Author's note: Wow, I finally feel like I'm starting to enter the home stretch. It's almost odd to find myself finally starting to go through the actions of setting up the ending I had in mind back in 2007 (wow this really has been a long time)
Chapter 73
Botan sighed to himself as he lifted up the glass he had formerly used to drink from.
"Such a waste of a good glass…oh well," he said to himself as he smashed it against the floor. Tomo struggled to climb to her feet as the man crouched down and inspected the shattered fragments. He sat in thought for a moment before picking up the largest shard that ended in a cruel looking splinter. Tomo bit down on her lip as she saw the light reflect off of its point.
"And now lets see what happens," said Botan turning to face Tomo and smiling at her. Angry, the girl threw another shuriken in his direction but it hardly reached the halfway point of the distance between them. Without another word, but with a faint smirk still etched into his face Botan stood back up and continued his march towards Sakaki.
Tomo cried out as the man strongly yanked the still girl out of the shadows and into the lit room. He dropped her back on the ground, Sakaki glancing around with slightly wild eyes, her mouth gagged with cloth. Botan crouched down beside Sakaki, on the opposite side of the tall girl so Tomo could see everything.
"Hmmm, quite a pretty girl. It'd be a shame to do anything to her face…well I guess I'll just have to start a bit lower then," mused Botan as though to himself, but speaking loud enough for Tomo to hear. Sakaki's eyes widened and Tomo clenched her fists as the man lowered his hand and placed the tip of the glass shard against Sakaki's exposed neck.
"Stop it!" cried out Tomo as the glass cut into Sakaki's neck, a small line of blood oozing out.
"Yamato is the girl secured?" asked Chidori.
The armoured man looked towards the woman and nodded his helmeted head up and down. Fuka looked down at the floor as the man quickly checked the rope around her wrists one more time.
"Do you always have to keep that helmet on?" asked Chidori. "It's...kind of creepy."
"I prefer it this way," replied the man quietly.
"Fine, fine whatever. Was just curious about if you were cute or not…not that it really matters huh Kasumi?" said Chidori as she gripped the girl tightly. Kasumi blushed slightly. Yamato said something to himself and turned away while Fuka pushed herself up against the rocks.
Sitting there she hardly moved while behind her the rope started to burn against her wrists as she pushed her hands closer together, awkwardly performing a series of hand signs in silence. Sakaki wasn't the only one who knew how to use fire- Fuka had some experience as well, but she started to grimace as she reached the final sign- this would hurt a bit. She just about managed to keep in a yell of pain as a small flame flashed out from her hand burning through the rope and singeing the tips of her fingers on her other hand.
Even as the charred rope was falling to the ground she was on the move, slicing the rope around her legs with a concealed blade before leaping up onto the rock above. Yamato, having turned away from Chidori's fussing over Kasumi, had been distracted and turned back to watch Fuka disappear over the boulders above.
"Get her you idiot!" called out Chidori even as Yamato moved to follow Fuka. Even in his armour he climbed upwards with ease and a graceful manner. In short time, like the girl he vanished from view with barely a sound.
"Gah, what a jackass!" groaned Chidori to herself. "Letting her get away like that! Isn't that right Kasumi? Kasumi?"
Chidori turned to face her companion only to gasp in surprise as she saw Kasumi with bulging eyes, thin white bandages wrapped taut around her throat. Kasumi gasped out, trying to get air, and as Chidori went to a blade her companion was yanked backwards by the neck, smashing into the far wall. She collapsed in a heap opposite Kaorin.
"Who the hell do you-!"
"Well I would suggest a person who cannot keep their guard up is in no position to call another a 'jackass'," said Sen Ito. The man sat cross legged on the rocks above Kasumi, resting his head on bones of his left hand. The bandages from his left wrist and hand were still wrapped around Kasumi's throat. He didn't give much of an expression as he tightened them slightly.
"You!" said Chidori loudly.
Damn it! Why must it always be like this? Why must I have no choice but to rely on this demon almost completely? I can't even save my friends without help from it!
"Tomo, I suggest you do something soon- the next cut won't be such a superficial one," said Botan in a voice that suggested he was now getting bored. Tomo glanced with almost tearful eyes at Sakaki. Botan tightened his grip on the glass shard, fingertips turning white.
She closed her eyes and looked downwards as she felt the familiar swelling of anger and anxiety, powerful emotions within her. Fine. Fine you can do it. Let me help my friend! Give me the power again!
"Leave her alone!" roared out Tomo, her feral voice reverberating around the great hall. Botan almost dropped the shard of glass in surprise. As he stood up he composed himself again, moving away from Sakaki.
