Disclaimer: I do not own Taimanin series.
Epilogue
Kotaro carefully treaded his way along an empty hallway.
His normal eye scanned around, there was no one at the back and the front. There was only him sneaking through the hotel floor exclusively reserved for the VIP guests.
Camera installed at the corners disabled, he moved as quick as the supporter's voice gave him the signal through the earpiece. Another empty hallway, Kotaro couldn't be happy at how smooth the operation has been going. Better be careful not to drop the guard, he was reaching closer to the final objective. Kotaro approached a window overlooking to the other skyscrapers in Tokyo Kingdom. He flashed his light towards a certain rooftop for confirmation. Seconds later, he had a respond, two short flashes that lasted about a second and a longer one that took approximately three seconds.
The support team gave him a SAFE signal. No risks available, permission for entry has been granted.
This area of the floor was cleared, he could enter the target's designated room and retrieve the data from his suitcase. Kotaro shot his way straight to the location given during the briefing. The target of this stealth operation was a rich merchant, who is secretly working with Nomad in illegal human trafficking activities.
Tonight, a party was held in the grand hall of the hotel. Underworld rulers and many more questionable individuals affiliated with Nomad's darkest secrets were gathering to make business deals, forming connections and celebrating the grow in profit. A big façade that spells more troubles down the line for the innocents.
Kotaro's mission was to disguise himself as a lesser merchant's son and infiltrate the party in order to track down the target.
Objectives: Find his room, find his suitcase, retrieve the documents along with the stamp. The stamp is the most crucial evidence related to the merchant's true identity. It's made from the material in the Dark World.
Complete the mission and Section Three will handle the rest.
"Making entry." He whispered into the comm and swiped the target's key card on the door.
Getting closer to the guy and snatching it off his pocket wasn't easy. He could feel pairs of prying eyes in the crowd, among the guests were predators suppressing their bloodlust for the right opportunities.
Edwin Black didn't attend the party. He seemed to be on a trip in the Dark World according to one of the guests' words. That still didn't mean anything when it comes to his subordinates, the dangers were prominent even without his presence.
The Task Force has no shortage of enemies around the globe. Some of them were also invited for the event. The de-factor leaders of the Incubus and Succubus Factions were presented. Oboro was making small talks with the guests. Fulst was busy shaking hands behind the curtains. Kaliya was pleasurably enjoying the expensive cuisines with others at one of the tables.
At all cost, Kotaro has to avoid direct confrontation with either of them.
As Nomad security had gone up a notch, a prototype machine in the back room was generating a field that can detect Taima particles. A Taimanin with fully awakened Art will be spotted immediately. With his Evil Eye in slumber, Kotaro didn't have that energy inside him. However, he couldn't turn off the machine as the area was heavily guarded. Only he could do this mission alone while the others provided supports outside the building. The Useless One-Eyed Fuuma became the perfect candidate for the job.
Now, the big bads were gathering in one place. That left for one more figure who had yet to appear at the grand hall.
[Our primary target is trying to flirt with a succubus on the balcony. Eww! He's pursing his lips and the succubus is showing her disgust! That guy should get a hint!]
Classic Sakura, always lightening the tension. Either way, the merchant was fifty floors down from his room. Kotaro should have plenty of time to search through his belongings.
[Fuuma-kun, be careful. I don't see Ingrid anywhere.]
"Got it, Asagi-sensei. I'll be quick."
Kotaro was ready to enter the room. Suddenly, the elevator nearby made a sound, whoever was using it picked the target's floor. Alarmed, he hurriedly went in the room, closed the door and peeked through the spy hole.
Kotaro's eye widened in shock once the person came into view. The sight of long pink hair and chocolate skin tone confirmed the figure's identity.
[Fuuma! Take cover!]
Knock Knock!
Too late. The Hell Knight Ingrid knocked on the merchant's room. She was looking for their target.
"Mr. Tan, I would like to have a word."
The door wasn't locked as the mechanism had yet to turn the gear. Kotaro held his breath. Lucky for him, light on the handle shifted from red to green. Automatic function saved the day, he wouldn't have to lift a finger.
