Hey everyone! Remember when I said in the last chapter that the 28th chapter will conclude the short, battle arc? Well, after going over the content of this chapter and seeing how cluttered and overbearing the previous version of this chapter is (it was to be the longest chapter, surpassing both chapters 18 and 21), I decided to split it into two so to make this chapter more comprehending and easier to read. With the split, I hope will be able to include few more scenes to the next chapter, which was going to be on the cutting floor due to how many words I've written in the previous version.
Anyway, here's the continuation of the Anubis and Emperor fight, everyone! Hope you'll enjoy it!
"USHYAAAAAAAAA!"
Yugiri's blood-curdling scream that really sounds out of character for someone who's refined and serene if she wasn't possessed by a Stand bounded to a sword elicit the four Stand Users to look up and see the possessed zombie about to strike them with an overhead attack.
Remembering Johnny's early attempt to halt the blade from hitting him by having Tusk ACT4 stop the blade only for it to bypass its speed because Anubis have already learned the trick, Mamezuku realized that he, Gyro and Johnny have already showed its ability to the Stand, meaning he had committed their moves to memory. While he had not seen all of their moves and Narancia's, he's not willing to take the risk of halting the blade by himself using Doggy Style.
"Everyone, scatter!" He instructed the three, which came out like a desperate command in hopes of turning this tide of battle to their favor.
They didn't have to hear him twice as they all separated, barely evading the sword that struck the ground with enough power to form a crack almost unseen from afar.
Once they managed to evade the attack, he proceeded to tell the two Italians of their next move, "Gyro, Narancia! Get away from Anubis! Me and Johnny will fight the Stand and free Yugiri from his control!"
The aforementioned figures turn to him, with Narancia saying, "Huh? Why us? And what about Ai and Lily?"
Gyro quickly guessed what he wants them to do, so he carried Narancia to his back against his protest, stating, "Ah, I got it! We'll take our leave then!"
"Wha, hey! Where are we going!?" protested Narancia as Gyro run away from them.
Raising Yugiri's head after hearing their abrupt conversation, Anubis quickly noticed Gyro carrying the injured Narancia on the same path as they are on. Ai and Lily are also there, having their mouths freed after Gyro got his steel balls back.
A smirk appeared again as Anubis weighed his options. Hmm, should I chase after them? …No. Perhaps not. Tempting as it is, these two zombies should do the job. I wonder if they are willing to harm them when they catch up to them. Well, I'm not here to speculate. For now, I must focus on Johnny and Mamezuku.
"You two!" Anubis called out.
"Unnnggghhhh…?" Under his control, Ai and Lily turned to Yugiri, groaning.
"Chase after those two!" he commanded, pointing the tip of the blade to the shrinking forms of Gyro and Narancia. "I want them to be killed once you reach them. As for me, I will go after the jockey and peeling man and slice them up! Is that clear?"
"…Yeeeerrrrhhhh," they grunted, almost like they're saying "Yeeessss…"
"Then go! Before they go too far away!"
With Anubis' orders, they sprinted in one direction away from them. After watching them be off, they turned around to chase after Johnny and Rai.
But as soon as they did, a giant, pink fist enter their sights.
! !
"ORA!"
"Crap!"
ガギャァァン
Anubis barely stopped the fist by hitting it with the blade's flat surface. The impact slightly rattled the blade, and Anubis himself, but Yugiri is able to stop it from hitting her.
"…A sneak attack, huh? I'll make sure you won't do it again, Johnny Joestar," Anubis proclaimed. "I have learned your move. Try doing it again with the other fist!"
As if responding to his boast, Tusk ACT4 swing its right fist towards Yugiri. Anubis lets out a sneering laugh, exclaiming, "Seriously!? Ha ha ha! Got angry from my words, huh?!"
Boosting her reflexes, Anubis evaded the punch, before retaliating by hitting Tusk ACT4's stomach using the blunt end of the hilt. It must be a forceful attack since the hulking Stand was thrown away from Yugiri, but not too far.
"Ough!"
Picking up Johnny's pained yelp, Anubis tracked down the exact spot the jockey is hiding. A maniacal grin appeared on Yugiri's face because he sees this as an opportunity to kill him without him suspecting he has a trick up this sleeve.
Oh Johnny… How can you be so naïve?
Approaching the pine tree Johnny is hiding behind, Anubis slashed through the tree. If a normal sword did it, the tree is cut into two, the slashed part falling to the ground. However, Anubis is no ordinary sword who possesses different abilities that will help his possessed users have the edge in combat, no matter how subpar their skills in sword is.
