Chapter 24: I Will Always Be With You
The next morning Akira went to a nearby supermarket to buy some food for himself and for his girlfriend for the next couple of days. He was still deeply troubled for what had happened the day before.
That moment was all it took.
No matter how far she had come, how much she had moved forward, how much she had healed, all of that progress along with her newfound happiness had vanished the moment her gaze landed on those two corpses on the traffic light. She returned back to the broken state she was the day Akira first met her. She didn't even eat at lunch the day before. She simply locked herself in her room, sat on her chair, rested her arms on the table and buried her head in her arms, not moving for the rest of the day and not even uttering a word. She did have dinner though, due to the need to eat outweighing the need to be alone, although Akira merely cooked for her and left her alone in her room to eat as she had asked him to.
Akira knew for a fact that witnessing that atrocity brought back the painful memories of the past, of everything Jun had been through and all she had lost. He coudn't really blame her for having reacted like this though, given that when Miki died, Akira had been so broken that for three whole days he did nothing except mourning her, isolating himself from everything that was happening around him.
Still, she knew who was behind this. And even though he had given her the space and the privacy she needed to express her grief, he needed to know. He knew from his past experiences that such individuals would do anything to get their revenge: Sirene was the perfect example of that. And from what little he had been told by Takeshi and the girls apparently there was a group of rebel Devil-Beasts who waged war on mankind with the intention of wiping out the human race, the same monsters who murdered Kazumi's parents and used her as a bait to lure Jun out. However those monsters had been vanquished by Jun. Surely they coudn't be the ones behind the atrocity from yesterday given that they had died.
Or had they?
Akira coudn't dismiss the possibility that they were still alive. It was too much of a coincidence. Otherwise Jun woudn't have reacted the way she did.
As he left the supermarket and began to walk back home, bag of food items in his left hand, he met a familiar face that was coming from the opposite direction he was going to.
With a smile he spoke "Fancy seeing you here Tak." greeting the brown haired beast in front of him, biker jacket on.
"Likewise, bro. I see that you've bought quite a lot of stuff." replied casually Takeshi, glacing at the bag of food items held by Akira. He was in fact going to buy some food for himself and Takae as well before he came across Akira.
Akira then stated "Oh these? Well, since Jun wasn't feeling all that well today i thought i'd be the one to go buy us some food this time." earning a surprised and worried look on Takeshi's face. Miss Fudo wasn't feeling all that well? He was surprised to hear that. After Akira confessed his love for her in front of him and the girls, the beast believed that things would only get better between them. And yet, just two days after that beautiful moment, she wasn't feeling well?
Noticing the worry and dismay in Akira's voice, Takeshi spoke "She's not feeling well? But i thought things were working out between you two." surprise evident in his voice. Why would Miss Fudo feel unwell after finding her new love? Unless…
Akira, not in the mood to converse with others, due to what happened yesterday, simply replied after taking a look at his watch "I should go now, Jun is waiting for me." voice devoid of any emotion, but as he walked past Takeshi who simply stood still…
"It's about the corpses on the traffic light isn't it?" grimly stated Takeshi after putting two and two together, causing Akira to gasp in shock and stop dead in his tracks.
Turning towards the beast in human form, Akira, with his eyes wide open, asked hesitantly "How….. how did you know?"
"You're kidding right? It was all over the news yesterday. I mean, do you even watch TV?" simply replied Takeshi, voice and face dead-serious.
Akira lowered his head downwards in sadness before saying "Tak, we were there. Seeing them was all it took. As soon as her eyes saw them, she just….. broke. For the rest of the day she locked herself in her room and sat on her chair, not doing anything for a whole 24 hours."
As soon as Takeshi heard what Akira said, his face filled with apprehension and dread. It was just what he feared. Of course Miss Fudo would have reacted like that. After all it wasn't the first time such an atrocity had occured.
(OST: Yu Yu Hakusho, disturbing, unreleased Chapter Black Saga soundtrack = watch?v=FvbOwDpYr1k )
"I thought as much." simply stated Takeshi, taking Akira completely by surprise, his eyes meeting the beast's own once again "What do you mean?" he asked in stupor, due to Takeshi's expression on his face.
Takeshi grimaced even more. Hearing from Akira how Jun reacted to the two corpses took away all of his doubts: those monsters had returned. And they were intending to finish what they had started. He now had to tell Akira about them in order to prepare him for what was about to come.