Steadily, he stepped away from the door in silence. The luxurious carpet in the room helped more in minimizing the sound of his shoes.
Knock Knock!
"Mr. Tan? Are you in there?"
Kotaro froze in place. Right, Ingrid has good hearings. He better not move for the time being.
Kotaro waited for a moment, taking his phone out and sent a message to the team. He needed a constant update on Ingrid's movement from the other side of the door.
[She's looking at something on her phone. Zooming in.] Su responded. [I can hardly see the full details. Her shoulder is blocking my view.]
[I have a clear vision, she's checking the security live feed.] Asagi added. [Fuuma-kun, wait for a bit. Ingrid's about to leave.]
[Roger that.] Kotaro messaged.
...
...
Ingrid sighed, such a blunder on her part.
After dealing with the leftover work, she had gone all the way up here without examining the footages first. She should have done that. Of course, the person in question was participating in the main event at the grand hall. Most of the guests had joined the party by now.
There was a couple questions needed for answer. Ingrid wanted to be clear about the man's intention in running an illegal trafficking route between the Human and the Dark World. Children had gone missing from villages near the Demon Gates, the investigation from her troops brought in evidences that indicated the man was heavily involved in such incidents.
It wasn't just the humans, he was also using his own kin for profit in the name of Nomad. Such despicable acts should never be allowed. Ingrid wanted to hear the truth from the culprit himself. What happens afterward will be decided later.
Seeing that she had wasted time knocking on an empty room, she walked back to the elevator and waited for the ride.
Click!
In that instant, her eyes grew sharp. She stared at the door that gave no respond earlier.
Just now, it made a noise. It was the second automatic level security of the lock mechanism. It only activated one minute after that handle was turned and the first level kicked into gear.
Before she comes here, someone had opened that door. A shadow dared creeping around with dubious intentions.
An intruder!
...
...
Kotaro paled.
The door made a loud clicking noise, there was a second layer security functioning in that lock. Crap! Talk about VIP privileges, security here is top notch!
[Fuuma! Ingrid is coming back to your position! What happened!?]
[The door has a second automatic lock!] He typed fast on the phone.
[Grab the suitcase and get out!]
Kotaro speedran around the room, searching every nooks and crannies.
Luggage? Clothes and personal things, passed! Wardrove? Nope. Cabinet? Nope. Bathroom?! Some sticky lotions. Other than that there is nothing useful here.
Bam!
"Who is in there!?"
Ingrid slammed her fist on the door, she knew someone was in here. The circumstance dropped from good to worst.
Bedstand? Wait, what is a vibrator doing here? Nevermind, next!
Under the bed? There! The suitcase! Kotaro immediately grabbed it and poured everything inside to the floor.
"No paper." He gritted his teeth. The evidences proved the man's atrocious crimes were not here.
"Whoever you are, come clean before I require the use of force. This is a warning!"
Kotaro scratched his head. The safe on the wall was the only place left, but it required a six digits number. He didn't have it. Dang it! Is this really a dead end!?
[Fuuma, are you done yet!? If not, abort the mission!]
"Can't do that." Kotaro muttered. "We are so close to catching this guy."
He had no time to trace fingerprints on the button. Both sleeves rolled up, necktie loosened and tuxedo vest unbuttoned, the first thing Kotaro did was grabbing the chair.
Time for desperate measures.
...
...
CRACK!
Ingrid eyes went wide as the thunderous noise struck her ears.
Urgently, the main key card of the building swiped through the lock and doorknob turned, she pushed her shoulder into the frame. A harsh creak echoed as the hinge refused to buckle. Unknown to Ingrid, a chair was leaning against the door on the other side, its leg pressed to the solid ground.
The Hell Knight Sword conjured out of thin air, she slashed the door and forced her way in. Slicing fragments fell to the floor, her lip parted in more surprises.
It wasn't just the chair that prevented the door from opening. The king size bed, the stand and the closet were all used to barricade the room. As she saw a figure scuffing in the back, Ingrid raised her voice.
"You! There is no way to escape!"
They were on the fiftieth floor, no balcony behind the windows. The possibility for the intruder to flee was close to a zero.