One ability in particular is choosing what to slice and what not. When Anubis sees something that he wants to slash it apart and they happen to be behind an object, he will slash that specific object without doing anything at all to the one in front of it. Having the ability to become intangible to all kinds of matter except his target is what will earn him a kill after hearing Johnny's pained gasp and the gushing of blood from his wound.
However, when the sword finished swinging through the tree, Anubis sees that the blade didn't touch and feel Johnny's skin and flesh being torn apart. Instead, he swiped at nothing.
"Huh?" Perplexed, Anubis directed Yugiri behind the tree only to find Johnny is not behind this tree at all. Naturally, he is surprised. "What, there's no one here? But I could swore I heard Johnny's gasp of pain in this particular tree!"
"Yeah, I was behind that tree. But that is a part of a trick to fool you and send you in a position that we can attack!"
"What!?"
ドリュ リュ リュ リュ
ズシィィン!
"Hnnngh! Gck..! Kkccccrrrkkk!"
Anubis found himself tied up again by Mamezuku. This time though, her wrists and ankles are not the only body parts Doggy Style had wrapped the wire ropes around. Her entire body are covered in Mamezuku's ropes, holding and constraining her along with the tree Anubis was standing next to. If that's not enough, Mamezuku have forced her arms to fall down straight, applying as much rope as possible to tighten any movements in her hands or wrists. Therefore, Anubis won't be using the sword and Emperor as long as Doggy Style is active.
A bundle of ropes compiled together, forming someone's upper body that soon reveals to be Rai himself, who had unraveled his entire body to constrain Yugiri against the tree. It must have taken a lot of energy because he's breathing heavily. Composing himself, Rai called out Johnny's name, exclaiming, "I got Yugiri! It's on you now!"
"Right," they turn to Johnny coming out from a hole he created after shooting himself using Tusk ACT3. Said Stand hovers near its user as he finished forming himself back after a brief visit to the wormhole through space or a boundary between dimensions.
ドドドドドドドド
He couldn't care to question whether of these two are true or have merit, as his attention is focused on the sword in Yugiri's unwilling hand, and also the Emperor gun in her other hand. Said hand appears to try wriggling itself free, or at least have enough movement to be able to shoot with it.
"Hnnnrrrgghh… Not bad. Not bad at all," begrudgingly complimented Anubis. He couldn't have expect Johnny to trick him to try slashing through the tree, as if he knew he can slash through any object by phasing through them. With this thought comes with the realization that he, Rai, Gyro and Narancia must have known the enemy Stands they will fight in order to rescue Yugiri, Ai and Lily. "I see that the man who brought you to life as an undead was well-informed of all the Stands prowling in this prefecture he wants to 'save'. If he hadn't, I'm sure our fight would have been very different. The way I imagined it, you four would have been wounded and injured heavily from my possessed zombies, which will make it easy for me to put a bullet or slash you apart while you are done."
"Engaging in some talk, huh? Like hell I'm gonna fall to one of your tricks!" Spinning his five nails while pointing one finger directed at the blade, Johnny told Anubis, "If you don't want to get killed brutally, release Yugiri, Lily and Ai from your control! It's already hard for me to fight you because you possessed the three, let alone Yugiri."
"Keh keh keh keh. You must have gotten soft Johnny," implied Anubis with a chuckle. "What's wrong? Afraid to hurt this woman?"
"Obviously! Along with Lily, they're like… like…!" After considering what he have to say, he admitted with a growl, "…daughters to me!"
"Daughters?" Rai raised one eyebrow over his intriguing claim.
Realizing he blurted that out, he cleared his throat before quickly changing the subject because this is an inappropriate time to say it. "Y-Yeah, I did say that but… Let's focus on getting the sword off her hands, alright?"
When I realize I have to fight against Yugiri, I had set upon to try disarming the sword off Yugiri's hands. But because he had already gained experience, he's making it hard for us to achieve it. Just my luck… I wouldn't forgive myself if something unpleasant happened to Yugiri and Lily. I hope Gyro thinks the same.
Mamezuku choose to let it slide, saying, "Okay. Let's not wait more. We must get Anubis off her hands."
Seeing Johnny is going to force himself out of Yugiri's mind, he growled through the courtesan, exclaiming, "Get back, Johnny! If you don't get back or release right this instant…!"
Feeling his left wrist not as constrained as he/she feels, Anubis aimed Emperor towards Johnny, startling him and Rai as he says, "Say goodbye to your brain!"
ドガ！
"Shit!"
