TREASURES CHAPTER PART 4: RECOVERY

And once again, back at the Furude Shrine.

"We spent all night to make sure No. 06 didn't steal anything, and he steals it right under your noses!" Shinichi shouted. "Come on, you guys are supposed to be former elite GIN-SHOCKER soldiers and you got knocked out by a knockout gas grenade?" Shinichi said as he paced in front of Daichi, Michiru and Yokoshima.

"Actually, it was more like a dozen," Michiru corrected.

"We should have transformed," Daichi muttered.

"Well, why didn't you?" Shinichi shot back.

"We were exhausted from staying up all night!" Daichi snapped.

"Well, we stayed up late and we're okay!" Shinichi remarked. However, he wasn't accurate. Chiaki had fallen asleep mid-way through his speech.

"Alright!" Daichi stood up. "Screw you! I'm going home!" Daichi stomped away. He flipped Shinichi off for a second before continuing on his way.

"Crap…" grumbled Shinichi. He hadn't gotten any sleep last night and now Jin had two out of three of Hinamizawa's treasures. "Mion, how's your grandmother?"

"Not happy," said Mion.

"Is she ever?" Shion muttered.

"She's upset because the Oni no Hone was stolen right under her nose as she was guarding it," said Mion. "Jin even left a note too and that made Oni-Baba declare the death sentence on him for the humiliation. She wants him caught and brought down to the basement for torture."

"She's consistent at least," said Shinichi. "I got to hand it to that woman," complimented Shinichi, "As old as she is, she's got guts and spirits."

"She also hates you."

"Can't win them all," sighed Shinichi.

"Well, with the Oni no Hone and Kage no Hoshi in his grasp, he'll be coming after the Higurashi no Yaiba," said Rika.

"Shin-kun, you should rest for tonight," Rena advised.

"You're right," nodded Shinichi. "After staying up all night like that, I need a nice comfy bed."

Jin admired his newly acquired helmet. "Ugly, but if it gives me power, who gives a damn!" He laughed. Shinichi only had one treasure but Jin had two. "And when I harness their power, nobody is going to stop me from robbing the entire world blind!"

Even without Daichi helping them, the NEO-NUMBERS stood guard in front of the Furude Shrine later that night. They were in Rider form this time. They weren't going to end up put to sleep by knockout gas. They were all armed and dangerous. If Petrifier dared to come after the Higurashi no Yaiba, they were about to meet some opposition. In fact, Showa had the Higurashi no Yaiba gripped in his hand.

"Satoko-chan already has the traps set," said Showa.

"I've also put some of my own web traps for good measure," added Arachnea.

"I'm ready to Rock and Roll," stated Armadillo.

"Hammer Time!" added Hitomi.

"And I'm going to make him see his worst fear, over and over," said Carmen, still miffed over what Jin had done to them. "It's too bad Daichi couldn't be here."

"Forget about him! He abandoned the mission," scoffed Showa.

"You were yelling at him," Arachnea reminded.

"Working late?" Shion asked after entering the animal shelter. Daichi was at the counter strumming his guitar.

"What do you want? You want me to help that ungrateful jerk?" Daichi questioned. "Well, forget it! I refuse to be bossed around by No. 13."

"You gotta understand that Shinichi really loves the village. Sure, my grandmother dislikes him but that's how she is. He just wants to protect it and these treasures are sacred," Shion explained.

Daichi frowned as he continued strumming. "Look, I just came to tell you what's going on. They are all guarding Rika's shrine. You may not like people, but this is something important to Rika. You might as well help out."

"Don't try to guilt trip me," he hissed.

"Fine," Shion frowned. "Be that way!" She left in a huff.

As predicted, Jin had come for the Higurashi no Yaiba and this time he wasn't alone. He'd brought along a small army of GIN-SHOCKER soldiers. They were dressed completely in black with masks that concealed their heads and faces, with red rimmed holes that revealed their eyes, noses and mouths. They had red rib-like patterns on their suits and wore red gloves and boots. They were either armed with guns or swords and wore GIN-SHOCKER belts.

"Gimme the sword and you won't be hurt," said Jin.

"Let me think about that…" Showa tapped his helmet. "No. Oh, and I might add that the Oni no Hone really looks bad on you. You have no fashion sense!"

Jin growled under his helmet. He called out, "Henshin!" Green crystal enveloped his body before shattering to reveal his suit. His usual helmet was replaced by the Oni no Hone. "You won't be able to stop me! I have the Oni no Hone AND the Kage no Hoshi! All you have is one sword!"

"The same sword that beat WHITE 14!" Showa countered.

Now Petrifier was pissed. He ordered the soldiers, "GET THAT SWORD!"

The GIN-SHOCKER soldiers shrieked out, "Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!" in shrill voices.

