burn you alive!"
"What did you say?" Domon demanded as the ground beneath him broke apart and lava emerged from the cracks.
On the ring side...
"Domon!" Recca shouted as the oversized teen screamed in pain, the lava burning him.
"The power of the Kotodama won against that gorilla's willpower." Neon smirked, certain of their victory.
In the ring...
"Damn you!" Domon cursed.
"What?" Aki was stunned when a flaming Domon stepped forward.
On the ring side...
"That man..." Neon was similarly shocked.
In the ring...
"I ain't gonna lose to some illusion!" Domon growled.
"Stay back! Get away!" Aki panicked, throwing her throwing blades at the charging Domon.
"It doesn't hurt! It doesn't hurt at all!" Domon declared, ignoring the flames engulfing him and the knives on his shoulders. "It's all an illusion!"
Reaching out, he grabbed Aki's madōgu and shattering it in his hand.
"My... Kotodama is...." Aki muttered, Domon knocking her away with a punch.
On the ring side...
"Aki!" Neon gasped.
"Domon!" Fuuko beamed.
"You did it!" Recca grinned.
"I'm surprised." Kagerō remarked. "I didn't know Domon-kun had grown so much."
"Giant waste of space, huh?" Anhara teased.
"Che." Mikagami snorted.
In the ring...
"Hey, Ref." Domon turned to Tatsuko.
"Yes?" Tatsuko asked.
"It's over, right?" Domon replied.
"Yes!" Tatsuko nodded. "Let's see... because of Aki's inability to continue fighting, the winner is Ishijima Domon!"
On the ring side...
"You did it!" Ganko whooped.
"Your first victory!" Fuuko beamed.
"It was easy." Domon waved her congratulations aside. "When I get serious, it's so easy. Against the mighty Domon-sama, those illusions were nothing."
"So, I assume those knives don't hurt." Anhara pointed out.
"Huh?" Domon blinked. "These illusions..."
"OWWW! OUUUCHH..." he exclaimed in pain, pulling out the knives.
"The knives weren't illusions." he added, turning green and falling the ground.
At everybody's looks, the ice wielder shrugged, "What!? Someone has to bring him back to reality."
"Domon, hang in there!" Fuuko knelt by the oversized teen's side.
"What do you say now, Mikagami?" Recca looked at the older teen. "Aren't you glad we believed in Domon?"
"Unfortunately, I cannot agree with what you said." Mikagami replied, stepping into the ring.
"What?" Recca demanded.
"Yes, Domon may have won." Mikagami replied. "But what if he wasn't able to escape the illusion in time? He could have died. Before you celebrate, you should reflect on that."
"What'd you say?" Recca growled.
"Will you two just cut it out?" Anhara snapped, playing peacemaker again.
Glaring at the two, she added, "Just because both of you wield opposite elements, doesn't mean you have to fight all the time!"
"Really." she muttered. "Men."
"I'm sorry, onee-sama." Aki choked. "I...."
"It's okay, Aki." Neon assured her. "Be still. My poor baby."
"I will avenge you." she promised.
"Miki." she told her younger sister.
"Yes." Miki replied.
"We're going to crush the Hokage." Neon replied.
"Yes." Miki replied.
"We'll defeat them..." Neon swore. "With our ultimate attack as our trump card."
SailorStar9: Now that's done, read and review.