A/N: All right! I'm back and I hope to have a bountiful summer of updates for you guys. Let's hear it for a new summer! Which should be better than last year when I updated nothing. Anyway, let's get going into Absent Serpent.
"This is so awesome." Arine pointed the spear up, basking in all its crimson glory. She was leaning against the wall of the hotel room, examining her brand new weapon. Denji was examining it himself, asking questions.
"So is this gonna replace your trident?" he asked, one of many, which made Arine's eyebrow twitch. Denji stood in front of her and she lowered the weapon slightly, enough so that the sharp tip was millimetres from his nose.
"How about you stop asking questions and sit down like a good boy." She sneered, still on a high. "Or would you like to be the first to test this out?"
"Arine" Yukio casually chastised her from the other side of the room, the scroll the weapon merchant included was in his hands. "According to this, used the right way, that thing could pierce Denji's heart at any angle." He looked up, his golden eyes getting the point across. "And right now I'd rather not search for another best friend."
"Thanks man." Denji sighed in relief. "I don't know what I'd do without you."
"No worries." Yukio waved his hand flippantly, too focused on reading now. Denji chuckled sheepishly, out of fear and exasperation.
"You never cease to amaze me." He said, backing off and sitting against the third wall. Each one said against a wall, taking up three of the four. The floor was light green, with a single door to the hallway. Said door slid to the side, showing a tired Aika, who now wore a loose black t shirt and black shorts.
"Kids, no fighting." She slid the door shut before flopping down and sitting against it. "I've had enough stress for the day." She scratched behind her ear and stretched out, her legs spread in relaxation.
"Well if Arine can learn how to use the spear, we shouldn't have much of an issue." Yukio commented once again, still reading the scroll. He lowered it and eyed Aika. "We're talking about a spear that can apparently band and shift to pierce a target's heart." Yukio took a deep breath "Supposedly. However, I wouldn't be surprised if this is just a really good replica. I mean, it'd be way too odd if a spear this strong wound up in the hands of a mere merchant. After all, this is the type of thing people would be aware about." Aika gave Yukio a droll stare, confusing the boy. "What?"
"Well" Aika started "Even if it is a replica, it's not the oddest thing, boy who went from blind to snake eyes." She sneered as Yukio bit his lip in irritation.
"You've made your point." He said, making Arine smirk.
"She's right, though. Maybe open your mind to some of the more improbable things in life." Arine had a satisfied look on her face as Yukio glared at her.
"I can try, but it just doesn't seem that logical." He protested. "I mean, the odds are really against it being the real-"
"Never talk about odds, kid." Aika warned. "They never bode well, and it psyches you out before a mission. Then you have to psyche yourself back out so you don't pay attention to them. I've seen enough trained shinobi get killed because they got scared when thinking about mortality rates." Aika made a tch noise. "Trust me, don't focus on numbers, only the job. Last guy I knew who did that, he got a spear through his knee and some dogs tore him apart. All because he got scared of the target." She exhaled through her teeth "So never focus on what the papers say, make a bet on your own skills and hope for the best. Best advice I can offer."
"So what you're saying is just deal with the mission you're on, not what's back home?" Arine queried, to which Aika snapped a finger, pointing at Arine in approval.
"She gets it." Aika smiled in approval, making Arine sit a bit straighter. "Besides, I spent a good amount of that spear, so it better be legit." She eyed Yukio, who glared back, but was in retreat. He was silent for a minute.
"It's possible, just unlikely." He finally said, earning a nod from Aika.
"Good boy. Now" Aika looked at their bucket. Of ice, which had diminished. "Go get us some ice. Rest that brain of yours." Yukio huffed and stood, stretching, throwing his jacket off, along with his braces and spear holsters.
"Can't go around in that get up." He commented, going to the door, grabbing the small metal pail on his way out. He walked out, sliding the door shut and headed down to the ground floor, where there was an ice chest in a breezeway. "Just focus on the mission." Yukio quietly mocked in falsetto. "Percentages and odds have a place too, you know." He walked to the ice chest, his mind busy with getting the ice and mocking Aika, he never heard the footsteps. But he heard the voice.