Johnny barely avoided three bullets flying out from Emperor by moving his head. At the same time, Mamezuku pulled Yugiri's right hand back in the ropes, but not before disarming the gun Stand off her hands. Seeing it, Johnny quickly grabbed it and toss it behind him, rendering him unable to shoot more. "There! No more shooting from you!"
"Ah ah ah! I may not hold Emperor anymore, but the bullets it fired are still under my control," Anubis informed, or instead reminded them. "In fact, they should be returning riiiiight… now."
Like he said, the bullets ricochet back to them, intending to target Mamezuku to force Yugiri out of the binding ropes.
! !
Realizing the trajectory of the bullets after looking behind, he turns to Rai and warned him that he's Anubis' target. "Mamezuku! Get off Anubis, or else you will get shot!"
To his surprise, Peel Planter have this reply that denotes his fearlessness of getting himself injured if he can help his companions to progress the fight in their favor. "I'm aware. I get your worry, but let them come. I am prepared to deal Anubis a critical blow using those bullets."
This is not what Anubis expected. Curious, and also a little terrified that his plan appears to have failed so soon, he asks, "Eh? Wha… What do you mean?"
It's Rai's turn to smirk as he reveals, "I'm talking… about this!"
He force the sword to be raised up by controlling Yugiri's hand holding the hilt through his coiled rope, just as the bullet is close.
"AAAAGGGHHHH!"
Anubis cried out in pain when the bullets hit the blade. He would never thought Rai was counting on letting him shoot with Emperor and waited for the bullets to come back so he can force him to let go of Yugiri if he doesn't want to get shot in the head.
As the possessed zombie attempted to thrash around out of pain and trying to wriggle herself out of Doggy Style's bind, Mamezuku looked at Johnny who is impressed of his bold strategy that can end up in him riddled with holes. Seeing he watched him inflict damage to Anubis, he has this to say to him. "Johnny! Shoot out your nails against the blade! I'll steady it so you can aim at it properly!"
Recognizing his intent, he nodded to him with a smile before raising his pointed fingers. "Okay! I'll try destroy the blade with ｢Tusk｣! Hopefully once the blade is destroyed, Yugiri is freed from Anubis' control!"
"Huh? W-Wait, no! Don't do it! I-I don't want myself to be-!" Anubis pleaded, Yugiri's eyes widening after he realize what the two will do next.
"Tusk!"
"Chumimi~in…!"
ドゴォォ
Johnny and Mamezuku are unsympathetic to Anubis' plea as the two work together to damage the sword in order to decrease Anubis' control over Yugiri, and by proxy Ai and Lily currently hassling Gyro and Narancia when they separated. With Rai steadying the blade in one place while fighting against Yugiri's movements and Johnny utilizing the first two ACTs' abilities, the blade is slowly getting whittled down by the nail bullets, causing an amount of pain for Anubis that he screamed through Yugiri. If weren't for the knowledge she was possessed by the Stand and that her screams of pain are coming from Anubis, Johnny and Mamezuku would have winced over having to hurt her, perhaps stopping because they are not liking her painful shriek.
I'm not sure if you are aware the whole time Yugiri, but I hope you're alright. If you are actually hurting from my attack done on Anubis, I'm sorry. Johnny offer his apology to her in his mind.
….I must be going soft if even I am not liking Yugiri screaming and squirming in my grip, thought Mamezuku. I am doing this for the sake of protecting the girls and Saga. If the situation allows it, I must sacrifice some part of me to ensure the success of a greater goal. If you are feeling all of it, then please endure it for a little longer. It looks like we are just about done.
True to his thoughts, Johnny's attack on Anubis has damaged the blade. The surface is no longer smooth, and light cannot reflect from it anymore. This is signified by Yugiri's body twitching as she groaned in pain. No doubt Anubis must have felt every single bullet hitting him, which Johnny wants to make sure he felt it all by using ACT2 for the last ten shots. That left him waiting for his nails to grow back, which takes for about a minute.
Darn. Should have brought chamomile tea with me if I knew this is how the fight will go, Johnny sighed. Well, at least I did enough damage on the sword. If I shoot one more bullet at it, Anubis is done!
"Mamezuku, keep Yugiri tied up and the sword still. I have a minute to grow back one nail, which I hope will be the last straw to shatter the sword in one shot!" Johnny told him. "For now, put down the sword for a minute until I'm ready to shoot!"
"…"
Noticing Rai's blank look and that he hasn't responded after five seconds, Johnny called out to him again. "Hey, Mamezuku! Did you hear what I said? Put the sword down for a minute!"
"…"
"Hellooooo? Why aren't you saying anything?"
"Sorry Johnny, but I'm afraid… I won't do what you're telling me to do," 'Mamezuku' suddenly said in a deep tone of his voice.