"Akira, you should know that this wasn't the first time such a murder occured." he spoke grimly, causing Akira's mouth to drop in shock and his eyes to widen even more.
"What?" was all the half-demon could reply, utterly shocked by what he heard. Takeshi then gestured Akira to follow him in a nearby park where nobody would have heard them "Not here. Follow me."
And so Akira followed Takeshi into the park until they reached a spot away from most of the crowd. They then sat on a bench and remained silent for a few minutes.
After making sure that no one was watching them, Takeshi broke the silence "It all started eight months ago. That's when the first corpses of several people began to show up on lamp posts, traffic lights and other places. But that was only the beginning. Soon afterwards a gigantic frog-like beast was unleashed upon the city and it was only because of Miss Fudo's intervention that few people died that day."
Akira listened very carefully to what Takeshi was telling him, his eyes narrowing even more upon hearing that whoever was behind the two corpses on the traffic light had also committed similar crimes many months earlier.
"But by then it was too late. The goverment could no longer keep the existence of the beasts hidden away from the public, so the state of national emergency was declared. That was when the hunt and enslavement of the beasts by the Human Alliance began. It was then, in the midst of all that mess, that those monsters made their move and took over Tsukuba Island, proclaimed the independence of the Beasts and began their war against mankind." Continued Takeshi, recalling all the events that took place many months prior, clearing away every single doubt in Akira's mind. He now knew for a fact that those Beasts he had learned about from the girls that rebelled against mankind, the same monsters who murdered Kazumi's parents and used her as nothing more than a means to an end to lure out, torture and attempting to kill Jun, were the ones responsible for those murders.
Still he needed Takeshi to confirm it and so he asked "Let me guess: those Beasts who wanted to exterminate mankind were also the ones behind those murders?" earning a nod from Takeshi. The brown haired beast then replied, his eyes staring directly in Akira's black ones "I don't know their individual names but they called themselves "The Crusaders". Four extremely powerful bird-like beasts led by a beast, in the appearance of a 8 to 10 year old boy, named Satoru. They said they wanted the beasts to take over the world, to build their kingdom of freedom for them. But i've seen those like them before. No matter how much they bragged about their ideals, in the end they were nothing more than tyrannical monsters who simply wanted to conquer the world and rule it as they saw fit. They were no better than Asuka and the Human Alliance."
Akira continued to listen carefully, hiding his surprise at how resentful Takeshi sounded upon recalling those events. The conqueror of Amon realised at that moment that those beasts and Asuka were simply two sides of a dark coin. They had manipulated countless people, sparked hostility and conflict between the two races, hoping that the conflict would have exhausted the one they were aiming to eliminate and in the Crusaders's case, persuaded many others to join their cause which was a lie all along. But no matter how much they hid it beneath their ideals, the Crusaders's goal, despite being the opposite, ultimately was the same as her own. They wanted to exterminate humanity, allow the beasts to take over the world and rule it. How ironic: that all the tragedy, sorrow and pointless bloodshed that unfolded in those months was all the result of a farce set up by two warring factions that merely desired to take over and rule the world.
He put his thoughts aside before grimly asking "And now you're telling me that those scumbags have returned?
"In theory, they shoudn't have. Miss Fudo vanquished them." replied simply Takeshi, taking Akira completely by surprise and causing him to gasp.
"All five of them?" asked Akira, in awe at the fact that not only was Jun the one who defeated Asuka, but also the one who put a stop to these so called "Crusaders"'s campaign.
"Yes. They had fused into a powerful beast who had gotten the upper hand on her. Had it not been for a friend of hers sacrificing himself to give her the opportunity to finish that monster off, Miss Fudo would have perished that day." answered Takeshi, recalling the climatic battle in the bay of the city between the two Giga Beasts and the sacrifice of that horned purple beast with blonde hair which, umberknownst to him, was the late Jason Bates, who had put aside his lust and feelings towards Jun after opening his eyes and learning the truth and ultimately sacrificed himself to save not just her but the two races.
Akira was left speechless. Jun had not only saved the world from Asuka but also from those tyrannical beasts who wanted to exterminate humanity. But she had lost a friend and possibly even more in doing so. Her triumph, followed later on by her victory over Asuka brought freedom and equality between the two races. But if those monsters had returned and they were still intending to finish what they started…...