The daring thief didn't care about her presence. With their back turned to her, their arms moved in a series of motions. Their fists began to burn in the bright blazing color of lava.
The phone in her pocket buzzed. The jarring notification warned about the prototype machine picking up a source of Taima particles in the building.
"Halt!"
The thief didn't listen. They punched through the safe, their fist melted through the thick door and pulled it off the hinges. The documents and the stamp revealed inside. Ingrid effortlessly cut down the obstacles in the way and confronted the daring thief. Her sword pointed at his masked face, which seemed to be made in a hurry with torn fabrics put together.
"You forced my hands. Surrender now or there will be a consequence with your life!"
The thief froze in place.
...
...
[Fuuma, my Wind Art is ready. On your mark, jump out the window and I'll catch you.]
Asuka's voice came through the comm. Regardless, Kotaro couldn't respond.
[Oi, Fuuma! Come in. Are you listening?]
Giving away his voice would do him no good, Ingrid would know. The Hell Knight now had plenty of opportunities to stop him right where he was standing. One minor mistake and he will be done for.
Unless...
"Show me your face." Ingrid demanded.
Kotaro silently pointed at the window and carefully took his steps towards the nearest one.
[I see you.] One of his teammates informed him, he was within their sights. [Be advised! Oboro is on the move, she is leaving the grand hall!]
Kotaro heard it, he had to be quick about this. Dark Flame engulfed the sword, he understood the intention clearly. Ingrid won't give out another warning, one more step from him and the blade will slice through him. Kotaro wouldn't want to risk it, he couldn't go along with her demand either. His hand reached to the curtain, covering the window.
[Eh!? What is he doing!?]
[Fuuma! We lost sight of yo-!]
He turned off the earpiece.
"Hoh." Ingrid was amused by his action. However, the stern gaze remained fierce. "Whatever you are planning, it will not work."
Kotaro pointed at the documents in the safe and tapped himself on the chest.
"Speak up. State clearly your intention, I do not fond of your silence."
He gave her a nod.
[Sound Art: Voice Alteration]
"I need those items to prove his crimes."
Ingrid frown as the voice didn't sound natural. He purposely twisted his own voice and spoke in monotonic pitches.
"You are stealing from one of my guests. You are threatening the safety of this place."
"This is how it should be done to expose him. Otherwise, he would just keep hiding behind that rich merchant façade and no one will care."-
"You do not seem to be capable of understanding the situation. He is an association of Nomad, it is up to me to judge him for his wrong doings. Soon, he will no longer spend his days roaming around freely with the stains on his hands. I have obtained enough proof."
Kotaro's face lit up behind the mask.
"We share the same goal then."
"Do not lump me together with you. I chose to directly confront him while you resorted to unethical methods. Now, surrender or face the consequence."
"Fine. I'll just need the stamp. You can have the documents."
The moment Kotaro turned and grabbed the item, Ingrid charged at him with the flame of her sword soaring into the air.
"Cease!"
Quickly, Kotaro backed away to avoid the blade. Ingrid had her power suppressed to a minimum, yet it continued to be proven as a deadly force. A single touch and it would reduce him to ashes.
The room was not that big for him to move around. As he ducked the next swing, a spark caught onto the fabric on his head.
"Ah crap!"
The spark ignited, spreading throughout his body. In no time, Kotaro became a human torch. Ingrid went for the finishing blow. Since it came to this, she wanted to cut off his life for good instead of letting the intense pain torture him.
Suddenly.
The burning arm shot up, catching her blade barehanded. To her shock, he actually appeared unharmed by the flame. His fist was already hardened and enhanced by Ninja Art. The ground beneath him took the impact of her strength and shattered. From within the surging Dark Flame, a small dot shone on one side of his face. The gleaming light of the right eye braced the fire and stared into Ingrid's.
The Hell Knight finally realized something as she witnessed the bizarre ability. The name of that young man instantly came to mind.
"Fuuma!?"
The Nameless Evil Eye swirled, absorbing the Dark Flame engulfing Kotaro. When everything was clear, when they looked at each other in the face, Kotaro had an awkward smile. The last pieces of fabric falling off his hair, the daring thief's whole identity uncovered.