"Excuse me?" Yukio jumped and turned quickly, pail at the ready, when he was facing a girl about his height with pink hair and cerulean eyes. She looked shocked at his actions. Yukio held his position for a second before realising how stupid he must look.
"Sorry" he said, righting himself "you startled me is all." Yukio chuckled sheepishly. "I guess that was a bit of an overreaction." He tried smiling and the girl seemed to relax.
"It's okay. I've seen worse." She replied. Yukio relaxed a little, enjoying this girl's company.
"I wouldn't doubt it." He replied. "So what's your name?" he tried, going for a simple path of conversation.
"I'm Sakura Haruno. You?" Sakura smiled. It was a pleasant smile, one that was disarming. Almost.
"Yukio." He replied, hoping she wouldn't notice he didn't give a last name. Sakura, however, noticed.
"What about your last name?" damn it. Yukio's mind thought back to his days in the Hidden Lightning Village. He tried, but failed to remember a last name he may or may not have had in his time there. Nothing. Arine and Denji never gave theirs, also under the cloak of amnesia. Aika never mentioned a last name, so he was well and truly screwed.
"Well?" Sakura asked, leaning her head to the side.
Shit, I paused too long. Yukio's mind was frantic before pulling out an excuse.
"Sorry it's just… I don't really have one." He leaned in close, whispering "I was adopted at a young age and they just gave me a first name and that's it." He pulled back, seeing Sakura's face, a mixture of sadness and sympathy.
"Oh, I'm sorry." Her face flushed lightly from embarrassment and she looked away.
Perhaps went a bit too far. Yukio thought to himself. Reassure her, and move on from the subject.
"It's fine. I mean it's not much of a sensitive topic." He shrugged, apathetic. "There are worse things in the world than a missing last name." Sakura looked up, less embarrassed about the question.
Good show. Yukio mentally patted himself on the back.
"All right. So what does your family do?" she asked.
She's a curious one. Yukio's mind was already working, putting together a makeshift tale. Make sure it's believable. He reminded himself. It was as if an editor were standing above a writer in his head. The writer was frantically writing the story, trying his best to make sure it made sense, and the editor stood behind him, looming, ever present, scolding and punishing. However, a writer didn't need such a good editor if he wasn't a good author.
"Oh we travel around, selling small trinkets to tourist shops and such. The cheap little reminders of places you stayed at, but wish you hadn't. It's almost like we're some form of haunted reminder for the people that had a lousy vacation." Yukio smiled, the right side of his mouth curling up in a small grin of sadistic humour. Sakura giggled a bit herself.
"Well, it sounds like you have some fun with it." She smiled again, the embarrassment from earlier dissipating.
"You've no idea." Yukio admitted, kind of getting into the whole shtick. He could see himself, making tiny little charms to give to bored shop owners who sold them to exhausted, overtired, underpaid workers who just wanted a pleasant vacation, but instead got too many people, bratty kids, and terrible weather for the week. He almost enjoyed the fantasy. "Sometimes, I'll just be sitting on a bench somewhere and I'll hear people complaining about the trinkets and I just think about how that was me, I made that tiny, annoying impact on their life." He chuckled, making Sakura giggle as well.
"You must really enjoy it." Sakura observed "I mean, to get that kind of satisfaction out of it." Yukio had a small chuckle.
"Call it my inner sadist, I guess." He answered, almost wistfully. However, remembering the ice and Aika being slightly temperamental at times, he turned to the ice chest, grabbing some in a scoop and pouring it into the bucket, filling it within a few scoops. "Besides, if you're going to have a job" he continued once he was finished, stepping aside for Sakura to fill her bucket "you might as well enjoy it."
"I can't agree with you more on that." She replied, filling her bucket. "I enjoy what I do, so far at least."
"Oh, what is it you do?" Yukio asked on instinct. He chastised himself a bit internally.