Akira's eyes widened as soon as he fully understood just how grave the situation was and how much was at stake. He then turned his head back towards Takeshi and spoke "Tak….. You know what this means right?" his voice filled with much worry and apprehension.
Takeshi merely grimaced before replying "Yes. The girls and i watched them die, so in theory they should be dead. But i've since stopped believing in the impossible after everything we went through. Hence why, we musn't disclose the possibility that they have returned. And if they have…." he stopped, not finding the strength to tell Akira what might happen.
Akira simply balled his hands in fists in anger. How could they still do this? Didn't they do enough already? How many more people will have to suffer before they would be satisfied?
He then put his right hand on Takeshi's left shoulder and proclaimed grimly "Tak, we're talking the fate of the entire world, of both humanity and the beasts at stake here. The world Jun fought for with all of her might, that so many people of both sides gave their lives to make a reality is in danger. And what if those monsters have or were to ally themselves with the demons?" sending chills in the young beast in front of him's spine with his last sentence.
Takeshi's face went pale as soon as those last words left Akira's mouth. The Crusaders had already caused much pain, misery and grief by themselves but what if they were or had already allied themselves with the demons, a race of monsters who caused the extinction of humanity on Akira's original world? He shuddered at the mere thought of such an alliance. He now realised that what happened back on Akira's world could also happen in this world too.
He was pulled out of his thoughts by Akira who stated in axiety "We have to tell everyone this. The goverment, the army, the citizens -"
"No. Doing so would only start a mass panic and in the worst of cases, a mass revolt of humans against beasts or viceversa. Keep in mind that all of what i told you happened only months ago. The memory of all that happened is still fresh in both races's minds. You may have become accustomed to seeing humans and beasts peacefully living together here in Tokyo, but i doubt it's the same in the rest of the country, let alone the rest of the world." swiftly interrupted Takeshi, calming Akira down. The entire city had been shaken by the murder of the couple. Spreading out the word like this without even knowing for certain what those genocidists's next course of action was would only send the entire nation if not the entire world in a spiral of chaos in a delicate time such as this, where things were still in the process of working out between the two races.
(soundtrack ends)
"Then what do you suggest?" Asked Akira, taking his hand off Takeshi's shoulder in the process.
"Let's keep a low profile for now. In the meantime, talk with Jun. I know she might still be thoroughly shaken by what she went through and what happened yesterday, but she knows the whole story. She'll give you the answers you seek." answered Takeshi, voice dead-serious, earning a worried look on Akira's face. He knew for a fact that Jun was still far too traumatised by everything she went through, to share all of her memories with him. But he had no choice. In order to protect her and his friends, to not let all of her efforts and sacrifices be in vain, he needed to know the truth.
"Very well then." replied Akira with resolution in his eyes and voice before a thought popped up in his mind. He then asked "Tak, by any chance have you seen Kaim lately?"
"Nope. Haven't seen him ever since we went to the arcades three weeks ago." replied simply Takeshi.
"If you happen to meet him again, tell him everything. If those bastards are intending to finish what they started, we're gonna need all the help we can get." proclaimed Akira to which the young beast in front of him nodded. Coming to think about it, though, he was wondering on what Kaim had been up to in the last week ever since he confessed his feelings for Sirene. Perhaps the two had become a couple? Or even became adjusted to living as humans?
With a smile Takeshi then replied "Trust me bro, i will. Still don't know where that guy lives though."
Akira chuckled in response before he picked up his bag full of food items and got up "Yeah, me neither. By the way how's Takae been doing?" he asked, curious to know how her pregnancy was going.
Takeshi got up from the bench and replied cheerfully "The usual, tomboyish attitude and all." earning another chuckle from Akira.
"Well, i'd hate to be the one on the receiving end of her fits. She reminds me a lot of Miki in that regard." jokingly stated Akira. A playful, mischievious look formed on Takeshi's face at that statement.
"What? Did she use to smack you around all the time as well?" he asked teasingly, causing Akira to cringe and sweat-drop at the same time, upon recalling that one time in which, he lifted up her skirt, exposing her panties. It was a time in which he still had a hard time controlling his demonic side.
"Let's just say that she knew how to throw her weight around….." he nervously replied, earning an amused chuckle from Takeshi, remembering it like it was yesterday the moment she straight up punched him in the face, sending him tumbing on the floor. Putting aside possibly one of the most embarrasing moments of his entire life, as deserved as it was (second only to Jun slapping him with so much force to send him flying towards a tree), he smiled again before continuing "Kinda curious to see how much her child will take from her. By the way how's he or she coming along?" while crossing his arms.
