Disclaimer: Nope, still Anzai's and not mine. Quotes from the manga are taken from the SnoopyCool translation.
Warnings: Canon-typical violence, by which i mean violence that literally occurred in canon.
Continuity: Based on the events of chapters 55-59. Manga continuity only.
Kurei enjoyed the atmosphere of the Ura-Butou Satsujin. The adrenaline that spiked through his veins was entirely different from the stresses he normally lived under. This was a welcome break into simplicity. Into clarity. Fight and win. Kill or be killed.
It was too bad that, as the victor of the last tournament, he wouldn't be fighting in the first round. It was unlikely that he would be matched against a worthwhile opponent this early on, but he would enjoy the opportunity to burn off steam.
But no. Kurei had the first day off from the tournament, and Kouran wanted him at the castle for his opening party – show off the clear favorite to his hedonistic associates. After that, he had a business rival he wanted taken care of quietly, so Kurei hadn't even made it to the Murder Dome until late in the day. He arrived just in time to watch Recca's first fight on the monitors.
It was pathetic. Kurei supposed he should have expected as much, based on their encounter at the mansion, but he hoped for better from his fated rival. Kouran might see this tournament only as an opportunity to acquire the healing girl, but Kurei was genuinely looking forward to crushing Recca – he'd only been waiting for the opportunity for four hundred years. It was up to Recca to make it worth his while.
That was why he found himself watching the monitors in the waiting area the next day instead of warming up for his first fight. He didn't need to. His teammates hadn't bothered to show up; he didn't need them either. He wanted to see Recca do better than he had the day before. He would be meeting his first team from Uruha this round, and their match started perhaps an hour before Kurei's, so he could spare the time.
As it stood, it didn't seem as though Recca would have the chance to fight at all. One of his teammates was missing, and there was some debate going on about making a substitution. It would be suicide for three teenagers to go up against Genjurou and his creations alone.
Kurei wondered, idly, if a member of Uruha had prevented the girl from Team Hokage from arriving in time for her fight. He hadn't ordered it – he wanted to kill Recca in the final round – but it was exactly the sort of thing Kouran would do.
With Team Hokage unable to continue, he would have the healing girl, and nothing in his way but science to achieving his goal of immortal life. The perfect resolution.
Kurei's perfect resolution was to destroy Recca, to avenge himself and his mother Reina on the one responsible for their being cast out so many years ago. Kurei's hatred festered still; by now it had built up to an inferno in his heart, fed by all the other hatreds he'd developed over the years.
Once that fire was quenched with Recca's blood, and once Kouran was satisfied, perhaps Kurei would finally know some peace.
If Recca proved unable to fight here and now, Kurei would have to find another venue for their battle. Recca would inevitably try to rescue his so-called "princess" after losing her in the tournament, so it would only be a matter of time.
The big one turned to the crowd, inviting anyone there to join them. Kurei scoffed. If the audience were up to it, they would have entered the tournament themselves. He had no respect for anyone who merely attended an event such as this.
Then a voice called out from the crowd. "You can never count on men who talk big! I guess it's up to me . . ."
Kurei's heart stuttered in his chest. His jaw tightened.
The audio quality on the television wasn't especially good. Add to that the clamor of the waiting area around him, and it would be easy to mishear. Surely Kurei hadn't recognized the voice.
The Kougon Anki stabbed into the ring. "If the Hokage lose, Yanagi-nee-chan will be in trouble, right? Then it just can't be helped!" Kurei drew a breath sharply through his nose. His hands clenched into fists.
Kaoru Koganei appeared onscreen, perching on the end of his madougu with his usual cheerful smile. "I'll lend you my strength. Kaoru Koganei, reporting for duty."
His confidence hadn't lessened. Even after he suffered defeat at Kurei's mansion, even after Kurei threw him away like trash, he still had the utmost faith in himself and his abilities.
For just a moment, Kurei felt weak. He steeled himself and burned that feeling away.
He'd already discarded Koganei. He was no longer a tool Kurei could use. The boy was nothing to him. If he chose to ally himself with Kurei's enemies, that was his foolishness.
