"Faultline." The man greeted as he sat down.
"Sit down." The woman instructed in return. "That job did not go as anticipated."
"I did not anticipate things going as far as they did…were the Protectorate always this determined to fight for justice?" The man questioned.
She shook her head. "That wasn't them fighting for justice at all. I think we may have taken far too many jobs against that particular branch. It felt more like they were really unhappy to see us again."
"It would have been much easier if you just let me loose on them. The hardest part of the whole thing was having to hold back." The man commented.
The woman hummed before leaning back. "The reason I've set the rule of never killing isn't because of some moral superiority I hold." She stared at the younger members of her mercenary outfit. "Unlike you, I don't have the luxury of not using my younger 'siblings' on jobs. I simply don't want them to go too far. They're just kids at times."
They watched as Newter laughed at something Gregor said. "I guess you're right. Don't want Brenda to ever go so far as killing someone."
She leaned forward and rubbed his head aggressively. "Of course I'm right. I'm the leader for a reason." He pushed her off in annoyance. "Of course, the rule stays true for us as well. They need to follow our example. If we kill when telling them not to, especially on jobs, we'll just end up being hypocrites."
The man ran a hand through his hair and sighed. "Then when is killing acceptable? I could accept not killing on behalf of a client…but life isn't always about our clients right?"
Her eyes hardened significantly. "You just answered your own question. Killing is acceptable if it's personal. When someone threatens your life, your family or has so thoroughly offended your sensibilities to the point that you feel no other recourse but to take their life is acceptable…" She paused for a moment, looking deep in thought as her eyes turned sharp. "This is something I'm reserving for the organization that was responsible for their creation."
"Ah gotcha. I'll use it for something that's being super mean to me. Thanks for the advice, mom." The man grinned sardonically.
He received a whack on his head in return.
Someone out there might have wondered why I chose to open a tea shop instead of actively participating in the cape scene of Worm. Of course, the biggest reason would be my sister. Just the slightest of involvements had caused her to be kidnapped. I can't imagine how badly the world would want her head if I did something like mess with Cauldron. Unlike the usual super powerful inserts into Worm, I don't have many of their advantages. Blindspot is a perk that many of them take. But I don't have that. Lisa could read me perfectly. She simply couldn't understand it if I made a reference to something outside of Worm. That also means that Contessa could path me, though I don't know how something like Haki would interact with her power. But the other big reason I refused to participate?
I'm just not strong enough.
Sure. I could probably defeat most normal capes in a head-on battle. But I was aware that there was more to life here than simply defeating street level capes. The future was wrought with bullshit enemies. I genuinely didn't know if I could even fight Alexandria or Legend. The Endbringers were probably way out of my reach. And Scion? I couldn't even dream of defeating someone that took the combined might of a mind-controlled Parahuman army. So I simply gave up and refused the call to action. I followed the advice of my Mama and did what I could to protect my sister. That would have…should havebeen enough for me.
It's not as if I didn't try. The years following my birth were the hardest as I thought I might have been the chosen one to defeat Scion and save the world. My training was quick to disabuse me of that notion. The shard I triggered with allowed me to train quicker than most people and reach superhuman levels in time. The problem with that is that my shard is actually extremely weak. It simply took too long for my training to reach a level of effectiveness to defeat some of the stronger capes in Brockton Bay. I wouldn't have been surprised if someone told me that another Parahuman had gotten my power in Worm and was simply killed off because he didn't have time to prepare or the proper knowledge.
It was only the perfect combination of having two decades and the knowledge that a fictional universe like One Piece is real that allowed me to even get this far. Even then, it took twenty fucking years to perfect the Rokushiki and get started on the basics of Haki. I didn't even have the time to pick up another fighting style to supplement things. Of course I gave up in the end. Canon was about to begin soon. What could I achieve in a year that I couldn't in twenty?
