Chapter 10: The Test of the Bells Part 2

Tony was initially surprised by this sudden attack, and then he got angry and elbowed Spauracchio in the ribs hard. This caused Spauracchio to temporarily lose his grip on his knife, which gave Tony an opening to swing around and kick Spauracchio in the face. But unfortunately, Spauracchio was able to recover in time to block it with his knifeless fist. Then, Tony lowered his foot and swung downwards to go for a low kick, but Spauracchio quickly jumped and raised his right leg to kick Tony in the face. Luckily, Tony back-flipped out of the way. It was then that he saw his gun near Spauracchio's feet. Instinctively, he sprinted towards it but Spauracchio kicked it off to the side before he could grab it, and his face hit Spauracchio's uplifted knee. Tony staggered back, but managed to regain firm footing. Then his hand automatically went to his nose as he felt blood dripping from it.

Spauracchio then proceeded to walk over to where the gun was and picked it up as he spoke, "I must say that I'm very impressed. You able to get yourself out of my hold, Tony, but you lack adaptability when the situation proves unfavorable. Instead of trying to knock me out first, you went straight for the gun, which gave me the opportunity to kick it away from you."

Tony tensed up, thinking that Spauracchio was going to shoot him, but instead, Spauracchio threw the gun back at him, and put away his own knife in the process.

"Because I admire your skill, I'm going to give you a fair shot," Spauracchio said, getting himself to where he was right in the gun's path. "No tricks, Tony, just shoot."

A gunshot fired, and Gelato heard it after he managed to stand up. Thinking that Spauracchio had possibly aimed his gun at Rosa, he ran down the sidewalk without hesitation, only to find Rosa passed out on the path. He shook her lightly, and her eyelids fluttered. When she was fully awake, she saw Gelato's face, and slapped him hard.

"What the hell were you doing, trying to kiss me?!" she screamed.

"No, you idiot, I was just reviving you!" Gelato snapped, holding his cheek. "I heard a gunshot and thought you were in trouble, so I ran down this way, but found you here instead."

"Was I unconscious?" Rosa asked.

"Yeah, did something happen?"

"Well, I remember following Tony, and then when I lost him, I heard a voice. I tried to see who it was, and then I felt someone tap the back of my head. Ignoring it, I went to find Spauracchio, thinking he was close. So I ran along the sidewalk, and when I heard Tony, and I saw him…bleeding! Oh no! I have to find him, otherwise, he'll die!"

As she ran down the sidewalk, Gelato tried to follow her. "Hey, wait for—

Then Gelato tripped on another wire that lay between him and Rosa when he checked on her.

When the smoke cleared, it revealed that Tony hadn't shot Spauracchio in the chest, but right at his side where the bells were hanging. Surprisingly, the bullet missed Spauracchio's side by only a few inches, but the bells had fallen to the ground. Then just as Spauracchio crouched down to pick them up, he saw the shadow of a foot looming over him. Quickly, he leaned back before Tony's foot struck and was about to push him down when Tony spun around with his foot still in the air, and aimed it at Spauracchio's face again. But like before, Spauracchio blocked it, this time grabbing it with his hand. At first, Tony struggled, and then he used all his strength to move the foot to where it hit Spauracchio underneath his chin. This made Spauracchio fall backwards, which allowed Tony to break free as he backed away quickly. But Spauracchio caught himself with his free hand before he made contact with the concrete.

"I guess I was wrong," Spauracchio said, and staggered to stand up. "You certainly are smarter and stronger than Gelato or Rosa combined, but that will only make your fall greater."

"Shut up!" Tony said, and put his gun back in the holster strapped to his chest.

Then he proceeded to make a series of hand signs (hand seals) in rapid movements that even made Spauracchio watch in surprise. He figured that this kid was strong, but not this strong. The last hand sign that Tony made was the sign of the Lion (Tiger), one of the twelve hand signs that were used to perform alchemy (ninjutsu). Once this was done, Tony inhaled a deep breath, and then a second later, he exhaled a ball of fire from his mouth. This spell had been taught to him when he was a little boy, as it was one of the traditional spells that had been passed through his family for generations.