Getting too deep, you're going to be late. But he let the editor rant a bit. He was interested at the very least. Sakura smiled and pointed to the blue headband on her head that Yukio just noticed. She tilted her head forward and he saw the tiny emblem carved on it, a spiral leaf. Now look what you've done. The editor scolded.
"I'm a genin for the Hidden Leaf Village." Yukio raised an eyebrow in interest.
"That's cool." He replied
Shit, I'm screwed.
"Yeah, but one of my teammates is a complete idiot." Sakura seemed to pout for a second before returning to herself. Yukio suddenly felt the outside heat affect him, starting to sweat a bit.
Keep under control, keep under control.
"That sucks." Yukio agreed, grabbing his shirt collar and wiping his mouth for no reason other than to do something with his free hand. However, Sakura stared at him.
"Do that again." She said.
What?
"Sure." He put his shirt over his mouth again and Sakura snapped her fingers.
"That's it!" she seemed to have had a realisation. "Now I know why you look familiar."
Do I know this girl?
"Do I know you?" Yukio asked, lowering his shirt. Sakura shook her head.
"No, nothing like that. It's just that with your mouth all covered up, you looked like my sensei. Even your hair is all white and messy." Sakura seemed to look him over again. "Though you have both eyes out and yours are-" she stopped and looked "Why are they yellow?"
Now you're in shit. The editor was getting annoying now.
"Oh, I'm not sure. Must be something with my other family that I never met." The writer was struggling now. He banked too much on Sakura's obliviousness to his eyes. Now he was in trouble. The editor wasn't happy. "Truth be told, my adoptive mom thought it might be an issue, but I'm good at building so she has me do that." The writer had the editor's chin on his shoulder, reading what he had written. The scorn was in his eyes.
"Oh, well… at least you can contribute." Sakura said, unsure of what to make of the conversation. Yukio felt the writer heave a sigh of relief.
"Yeah. Anyway, I better get going. Mom will kill me if I'm out any longer." Yukio started walking, heading for the stairs. "See you another time, Sakura." He turned and waved, seeing Sakura do the same before heading along the ground floor. Yukio made it to the room, to see Aika looking up at him.
"Where the hell'd you go?" she asked, an eyebrow raised.
"Ice. Got held up by another person there." He looked around to see Denji and Arine hadn't moved, aside from Arine setting her spear down on a large cloth.
"Who held you up for so long?" Aika wasn't gonna let this go.
"A girl, that's all." Yukio set the bucket down by Aika, walking over to his side of the room and sitting down. Tch. Yukio heard the noise Aika made.
"Someone's being bitchy today." She commented. "'s not good for you, so my advice is straighten up and learn when someone has a preference for a way of thinking." Yukio looked up, noticing what Aika was saying. She knew what he was talking about earlier, about how odds do have a place, but to certain people and in certain situations. Yukio was silent for a minute as he pondered this.
"All right." He answered with a sigh. Aika smiled, showing she wasn't hung up about it.
"Good. Now then" Aika grabbed some ice and put it into her bottle, which she filled with water, taking a big swig. "Here's the plan for tomorrow: we head out early, get to that other bounty station and find out what we can. If we figure out who put the bounty out, problem solved. Otherwise we go find this" Aika reached into her bag and grabbed the bounty sheet. "Tsukune" she put the paper back. "and drag him to the bounty station. All goes well, we'll find ourselves with a decent pay day and perhaps an above average meal." Aika took tipped the bottle up, draining the contents within seconds before ending with a satisfied sigh. "Now, does that all sound good to you?" She gave a once over of her trio.
"It seems really simple. Are all bounties like this?" Arine wondered. Yukio never considered the question.
You go with things too much. Yukio sighed through his nose. It was true, sometimes.
"Depends, really. Ones like this, with drunkards in debt or something of the sort, it usually boils down to find them, bring them to the station, leave. What happens to them is their problem to sort out." Aika refilled her bottle. "Others can be more dangerous, such as find so and so dead or alive for a small reward. Same kind of principle, really. Just a bit more danger since the target is more likely to fight back. Though the threat level is generally low." Aika took a swig of water before continuing. "Now the ones who're wanted dead. Those are the dangerous ones. We're talking escaped convicts and gang leaders. Sometimes even higher on the threat scale." Aika raised a hand above her head to show how big a threat they could be. "Those ones are really risk-reward in terms of if you should go after them."