!?
Recognizing the difference in tone, Johnny tensed up as he pointed at the sword despite not having grown one nail yet. "W-What? Mamezuku?"
"Don't bother talking to him Johnny. He's taking a rest…inside his mind."
"His mind…?" No sooner after he heard him does he realize with dread that Anubis managed to get Mamezuku too. His eyes widen in realization after glancing to Yugiri's hand holding the sword's hilt that Mamezuku's wire ropes have wrapped it whole, including putting the hilt in place. "Oh no. Don't tell me…!"
Two smirks appear on Yugiri's and Mamezuku's face, the latter unwrapping themselves off the tree as Anubis speaks through their voices, spilling out together. "That's right… While you two worked together to break the blade to remove my control over the zombie woman, I slowly influenced Mamezuku's mind because he happened to be touching the hilt. While it took me longer than expected because of his immense will, I eventually won and took over his mind."
Quickly standing up, a feeling so foreign to him as a former paraplegic, Johnny backed away as Yugiri and Mamezuku stands up next, their eyes replaced with sharp glares directed at him. He gritted his teeth, having not expected Anubis would pull the same trick for the fourth time after doing it to Ai and Lily.
He doesn't have to say what he must do next. "Tusk!"
"Chumimi~in!"
Tusk ACT4 charged towards the two possessed zombie to grab and restrain them within its grip.
"Too slow!"
The two dodged Tusk before dashing pass it and Johnny so quickly he doesn't have time to react.
"S-Shit!" cursed Johnny.
"USHYAAAAA!"
ドシューッ
"AGGHH!"
Johnny screamed as blood flows out from a wound on his left waist, staining his clothes around the body part. He is forced to crouch down while closing the wound with both his hands to stop the blood flow, which is hard because of the agonizing pain and blood still trickling out from it.
During this, Mamezuku, under Anubis' command, snatch Emperor off the ground using Doggy Style and his right hand that wasn't sliced off. Wielding it again, Mamezuku turns around to point Emperor towards Johnny's back as he shouts, "DIE, JOHNNY!"
ドキュ ドキュ ドキュ ドキュ!
The man noticed the four bullets coming towards him quickly. Since he's yet to grow one nail to use Tusk ACT3, Johnny ducked.
ゴッ
His relief the bullets sailed pass him without harming him is short-lived when he saw Yugiri bringing Anubis down to him, intending to slice him up. "USHYAAAAA!"
"CRAP!"
He rolled away from the sword, which hits the ground with an audible clank. Learning about the move earlier however, Yugiri repositions the blade so the sharp edge points at Johnny and with incredible reflexes does she swings it towards the recovering Johnny. "TRY DODGING THIS!"
Johnny barely reacted in time by putting his spinning fingers on the ground which carried him away her attack. While only two trees got sliced up and Johnny is relatively unharmed, he can feel his feet throbbing in pain, much to his chagrin.
AGH! My feet too!?
He doesn't get to rest briefly when he glimpsed the four bullets coming back after making a U-turn under Mamezuku's command. Speaking of him, he shoots out four more bullets at Johnny again, exclaiming with a sinister smile, "DON'T BE SLOW NOW!"
"Oh come on!"
Getting exasperated and desperate, Johnny bring his spinning fingers to a tree. His legs spontaneously jolted to launch him in the air, evading the eight bullets that changed its trajectory in case he chose to duck again like last time.
Anubis is not done yet however. The bullets rises up in the air for three seconds before they changed trajectory again to fall down towards Johnny, which he noticed them after landing back on the ground (and aggravating his waist injury).
Then Yugiri comes in approaching the vulnerable man while running the sword's tip against the ground, emitting sparks and sharpening it. And Mamezuku formed both his arms into two separate, but sharp cone that he extends at Johnny, intending to stab him with them.
Seeing he's cornered in all directions, Johnny is close to panicking. Having to fight a woman who he knows pretty well because she was possessed is almost hard for him, but getting to fight two possessed zombies, one that he also knows? And having to contend with three Stands eventually forcing him in the corner? All by himself?
Johnny have forgotten what's like being introduced to the concept of Stands and fighting a new enemy when he was still inexperienced. But now, he remembered.
No! I'm not the same depressed wimp always prone to panic! I must survive this. I must, no… I will!
Things are not on my favor, but that doesn't mean I will falter again! In fact, I have waited enough!
When it appears Anubis will have his victory, Johnny pointed his finger to his head's temple and shouted, "TUSK!"
ドバァッ
!?