"Oh, don't worry, her belly's starting to get bigger. Still don't know the gender though. Gonna have to wait another two months for that." replied cheerfully Takeshi, proud of the fact that their baby was coming up strong, earning a happy look on Akira's face. The half-devil was overjoyed to hear that his friend, in six months from now on, was going to become a father.
Takeshi then remembered the reason he even got out in the first place. After taking a look at his watch, he spoke "Oh, i forgot. I have to buy some food for us as well." he then walked towards Akira, stopping in front of him and extended his hand towards him before concluding "Till next time, bro. Stay safe"
Akira, with a friendly smile shook his hand in a manly way before saying "You too, tough guy." before they parted away and bid each other farewell, going back to their separate ways.
Unfortunately for the both of them, they had been watched the whole time.
On the rooftop of one of many buildings surrounding the park and covered slightly by the shadow of a billboard, stood Kotura, the Crusader of Lighting, with the face of his human form slightly obscured by a hat and with his arms crossed. He had watched the entire conversation from the start due to his incredible eyesight and despite being hundreds of meters away, he was able to read their lips.
"Mmph. Akira Fudo eh? That runt's supposed to be the one who overtook this so called "Amon"?" mused the brute to himself with a gleeful smile. So the rumors were true after all. That young man truly was the counterpart from another world of the woman that had twarted their plans several months ago. And now he had just learned about them and their crusade. Things coudn't have been more well-timed.
With a plan already forming in the Crusader's twisted mind, Kotura spoke to himself "And i know just the way to bring him to our hideout." his gaze falling on the brown haired beast that had spoken to him and was taking its leave. Their handshake gave it away immediately: that beast and Akira were close friends. Surely if Kotura were to kidnap him, use his phone to call Akira and instruct him to come to their base of operations on the threat of killing his friend if he woudn't, he would surely come. In spite of his brutish appearance, Kotura was no fool. While not as sadistic as his colleagues of fire and ice and being often times, "the muscle" of the four, Kotura never allowed his strength and power to cloud his judgement. While he could be easily provoked into attacking others, such as how Atun did the first time he met him, Kotura always thought before fighting. As such he would rather live and fight for another day whenever he would be given the chance, instead of dying pointlessly in battles he coudn't win all by himself.
Having decided his next course of action, Kotura lowered his hat, put his hands in his pockets and declared darkly "Time to get to work." and left the building.
An hour later,
Takeshi had just finished buying food for him and Takae at another supermarket and was heading back home. Due to having met and discussed with Akira for half an hour he was a little late on schedule and as such in order to reach his house as quickly as he could, he took a shorcut in one of the many alleys of the main street.
As he walked through the alley, bag of food items in his right hand, he noticed a tall, well-built man in a blue maintenance uniform, leaning his back on the left wall of the alley, arms crossed and head lowered towards the ground, obscured by his hat. Takeshi paid him no attention and simply walked past him.
However a few moments after doing so the man spoke "It's not safe hangin' around in these turfs ya know." in a somewhat sardonic tone, while leaving the wall and walking in the center of the alley, stopping Takeshi in his tracks.
Turning around towards him, with a stoic and wary expression, the brown haired beast asked "Something's the matter, pal? I'm kinda in a hurry. Have to bring these home." while lifting up the bag of food items slightly.
In response Kotura grinned nefariously before stating "Sorry to ruin your day mate, but i'm afraid you're gonna have to come with me." while taking his hat off and tossing it away. At the same time his eyes turned from black to blood red as he began to make his move.
Earlier, at Jun's house
She still thought that it was a nightmare. That it didn't happen.
For an entire day she sat on a chair, resting her arms on the table and burying her head in them, locking herself in the room and not moving for almost 24 hours straight. During those hours she recalled everything that happened ever since that fateful night, almost a year ago. Her awakening, the murder of Kazumi's parents, all the poor souls she had to put down, the struggle between her humanity and the beast within….
Then a particular moment flashed back in her memory. The time when Satoru kidnapped Kazumi for the first time and made her watch as his Guardian Crows grabbed Jun, slammed her to the ground, dropped a net to immobilize her and began to stab her repeatedly with their sharp beaks.
"I told you remember? That it was all that woman's fault. You should hate her."