Recca and his friends weren't so quick to accept the help of a former enemy. Koganei had to argue his way into their team. Kurei would never have accepted him back, regardless of the circumstances, but then, he must know that. It was why he'd approached Recca, and not Kurei.
Kurei could understand that, but not why he had come at all. Kaoru had no reason to return. Kurei should be rid of him now. He had cut him away like flesh festering in a wound, cruel so that it would take.
(Cruel because he didn't know how to be kind.)
It didn't matter if Kaoru started to hate him – Kurei wanted Kaoru to hate him. That way he would escape. Kaoru at least would be free of that old curse of Hokage, Kurei's evil flame. The curse that caused all those Kurei loved to suffer. The curse he drew them all into.
Kurei thought of Kouran Mori, away in his castle. He would be watching the tournament. Perhaps he was at the table for a late breakfast – he certainly slept late enough. Kouran knew of Kaoru. And he knew that the boy was no longer with Uruha.
Kaoru was still alive. That meant Kurei had let him live. That meant he was a weakness that could be exploited.
Kurei's nails dug into his palms. He remained still with his face directed towards the television as Kaoru stepped up to the ring to open the match. He was fighting first. Recca wasn't a complete fool.
"I thought you got rid of him?" the Kouran of his mind demanded as he tore into his meal.
"I cast him out," Kurei replied mechanically, not taking his eyes from the screen. "I assumed a child on his own wouldn't survive long."
He had underestimated him. He should have known better – he had called the boy his brother. Depending on his intentions, he could prove a problem.
No. Regardless of his intentions, Koganei had returned. He would have to be dealt with sooner or later. If he didn't get himself killed in the tournament, Kurei would have to take care of it.
Koganei's opponent was Shijo, one of Genjurou's creations. He was strong, but only as a beast was. He had no mind left to think of strategy or make the most of his combat potential.
That was Koganei's specialty. It was because of his quick thinking and adaptability that he was sent out on missions, despite officially being only a reserve member. It was his undeveloped muscles and relative lack of experience that might cause him to struggle.
Kurei was curious to see how he would fare.
Koganei launched swiftly into battle, taking first blood with the Mikazuki mode of Kougon Anki. Kurei had trained him; something like Shijo shouldn't prove a challenge.
Neon began to heckle him from the sidelines, and Koganei's concentration slipped. He took a couple of blows from Shijo that he should have seen coming a mile away.
Kurei had no more use for Koganei. There was no call to speak to Neon about her actions.
He got his feet back and stabbed the tip of Kougon Anki's lance mode into Shijo's stomach. The upswing flipped Shijo to the ground. But the blow didn't have enough force behind it – Shijo was on his feet again almost immediately.
If the bout continued in this vein, Koganei would win, even distracted as he was. Genjurou must have seen it too; he reached into Shijo's brain. Kurei guessed he was adjusting the ratio of animal to human.
Interfering from the sidelines was technically against the rules, but in a tournament for assassins it didn't mean much. The referee didn't step in before Shijo let out a bestial howl. His claws and fangs erupted in size, and a gaping maw opened in his stomach.
Kurei was unimpressed with the changes in the chimera. His reflexes were faster, his strength greater, it was true. He was covered in claws and fangs. But he still fought solely on instinct. He should be no match for a thinking, armed opponent.
Koganei knew what he was looking at, but once again he let himself be distracted. Because he paused to explain to Recca's group, he reacted too slowly and took several heavy blows.
He didn't have the focus necessary for this opponent. Kurei had been right after all. Kaoru should have stayed away. He would have lived longer.
His speed wasn't going to be of much benefit against Shijo's. He was unlikely to get a chance to recover now. If this was the strength of his will, it was over already.
Recca saw it too. He called for Kaoru to surrender. Soft, to feel such compassion for someone who had been an enemy up till mere minutes earlier.
In his position, Kurei would let Koganei die, and continue on to win the following matches.
Koganei got his feet under him and braced against the Kougon Anki. He froze there for a while. If Kurei knew him, he was gathering his strength. The time it took was a luxury in real combat.