"Wait a second" Denji held up a hand "What do you mean risk-reward?"
"What I mean, Denji, is that if you go after people wanted dead, you could wind up being the one who's killed." She pointed stared at Denji. "Which means you have to think before you act. Trust me, I got eager once." Aika lifted the left side of her shirt to show a scar along her side. It went from the edge of her stomach around and to her back. Around it were several smaller scars, which Aika quickly hid. "That's what happens when you take a job and the guy turns out to be a sword specialist and he slices you once."
"How did you get him?" Yukio asked. She couldn't have fought for long with that bleeding.
"That's the beauty of it. I didn't." Aika sneered, giving a bitter chuckle. "I booked it when he got me. I wasn't going to deal with that. Last I heard, he was still at large but in hiding. If I remember right, some other bounty hunter beat him down something fierce." Aika rolled her eyes. "Anyway, moral of the story is be smart and don't do stupid things when it comes to this job." She took another swig of water.
"But then" Denji started, but then thought a moment "aren't those, like, the same thing?"
"He's right" Yukio added "A bit redundant to say it twice." Arine remained silent as Aika gave the boys a droll stare.
"Sure, fine, whatever. Redundancy and such. Take what you will from it, I'm not gonna force a lifestyle on you." Aika took another final swig from her bottle before setting it down. "Anyway, I think it's time we hit the sack. We've got places to be tomorrow and I'm not gonna waste it yelling at your lazy asses if you're tired." Aika yawned. "Anyway, I'm out, goodnight." And she lowered her head and began breathing heavily within minutes. The trio went to their bags and got out their blankets.
"She sure falls asleep fast." Denji commented, sliding under his blanket. "I mean, is that healthy?" Yukio slid in beside him, Arine doing the same on Yukio's right.
"It's perfectly fine." Yukio answered. "If she was falling asleep all the time, then there'd be an issue."
"Yukio's right. It's called…" Arine turned to Yukio, who shrugged his shoulders.
"I don't know." He relented with a sigh. "I'll have to read something about it at some point."
"That's fine." Denji replied. "I mean as long as it's not an issue."
"It shouldn't be." Yukio answered. "If you've concerned, you can ask Aika about it tomorrow."
"Hate to break up the pow wow boys, but we should get to sleep." Arine urged in whispered tones. "Before Aika wakes up and gets on us." The boys hurriedly agreed and closed their eyes. However, mere minutes after closing his eyes, Yukio felt an elbow poking his side. He opened one eye and leaned it left, focusing on Denji.
"Hey, uh" he whispered "So who was that girl? That you talked to earlier." Denji's eyes were full of curiosity. Yukio rolled his open one.
"Just a girl. I don't know where she was from. She just talked to me a bit, that's it." Yukio did what he could to placate Denji. The boy sighed and seemed satisfied, turning over and snoring after a minute. Yukio lay on his back and closed his eyes, only to feel an elbow form his right. He opened his right eye and looked at Arine.
"So it was just a girl? Nothing special about her or anything?" Yukio rolled this eye as well. He wasn't sure why he was keeping Sakura's identity a secret, but he did. Maybe he didn't feel like running in the middle of the night to someplace else.
"Just a girl. We had a bit of small talk, then she left." Yukio just wanted sleep now, damn it. He sighed through his nose and Arine seemed to get the message and turned her back to him. Yukio, sighed out loud and closed his eye, no entering the blissful slumber that awaited him.
Yukio was dying. He felt the cold steel plunge itself into his chest, entering his heart and running him through. He coughed, but it felt like he was ripping his chest in half in the process. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth as he looked down at the sword that was in him, the hands that gripped the handle nervously, shaking with either nervousness, rage, or a combination of the two. He coughed again, his chest tearing open once more, a spatter of blood hitting the ground. He then felt the blade get shoved into him more, the hands forcing it in roughly, uncoordinated. Yukio made a noise that was supposed to say he was hurt, but it sounded like strangled gurgling instead. He looked at the person as darkness invaded the edges of his vision. The person looked up but all Yukio could see of them was long black hair with several white streaks in it, one after the other. Black, white, black, white, and so on. The hair parted over the person's left eye to show it to be a violently bright shade of blue.
