Welcome to the 30th chapter. I can't believe I've hit 30 chapters. Next up, two titans clash. Sayuri Hanzō vs. Dōgen Kosugi. Hope you enjoy.

Disclaimer: I do not own any characters from the Senran Kagura series. I only own the plot.

Disclaimer: Violence, Elderly Abuse (I guess, my editor didn't really cover this.)

Chapter 30 - Sayuri vs. Dōgen

I felt my hair stand on end, as Dōgen smiled from underneath his hood like this was a game to him, "Oh, scary."

His grip tightened and Asuka made a choking sound, her legs trying to find the ground beneath her. Homura tightened her grip on each of her blades between her fingers and her lips curled into an animalistic snarl like a wolf ready to attack, "Dōgen, if you're smart, I'd release her right now, or be shredded to pieces!"

Dōgen didn't even glance in Homura's direction. "So, what's it going to be, Sayuri?"

I needed to get up there and help. I looked around the stadium, trying to think of an idea when the lightbulb in my head blinked to life. "Ryona, how good are you at throwing people?"

"Why? What exactly are you gonna go?" Ryona glanced at me with an unsure expression, as if knowing what I was thinking.

I held both of my Rei Tei firmly in my hands, "I'm gonna rescue Mistress Sayuri!"

Ryona flinched, "I-I can't! I can't send a child up there to die. If this really is the real Dōgen Kosugi, he wouldn't think twice about killing you!"

Ryōbi nodded and cleared her throat to sandwich into the conversation. "My twin is right. You're not as strong as any of us no matter what the tournament showed. If we send you up there, you'll die."

I took a step forward, "I know better than anyone about my own limitations. I just need you to trust me. Please?"

Ryona shook her head, "I'm sorry. I just can't. It would weigh too much on my conscience if you ended up dying."

However, Ryobi stepped forward and offered me a pill, "I'll do it! Take this! A pill from Nurse Haruka! If you survive, you'll need to eat three times the normal amount of your next meal to make up the energy this is going to use."

Ryona looked to her sister with an expression of dramatic betrayal. If the situation wasn't so dire I would have dared to find it funny., "Ryobi!? What the hell!?"

Ryōbi put her arm up to silence her sister, "Ryona, this girl is a Shinobi! She's gotta learn to either sink or swim."

"But what if she-" Ryona tried to argue, the pleas dying off her tongue before they could pass her lips.

"Then that's on her!"

I swallowed the pill and I felt my body become healed faster than ever before. 'Wow, Nurse Haruka is getting more and more amazing with her medication...'

Ryōbi came over to me and looked at me up and down, "You ready, Renka Mikagura?"

I nodded and Ryōbi grabbed me by my hips and lifted me off the ground. I was in the air only long enough for her to duck down and push upwards against my feet. Like I was jumping off a springboard, I was flying straight to where Asuka, Homura, and Sayuri were facing off against Dōgen. When they all came into view, I pulled out my drums and quickly threw one around Dōgen and the other in front of where I was gonna land.

Dōgen noticed the first drum and looked at it, perplexed. "What?"

I quickly landed in front of my drum, my Ki flared up, and I pounded the drums screaming out: "Violet Lightning!"

The attack exploded forth and hit its target dead center. I was so excited that once I stopped hitting the drums I shouted out an invigorating, "Hell ya!" That medicine was working wonders, I felt like I had drunk five cups of coffee and then a can of soda mixed together with a shot of pure caffeine!

Suddenly, a voice spoke, "Why're you so excited? You act like you did something good."

I felt a chill running down my back as the smoke cleared and I saw that Dōgen was alright. In fact, he was unharmed. The only indication that he had moved was by a single hand, which was raised like he was shielding something.. "Th-That's impossible!"

Dōgen chuckled, "I am Dōgen Kosugi! I make the impossible possible!"

Asuka's face shifted to one of anger and for a moment I was worried that she was aiming it at me. Thankfully, it was only the angle. "That's quite enough!"

Asuka unleashed a kick, which struck Dōgen in the face like you would stomp on a doormat. I had thought she had done damage until I heard Dōgen laughing under her shoe. "Did you think that would stop me?"

Dōgen then touched Asuka's leg stroking up and down right where I knew a nerve was -no thanks to Kat- and laughed when Asuka involuntarily moaned at the touch.

Homura started seething, her face changing to a bright hue of reds and pinks. "Dōgen, you shameless bastard!"