Then Kaoru raised his head. The fire in his eyes was different from the beginning of the fight – Kurei could see it even in the grainy television image. He had found his resolve.
"Before, Kurei was nice to me all the time!" he exclaimed. "I can't believe that it was all an act! I must see him once more to be sure! Even if it kills me, i will see him again . . . I will kill anyone who gets in my way! And until i do that . . ."
Kurei's stomach clenched. There was a roaring in his ears. Kaoru was too clever by half. Too stubborn. Driven by sentimentality. This wasn't good. He wouldn't give up.
Kurei wished he had his mask on.
Kaoru moved like an entirely different fighter, as fast as Shijo and far more determined. He flashed through his weapon's Ryuu and Kyoku modes, easily incapacitating Genjurou's beast-man before delivering the final blow with the bow and arrow. "My only goal is Kurei, so get out of my way!"
Once he found his resolve, he won easily. Kurei shouldn't take pride in him, not when his goal would only cause trouble. He frowned as Genjurou entered the ring. The old man must be up to something.
At first look, the suggestion that the winner continue to fight, to avoid a tie, seemed reasonable. But Genjurou never did anything without an ulterior motive. Koganei didn't seem to think it through, and agreed easily. Kurei waited for the catch. It revealed itself in the next fighter.
Mokuren. Of course. Kurei was only surprised Genjurou had arranged this for him. Perhaps the two of them had made some secret deal. Kurei didn't trust either of them to begin with, but he would have to watch them carefully in the future.
For now, he would observe the match. Mokuren was a more dangerous opponent than Shijo, but Koganei knew him well, so he might come out on top.
Mokuren was a liar, playing on Koganei's emotions. Kurei hoped he wasn't careless enough to fall for it. They had been partners – Kaoru knew what kind of a man he was.
But he was too quick to trust, and turned his back on the last man he should give an opening to.
Mokuren caught him easily, transforming into a tree and swallowing him whole. That was new – Kurei understood Genjurou's role now. His nails bit into his palms, even as he sneered at the child's foolishness. "How terrible . . . Kaoru Koganei . . ."
It was over. Whatever Kaoru wanted from him, whatever feelings Kurei was unable to quash, it didn't matter anymore. Kaoru was dead, and Kurei no longer had to think about him.
It was time to go on to his own match. With the rest of his team off doing whatever they wanted, someone had to show up. It would be humiliating to lose by default, especially when the entire purpose of the tournament was to fight Recca.
Still he lingered in the waiting area. He watched as the wielder of Ensui took Recca's place in the ring. It was a smart move, if they wanted to recover Koganei.
Kurei didn't care. He was watching to see how his most anticipated opponents fared in their first match against Uruha.
The water swordsman hadn't impressed Kurei much when they fought at the mansion, though he had the most technical skill of Recca's group. Now he was more evenly matched, and Kurei could observe his skill.
He fought more logically than Mokuren did, so, given the similarity in their strength, it was no surprise that he should come out victorious. Kurei admired his use of deceit and his hidden ice attack to gain the victory. Those were the kind of tactics an assassin, indeed a ninja, should be skilled in.
It was only a mystery why he was allied with someone like Recca.
Kurei watched him cut Kaoru free from Mokuren's trunk. It was Mokuren's own foolish mistake, not paying enough attention to his surroundings. If he survived this, Kurei should punish him later.
Kaoru was very still in his new comrade's hold.
Then his rescuer threw him to the ground, all concern gone. Kurei's muscles tightened before he saw that Kaoru had gone to sleep.
He really was nothing but a child.
Kurei should put a stop to this.
No. This was no longer his business. He'd cut all ties with his brother – with Koganei. They were no longer brothers.
If Kaoru did get himself killed, at least then he would be free.
Kurei turned his back on the monitor and went to meet his first opponents.
A/N: The tv anime of Flame Of Recca was so bad it took me a full fifteen years to work up the willpower to watch Final Burning but i've finally done it! Goddamn it was good; i wish they'd animated the whole series at this caliber. That has nothing really to do with this fic, but i've been wanting to post more FoR stuff for a while now.