The sword, bullets and cone-shaped arm hit the ground after Johnny successfully evaded the attacks by sucking his whole body in the spatial hole that he created after one nail finally grew back. Being near him when he escaped, Yugiri watched as the hole moved along the ground, probably commanded by Johnny, as it disappears behind the trees.
Despite having escaped their attacks, Anubis is not angry. With a smirk on Yugiri, Anubis has Mamezuku fetch the discarded scabbard she threw aside before the start of the fight with his Stand before she grabs it off his hand. She then says, "Tut tut tut. You may have avoided our attacks Johnny, but I have learned how that move works now! Try doing that move again… Or better yet, don't. 'Cause it won't fool me twice!"
"So… Where did you go…?" 'Mamezuku' speaks next under Anubis' influence. He is sure Johnny couldn't have strayed far away when he's inside the hole. He must have come out when he believes he's out of their sights, so it's logical to assume he's making an escape after he come out from the hole. He remembers that he rides on a horse. If he's intending to escape from them while nearby, he would hear the horse's gallops.
Anubis keeps the galloping sound in mind as Mamezuku and Yugiri looked around, listening intently to any subtle change of the sound in their surroundings. The Stand is prepared to take on either scenario that may happen: if Johnny is intent to destroy the sword, then he has the two ambush him when he least expects it and put a bullet to his head or decapitate him. If he chose to escape, then the two will chase after him, shooting out bullets as much as possible to hinder him or his horse.
Any second now… I must make sure I don't miss anything around here…
ドド ドド ドド ドド
! !
Their ears picked up the hurried gallops of Johnny's horse, indicating he's retreating from Anubis.
"Aha! So you chose to get away from me!" 'Yugiri' and 'Mamezuku' exclaim in unison. "Now that I know what you have done, I have committed it to memory! I will not be fooled by your escape again, Johnny Joestar!"
The two chased after in the direction Johnny is likely running away on, intending to catch up and corner him with the combined might of these two.
Meanwhile, back to Johnny, he has one hand holding on Slow Dancer's reins while his other hand clutches his waist injury, which is now covered in his own makeshift bandage fashioned from his shirt after coming out from the hole. Once he's done patching up, he called out Slow Dancer before he rides away from Anubis to find Gyro and Narancia so he has their help and have Gyro treat his waist injury.
Of course, he remembers Ai and Lily going after them under Anubis' orders. From what he saw from their possessed and feral states, they are likely to be weak who only got a jump on them when they weren't looking. That said, because they are under Anubis' control, the two must be having a hard time fending off them because they do not want to hurt them. If they are facing a different Stand that doesn't involve mind control, then they would have protected them as they fight them.
Johnny sighed in exasperation, having never expected this fight would get so much harder. "That Anubis… He's one nasty Stand, controlling Yugiri and Mamezuku, which means I have to force myself to hurt them" he muttered, anger lacing his tone over the Stand's action. "Once we managed to disarm you, a good beating is what you will sorely need. For now, I have to find them, and hopefully, they are able to snap Ai and Lily out of Anubis' control."
With that assertion driving him, Johnny continues riding through the forest and reach his allies before the enemy does.
"Uuuuuggghhhh…"
"Brraaaggghhh…"
"*sighs* Come on, you two. I don't want to do this over and over again."
Ai and Lily's attack on Li'l Bomber and Spin Cowboy has been…ineffectual once they surpass their attempts on ambushing them when they are not looking.
Throwing the steel balls to their torso for the fifth time, the Spin energy radiating from the ball to apply an anesthetic-like feeling to stop approaching them, Gyro and Narancia's earlier fear and consternation to the possessed zombies thanks to Anubis had mostly vanished and replaced with annoyed faces. As for the latter, other than the stinging pain from his shoulder wound, he's otherwise fine and able to move after Gyro stitched it close. Too bad they didn't bring bandages to cover it, but Narancia is unworried because he knows his injury will disappear when the fight is over.
After the balls finished spinning and returned to Gyro's hands, he charged them once more, not hiding the look of exasperation over Ai and Lily rising up lethargically and sliding their feet slowly as they approach them again. He sighed in exasperation, not really wanting to temporarily immobilize them over and over but he must stop them from attacking them until they are freed from control.
"Ora," he said it in a tone like he had gotten used doing an activity he may or may not like, which is an appropriate description for this scene.
シル シル シル
Again, Ai and Lily lied on their backs as the steel ball anaesthetizes them for the sixth time. Seeing them lie down with the steel ball spinning on their body reminds Gyro of the first time he found out the Zeppeli family's duty for the Kingdom of Naples, which is to execute criminals. He quickly cleared the memory out of his head since his execution days are over. In fact, he didn't get to execute someone at all before he enlisted himself in the Steel Ball Run race. Kotaro must have known about his history, so even to this day, he's wondering why he called him the ｢Legendary Executioner｣ when he hasn't done any executing.