At that moment, Asuka's foot started to disintegrate as if it was ash in the wind. Asuka started to scream out in terror, trying to move her leg.

"Asuka!" Homura's tone matched Asuka's scream, reaching out for the other woman.

I was frozen in fear as Asuka's foot vanished before my eyes. Asuka's leg started disinteresting next until a large blade cut through her leg just below the knee. Asuka screamed in pain as the blood soon followed from her new wound. The rest of the severed limb vanished from sight.

Sayuri glared straight start Dōgen, "Touch my granddaughter like that again, and I'll fucking kill you!"

Dōgen simply smirked, tilting his chin up to a look of superiority. "Why haven't you tried yet?"

Asuka saw her lack of a limb and started to scream in terror again! Homura quickly started to wrap her limb, trying to stop the bleeding, "I've got to stop the bleeding!"

Asuka's screams would haunt my dreams, without any shred of doubt. I could feel the smile spreading across Dōgen's face, as he inhaled, laughing without a voice, "Yes... that's exactly what I want."

Sayuri took off like a bullet, and Dōgen caught the punch she had attempted to throw, chuckling evilly. His laughter turned into a full of maniacal cackle. "That's it! That's what I've wanted! More, come at me with everything you've got! Don't hold back as I engrave every moment into my mind like a sculpture does to marble!"

Suddenly, I felt Sayuri's Ki, choking the life out of all and nothing as it swirled in the air. I swallowed thickly and Sayuri took a long drag of her smoking pipe, her Ki felt just like Kat's. Sayuri blew out the smoke all around Dōgen as it danced around his person like an entranced snake.

Dōgen looked around, his eyes darkening with thought. "This is the…"

I heard a chuckle escape from Sayuri, "Zabardast Smoke, indeed."

Without a trace of movement prior, Sayuri vanished and strikes started landing all over Dōgen. Homura picked up Asuka and took off from the area, leaving the three of us while I stood there dumbly. The final strike threw Dōgen back, her strikes sounded more like explosions than anything remotely human-like.

"That's it! That's what I like to see from you! Come on, give it to me more, Sayuri!" Dōgen cried out in insane glee.

Sayuri summoned a massive ball of bristling energy, and Dōgen laughed out loud. He threw his arms out as if he was going to embrace the impact like an old friend. "Send that straight at me, Sayuri!"

Sayuri smirked without a hint of mirth, "With pleasure!"

She threw the mass of energy straight at Dōgen. Dōgen laughed insanely as the energy engulfed his entire body, exploding upon impact. Sayuri grabbed me and went down into the arena where Ryōbi and Ryona were to escape the explosion.

Ryōbi smirked, "Damn, Mistress Sayuri. You didn't show any mercy, did you?"

Ryona looked to the smoke in disbelief. She licked her lips before speaking. "Is he… dead?"

Sayuri took another drag on her pipe, "I hit him with everything this old body can muster. He should be dead."

Suddenly, something came bursting out of the smoke laughing. Sayuri got on guard. "Girls, get behind me!"

Once the smoke cleared, Ryōbi and Ryona's mouth dropped in shock. I saw a giant man before me. A tall, well-sculpted man, with more muscle than fat, and each angle told a story of rigorous training. He wore nothing but red pants and had blonde hair and a beard but no mustache. He laughed, a tone that sent a cold run of sweat down my back and every instinct begged me to run., "Is that all you've got?! I thought you were supposed to be the strongest of the strong! My oh my, how the strong have fallen."

Everyone was frozen, so I asked, "What's going on? Why's everyone frozen?"

Sayuri took a step forward, "This man in front of us, is the real Dōgen Kosugi! He matches all of the pictures we've ever seen of him!"

My mouth dropped, "But how!? You said he lived hundreds of years ago! How is he even alive right now!?" How is he young?!

Sayuri walked a few paces in front of us, "Just stand back girls, this could get ugly."

Dōgen threw his head back to smile at the sky, then returned to a neutral position, staring down at Sayuri. "Looks like age has caught up to you, Sayuri! You look so… wrinkled."

Sayuri just shook her head, "Well, I am eighty-one years old. And it's not polite to comment on a woman's age."

Dōgen looked to his fist, "Good! I think I am just about ready! I can hardly contain my strength! Let's get this started, shall we!?"

Dōgen shot off, punching Sayuri straight into the nearby wall. "Mistress Sayuri!" I screamed out at her, praying she was unharmed.