"I'm...sorry?"
"So it is you." Her eyebrows twitched. "Do you really think you can cause me trouble and leave like that?"
"This wasn't intentional." Kotaro explained. "Time is running out on my side. Either we put the guy into jail or his victims will be sold off in an audition somewhere. We've already found his previous contracts, we just need the stamp for his identification."
Ingrid stayed silent, which made him gulp. He really hoped his reason would get to her.
Sigh.
"Very well. I'm letting you off just this once." Ingrid retracted her sword. "You may take it and leave."
"Eh?" Kotaro stood dumbfounded. He didn't expect her to agree so easily like that. "You're okay with this?"
"Would you prefer to be held responsible for trespassing and burglary?"
"Okay, I'm going!" Kotaro hurriedly opened the window, the strong wind came rushing into the room.
"Make haste. Someone is coming."
They heard noises from the elevator next to the room, Oboro had made it here. Kotaro hopped on the hinges, preparing for a long drop.
"Fuuma." Before he makes the jump, Ingrid had one last thing to tell him. "Find his victims, make sure the children are safe."
"Will do."
Kotaro made a promise to her. In the next blink of her eyes, he was gone.
Ingrid vanquished the sword and crossed her arms, thinking of how to handle the collateral damage left by this meeting. Oboro burst into the room in her usual wicked verbal complaint. Ingrid didn't care to listen, she has more works to do tonight.
For now, a problem had been solved. She left the confused Oboro behind and made her way to the party. She needed to release the tension in her mind first. Had she aware that their were working towards the same goal to put down that merchant's grievous crimes, she would have lent him a hand. She hadn't met him weeks after the Ashen Tree incident and this was how it turned out.
Ingrid entered the grand hall and picked up the first wine glass she saw.
"He could have told me he was coming."
She gulped everything down in one sip.
/
Author's Note: Finally, Five Days Break reached its last chapter. Once again, thank you so much for reading this story to the very end.
With the whole Nameless Evil Eye plot, I'd like to think that this story is an AU of Action Taimanin Timeline. I really hope Fuuma awaken his ability in the game this year.
- Nameless Evil Eye:
I want to explain a bit more about Fuuma's Evil Eye in this story. From what you had read, the eye didn't function like a vision-aiming attack. In term of power, it is different from the Eye of Demonic Gate. I used to think that Fuuma should have his original ability in TABA but I began to have second thoughts since it would make him too OP and it might doesn't help him much with his character development. Thus, the Nameless Evil Eye became an idea. It is built based on one of his personality traits - determination, and his natural talents in-game - analyzing opponents' abilities, studying Ninja Arts. Kotaro called his ability Nameless because he didn't see himself deserving it at the moment as he still has a long way to go.
Unlike the Demonic Gate, the Nameless Evil Eye realizes his knowledge of others and allows Kotaro to use those techniques at the cost of his own energy pool. Its strongest point is the combination of multiple ninjutsus with one activation, which means Kotaro can utilize more than two Ninja Arts at the same time.
In order to manage his Taima energy, he resorts to the hand signs, a form of chakra calculation I based on Naruto series. At this point in the story, Kotaro is the only one in Gosha that uses the traditional method. I think this suits his tactical thinking just fine, he can modify the technique to his own liking.
Now, its weakest point is Kotaro's stamina. He needs to train, to improve himself so that he can tap into the full potential of the Evil Eye. Next, Soul Synchronization. Whether this is the official ability of the Evil Eye or not remains a mystery. For now Kotaro can use all the techniques that have ever existed in Lilith Multiverse as long as he knows about it, analyzes it, understands it and has enough strength to do it. The Evil Eye remains a secret plot-wise, this has to be done for the Fuuma clan safety, especially Kotaro. I also think this really fits the image of a shinobi, he should only rely on his ability when it's the right time and doesn't turn himself into a powerhouse like most of the girls.
- Story:
First and foremost, since I'm not an English speaker, I would like to apologize for my grammar mistakes. I believe my fanfiction stories are mediocre at best in term of writing and executions, I'm just glad I can at least turn my ideas into chapters and share them for others to enjoy.
