One of the Front's most dangerous idiots stood behind me. He wasted no time bringing his weapon to bear, his favorite halberd.
"What's this now, you're shooting fellow members? Traitor scum." Even if he was an idiot, I had to take those killer vibes seriously. He looked from me to Hinata's body, then back to me.
"No no," I tried placating him. "We were doing an experiment, just a little test for my investigation," I suddenly remembered. I showed him Yuri's authorization card from my pocket.
"Hah, like that's gonna save you," He sank into a fighting stance. "But that won't stop me from killing you again. For reals, this time."
Damnit, I really didn't have time to play around just when I was on the verge of something in my investigation. And Hinata was still dead; that guy was one of the only ones who could placate idiots like him.
But I continued to try to calm him down anyway. "Hey, you saying you'll be ignoring a directive from Yurippe? You're a traitor now."
"Not when I kill the traitor first."
"She won't see it that way," I challenged. "I've been authorized by Yurippe. 'Mad Dog Noda finally reveals his true self'. That's gonna be the headline for all the Front members, once they've issued a manhunt for you."
"Let them come! Hah, I can beat all of them!" No, that wasn't really what I was getting at.
"And besides," He'd lost all pompous demeanor. He twirled his weapon in preparation. I got the feeling of a tiger that was about to pounce. "This is my chance to prove myself to Yurippe."
Guh, this is why I don't like these kinds of people on the Front. It seemed like there was a gradient somewhere going from brawn to brain. I knew Yuri stood at the center, having equal parts of both. Most of the others fell towards "killer idiocy".
Wait, wasn't this a good chance to test out my new theory? I remember it termed as the "science method" or something. I didn't have the luxury of remembrance as the tiger was about to pounce. I just knew I had to meet his challenge head-on.
"Fine, I'll accept that challenge. I'll get you to back down using only my sheer will." I cocked the gun in my hand.
"Pathetic. You won't even be able to use that useless thing. Cause I'll be slicing your hands first!" He attacked, swinging his weapon close to strike. He was aiming for my hands, as he'd broadcasted.
Boy was he fast. I barely had enough time to bring out my arm to block his blade.
Now normally, an attack like that would really amputate me. Afterlife though it was, we still somehow had bodies that could walk around, living, eating, breathing, and feeling pain. And that was why I was determined to see if my new discovery could thwart the rules here.
"Im-impossible!" I felt an impact on my hand, and it stung, but they weren't severed. I looked past his halberd at his befuddled face. It twisted into a cold grimace as he disengaged the weapon and swung from another angle, at a speed I still couldn't catch.
Whump! God, that still really hurt; I think he hit my kidneys or something. But I bore the pain, grinning fearlessly into his shocked face. "Hah, that all you got?"
As expected of a fighter, Noda withdrew, his eyes narrowed calculatingly as he considered me. I'm betting I know what's going on through his head.
a. I slashed him before.
b. Now I can't cut him.
c. ?
d. You didn't cut hard enough.
e I did.
f. Now I can't cut him.
g. But I slashed him before.
h. ?
i. Now I can't cut him.
J. But I did hit him before.
"Is it my turn now?" I cracked the wrist he'd hit. It smarted, but a giddy feeling inside made me forget the pain. This must be what a scientist would feel if he discovered a cure for cancer. I walked closer to him.
"Haaah!" He began attacking again, with a flurry of strikes targetted at other parts of my body. One almost made me fall to my feet, but I kept going.
He must've been to dumbfounded by my newfound invincibility as he didn't move further away. I casually caught his halberd by the blade, and it was like catching a practice sword in my hand.
"Give it up," I declared. "Your foolishness has made me reveal my power."
"Impossible. . ." He looked like he couldn't believe what he was seeing. I couldn't believe it. "There's no way a power like that could exist. . ."
"But it does," I felt the blade dig into my palm. I let it attempt to cut the skin, but it was like my skin had turned into stone. "You've made a terrible mistake, Noda-kun."
"Hmph!" As expected of a fighter, he never gives up. He'd thrust his empty hand into my gut. I expect he thought it would make me buckle (which it almost did).
"Witness my true power," I continued to ham it up, "This Special Investigator who never gives up. Stone Body!" Saying that, I counterattacked, pistol-whipping him in the face.
Uttering a pained grunt, he crumpled to the ground, his weapon clanging uselessly at his side. I towered over him victoriously. My spirits lifted to the highest heavens – not at the victory, but at my vindication. I looked at the tiny, white feather on my hand. Would this be the thing Yurippe hoped to find?
With both members of the Front still down, I turned towards the administrative building. I had to report this to Yuri asap! I thrust the feather into my breast pocket.
I glanced at the two, one obviously still dead, swimming in a pool of red and the other stunned by his defeat, twitching on the ground. "Hinata, good work." I paused. "And I supposed I should thank Noda too, he validated my theory. . . "
I started running. But before I could a few more yards, I felt a shiver run up my spine as I heard quiet voice speak in my ear, "Interesting, boy. I shall test my blade against yours!"
I had the sensation of falling, wheeling through the air and watching the cloudy sky overhead, before dropping and watching my own headless body plop to the ground. And then, darkness.
Author's Note: Typed this up in a daze after finishing the Sizuru route. A lot of inspiration for having Noda here and not Fujimaki was because Noda really reminded me of Yoshino, the protagonist's comedic foil in Rewrite. The way they both go on challenging our main guy to bouts, repeatedly, without giving a damn if they sound or look idiotic or not. Admittedly, Yoshino's gone far above mere Sunohara idiocy (Clannad) or Masato single-mindeness (Little Busters!) and is a different type of foil altogether. To know that, one would have to play the game ^_^
Merlin Out.