Dōgen looked at his fist again, "Shit! I didn't mean to kill her! I wanted to savor this for a bit longer…" He shrugged uncaringly like he was just told it was going to rain today. "Oh well."

I looked to where Sayuri landed, "Mistress Sayuri, get up!" 'She couldn't be dead, she just couldn't be!' I thought frantically.

Dōgen looked to the three of us, "Alright, who's next?"

Both Ryōbi and Ryona cocked their weapons. Suddenly something whizzed past us and struck Dōgen in the stomach.

Sayuri chuckled as Dōgen coughed out blood. He spoke with his voice thick with the red liquid that should have been choking him."I'm glad you're not dead, Sayuri Hanzō!"

Suddenly Dōgen's power exploded off, blowing back Sayuri. Dōgen then struck Sayuri in her stomach and she coughed out blood as Dōgen laughed, "Doesn't feel so good now, does it?"

Dōgen then struck Sayuri several times, strike after strike, hit after hit. I watched as Dōgen beat down Sayuri horrifically. Watching what looked like a young guy beating down an old lady was cruel. After doing as much damage as he could, he kicked Sayuri straight into the wall.

Dōgen breathed deeply, shaking his hands like he was relieving some tension. "Aw, that felt good! God, it feels great to finally get out and stretch my limbs after 500 years! This feels nice."

My eyes widened, this truly was the same guy that had lived over 500 years ago. Dōgen stretched out his body as Sayuri got up, coughing up blood. I went over to her, "Mistress Sayuri, are you alright!? Can you stand!?"

Sayuri gave this look that said, 'Are you serious or are you stupid?', as she stood up. She held about as much dignity as an old lady that was just bean could muster she barked, "Of course I can stand! What do I look like!? An old lady!?"

I just said without hesitation, "Yes." I mean… I did call her an old lady internally, can't hurt to say it externally.

Sayuri coughed, "R-Right. Stupid question really." Sayuri walked forward, "Don't think you've killed me just yet!"

Dōgen looked to her and laughed, "Of course! I was hoping you had more fighting spirit in you!"

Sayuri soon took off towards Dōgen and the two started to trade blows once again. Their strikes sounded like huge explosions in a warzone. But this wasn't a warzone, it was a stadium and the ground was being destroyed by the sheer force of their blows. I couldn't even track their movements! They were too fast for me to follow, just blips of bodies that would appear then disappear within half a blink. I could see Ryōbi and Ryona following their movements.

Ryona suddenly looked to her twin, "Ryōbi, do you think Mistress Sayuri is gonna win? She might need help!"

Ryōbi shook her head, "No. I don't think helping her is even possible for us. Mistress Sayuri is still the current Kagura. If someone is stronger than her, then our entire country would be in peril."

Suddenly, an explosion next to us, knocking down one of the trees came behind us. As we looked behind us, Mistress Sayuri got up, looking as if she had been struck by several motor vehicles followed immediately by a freight train. She sighed and took a drag of her pipe, "I picked a hell of a time to get sick."

My eyes widened, "Sick!? What do you mean by sick!?"

Sayuri took another drag of her pipe, blowing the air out and creating a somewhat misty illusion around her. "My breathing is terribly labored and I've been coughing up blood a lot lately. It doesn't take a doctor to know I'm ill."

I flinched, "Coughing up blood?!"

Mistress Sayuri took another long drag of her pipe. She seemed to be smoking more than actually breathing. "Smoking helps ease the pain, even if the smell is getting a bit stale for my liking. God, I hate being old."

Ryōbi then cocked her gun, "That explains why you seem to be moving slower than usual! Let us help take shots at Dōgen at least!"

Ryona got into her battle position, "Yes, Mistress Sayuri!"

Sayuri just took another drag of her pipe, "No, I got this. Just need a few more drags of this here pipe."

Dōgen walked over, "I hope that pathetic display wasn't your all, Sayuri Hanzō!"

Another drag from the elderly woman, "Typical villains. Always using both names. Girls, if you want to become evil, do the opposite of everything he's doing."

Dōgen just laughed, "I hope you are ready! Because I'm done playing around!"

One last drag, and then an emptied out pipe. "Yeah, I'm ready."

Sayuri got into her elegant fighting stance and let out a battle roar. Her Ki poured out like water in an upturned container and I could feel my eyes widening to the point of pain. 'Just what was Mistress Sayuri gonna do?' I thought.