Eh, I don't mind it. Guess I need to have title that is easily recognizable, What Gyro concluded.
Going over to the two, Gyro has an idea of holding the spinning balls in place and continue imbuing them with minimum Spin energy so they stay numb. Realizing how simple it is for him to do that instead of continuing throwing the ball at them, a choice he doesn't like despite not actually hurting them by getting them numb, he resisted the urge to face palm as he crouched down and placed both his hands on the balls that is rotating slowly. When he did, they continue spinning, and Ai and Lily remained lying on the ground semi-unconsciously.
"Finally. You get to hold down the steel balls instead of throwing them again," he heard Narancia speak, the boy keeping himself busy by looking at his radar.
"Huh? Narancia, did you figure out a simple solution this whole time?" asked Gyro, looking around his shoulder and facing him.
He looked at the Zeppeli's eyes and shrugged, replying, "Yeah, I did."
Narrowing his eyes that he just told this tidbit when he did it, Gyro says, "You could have told me that sooner instead of later! It would have save me less time in preventing these two from trying to eat us!"
"I was thinking of telling you that, but I decide to keep it quiet and let you figure it out," responded Li'l Bomber.
"Then why did you stayed quiet?"
"Because you're a proficient Spin user?"
"…And that explains your decision how?"
"Oh c'mon! As I said, you're a Spin user," Narancia tried defending himself with ample choice words. "I expected you to figure that out, so I thought that it would be cheating to have you be told. That's why I kept quiet until you figured out a simple solution."
Gyro is unconvinced, and annoyed, to his response. He has this to say to him, "…Woulda been nice to be told, Narancia."
"Hey, chin up! You're quite proud being a member of a Zeppeli family and a Spin user!" laughed Narancia. "Doesn't it feel great to have thought of that because you learned everything about the Spin? I know you are, Gyro!"
He was about to say more in protest, but after considering and making sense of his words, he nodded in approval. He smiled at Narancia, saying, "Eh, guess you're right. I am a proud member of the Zeppeli family. It did felt great to have learned a simple action. Still, it woulda been nice to be told. Don't forget that, alright?"
"Yeah, yeah. I'll remember it."
"Ruuurrgghh…." cried out Ai as she tried rising up, only to be pushed back by Gyro. "Easy there! Don't want you getting up while you're still under the enemy Stand's control. Hey, speaking of which, Narancia!"
"Yeah?" he replied.
"I think we should return back to Johnny and Mamezuku. Have a feeling they need our assistance," he told him, worried that they are taking too long to defeat Anubis. "If we four went up against Anubis while we try not attack Yugiri directly, she and these two will go back to normal."
Narancia was thinking heavily about what Gyro said. He really has to go back to Johnny and Mamezuku and help them again. But there is a complication that made him feel like he's unable to go help his companions. And no, he's not talking about his shoulder injury.
"It's a good idea, but what should we do about Ai and Lily? You are aware of their possessed states that has them act before they were awakened. Y'know, like zombies that we are actually are."
"Hmm, you're right," he conceded. Glancing to their blank faces as they groaned quietly, he shakes his head with a sigh after seeing no signs that they will snap out of their zombie stupor. Anubis sure had done a great job possessing them so that possibly only destroying the sword should put an end to the Egyptian god of death's reign of terror. "We can't let them roam around while they're in that state. And I sure don't want to harm them or knock them unconscious."
"At this point, I was thinking about doing that," admitted Narancia. "But I obviously discarded that option!"
"Geez, I thought you were serious about that."
"Am not! Really!" he stands up, twisting his uninjured shoulder as he move close to Gyro. "Look, we must go help Johnny and Mamezuku! As for Ai and Lily, well…" He trailed off there to think up of a way to keep the two occupied while he and Gyro went off to rejoin the fight. But so far, he cannot think of a good idea to his frustration.
"You go," Gyro suddenly said.
"Huh? What did you say?"
Looking squarely to his eyes, Gyro repeated, "I said you go alone. I'll stay here and keep Ai and Lily company until they go back to normal. Simple as that, right?"
Narancia is unsure if it's a good idea to leave him here. While three against one is good, getting all of them to fight against one enemy Stand is an ideal scenario to ensure a great success. He chose to argue against his idea. "Are you sure? You're in good condition while I have a stitched-up injury. I believe it's best for you to go."
"Then who's gonna calm them?" He quickly reminds him.