Writing fanfics as a hobby is also pretty challenging when you decided to do it. Five Days Break has been the first story that reached its completion, I'm not sure why I haven't investing this much into other stories but I guess my impression with the Taimanin stories and casts runs deeper than I imagine. Asides from the R 18+ materials, the franchise actually has really good lores!
Five Days Break started with Kotaro and Ingrid as the central protagonists, it's only right for the epilogue to be written with the same characters presented. I'm still conflicted since the Epilogue didn't have any tender moments between the two...oh well, their relationship hasn't progressed that far. But at least Ingrid is thinking more about Fuuma and not her boss. At least she felt frustrated because Fuuma didn't come to her for help and instead, acted secretly.
As of now, the Great Ashen Tree Arc is officially ended after 1.5 year.
I notice some readers want a sequel to this story. At this point, I'm not very sure. If I want to write the continuation, the plot won't be revolving around the Ashen Tree Seed That Fuuma Elder has. It could be something entirely new in the AU. I'll talk about it below.
- Ideas:
Here are the list of ideas (Still in my head) that I may expand as one-shots or snippets in the future.
+ Sage Art Reborn:
With the ability of the Nameless Evil Eye, Kotaro is amused by the thought that he could help preserving Lost Ninja Arts - rare techniques of extinct Taimanin clans that have been lost to history. When he comes to Igawa Asagi and askes her about it, Asagi shows him an ancient scroll telling the tale of a sacred ability. The Great Sage Art Presentation of the Gamaroku clan.
+ Village of the Red Mist:
Kotaro is assigned to a two-men team mission, a simple investigation at a small village. His partner is no other than Rinko's little brother, Akiyama Tatsuro. Rinko is worried about her brother wanting to to join the exchanged program and work with other Taimanins on the other side of the world. On Tatsuro's part, he wants to find his own strength without always thinking of his sister's help. Hence, the mission together with Kotaro. As the two arrived at the destination, the red mist from nowhere slowly draws in.
+ Train to Kyoto:
Kotaro, Sora and Sakuya are on a midnight train to the north branch of Gosha Village. Unexpectedly, a horde of Wolf Demons attacked the train, holding all civilians hostaged. The Captain and his juniors have to find a way to resolve the situation without casualties, and before the train reaches the next station in sunrise.
+ Yuuto! Bad Bunny!:
Astaroth pays a sudden visit to Asagi's Office. This is the display of a truly powerful being acting on a whim, she demands the name of the strongest Ninja Art user who recently awakened. Kotaro has no choice but to have minimized contact with Astaroth for the time being, or else that butterfly in her stomach will give him trouble. However, much to Asagi's dismay, Astaroth personally wants Kotaro to look after her Explosive Bunny, Yuuto.
+ The Honored One of the Kodama Spirits:
Kotaro, Hayate and Maika are tasked to help the Forest Spirits dealing with a dangerous entity from another dimension. The only way to defeat it is to shoot it with an arrow made of the Kodama's energy. However, as the Kodamas are too overwhelmed with fear, their power have been lost.
+ Death Mark:
Separate from the Task Force members, Kotaro barely managed to defeat an ancient being that once brought death to an entire town. Under the last breath, it cursed Kotaro with the Death Mark, the being's true ability. Once he has been marked, Kotaro must avoid everyone or else they will be killed just by looking at him.
+ Black Fountain:
Kamimura Azuma returns to Gosha in order to find a Soul Art User that can help her on a particular investigation. Around this time, Kotaro is called into Asagi's Office. With Azuma's spiritual power, she discovers an immense potential within Kotaro and requests Asagi to let her take him as her apprentice. Asagi refuses as Kotaro is the backbone of the Task Force. Despite that, Azuma still wants him to help her for only one week. Asagi reluctantly agrees and Kotaro is taken on a trip outside Gosha. During the ride on her car, Azuma tells Kotaro the story about the descendants of the shrine maidens who guarded the Temple of the Black Fountain. Till this day, most of them have mysteriously disappeared.
Well, I'll end my long rambling note here and take a good break.
Once again, thank you all for reading this story. Take Care!