Mistress Sayuri took a scroll out of her… her… cleavage… um, ew. I'm no expert in using my womanly assets as pockets, but I know it gets sweaty in there. Sayuri tossed the scroll up into the air and it opened above her. She then weaved hand signs quickly and effortlessly, "Ultimate Shinobi Transformation!"

If this was an anime, intense theme music would play. The scroll started glowing and light started pouring out of it and engulfed Sayuri into a cocoon. I could only see her silhouette but Sayuri stood upright with little effort. In fact, her overall height seemed to increase as her hair grew out to her knees and even her bust size grew in both size and roundness. Her form took that of a young woman more than old. Suddenly, the light dissipated and a young black haired woman stood before us. She moved her head side to side, cracking her neck, "God damn this feels great! I haven't felt this good in years!"

We all looked at this woman in shock and I swallowed whatever saliva had managed to form, "M-Mistress Sayuri?"

She looked at me, "It's Jasmine now, Renka."

Dōgen laughed, "Well, well, well. This is new! Who would've thought the current Kagura was hiding this technique like this, this whole time." He smirked widely next, "That black pipe. Don't tell me that that's a Galaxy Weapon!"

I looked at her weapon, "Galaxy… weapon?"

Dōgen was a lot closer than he was before, "This is perfect! Now I can test my mettle against someone that has this power!"

I looked at Ryōbi and Ryona, "Guys, what's a Galaxy Weapon?"

Ryōbi cleared her throat, "A Galaxy Weapon is a special weapon coated in a special substance known as Galaxynite Obsidian. It's a special kind of metal that fell from the stars. Once a weapon of your choosing has been coated, it acts as a power amplifier for a Shinobi. It increases a Shinobi's power ten or maybe even twenty fold. The exact amount is still to be determined."

My mouth dropped, "That's amazing!"

Dōgen gave another energetic laugh, his hands rubbed together in anticipation. "Yes, and I can't wait to see how my new power stacks up against someone of this caliber! Now do it, Sayuri Hanzō! Unleash your Nebula form!"

I rubbed my temples, "Oh for fucks sake! Guys, what the hell is a Nebula form?"

Ryona giggled, "I got this. A Nebula form is the release state of what my sister just mentioned. Since Galaxynite has its own power, and it combines with the Shinobi's power, it makes them stronger. Though to what extent depends on the Shinobi."

I just scratched my head, "Well, alright then. I'll try to remember this stuff."

Jasmine did more of her hand signs and suddenly her pipe started to glow, "Cosmic Shinobi Transformation!"

Suddenly, the black on the weapon engulfed Jasmine's body. When the weapons black bursts, Jasmine was dressed in an elegantly black cocktail dress that sparkled like a thousand stars with each subtle movement. Her back was entirely exposed, the fabric appearing just above the small of her back, and on the right side was a long slit across her leg, exposing milky white legs and thighs of muscles and grace. The dress pooled the floor like a black hole ready to suck up everything around its owner. Of course, what I was focusing on was the large gaping front, firmly placed to cover her breasts, but hid almost nothing for the imagination.

My eyes widened and I inwardly cursed at my thoughts, 'I am becoming Kat at this rate!'

Jasmine smirked as she took her pipe and placed it behind her head on her shoulders, which were exposed. The only sign of clothing were dainty chains that shined like pearls from the darkest sea. "Jasmine, Dance in the festival of Midsummer."

Her grin, very wide as she faced off against Dōgen. He laughed once more, "I've waited 500 years for this moment! Now, let's fight! Let's see who's stronger! The man, or the woman!"

"Man or woman? How simple-minded of you." Jasmine chuckled, "By the time this is over, you'll wish you didn't push me this far!"

The tension was so thick, that you could have cut it with a knife and it still wouldn't have budged. I was afraid to move or even breathe. I felt like if I distracted either one of them, they would kill me just to resume the fight.

At that point, Dōgen and Jasmine vanished, completely leaving the arena. I flinched, "What!? What the hell happened!? Where'd they go!?"

Ryōbi placed a hand on her hip, "They took their battle to the streets. With the level of power, they're about to unleash, it might be for the best. Luckily the civilians have been evacuated from the area so casualties should be to a minimum."

Ryona nodded, "Yup! Either way, Jasmine is the Kagura after all. Don't worry about her, she'll be fine."

I looked towards the exit, unable to shake the feeling that something bad was about to happen.

Chapter End

Well that's a wrap on Chapter 30. Next time there will be a clash of titans. I hope you look forward to it. Till next time, Ayame out!