"Uh, well…"
"See? Exactly," he vaguely stated. "I know you're worried about me and these two, but we will be fine! Just go help Johnny and Mamezuku and finish the sword Stand off. Is that clear?"
Though he's still has reservations, Narancia relented, giving him a firm nod. "Alright. I'll go. Please make sure Ai and Lily are not harmed in any way. If I found out they did, I'll teach you a lesson you won't forget."
"Hahaha! You have my word, Narancia!" he laughed at his own threat, knowing full well he's not gonna do it. That is if he's not joking.
The boy runs off, disappearing through the trees with the radar still on his head. After watching him head off, Gyro sighed again. "Phew. Hope Narancia can make things on Johnny and Mamezuku's end easier. They better kill Anubis and free Yugiri, Ai and Lily from his control."
"For now, I'll remain here and keep these two company until they are done," After saying it to no one but himself, Gyro keep his eyes peeled on the anesthetized Ai and Lily, checking if one ball is gonna stop spinning and stops producing energy to them. As simple as this task is, he sees he will get bored if he continues for the next minutes. The Spin can bring miraculous feats to a human body when not applied to combat, but even he must admit that the concept has limits to what it can do. Heck, there are some feats done through the use of Spin that surprises him, like Johnny evolving Tusk to ACT3 and displaying his then-new ability to Axl RO. In that moment, Gyro knew that he made the right choice of partnering and mentoring Johnny of the Spin.
And then Mamezuku reveals that he knows about the Spin and has the ability to do it through his Stand. At first, it was basic and underdeveloped, but after a month of training under his and Johnny's tutelage, Rai is capable of applying his own version of the Spin through his unraveled skin. The difference between them and Mamezuku is that to him, he can optionally try observe the Golden Ratio in his environment to further strengthen his Spin. If he does not though, it's still okay because it's still powerful and versatile without observing the ratio. While he and Rianima had only seen Mamezuku using his Spin in action during the Weather Report fight, he's glad to have another student of his who was taught under him, no less a Zeppeli.
It's not a coincidence the three of us came from an alternate universe where the Spin originated from, Gyro thought. Under a right condition, I would have liked to have Johnny, Rai and I team up to take on a single enemy through the Spin. Nyohohoho! I can imagine the fun we will be having if we fight someone using our Spin!
For a minute, Gyro remained quiet and focused on Ai and Lily, intending to continue keeping them paralyzed on the ground until the fight is over. A wind passes him, the comforting touch bringing him a sense of relief that helped ease his tension he's feeling within him.
He is sure they are the only ones in the area and so far, there seem to be no nearby strangers…
"Excuse me."
But he was quickly proven wrong.
"Huh?"
Hearing a female voice near him, Gyro turn to where he heard the voice and sees a hooded woman standing next to a tall black pine tree. Upon making eye contact with her, Gyro tensed up, wondering who this creepy hooded woman is and where did she come from, because he never heard any footsteps approaching him until she speaks up.
Trying to act normally, Gyro clears his throat before he responds to her, "…May I help you?"
Seeing he's willing to talk to her, she proceeds to ask him. "What… are you doing mister? And those girls… are they okay…?"
He felt his body flinch in surprise, but he hid it so well that the woman didn't seem to notice. Oh great, just what I need. A curious stranger who may interpret this situation the wrong way. At least Ai and Lily are disguised as humans, which makes them acting as zombies really creepy actually…
Continue the normal act, Gyro gives her a smile as he says, "These girls? Eh, don't worry, they're fine. I was… trying to heal them, aaaand… continue doing so to ensure maximum benefit for these cute girls."
"…Is that so?" she tilted her head as she said in a stolid tone.
"Yes! I assure you, they are fine in spite of the… continuing treatment I'm giving them!" he exclaimed, hoping the woman is convinced of his lie. "Look, it is nice talking with you, as short as it is, but I would like you to leave us alone and be on your merry way! Sorry if I sounded too harsh there but… I don't want any company until these girls are finally okay."
"…" The woman stayed quiet.
Noticing her silence, Gyro asks, "Huh? What's with your silence? Did I… say something funny?"
"…"
"「You are lying」."
"E-Excuse me?"
Gyro is caught off-guard by her remark, so much so that he instinctively stands up while holding the steel balls in his hands. He gazed at the hooded woman warily because she had accused him of lying to him. Which to be fair, he was.
The woman didn't let his gut reaction go unnoticed, as her next statement shows. "Your reaction tells me that you did lie. I can see why you tried lying to me because those girls do not look human. I believe they are… 「zombies」, right?
! !?