Those words rang back in her head and once again her self loathing came back. And no matter how much she tried to deny it, Satoru that night spoke the truth. Kazumi was hurt because of her. Her home, her parents, her life. All of that was taken away simply for being associated with someone who, in Satoru's words "Had failed to evolve properly".
"K…. Kazumi…" Called out weakly Jun, head still buried in her arms, tears beginning to flow freely, once again mourning the loss of her first love. No matter how much she had managed to move on thanks to Akira, no matter how much she had healed, no matter how much happiness had returned in her life due to her finding her second chance at love, seeing those two corpses on the traffic light took all of that away immediately. The moment her eyes saw them, the entire world around her collapsed. She was so overcome by trauma, despair and sorrow that her mind broke. Now, 24 hours later while still in a state of denial, still refusing to believe that what she had witnessed the day before was no fabrication, her mind had regained a grip on reality.
But….. if only she could hear her voice again. It pained her to want this after everything Akira did for her, after she returned the love he had confessed for her. But if only she could hear it again….. her voice of her humanity… the voice of her former reason for living…..
But at that moment her godsend arrived. For as soon as she heard the entrance door of her apartment being opened, a voice came.
"Jun, i'm home."
She gasped as soon as she heard that kind, soothing voice. The voice of the man she loved. Instinctively she got up from the chair, walked towards the door of her room, opened it…
And her eyes along with her mouth widened upon spotting him, lying all the items he bought on the table. Akira noticed the surprise in her face but nonetheless smiled at her and spoke "I thought i might buy a few things for the next week. Fridge was looking a bit empty."
Jun's eyes softened and began to shake in passion at the realisation that Akira, her newfound humanity was still alive. Instictively she called out "Akira…" longing and passion filling her voice before rushing towards him and hugging him deeply, burying her head in his chest.
A passionate look formed on Akira's face before he called out "Jun…." and returned the hug, giving his girlfriend the comfort she needed. Those caring arms then wrapped around Jun's back, pulling her closer to Akira's body and causing her to gasp slightly. He knew that what she had witnessed the day before had brought back all of her traumatic memories. The best he could do right now was being her strength, her lifeline.
As soon as those arms pulled her in the caring embrace, Jun's mind, or rather, her heart although still deeply affected by all the painful memories, spoke to her. She will no longer shun away her beloved ones. Akira brought back her humanity, introduced her to his friends, reminded her again of what it truly means to live. She will be at his side to the end.
Pulling himself slightly away from the hug upon hearing a rumble that wasn't his own, but rather of Jun, more specifically her stomach, he smiled playfully at her before asking "You didn't eat much this morning, have you?" in an equally playful tone.
Jun's eyes remained lifeless, still full of pain and sorrow but she weakly managed to nod. In spite of being able to go through for much longer periods of time without eating compared to a normal human, she felt as hungry as any normal human would be after not having breakfast at all. Akira in return caressed her left cheek carefully and declared happily "I'll cook for you. Hope you'll like what i bought!"
And so Jun sat at the table, not uttering a single word while Akira procedeed to cook Omurice with squid and shrimp for both of them. Akira then brought the recipe he had just cooked on the table, sat in front of Jun and they both began to eat.
In spite of her current mental state, Jun had to admit that the Omurice was wonderful. Once again Akira had taken her breath away with his cooking.
"It's…. it's wonderful….. " managed to let out Jun, very briefly smiling at Akira due to how good the Omurice tasted. Her boyfriend flashed back a happy smile, delighted to have taken away Jun's sadness with his cooking, even if for a moment. But that was the only time Jun spoke during their lunch.
After what seemed like an hour of silence, Akira broke it.
"Jun. I bumbed into Tak earlier." he spoke, earning her attention, inches away from finishing her meal. She had taken much longer to eat it due to her mental state.
At first, her face remained stone-cold and she didn't reply. But as soon as Akira declared "He told me everything. About the ones responsible for the traffic light murders." she stopped eating and her spoon fell from her hand.
Her shaking brown eyes then met his black ones before she called out "Akira…" her lips trembling due to all the memories coming back again.
In response, a worried and determined look formed on Akira's face before he carefully reached out for one of Jun's delicate hands, putting his his own on top of it. He then spoke calmly, his black eyes staring directly into Jun's brown ones "Jun. I know how hard it's been for you and i shoudn't ask you this after everything you went through." his voice serious but at the same time soothing.