Die. The person ordered gruffly. Just they pulled the sword out a fraction fucking they forced it back in again die! Yukio coughed from the force of the blade entering him again. His legs finally gave out and he fell to his knees. He looked up at the person, who still had a death grip on the handle. Then the person pulled the sword out of Yukio, the steel turned to crimson, dripping the blood into what accumulated to a small puddle. Yukio tried asking who the person was, but his voice failed him. He coughed once more, the darkness along the edge of his vision increased, until he saw naught but the person whose hair obscured their face. Yukio fell back, staring up at a bright light. He tried reaching up for it but his arms had stopped working. Then the bright light seemed to come towards him, enveloping him…
Yukio shot up, panting hard that quickly turned to a rasping cough. He covered his mouth as he tried and failed to breath. His eyes were watering from the force of the coughing, his body spasming with each cough. Then, out of nowhere, he felt someone punching in the back, sending him onto his hands and knees. He coughed a few more times until it subsided. Yukio took in a couple deep breaths, gracious to be able to breathe again. He rotated and sat, seeing Aika standing there with Arine and Denji looking concerned.
"I hit you." Aika said, clearing up Yukio's initial confusion. "You were having quite the fit there, so I figured that the best thing to do was to do what my parents did. It works." Aika's tone was that of mild irritation, as if she had been woken up by his coughing and wanted it to stop. Yukio took a couple deep breaths before responding.
"Thank you." He managed, clutching his chest.
"What happened?" Arine asked, her face one of immense concern.
"I… I don't know. I had this dream and then I woke up coughing." Yukio swallowed, his throat now sore, as well as his chest.
"What kind of dream makes you flip out like that?" Denji asked, in an almost condescending tone. Yukio eyed his best friend.
"The kind where I'm killed." Aika's eyebrows stitched together in concern.
"What does that mean?" she asked, almost on edge.
"It means what it means. Someone stabbed me in the chest with a sword, saying I should die. That's all I know." He sounded exhausted, he felt exhausted. From a dream.
I'll never live this down. He thought to himself. He looked to his teacher, whose face went from one of concern to one of apathy.
"That's it?" Aika sighed, walking to pack her bag. "Talk to me when you predict the end of the world." She yawned loudly before she got down and started packing her things. Sighing, Yukio stood and went over to his small pile, donning his braces, spears with holsters, and his coat. He made sure to check the braces were working before packing his bag. He rolled his blanket up and slid it inside with minimal effort. Arine and Denji were themselves ready, Arine segmenting her trident in favour of having her spear in her hand. Denji simply shrugged his jacket on along with his filled bag and was ready.
"Okay kids, let's get out of here. At least for now." Aika's enthusiasm was contagious, Yukio pondering going back to sleep.
Now's not the time for that. He reprimanded himself. Shut up. He responded. Sometimes sleep trumps all. Especially when the sun was only just starting to rise. Though perhaps rise was the wrong word for it. A few rays were shining here and there but that was it. The air was chilling without the sun. Yukio shivered and rubbed his shoulders, noticing Arine was doing the same. Denji was fine, however.
"It's all in the jacket." He explained as he left it open, as if to taunt his friends. Yukio noticed that his gait had taken on a slightly cocky attitude. He looked over to Arine, who looked ready to hit him. Yukio contemplated doing the same, whipping a spear into Denji's behind before Arine spun her spear, butt end up into Denji's own. He grunted in agitation.
"Don't be so cocky, arrogance leads to one's downfall." She explained, her voice now taking on a bitter tone. Denji rubbed his offended rump.
"It's not my fault." He replied, pouting slightly. Arine surged ahead, Denji and Yukio trailing behind her on either side. Yukio reached out a hand and grabbed his friend's shoulder.