"Well well, it seems you can shout loudly, but can you do anything else?" asked Botan.
"I'll show you what else I can do," growled Tomo as she climbed to her feet with ease. She didn't bother with a knife, instead looking down in surprise at her hands, fingernails now making her hands look more like they ended with claws. She moved her tongue around her mouth feeling the sharp elongated canines. And for the briefest moment she almost liked it.
"Think you can take me on without any weapons?" asked Tomo. Botan almost allowed himself to look surprised at the sudden change of character.
Chidori watched in surprise as the bandages around Sen's right hand almost seemed to explode outwards. Suddenly one flew towards her, unnervingly straight and taut looking. She jumped out of the way at the last moment, thinking something was wrong. She cried out in pain as it caught her in the shoulder, tearing out through the back as though she had been pierced by a spear.
She crashed back to the ground, cursing and holding her shoulder, feeling warm blood against her hand. At least six more bandages were erect skywards…and if each of them had the same power…
"Shit I really don't feel like being skewered today," said Chidori to herself faintly.
"Fight," said Sen. "Die."
"You just caught me after a fight, and I'm bleeding quite a bit. How about you let my friend go and we'll surrender?" suggested Chidori.
"Your friend? I'm afraid her part in this is over," said Sen. Chidori said nothing, let out not even one sound, only sat with a disbelieving look as the bandages around Kasumi's neck pulled upwards with great force, wrenching the head from the shoulders. As the glasses fell to the ground the head flew up and disappeared behind Sen, the force that great. Kasumi's body slumped forwards. Blood poured to the ground as the body finally flopped to the floor.
"WHY?" screamed out Chidori.
"It would appear you are not so cocky or confident now," said Sen. "Since you will not fight you will die."
The freed bandages joined the others and stretched outwards, twelve sharp points. Chidori swore to herself as tears streamed from her eyes. Gasping from the pain she pulled herself across to Kaorin and sat in front of her. She held her tightly in front of her.
"If you kill me you'll take this girl as well!" said Chidori.
"She is no student of mine," said Sen.
"No way," gasped Chidori as the crude weapons rushed towards her.
"Come on Tomo I'll take on the power of a demon," said Botan arrogantly.
"Fine then," growled Tomo as she charged Botan, sharp claws held upwards. She slashed across with both hands, Botan leaping up, jumping off of Tomo's head and landing behind her.
"Come on girl show me more!" said Botan.
From the shadows of the room Shuzo turned to face Kline: "Why is he so confident?"
"The fool can't sense chakra levels…he can't feel the powerful aura we can. To him the girl is just a bit faster, just a bit louder. If he could sense…he'd be suffocating under the power of this one."
"Then I take it this will soon be over?"
"It was over the moment I gave my suggestion to Botan," replied Kline coolly. Shuzo smiled.
Both turned back to the battle as Tomo leapt over Sakaki, Botan having tried to direct her towards her friend. Her attack narrowly avoided hitting the girl and Tomo roared angrily.
"Haha you have more of a chance of hitting your friend then me," said Botan. "Now show me more. Let me prove I can take on a demon. Let me show I'm worthy of learning the secret of Sora!"
Shuzo frowned: "Should he be mentioning that?"
"It doesn't matter," replied Kline. "Soon enough she will find out anyway."
"Come on Tomo!" yelled Botan.
Tomo came to a halt and slowly turned to face the man. Even though the demon was rapidly using power she felt fine, elated, more energetic then she'd ever felt before. She felt like she could carry on fighting forever- but she wanted this ended now. There were probably more people around that she'd have to fight. She almost hoped that was the case.
She closed her eyes and performed a series of hand signs. Botan raised one eyebrow slightly as clones appeared around her.
"How basic," said Botan as they all charged towards the man. He jumped over five and kicked one away from him. "Ah so they're solid clones? Well I know how to get rid of these at least," said Botan as he reached down to grab one of the shuriken Tomo had thrown.
He cut with it gracefully, slashing across throats and faces of the clones which vanished from view with a faint pop. However even as he went to charge a second group of clones he felt something was strange…that the shuriken was a little bigger then he remembered. Even as he went to check the shuriken transformed in his hand, Tomo slashing upwards even before she had fully returned to her normal state.
Botan screamed out as the claws slashed along his cheek, across his left eye and up into the brow. He hardly moved at all as blood dripped to the floor, the clones vanishing from view.
Botan held his hands to his face before pulling them away, looking down at his palms in horror.
"Blood! My blood!" he shrieked in terror. "A demon! No, no don't hurt me!" he screamed as he backed away from the now puzzled Tomo.