"I'll go after No. 06! You handle the freak patrol!" Showa ordered.

"That won't be necessary," said Armadillo.

As the GIN-SHOCKER soldiers charged, they fell into the hidden trap holes and stuck in swamp water. A few triggered the trip wires, causing a huge log to swing into them, knocking them out. A few more traps activated as well. Hidden catapults tossed rocks at the soldiers.

"Gotta hand it to that little blonde girl," complimented Carmen. "She knows her traps."

A few of the soldiers who had not been subdued charged at the NEO-NUMBERS. They didn't last long either as the Riders counterattacked. Hitomi, while not a Rider himself, was not a pushover. He was bashing skulls with his hammer. The soldiers trying to attack Arachnea were caught in her webs. Slasher, with his strength, bashed their heads together. Armadillo rolled himself into a ball and ran them over. Carmen didn't attack physically, but instead used her illusion to frighten them off.

Petrifier was livid at how useless the GIN-SHOCKER soldiers were. He was going to have to do things himself now. He would have to fight one armed as he had the box containing the Kage no Hoshi tucked under his other arm. He was planning on using the Higurashi no Yaiba to break it open.

"Damn it!" cursed Petrifier as Showa approached him.

"Hand them over," Showa threatened.

"NO!" Petrifier shouted. The horns and eyes of the Oni no Hone glowed and they fired beams of energy that collided with Showa's chest, causing an explosion of sparks. Showa cried out in shock. Petrifier laughed, "You see, I've figured out how to use this helmet, BLACK 13! Too bad it can't break this box open but it will be enough to end you!" He fired several more beams that Showa deflected with his sword. Showa then charged at Petrifier. "Try some shock therapy!" The horns sent out bolts of lightning at Showa and Showa had to dodge roll them. "And wind!" Patrifier swung his arm in an arc, causing a blast of wind to send Showa flying, "And fire!" The mouth of the Oni no Hone opened and he spat fireballs at Showa. They exploded around Showa, causing him to yell out.

Grinning, Patrifier formed a spear of crystal. Looking to the NEO-NUMBERS and Hitomi who were rushing to help Showa, he shouted out, "DON'T INTERFERE!" He stomped his foot and erected a thick crystal wall in front of them to separate them from their comrade.

"Damn it!" Hitomi bashed the wall but it would not crack. "What is this thing made off!"

"Very strong crystal," said Arachnea. "Don't waste your strength. Even your hammer can't break this thing."

Hitomi wasn't listening and was repeatedly bashing the hammer against the wall.

"Higurashi no Yaiba! Sin-!" Showa began to call out but a bolt of lightning knocked the sword out of his hand.

Petrifier laughed. "Now I'm the one with power!" He charged towards Showa and jabbed his spear against Showa's chest, knocking him down. He swung his spear down and Showa rolled away. He reached for the Higurashi no Yaiba but a fireball caused him to recoil.

"Nobody is here to help you," said Petrifier. "Now, for the finisher!" His eyes flashed.

Suddenly, a burst of sonic energy smashed into the back of Petrifier's head. "What!" he shouted, whirling around. Several bursts of sonic energy smashed continuously. He was sent reeling by the blasts of sound.

Showa looked to see what was causing the blasts and saw Musician come out of hiding. Another blast from Musician's military fork sent the box flying. Showa, seeing it, jumped up and caught it. "Hey! I stole that box fair and square!"

"Finders keepers, losers weepers!" Showa taunted as he ran with the box.

Petrifier glared at Musician and snarled, "I'll deal with you later, No. 08!" He then gave chase after Showa.

Musician rolled his eyes and said, "Been told that before…" He then looked to the crystal wall. "Hold on." He walked over and tapped his military fork against the wall, causing his weapon to vibrate. He touched the vibrating military fork against the wall and slowly the wall began to crack.

Meanwhile, Petrifier was shooting at the fleeing Showa with lightning bolts from the Oni no Hone's horns. Showa dodged them as he continued to run with the box. He saw the rope bridge ahead and began to cross it. It swayed as he stepped onto it but he really couldn't care less. When he reached the middle of the bridge, he whirled around and glared at Petrifier.

"Give me the box," demanded Petrifier.

"You want it?" Showa questioned. The Kage no Hoshi was a treasure of Hinamizawa, but he wasn't about to let it fall into the wrong hands. Petrifier managed to access the power of the Oni no Hone. He could not be allowed to use the Kage no Hoshi for evil. He then did what he thought was best. He chucked it over the brudge.

"NO!" Petrifier shouted as the box fell into the ravine. He cursed and growled at Showa. "That's it! I don't care what Gebok says! I AM GOING TO KILL YOU!" His horns began to power up. "GOODBYE, BLACK 13!" He shot a beam at Showa but the timely arrival of the Higurashi no Yaiba deflected the beam. Not just deflect, but the beam bounced back and hit Petrifier squarely in the chest. He fell backwards and the Oni no Hone fell off his head. It rolled along the bridge and stopped at Showa's feet.