Jun could only listen silently, her lips slightly apart and her eyes shaking even more in sadness before he continued "But i need to know. If those bastards behind the traffic light murders are indeed the same monsters who murdered Kazumi's parents, waged war against mankind and killed hundreds if not thousands of innocent people, i'll need to learn as much as i can about them."
Jun's eyes widened at how determined Akira sounded. The resolution in his eyes was genuine. He truly wanted to protect her, to be at her side no matter what. But what if he would be hurt? What if by being with her he were to suffer just like Kazumi had?
Noticing the worry and the fear in Jun's eyes Akira began soothingly "Jun. I want to be with you. I will protect you no matter what. I will do anything for you…" flashing a serene smile at the woman he loved.
Jun's heart began to beat faster at that moment. In Akira's eyes there was no hesitation, no doubt. He wanted to be with her, to protect her no matter what. He didn't care what would happen. He fully believed that as long as they would be together, as long as their bond would remain strong, things would work out.
"But please understand, Jun. I have to know. I have to-"
He coudn't finish. He was interrupted by his phone ringing. He then took his hand off Jun's own got up and went to take his phone, while the young woman's gaze shifted downwards again, her face taking on a dry, distant expression again, immersing herself in her thoughts of doubt again.
Akira saw that the one calling him was Takeshi. That was weird. He had talked with him in the park earlier. Why would he call him now at this time, when he was having lunch? After all he was supposed to have lunch with his girlfriend.
Nonetheless, Akira answered the call and began "Yo, Tak. Can i help you? I'm having lunch right n-"
But he was in for quite the shocking surprise when instead of his friend, a deep, taunting demonic voice, one he never heard before answered instead "Sorry mate, but i'm afraid your friend is unavailable at the moment." which interrupted him before he could finish his sentence, causing his eyes to widen in bewilderment.
(OST: Yu Yu Hakusho Chapter Black unreleased track = watch?v=SgNP_ZRAHZw&t=18s )
"WHAT?! WHO ARE YOU?!" exclaimed Akira in a mix of shock and dismay, upon hearing the voice, causing Jun to immediately lift her head back up, her eyes staring at her boyfriend in surprise not only at his reaction but at the demonic voice that, due to her enchanced hearing even in her human form, she had heard.
"Nobody special, really. Just an enforcer of the soon-to-be new ruler of this world." replied casually but with clear malice the voice, who umberknowst to him was in fact Kotura in his true form, that of a heavily built humanoid vulture like creature covered in dark grey feathers, lower legs covered in eagle like black scales ending in feet which beared two recurved claws in two front toes and a third projecting from the back, giving him grasping feet much like those of his colleagues. A pair of large vulture like wings sprouted from his shoulders, which bore two large yellow eyes with a slith pupil and what seemed like two halves of a beak sprouting underneath those eyes and finally he had a long feathery tail coming from his back.
He didn't even give Takeshi time to transform. After assuming his true appearance, Kotura merely snatched him by the throat and procedeed to choke him until he passed out. Having quickly knocked him out but not killed him due to him being needed as the bait to lure Akira to his boss's hideout, Kotura took Takeshi's phone and procedeed to call him.
Jun simply listened in perplexity and worry at the voice's declaration, not recognizing it. On the other hand, Akira's eyes widened, having realised who the one who had called him was referring to.
"You… You're one of them! You're one of the Crusaders!" He exclaimed in realisation, causing Jun's eyes and mouth to widen in utter horror and shock, not believing what she was hearing.
With a dark chuckle, Kotura replied "I see that your friend told you quite a lot about us, Amon. Or should i say, Akira Fudo?" putting emphasis on his real name, just to taunt him, enraging the Devilman.
Gritting his teeth in pure fury, a raging scowl forming in his face, Akira threatened "Bastard…. I swear, if you have hurt so much as a single hair o-" while Jun merely watched as pure unbridled anger filled every inch of his face. He was even more angry than when he saved her against Sirene.
"Heh, as short-tempered as my boss's colleagues said, i see. Don't worry, he's still in one piece…. For now at least." Reassured Kotura, interrupting the half-devil mid sentence, his voice still gleeful and taunting, enraging Akira even more.
Nonetheless, he kept his calm, if only barely before demanding "Why are you doing this?"
The vulture beast merely replied "You've made quite a lot of enemies, Akira Fudo, you know that? We're just doing one of them a favor, that's all."
