"Your rounds? What's that supposed to mean?" Rumia asked innocently, putting her head to the side.
"Delivering my story to the readers, and those interested. I gotta get this story out before..." Hatate starts, before Wriggle interrupts.
"Before the Tengu ground you for stealing?" Wriggle says, folding her arms.
Hatate looks around. "H-how?"
"Raymoo made us help her find a book and we found you!" Rumia says happily, arms outreached.
Hatate just chuckles a little to start with, before she begins speaking.
"Just once, I thought I could do something to get a one-up on Aya. Just once. And of course, someone tries to stop me." she says, shaking her head, before looking at the two youkai.
"But it's just two lowly youkai. Two stupid lowly youkai, like children! Nothing compared to the greatness of a Crow Tengu. I'll just blast you two aside and then go about my business." the Tengu resolves. "This shouldn't take more than a few seconds.
"Yeah, isn't Aya supposed to be really strong Wriggle?" Rumia says.
"Yeah. I heard that." Wriggle agrees.
"Well she beat up Marisa after all, and we beat her up." Rumia continues.
"Yeah, so I'm not sure why this one's treating us like babies." Wriggle says.
Hatate growls, and shouts at the pair. "You morons! Stop trying to psyche me out! I have windows, I saw the fact Aya was already exhausted when you fought her! If you think that'll trick me into giving up..."
Rumia flies to the side a little, ignoring Hatate's rant. "Wriggle? Why is she so angry?"
"I dunno." Wriggle says.
"Because you two are morons, yet are in my way!" Hatate says, before sighing. "I'll just knock you both out."
Rumia just smiles.
"Ya'know, usually when people fight these days that makes them friends. Does this mean you'll be our friend after this?"
Hatate looks even more frustrated than before. "No. Why would I want to be friends with two annoying, stupid, childish youkai? I've had enough. You're wasting my time, and this doesn't even need a spellcard."
With that, Hatate points her camera-phone towards the two youkai, and from the camera, fires a rapid hail of small purple orbs, which the pair managed to evade, while launching some basic danmaku of their own.
However, the crow just darted through the gap created by her danmaku, looking smug.
"I don't even need to beat you." Hatate says, before she suddenly has to change directions sharply to avoid some danmaku fired from Wriggle's firefly familars.
"This isn't a 2v1. It's more like a 100v1 with my fireflies. They may not be string but danmaku is danmaku." Wriggle says. "Even if you're fast, the bugs can cage you."
"You're so smart Wriggle!" Rumia says.
"Nah, it was the fireflies' idea." Wriggle admits. "They just happened to be there and firing in her way."
"... So you're saying that sheer dumb luck, emphasis on the dumb, makes you able to pen me in?" Hatate says. "Well then, looks like I'll have to fight after all."
With that, Hatate forms a spellcard, before declaring; "Flash Sign: Brilliant Image!", before small, white danmaku surround Wriggle and Rumia.
"That's not all!" Hatate says, before she forms large purple danmaku bubbles, and fires them towards the two pair evade the bubbles, before they almost fet hit by some lasers hiding behind them.
It takes a few repetitions of the pattern, before Wriggle tells Rumia to back up. The darkness youkai followed her friend, and there was more room between the bubbles and the lasers, which arced out at angles, giving the pair more room to manuover. Rumia then flies up, while Wriggle flies down, forcing Hatater to split her focus on the two youkai, making their evasion even easier, easy enough that the two youkai could retalitate with various basic danmaku shots, and break Hatate's spell.
The tengu floated there for a few moments, shocked. "I didn't expect you to be able to outwit that spell… I didn't think you'd notice it was a spread-shot." She says.
"Oh no." Wriggle comments. "I just wanted more time to dodge."
"I just dodged upwards!" Rumia says happily.
Hatate ground her teeth. She was unsure if the Youkai made it through with dumb luck, or if they were messing with her, before she smirks, and begins to unleash kunai-danmaku. However, Wriggle just retaliates with Lamp Sign: Firefly Phenomenon, before Rumia flies in under the Tengu, and uses Night Sign: Night Bird, at close range.
Despite the barrage from two foes at once, however, the tengu in purple was too nimble, and easily let the spells time-out with flashy, evasive maneuvers.
As soon as the spell times out, Hatate dashes towards Rumia, who flies back to regroup with Wriggle.
"Time for your close up; Continuous Shooting: Rapid Shot!" Hatate declares, as she reaches close range, before she swings her camera, forming five boxes which surround the area, and the two youkai.
"Rumia…. This can't be good!" Wriggle says, noticing the boxes start to glow.
At that point, Rumia reacts on instinct, pulling out the Mini-Hakkero, before pouring all her power into it, and declaring "Moon Sign! Moonlight Ray!"
The Tengu's face is a look of shock and horror as she notices what Rumia is holding, and it starts to glow with the light of the moon, before Rumia decides to announce; "Full Moon Sign: Moonlight Spark!"
However, despite this, the Hakkero responds instead by spitting out what would amount to a shotgun of Moonlight Rays, ripping apart the box around Rumia and Wriggle, half a second before the others burst into tons of danmaku, with a loud 'click' like a camera shutter when they change. Some of the danmaku flies and hits both Rumia and Wriggle from the sides.
The light is bright after the attack, and there is silver dust around the area, a cloud of it where the Tengu was. Hatate is nowhere to be seen.
"Rumia… can I have a go with that thing next time?" Wriggle asks.
"We gotta give it back to Marisa.." Rumia says.
"Awww.. well… where's Hatat…" Wriggle began, before the dust cleared, and her question was answered.
Hatate was floating in the air, looking scorched by the attack, with minor tears in her clothing, messed-up hair, slight cuts in places, and her wings looking ragged. She had her camera in front of her, which was now sporting a large crack in the lens.
"Eh… my camera can… erase danamku… if I didn't... take pictures of that… I'd have fallen then." Hatate says.
"So you give up?" Rumia asked innocently.
"Eh, give up? I'm a Tengu, when do we simply give up?" Hatate says. "Besides, an attack like that from a youkai if your level, you have to be tired."
The Tengu was right, Rumia was feeling fatigued, and both youkai had taken some good hits themselves.
Rumia chucks the Hakkero to Wriggle, who catches it, figuring Wriggle probably has more energy. Hatate, oddly enough, didn't move to catch it herself, just watching the box.
"Well, it's been two against one this entire fight." Hatate says. "I'd say I'm allowed to feel tired without too much shame, but you know what they say… two's company, me's a crowd!"
"Is that so~?" Rumia asks.
Hatate breaks into a grin. "It is so, and let me show you so! Astral Sign! Photographic Projections!"
With that, Hatate vanishes, but her voice is still heard, coming from everywhere at once.
"Get ready…" she says, before a red-wearing Hatate, in contrast to her normal purple scheme, appeared. Then, to each side, a green and blue Hatate appeared, and finally, behind the pair, a yellow one.
"This is the maximum of my Spirit Photography. I can use astral projections to collect photos while I stay inside and write the articles. I've never used this one in combat before, was hoping to save it for Aya, but desperate times…" all four Hatate say together.