But the fight with Oni Lee was different somehow. I experienced a greater growth in Kenbunshoku Haki than I had in twenty years. It got to the point that I could sense his intent clearly enough to predict his actions. Was it always like this? The fights that I got into with Faultline and her crew never pushed me this far. Did my power actually increase my growth in life or death fights? If I'd known about this…I might have tried picking more fights with people before this. But that would risk leaving Brenda alone if I died.
In any case, knowing all of this changed nothing about the fact that I had to fight Lung now. This wasn't something I could choose. He would come after me and the Protectorate couldn't do shit against him. I'd rather not involve them in any case. Coil would just stick his weird little fingers in and I would become a Brian 2.0.
I looked up and saw the headquarters of Lung.
How surprising. This didn't fit my image of Lung. I thought it would be more opulent than this. But this just looks like your typical Yakuza-esque office building. Albeit, there's like a 100 guys standing between me and my target. I guess it's go time.
"I'm here for Lung." I declared solemnly to the crowd.
I was met with utter silence. The gangsters who were guarding the building simply stared at me with hardened eyes, gripping tightly onto their weapons. If he wasn't going to fight me, I'd have to bring the fight to him. I wouldn't go ultra lethal on these guys though. They could be merely idiots like Koshiro or Cho Gi rather than being malicious like Matsuda.
I used Soru to appear behind one of them and chopped him in the neck. This doesn't usually work in real life, but I have super strength to an extent, so he crashed to the floor in a dead faint. Someone charged at me from behind, only to receive a backwards kick to his chin. I grabbed someone by the arm as he swung his pipe at me, and I swung him against his compatriots in return, sending the four of them to the ground.
This was so much easier when I could sense their intent.
Despite the severity of the situation, I felt like I was enjoying myself for once. It's almost like I'm the protagonist of a Kung Fu movie as I dodged a hit from behind before doing a Taekwondo head kick to his face. I'd even managed to do the feet stamping action from Kung Fu Hustle. This is as fun as Stephen Chow made it look. Keeping it non-lethal is a fun challenge as well. Couldn't use the offensive techniques of Rokushiki as much. I bent and twisted using Kami-E as one of the knife guys stabbed at me.
"Fuck what kind of fucking kung fu shit is this guy using?!" One of the thugs complained.
"Just hit him all at once!" Another declared.
Three of them slammed down on me with their pipes and tire irons. I simply hardened every muscle in my body and shrugged it off before going to town on them with that same durability. The three of them collided with the building and slumped down in a dead faint.
"Tekkai Kempo."
For the first time in a while, I was truly enjoying myself while beating the shit out of them. This was supposed to be a high stakes situation, but I kind of forgot about it slightly as I continued to indulge in the fantasy of being a martial arts protagonist. I felt strong and powerful as more and more thugs fell to my almighty powers. I stood above them as-
The front of the building fell apart as a giant dragon jumped out of the basement. He was already three meters tall at this point. The scales on his body had fully grown out, with wings starting to jut out from his back. His hands and feet featured blade-like claws that scraped dangerously against the concrete. Lung roared in anger and defiance as he stomped towards me, bristling with sharp teeth and bursting with flame. But the thing that caught my attention the most were his glowing orange eyes that gazed at me with menace.
So…Lung wasn't stupid after all. He didn't underestimate someone who could defeat Oni Lee, especially since the demon was far more competent in this seemingly AU verse. I understood what he did the moment I saw him destroy half his building as he emerged from the basement. It's a similar tactic to what he did in his fight against Leviathan. He'd simply watched and partook in the conflict from the sidelines, slowly growing and ramping up without actually fighting just yet. The thugs were there to cultivate that sense of conflict, and my easy defeat of them must have informed his shard that I was a formidable opponent.
Shit, why couldn't I get the meme Lung that fanon always clowns on?
"I'll kill you!" He roared in challenge as he stomped towards me. Time to test the waters. I whipped my leg in his direction, sending the strongest air blade I could. The invisible blade of air collided with his body, causing him to stop for a second as a thin line of blood formed on his torso. To my dismay, scales quickly grew over it as he regenerated from the damage. Perhaps a death by many cuts? I flung myself into the air and kicked many times in rapid succession.