Gyro can't contain his surprise anymore, betraying his intention of acting normally to her (correct) claims. Guh! This… This woman…! How did she figure it out!? I thought she was an ordinary woman with a unique sense of fashion who's only passing by! Now that I think about it, I didn't hear any footsteps she likely made until she spoke up. I would have surely heard her approaching me under normal cases!
ゴゴゴゴゴゴゴゴ
E-Even still, I must salvage this somehow. She may have correctly guessed what Ai and Lily are, but I must turn it around in a way that she wouldn't suspect it! I hope…
"Urrrggghh…"
"Ngaaaarrghhh…"
"…Shit," Looking down at his hands grabbing his steel balls, Gyro glanced up to the hooded woman and to the girls rising up on their feet to continue attacking Gyro. He moved behind them before lowering himself to their heights as he puts his hands atop their heads. He gives out a goofy smile as he says, "I-I mean…! You… might be right that they are zombies… but that's only their costume! A disguise, I must add!"
"…Costume?"
"Yeah, yeah! You heard me!" He insisted. "Sure they are not wearing it right now, but as I said, it's just a costume these two like to wear! Oh, and please don't mind their zombie act. October may have passed, but these two wanted to feel the spirit of Halloween again, so they are practicing their zombie act after they decided to wear a zombie costume so they can do their impressive and realistic zombie act you'll ever see! Nyo ho ho ho ho!" He patted their heads, keeping them in one place while they extend their arms languishingly around and groan creepily.
…
…
…
"Sooooooo, are you convinced?"
It's hard to see her face expression because her hood covers the upper part of her face well, but the woman appears to stare at Gyro trying his damnedest to conceal Ai and Lily's zombie identities. While he wants to wait and see if she bought it and hopefully leave, Gyro is in a hurry, so he must take his leave too.
Especially since he is guessing she's not believing him at all.
With this, he tells the woman, "Now if you'll excuse us, we have an important task to do sooooo… we will take our leave!"
He was standing up when the woman responds to him with this, "Wait. The girls are not in control of themselves. Please, let me get them back to normal."
"Huh?"
"I believe you are distrusting of me because of how I look, act and say. To be honest, I would have done the same to a perceived bad person," she earnestly said. "But even if you continue not trusting me, let me tell you this: 「I only want to be here so I can free these girls from an enemy Stand's control」."
!
Gyro's eyes widen in surprise over what she said. "You… want to 'free' these two from… an enemy Stand's control…?" An epiphany occurred to him over the woman's implications. "Hold on, if you mentioned Stand, does… does that mean…?"
"I am a 「Stand User」? Correct. I believe I must show my face to you as a token of faith. I want to assure you that I am not here for your lives."
The woman removes the hood over her head before reaching her hands in the hood to pull her wavy, medium-length ash black hair with gray tips out of the hood, letting them lie outside.
Finally showing her face to these members of Franchouchou and Rianima, the pale-skinned woman open her eyes, revealing distinct purple eyes with contrasting white pupils, long eyelashes and red lipstick that really highlights her pretty face. If weren't for that description, Gyro would have thought the woman is sick due to her pale skin.
Coolly staring at the three, the woman next says, "The two girls… please let me hold them so I can free them from the enemy Stand's control. They will be back to normal soon."
To be continued
Onomatopoeia:
ガギャァァン (Gagyaaaan) - Surface of a sword hitting an object
ドリュ リュ リュ リュ (Doryu ryu ryu ryu) - Ropes swinging around a person
ズシィィン (Zushiiin) - Rope tightening
ドド ドド ドド (Dodo dodo) - Horse galloping
After being introduced way back in chapter 11 in a small but significant cameo, the enigmatic hooded woman finally makes her true appearance in Living Things! She is one of the OCs I added to the fanfic who will have a role in the third act of the story. I decided to include OCs to the story because I want to integrate the lores of both JoJo and Zombie Land Saga in a way that complements them and the OCs that I will include in the coming chapters. You may have already know that the universe this story is in combines the settings of both anime because it and the events featured in both series fits like a glove and supplements them.
I hope that you may accept and like having OCs in the story. Have to make the events work within the story, which means it needs a main antagonist that Franchouchou and Rianima will soon face and fight. Who is it, you want to ask? Well, you'll just have to found out in the beginning of the story's third act!
Just to remind you... of the two specific OCs, one of them will be the main villain.
Anyway, the Anubis and Emperor fight has reached its climax...in the next and, absolutely, last chapter of Living Things' second act! Please look forward to it!
Stay safe out there and have a good day!
Review Response:
ongadam96: Yugiri will be saved in the next chapter, I assure you.