Akira was about to reply, but before he could, he noticed that Jun had stood up. His eyes widened in astonishment upon seeing her entire face filling with unbridled raging fury, her teeth clenched, her hands balled up in fists and her eyes filled with such wrath that they put those of a tiger to shame. He had never seen Jun so angry before. He quickly realised at that moment that Jun was only one of the many people they had hurt.
Akira however remained calm and gestured her to remain silent before he asked "What do you want?" voice stone-cold, trying to hide his anger as much as he possibly could.
"A hundred miles west from here in the woods of the Nagano Prefecture, lies our hideout. If you wish to see your friend again, you'll have to seek us out. And i would do that as soon as possible if i were you, mate." declared Kotura, while Akira simply listened, while keeping an eye on Jun who still had a resentful scowl on her face.
"Very well then. But he better still be in one piece when i'll find him, or else-" threatened Akira only to be interrupted once again by the Crusader of Lightning "No need to worry about that. Only thing he will have to worry about in his cell will be his hunger. We'll see if his hunger will persuade him to join our cause, just like all those traitors we've collected."
Akira gasped at the revelation. Takeshi was only the latest one they had captured due to him being considered a traitor of his kind. These "Crusaders" were even more vile than he had imagined. They were willing to torture their own kind in order to persuade them to join them.
On the other hand, Jun's anger spiked even more. How could they still do this? Hurting and killing humans was one thing but hurting other peaceful beasts simply to force them to join their cause, just like they hurt her? They were even more vile than she remembered. Truly, even death taught them nothing.
"Oh, and one last thing. Bring your lady friend with you. Our boss, Satoru has some unfinished business with her." Added Kotura mischieviously before Akira could reply. He could only watch in muted distress as Jun gasped in horror, all of her fury dissappearing, replaced by disbelief and dread as Kotura pronounced that name, confirming once and for all that the monster who had taken everything away from her was alive.
Overcome by anger, Akira roared "Bastards… WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO HER?!" taking his eyes off Jun and clenching his teeth in fury after beginning to understand just how much hell they had put her through.
"Hehehehehehe….. You'll have to find that out by yourself. No fun in spoiling it! MWHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Finally proclaimed Kotura before erupting in a cackling and unhinged laugh. And with that he crushed Takeshi's phone to pieces with his hand and procedeed to pick up the Beast with his prehensile feet and carry him to their hideout, taking off and soaring through the cloudy skies with his dark grey wings.
(Soundtrack Ends)
As soon as the phone went dead, Akira lowered his head downwards and his phone fell from his hand. Suddenly he gritted his teeth, overcome by anger and disheartement before he roared in frustation "DAMMIT!" and slammed his hands on the table so hard it left a dent in it, actually startling Jun due to how angry he sounded and how sudden his reaction was.
"Akira…" called out Jun in disheartement, her eyes shaking in concern upon seeing how distressed the man she loved was.
The half-devil, still with his arms leaned on the table then spoke, "It never ends… How many more people… how much more innocent blood will have to be shedded before all of this ends…" anguish replacing the anger in his voice, while closing his eyes, trying with all of his might to hold back the tears. Once again, one of his friends had been kidnapped with the intention of being used as a bait to lure him out. Takeshi had nothing to do with all of this. And now he had been kidnapped simply because he was associated with him.
Jun could only watch in sadness as despair overcame her boyfriend. She realised at that moment once again how similar they were. Deep down he didn't want any of this. And just like it happened to her, one of his friends had been hurt for the only crime of being associated with him.
She then walked towards Akira and put one of her hands on his left shoulder. Akira lifted his head back up and his eyes met Jun's own. To his surprise, they were filled not only with anger but with resolution and determination.
She then spoke "This is why you can't stay with me, Akira. No matter what i do, no matter all the decisions i make, people always get hurt." her voice dead-serious but at the same time filled with melancholy.
Those words caused Akira to stand up again, his whole body facing Jun before she turned away, walked a few steps and lowered her head downwards before stating "I have to do this alone. I don't want you to suffer because of me." her voice filling itself with even sadness.
The sadness in those words took away all of Akira's anguish. She was trying to shun him away again for she believed that by being with her, he would have been hurt. But Akira wasn't going to let her make that mistake again, not now that she had found not just her second chance at love, but even new friends.
"Jun, that's not true." he spoke again, voice full of resolve, taking her by surprise and causing her eyes and lips to widen "Didn't you hear what that punk said? They were doing one of my enemies a favor. They have allied themselves with the demons."