"Perhaps it's best not to agitate her." He sighed. "It's too early in the morning for it."
"She needs to learn to take a joke." Denji muttered as Yukio hit him in the shoulder.
"Just do it. I don't want to hear you two arguing all the time." Yukio slid his hands into his pocket as they walked through the village, the shops all dark and dead, the bars still lit up, with stragglers leaving in drunken stupors. The group avoided such people, though Yukio took an interest in where they headed. Most headed in undefinable directions that one could loosely assume was their home. Others stumbled into other bars that didn't kick them out to drink more. Some just stumbled into alleyways and passed out onto the ground.
Odd. Yukio commented internally. His eyes watched the people with interest as he followed along. He'd have to read more into the habits of drunk people someday.
"Yukio, you're dragging" Aika tossed the comment over her shoulder "Pick it up." Yukio realised he'd drifted behind and quickly walked up beside Arine before matching her walking pace.
"Lot of drunk people for a small village like this." Arine commented passively as they passed through the gate.
"People drink, it's not odd." Yukio replied, noting Denji sidled up on Arine's left.
"Yeah but still…" Arine seemed a bit on edge. "Drunk people do things without thinking."
"Relax" Denji reassured her with a smile. "We're out of the village and besides" he pointed to her spear, which she had slung across her back "They wouldn't dream of touching you with that thing visible."
"Of course." Arine sighed her response. "But still…" she swallowed.
"I know." Denji's smile slipped sideways as he remembered that night. "But still, I think you could handle them. Besides" he gestured to himself and Yukio "We'll always be there to back you up. Right Yukio?" the white haired boy smirked ever so slightly.
"Absolutely. Nothing will get past me." He looked into Arine's green eyes with certainty. "I won't let you get hurt." Arine was taken slightly aback by his certainty. She looked at Yukio. Despite his thin build, he'd gotten stronger from their training. Though an image popped into her head: Yukio taking the brunt of hits for her in a fight, like he was her personal shield. Arine felt her cheeks heat up at the thought. She looked down in embarrassment, hoping the boys didn't see her.
"Well, that covers that." Denji said with a grin. "And so we march onwards, to victory."
"Not to victory, genius." Aika commented. "Just to a lead that may or may not go somewhere." Aika let out an exasperated sigh. "This shit annoys me. Just fucking… put your name or group there, don't make me trek all the way to a station that's hours away just for your name." Yukio could tell Aika's mood had gone to sulking and avoided responding.
"She brings up a decent point though" he whispered to his comrades. "Why make yourself anonymous, especially if you're going to pay such an amount."
"Who knows, dude?" was Denji's flippant response. "All I know is that for my first mission out in the world, it's really, really boring." He ran a hand through his silver hair in frustration. "I mean, I expected more."
"Be careful what you wish for." Yukio warned "You just might get it."
"Who told you that gem?" Arine asked, smiling. Yukio looked up in thought for a moment and found something.
"I think…. My mother did?" he answered as the group entered a small forest. "I don't remember well but I know I heard a woman say it. Before I was in the prison." Yukio sighed, cursing his terrible eyesight and cursing his tormentors. All he could recall visually were blurs, nothing more. He came to the conclusion that anything he remembered audibly before then was from when he did have a home. "I'm sure it was her. I don't remember why though."
"It's fine, don't push yourself." Arine answered sympathetically. "No need to break your brain before you need to." She said, poking him in the side of the head. Yukio smiled and relaxed, slightly. He could focus on that later. Right now, he looked around, noticing the trees surrounding them. They made the area darker than the rest of the world, due to the trees covering the sun's daily rising. The branches extended out like arms reaching out to them. The branches were adorned with leaves, but for some that were jagged and pointed, almost like spears. In fact one looked suspiciously like-
"Get down!" Aika yelled as an actual spear sailed through the air at them. Yukio saw where it was headed and pushed Arine out of the way, the spear grazing her upper arm, leaving a shallow gash as it landed in the ground. Yukio gritted his teeth. Again? He looked around and saw bushes.