Showa picked up the helmet and said, "Looks like I got your new toy!"

Petrifier growled as he stood back up. He hated being made a fool of. "You…TEME! KIISAMA!" shouted Petrifier. He charged at Showa, blades of crystal in his hands. When he got close, he swung. Showa blocked with his sword and pushed Petrifier back. Snarling, Petrifier gripped the ropes on the sides and focused his power into them. He began to cover the entire bridge in crystal. Showa wondered what Petrifier was trying to accomplish but then spikes sprouted out from under Showa, causing him to jump.

"My helmet! My treasures!" shouted Petrifier.

"Come on and get them!" shouted Showa as he leapt over the bridge and down to the ravine. Petrifier jumped after him. As they plummeted down, they engaged in combat in mid-air. They traded blow after blow. Petrifier was trying to grab the Oni no Hone out of Showa's hand. Showa slashed at Petrifier with the Higurashi no Yaiba and then kicked him backwards.

The two crashed to the bottom of the ravine, creating craters upon impact. Petrifier looked to see the box and it was open this time. Laying next to the box was a six pointed black shuriken. "Finally!" He sneered at Showa. "Looks like I'll be victorious once I access the power of the Kage no Hoshi!" He dove for the Kage no Hoshi but suddenly the shuriken flew straight towards Showa. It was glowing as it hovered in front of him. The Oni no Hone was also glowing as did the Higurashi no Yaiba. Suddenly, there was an explosion of blue, red and green light from where Showa stood. Petrifier felt blown away by the power as he shielded his eyes. When the light finally died down, Petrifier looked to see a figure. It was a dark silhouette radiating with power as a green, red and blue aura rose from his form. He had green eyes with horns crowning his head, and something with six sharp points mounted on his back. He was holding a sword in one hand. The aura hid anymore discernable features.

Petrifier tried to hide his fear but he was trembling at the sight before him. "What…what are you?" Even his voice was cracking.

The dark figure swung his sword, which sent an arc of power which expanded as it sped towards Petrifier. The attack came so sudden and fast. When it hit, it violently smashed Petrifer against the side of the ravine. He grunted as he saw the damage. There was a deep smoking gash in his armor. The figure began to march towards him, dragging the sword behind him. Petrifier then saw the figure powering up another attack as he raised his hand. A ball of red, green and blue energy was starting to form in his left palm which was aimed at him. Thinking quickly, Petrifier formed a shield of crystal as the ball was fired. The ball slammed against the wall and shattered it before smashing into Petrifier and slamming him against the wall. The ball was grinding against Petrifier's armor, causing it to crack as he cried out in pain. His eyes widened in horror as the figure raised his sword and swung it down, releasing a flash of power that engulfed Petrifier completely. Petrifier screamed as he felt his entire body being torn to shreds as he was vaporized.

The NEO-NUMBERS found Shinichi in the ravine with the Higurashi no Yaiba, Kage no Hoshi and Oni no Hone lying around him. He was unconscious. They saw a deep scorched crater in the side of the ravine. Definitely, something had happened here. They had felt the rise of power from here but it had vanished when they arrived.

"Okaa-sama!" Akane cried, bursting into the room where Oyro was dealing with clan business. The woman had been in the very sour mood since the Oni no Hone had been stolen from their home. Few tried to interact with her, fearing for their jobs if not their personal health.

"What?" the aged woman asked in a dangerously low voice. Akane knew that voice well, She had better have some good news or heads were going to roll and possibly literally considering the torture devices in the basement.

"The Oni no Hone has been returned!" Akane blurted out.

"What?"

The Sonozaki Clan and Kimiyoshi Clan had their treasures returned to them via unknown means. They had been packaged and put on their doorstep. Oryo felt relieved but also dissatisfied because she was unable to punish the person who'd humiliated her clan. However, a discrete note underneath the demonic helmet reported that the thief was now dead with nothing but perhaps a few ashes marking his passing. That certainly brightened the old woman's day considerably. Chief Kimiyoshi was just happy to have his family heirloom returned. However, he was a little dismayed that the box it had been kept in was broken

As for Shinichi, the boy was sleeping in the Irie Clinic. He was in a deep sleep. He'd fainted from exhaustion, just like the time after he'd used the Higurashi no Yaiba for the first time. His mother and friends visited him as Irie kept him around for observation.

Rika, however, had sensed the spike of power. She knew Shinichi to be the source but she wasn't sure how he could've gotten so powerful. She did know it had something to do with the treasures

KR Chrome: No. 06 is not dead, but what about what killed him? Could that be a new form for Showa? Was it the power of all three treasures combined?