When the fire died down, Tony was surprised to find that Spauracchio's body, which should've been burnt by the flames, was gone. He looked around frantically, calling out Spauracchio's name, and then he felt something tugging at his leg. He looked down, and found himself staring at a hand that was sticking out of the concrete, and currently holding his ankle. But it didn't stop there, as he felt himself being pulled further underneath the concrete until he was completely buried underneath it, except for his head. He couldn't budge an inch as Spauracchio emerged out of the concrete in front of him and stood over him.

"As I said, your fall will be greater when you're smarter and stronger than most people. Though I have to admit, I never expected a boy like you to have mastered the Prometheus Fire spell (Fireball no Jutsu) at such a young age," Spauracchio said, staring down at Tony with expressionless eyes. "But you got overconfident and thought you could take me out in one blow, so I buried myself underneath the concrete using the Mole spell (Groundhog Jutsu) and attacked you from where you least expected me to be."

Then Spauracchio picked up the bells, and walked away. Still struggling, Tony gritted his teeth in frustration and despite his urge, he didn't cry for help, knowing that if he drew the other two to him, Spauracchio might attack them. Nevertheless, he was surprised to see Rosa running in front of him, and called her name. She immediately stopped, and looked at him. In disbelief, she rubbed her eyes, but she still saw Tony's head staring back at her with a surprised look.

"Rosa?" Tony said.

"AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH! First an injured Tony and now his severed head is talking to me!" she cried, and passed out again.

This made Tony blink in disbelief, and his ears were ringing.

"What a useless broad," he said at last.

Suddenly, another dreadful sound came to his ears: the tolling of the park bell. With each strike, Tony struggled harder, but he could not break free out of the concrete surface so easily, while the dirt underneath had loosened only a little bit. Then when he tried to shove the concrete upward with his shoulders, he found them to be as hard as rocks, and cried out in pain. But by that time, the bell had already struck six times, signifying the end of the test.

"Your time is up, and none of you were able to grab the bells," Spauracchio said firmly, coming out of the bushes holding Gelato by the hood of his jacket, who was struggling violently. "However, this young man tried to grab our dinner before the test was up. Luckily, I was nearby when I caught him."

After letting go of Gelato, he went over to Tony, made the sign of the Scorpion (Boar) and placed both hands on the concrete near Tony's head. To Tony's surprise, he was lifted out of the concrete and back onto the surface as if someone was picking him up, and he couldn't help but feel stiff all over. Collapsing on his knees, Tony clenched his teeth and punched the ground in frustration.

"I would've gotten those bells if you hadn't cheated by using an alchemic spell on me!" Tony shouted at the ground.

"Says the guy who tried to burn me to a crisp using the Vulcan Fire spell," Spauracchio replied calmly. "I didn't say you couldn't use alchemy, and you guys only used it occasionally, except for Rosa, who didn't use any spells whatsoever."

"But Delfino taught me that alchemy was only to be used when it was absolutely necessary, otherwise our natural energy would be drained," Gelato exclaimed.

"Don't you mean 'nature energy (chakra)'?" Spauracchio said, and walked over to Rosa who was still passed out. "Yes, alchemy does tend to drain one's nature energy, but it is necessary when you're dealing with gangsters who are well-mastered in the art."

He patted Rosa's cheek a few times, and then she woke up. She was surprised to see Spauracchio, and a little frightened with his masked face so close to hers. Sensing this, Spauracchio backed away as Rosa got up, rubbing her head. Then when she saw Tony crouched on the ground, she ran over to him and helped him up.

"Are you okay, Tony?" she asked sweetly. "I saw you with knives sticking out of your chest and bleeding all over, calling my name over and over again. Then the next minute, you were a severed head talking to me. Heh! I must be going crazy."

"Or maybe you were being subjected to Illusions and when you saw me buried in the concrete, you let your imagination take over into thinking I was just a severed head," Tony growled, backing away from Rosa.

"Gelato?" Rosa said, noticing Gelato glaring at Spauracchio with a grumpy stare. "What are you doing here? Is the test over?"

"Yes, Rosa!" Gelato and Tony said in unison, and then they glared at each other for doing so.

End of Chapter 10