No, not like that. He criticised himself as he closed his eyes, focusing his chakra into them before opening. Before him was a world of red and white. The red stemming from Denji, Arine, and Aika, who looked around, frustrated. Yukio looked around, noting specks of red between the bushes, moving out like ants. He flicked his wrist, letting three needles between his fingers. He readied them and waited. A second later he spied the outline of a person running. He aimed ahead and threw the needles, which hit with a satisfying cry of:
"OW! Damn it!" Yukio grinned.
"They've surrounded us, most likely." He relayed his thoughts. "Perhaps we spread out slightly?"
"Possibly." Aika responded, thinking. "We need to draw them out-" Aika shot up, her kunai in hand, deflecting a rock that was thrown, before crouching again "of their little hidey holes. Arine, use your Wild Water Wave jutsu." Aika ordered, thinking up more strategies.
"Got it." Arine answered, making the hand signs. "Water Style: Wild Water Wave!" she put her hand to her mouth and shot a large wave of water out into the brush, making a small flood, and making people gasp or yell in irritation and surprise. She turned and fired another wave on the other side, making more people yell. Yukio was right, they were surrounded.
"Denji!" Aika barked as some men in loose outfits emerged, wielding pole arms emerged "Spikes!" Denji nodded and took a deep breath before making the hand signs, slower than Arine, enough for more to emerge.
"Earth Style: Hand of Terra!" he slammed his hand into the earth and the ground in front of the two that emerged rumbled before jagged rock points shot up and embedded themselves into the men's abdomens. They yelled and coughed in pain.
"Get over here you annoying brats!" one man ran at them, his sword raised, about to strike. Aika tensed, but then Yukio ran past her, his hand unsheathing his left spear from its thigh holster. He flicked it out and ran low at the man.
He'll swing down. The man swung his sword straight down. Dodge to the left. Yukio jumped and rolled to a crouch on his left. Hit his right arm. Yukio swung the spear up hard into the man's elbow, making an audible crack. Stab. Yukio let the spear from his hand for a mere second before grabbing it backhanded and impaling it into the man's right side, hitting a kidney. Finish. Yukio pulled the spear from the man and moved behind him, driving the pike into the back of the man's skull, killing him. Yukio pulled the spear and flicked the blood off as the man's corpse fell forward.
"Behind you!" he heard Denji yell. Yukio turned to see a man with a spear running at him. He was close, too close.
Shit. Yukio ducked as the spear went over his head, barely missing him. He glanced up to see the man raise the spear, only to get a red one in his chest. It hit right where his heart was with force, making him stumble back. Yukio moved forward, pulling Arine's crimson spear out before stabbing it forward into the man's neck, killing him.
"Yukio!" Arine was coming to him, with a man coming from the side, a sword at the ready.
Throw hers, then yours. Hit him in the side, come in and hit him from behind with the other, let Arine finish him. Yukio tossed Arine her spear as he bolted forward, throwing his left one with as much force as he could muster, embedding it in his left side. He stopped, noticing there was a spike in his side as Yukio pulled his right spear from his lower back, jumping as he neared, pulling the spike back for a hit. Arine took advantage of the confusion and thrust her spear into the man's stomach, making him double over and cough blood. Yukio cracked him in the back of the head with his spear before driving it into his neck.
"Gaaaaaaaah!" another bandit ran up with a spear raised for a downward stab.
"Aaaaaah!" Denji yelled as he ran up to face the man as he neared, his fist cocked back. He stopped, grounding himself before throwing the punch into the bandit's gut with enough force to stop him in his tracks. Yukio saw Denji baring his teeth as he wrenched the spear from the bandit before driving it through him, impaling the bandit before lifting the spear up, the bandit on it like a morbid battle flag. With a yell, Denji swung the spear forward, sending the body that was upon it flying into two more bandits, sending them to the ground. Arine ran up beside Denji, with Yukio pulling his spears and joining them on Arine's right as the two bandits rose from under their dead comrade, with a third running out.
"One for each of us?" Denji asked, popping his neck in anticipation. Behind them, they heard Aika fighting off a couple bandits. They felt sorry for the men.