Jun's face went pale as soon as those words left Akira's mouth. He had told her that the demons had caused the extinction of humanity in Akira's original world. And now they had allied themselves with Satoru, the monster who had taken everything away from her.
"Can't you understand? Takeshi wasn't hurt because of you. He was hurt because of me." he proclaimed, while walking towards Jun, stopping mere inches away from her, still standing with her back turned towards him. Jun's eyes widened in realisation that this time it wasn't her fault. Now Akira was about to be put through the same pain she went through: having the people he cared about being hurt because of him.
"Jun, i know you don't want to see me hurt but Takeshi is my friend. If it wasn't for him, i would have never been able to arrive in time to save you. And this Satoru punk went after him just to lure me out." Continued soothingly Akira, while caressing Jun's dark brown hair, calming her down with his gentle touch. He then proclaimed "Which is why i will come with you."
However to his surprise, Jun turned around towards him and rounded her eyes on his own before exclaiming "NO, YOU'RE NOT!" actually causing him to take a step backwards due to how sudden that reaction was and the amount of anxiety and apprehension in her face.
"You had nothing to do with all of this! I will not let you put yourself in danger after everything that monster took away from me!" yelled Jun, overcome by the anger she felt towards Satoru for everything he did and by the fear of losing yet another person she cared about.
"YOU'RE WRONG! IT HAS EVERYTHING TO DO WITH ME!" Yelled back Akira in a mix of anger and sadness at his girlfriend's stubborness but Jun didn't budge.
"HE TOOK EVERYTHING AWAY FROM ME! I WILL NOT LET HIM TAKE YOU AWAY FROM ME TOO!" Cried out Jun, her voice filled with utter grief, sorrow and fear, while lowering her head towards the ground. But no matter how much she tried, she coudn't find the strength to tell him that Satoru, or rather one of his henchmen, was the one who killed Kazumi.
Akira's lips parted away in sorrow after hearing just how distraught Jun sounded. He had no more doubt: Satoru was responsible for killing many of her friends, but could it also be….. that because of him….. Kazumi….
No. It was too early to jump to conclusions. He needed to find that out by himself. He won't talk with Jun about this for now. It was far too traumatic for her to talk about it right now,
And so Akira put his hands on Jun's side shoulders, causing his girlfriend to lift her gaze towards him, meeting his black eyes again before he declared "Jun, this is no longer just your fight. That bastard dared to use one of my friends against me just to lure me out and i'll be damned if i won't make him suffer for what he did. Whether you like it or not, i'm in this just as much as you are."
Jun could only listen speechless at how dead serious Akira sounded. No matter how much she tried to keep him out of this, he was right. This time Satoru had gone after one of his friends in order to lure him out for the demons he had allied with to settle their score with him.
"Akira…. You're willing to go through all of this… for me?" she weakly asked him in sadness, having realised that he was about to experience what Jun went through. However her lips parted away and her eyes began to shake when Akira put his left hand on her right cheek and declared "This time you won't be alone Jun. For far too long you've carried this burden just on your own two shoulders. I love you Jun, and i won't stand aside and watch you go through this hell on your own again. I will fight at your side from now on. And no matter what happens…" he paused, cupping her chin "I will always be with you."
Overcome by joy, due to Akira declaring his love for her again and due to the determination in his eyes and voice, Jun hugged him deeply, burying her head in his chest and holding him tightly. Once again she had tried to keep him away from all of this but it didn't care to him. He would do anything for her. He would go through the fires of hell and back just to be with her. The love he had for her was pure and absolute. Nothing in this world, would have broken that bond.
Pulling herself out of the hug, Jun looked Akira directly in his eyes and saw nothing more than determination, the resolve to see this through to the end. Gaining the resolve and the willpower to fight again, to protect this world once more and not let all the sacrifices of those who gave their lives to make this world a reality, a look of pure determination formed on Jun's face before she declared "Let's go then, Akira. To rescue our friend and free all those people."
Heartwarmed at having restored Jun's willpower and fighting spirit, Akira smiled before stating "Damn right we'll save him. That Satoru bastard has no idea of who he's messed with. And if he wants to finish what he started, he'll have to walk over my dead body this time!" earning a soft smile from Jun due to his eagerness to send that monster back where he belonged.
And with that they left in their quest to rescue Takeshi and all the other beasts held captive by Satoru and his new allies.