"Rankyaku: Storm!"
Multiple blades careened towards his giant, towering body. Unfortunately, they didn't do shit when they were formed so rapidly at low power. His scales simply absorbed the impact and dissipated my technique.
"Rahahaha! Is that all?!" He mocked. A cone of flames was blasted towards me. Despite being extremely durable, I decidedly wasn't flame proof. I stamped my foot on the ground multiple times in quick succession and disappeared from the point of impact. Then, I combined that same technique with Geppo and kicked off the air to teleport in mid-air, appearing as after images as I edged closer to his body.
"Kamisori!"
He swiped at me a few times, surprisingly fast despite his huge form. But I was too quick and nimble to catch when I was using this technique. I arrived in front of him in mid-air.
"Shigan: Oren!"
I began to poke at him in rapid succession. It was working…in a sense. Multiple perforations were forming as he screamed in pain. I could feel the crunch and crackle as his scales snapped under the piercing force of my fingers. But it just wasn't working well enough. The finger deep wounds were simply too shallow when paired up with his regeneration. I was too concentrated on inflicting wounds on him to notice when he reared back and delivered a painful gut punch to me, sending me flying back.
"RAHAHAHA! Challenge me more!" He chased after my flying body. The pain was so immense that it felt like a void had formed in my torso, but I held on. Thinking fast, I kicked off the air and flew over him instead of taking his charge head on. Lung turned around and faced me in frustration. "Filthy rat. Don't run! Fight me!"
Did I really have to use…'that'? There's a reason this technique wasn't used willy nilly by Rob Lucci. He only pulled it out when Luffy started to seriously challenge him. While powerful, it severely tires out the user. It's only something that should be used if it can end the fight immediately. Then again, Lucci used it to overcome the blunt resistance of Luffy's rubber body and wreck internal damage on him. Lung's scales are… the equivalent aren't they? Fine.
"RARGH!" A flaming sphere blossomed on his palm before he slammed the claw down at me. I couldn't dodge this. My technique needed an opening to perform. Instead, I held my arms in a defensive stance in front of me.
"Tekkai: Koka!"
Every muscle in my body hardened as my arms took on a tinge of black skin. It was just in time too. His flaming claw smashed against me. Despite my defenses, I hissed and grit my teeth as I felt my skin being seared by his attack. But it was enough as his arm was sent bouncing back. Taking advantage of the opening, I placed both fists in front of me and faced them towards Lung's torso. Every muscle in my body trembled and contracted strongly as I pushed all the force I could muster in my entire body into a single point, sending a devastating shock wave that contained every iota of my physical strength towards my foe.
"Rokuogan!"
A circular indent was formed on his abdominal area as Lung was sent flying back. I watched as the scales there were blasted into dust by the sheer power of my attack. Lung himself vomited a large mouthful of blood as his eyes went wide in pain. His gigantic body, now almost four meters in length, crashed against the collapsed building that was once his headquarters. A massive plume of dust covered the area, obscuring him from my vision. Was this it? I panted in tiredness as I stared at the point of impact. That better be it. I'm at the end of my tether here. I was so wrapped up in my deliriousness and light headedness that I failed to notice a part of the dust cloud glowed. But I definitely did notice when a flaming sphere collided with me.
"GRAH!" I screamed as the impact sent me flying back. My back collided against a wall painfully. I slid down and landed on my ass and stared at the burns that had formed on my torso. Every nerve lit up in agony, like a lance was running through my spine. It took everything I had just to hold on and not pass out.