"I say it's three for all of us." Arine grinned as she leveled her spear. Denji held his retrieved one up while Yukio rolled his shoulders, flicking the blood from his own spikes.
"Fair game." He panted, grinning as well. He looked at the three bandits. Two with swords, one with a spear. Easy. "Denji" he whispered "throw your spear into the one in front of you and go for him." Denji chuckled.
"Whatever you say, bro." Denji hefted his spear before throwing it with a grunt, letting it fly into the sword wielder in front of him. He stumbled back with the spear in his chest as Denji ran up before jumping and kicking out, hitting the spear and driving it through the man. The spear wielder ran up and swung his spear down, but Yukio was there, swinging his left spike down, breaking through the wood and sending the spear head flying in another direction. With his right spike, he swung up, cracking the man in the jaw.
"Watch it!" Denji yelled as he impaled the man on the spear he pulled from the fallen sword wielder.
"Yukio!" he turned to see the second sword wielder behind him, swinging down. However, the strike was blocked by Arine's spear, which she used to swing up, forcing the man back. He stopped stumbling just as Denji's spear sailed through the air and impaled the man in the right shoulder. Arine threw hers, hitting his left shoulder.
Both shoulders incapacitated. He can't swing without a lot of difficulty. Run up. Yukio ran up. Hit his knees. Yukio smacked both of his knees with his spikes. The man fell to his wounded knees. Finish him. Yukio raised his spikes and drove them into both sides of his collar bone, sinking them halfway down. Denji and Arine pulled their spears and stabbed the man from both sides, ending his life. The trio pulled their weapons and looked to see Aika standing amongst four bandits, their necks all slashed. They walked up to their teacher, who had blood staining her clothes.
"Well" she said, letting out a bitter chuckle "You kids look like hell." Yukio looked and saw Denji had blood spatters on his face and clothes, though the blood stains faded into the black. Arine's blue shirt had little stains, which she counted as lucky. Her skin was untouched by liquid crimson. Yukio, however, had blood on his face that he never noticed, and stains on his shirt that were visible.
"Oh. I didn't notice." Yukio admitted, a bit embarrassed. Arine started giggling as Denji grinned and laughed.
"You say some of the oddest things, I swear." Aika said, grinning as well. "I think though" she looked around "We should move the bodies to the bushes, that way they're not visible to passersby." The trio agreed and began moving bodies to the bushes.
"I wonder…" Yukio questioned quietly aloud "Should I feel remorse?" he probably should ethically at least. Though as he moved a body with a spear hole in it, he didn't feel it. These people made their choice and attacked the wrong people. Simple as that. They died fighting, a life they chose. Yukio felt that what he did had no moral implications one way or the other. "Should I be this cold to taking a life?" he wondered aloud again.
"Who knows?" Denji said, tossing a body out. He huffed from tiredness. "All I know is that we killed them, they aren't attacking us. Problem solved, no?" he grinned. Yukio grinned as well. He shouldn't spend time focusing on the little things. He felt no regret, no pang of remorse. He didn't know these people. He was clear.
"All right kids" Aika announced after they had hidden the corpses "We've been set back a bit but I think we can make good time as long as there are no more interruptions."
"I concur." Yukio stated, as the other two nodded their heads in agreement.
"Good. Now let's head out. And also" she tossed a cloth to Yukio and Denji. "Clean yourselves up. We don't want people thinking we're murderers." Yukio wiped the blood from his face and gave the cloth to Denji, letting him get cleaner.
"There, all better." Denji remarked, putting the cloth into one of his jacket pockets. With that, the group headed out towards the station.
A/N: Well that took a long ass time. I do apologise greatly, just personal feelings regarding the chapter made me halt and ask for a second opinion. Thankfully, that second opinion (my good friend ZeroJackson) gave me the go-ahead (after I made him read it twice) and then I finished with that fight scene. And I'll have to admit, I had a lot of fun writing that fight. I dunno, it all just synced up for me. Anyway, read, review, follow, or favourite.