"I'LL KILL YOU!" Lung roared as he stood up and began another charge against me. He was six meters tall at this point. Shit. Wasn't this as big as he got against Leviathan? Or was I just delirious? How am I supposed to defeat that? No. I can't. This is too hard. I didn't ask for this! This fucking world keeps throwing these bullshit challenges my way when I didn't ask for them! Is this the time to enact the secret technique of the Joestar family? But if I run now, I'd have to take my sister away. The shop that I opened in the very same lot that my parents opened theirs would be burnt and razed to the ground. My sister, who had grown up in this city and made connections here, would lose them all if I fled with her. And the people I'd met here…
For a moment, I remembered the people I'd personally met and how they wormed their way into my life even though I didn't want them to. The Questionable Quintuplets…despite being utter morons were kind of cute in their puppy like ways in trying to please me. Puppies reminded me of Rachel as well, who really needed a therapist, but I guess I'd do for now. I still hadn't seen the end of Missy's character arc. She might have been there to investigate me, but her terrible home situation compelled me to be nicer to her. Vicky and her special brand of irritating wouldn't be present in another city. I wouldn't hear my demonic friend complain about his bill anymore. And Melanie…
I stood up and faced the dragon head on. Though I didn't want to care about the world, it had clearly dragged me in and forced me to participate. I wanted to break the connections I'd made, but couldn't bring myself to. They would disappear if I stood down now. So I refused! I would overcome Lung! I would fight him! I WOULD CONQUER EVERYTHING IN MY PATH!
"LUUUUUUUUNG!" I roared.
A powerful shockwave blasted from me in every direction. The windows of the buildings nearby shattered instantaneously. Lung himself staggered and stopped mid-charge. He stared at me in bewilderment as he struggled to stay standing. How funny, a seven meter tall dragon was shivering in his boots at the sight of me. Perhaps Brenda would appreciate a dragon skin handbag?
I stomped towards him. He was starting to shake off the effects of my Haoshoku Haki. I didn't care. That wasn't a viable way to defeat him either. I concentrated on using my spiritual power to form a coat of armor over my arms. This wasn't something I could use continuously before. I really only used Busoshoku Haki at the point of impact, and only sparingly. But that wouldn't do for this fight. So I willed it to stay.
"Koka!"
My arms turned entirely black, coated in a separate skin of the darkest sky. Lung, who had regained his moxy, swung his gigantic arm towards me in a bid to crush my body. Rather than do anything complicated, I simply raised my hand and caught his claw. He was shaken off by my casual deflection of his attack, but still managed to generate a flaming sphere in his maw to burn me down. In response, I used Soru to travel instantaneously upwards and slammed my fist into his face. The fire exploded in his mouth painfully despite his flame resistance due to my interruption as his body went crashing to the ground. But the dragon was resilient. This wasn't enough to bring him down. Already, his gigantic body was beginning to stand up once more.
I wouldn't let him.
My body landed in front of his prone form. I held out my fists, now thoroughly coated in the black armor of Busoshoku Haki, and concentrated on sending all my physical and spiritual power into his body.
"RO-KUO-GAN!"
A blast of black air was sent into his body. This time, the scales did not break under the impact, but were bypassed entirely. A combination of my Haki and the shockwave I emitted was sent into his internal organs as they raised high hell in there. I watched as his eyes went wide for a second, before the orange glow began to dim. Liters of blood spilled out from his mouth despite having no visible wounds. The gigantic body of the dragon that was once bigger than Leviathan began to noticeably shrink. All that was left in its place was the emancipated form of once great Lung. His body was entirely wreathed in crimson, covered in the voluminous blood of his dragon form. I focused on him with my Kenbunshoku Haki.
Kenta was dead.
As I stood there and breathed heavily, I noticed a crowd of people moving in my direction. Shit. I can't do this now. That fight took everything I had. Was the PRT coming to mop up the mess from two capes fighting? To my surprise, the group consisted of men wearing green and red. At their front was the very same demon, Oni Lee. He was the first to arrive in front of me. The demon looked at the broken body of Kenta before he looked back at me.
Then he knelt. The crowd behind him followed suit.
Oni Lee's grating voice boomed across the area as he loudly declared. "The Dragon is dead. All hail the Dragon! Ryuu, ruler of the ABB!"
Motherfucker, what?