SZ: Hey...considering what's in for today's chapter, we don't have much to say…
GT: Eeyup.
SZ: And as for disclaimers...we don't own anything in this story except our OCs, so let us begin. GT...honors?
GT: *whistles and UB-05 Gluttony walks in* Sic.
UB-05 Gluttony: *roars before its claw-like tongues grabbed the screen and ate it*
"...Huh," Ben blinked twice at the empty spot where the bus had been.
"Yeah. They had to go to Ryugu for Sakurai Family business," Manic explained.
"Sonic needed to go because of that Bond between Roll and him," Sonia added, "While Makoto and Noel needed to go because they're Shield Sisters to the Sakurai Family."
"Guess we'll have to wait until they get back until you get to meet the girl Ben's crushing on," Kevin whispered to Max, the grandfather wearing a red Hawaiian shirt and brown slacks instead of his uniform.
"Kevin, I can hear you," Ben's eye twitched.
"I'm sure I'll be able to see them sooner or later," Max chuckled in good nature before giving a formal bow to Sonia and Manic, "But it is a pleasure to meet the princess and younger prince of this kingdom."
"Aww dude, don't go bowing to us," Manc chuckled sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head, "Just call me Manic."
"It's a pleasure to meet you as well, Magister," Sonia curtsied, "I do not mind if you address me as just 'Sonia.'"
"So long as you call me 'Max,'" Max chuckled.
"We'd be honored to show you around the city," Sonia offered.
"Why thank you," Max nodded.
"And I can tell you some interesting stories 'bout Ben while he's been here," Manic grinned.
"Manic, Grimlock would like a word with you," Ben's eye twitched as he reached for the Omnitrix.
"Uh-oh," Manic's eyes widened before a flash of green light happened, "..." he looked up and saw no giant robot alien, "..." he looked down to see Walkatrout, "...Phew."
"Oh come on…" Walkatrout groaned.
"...PFFFT! AHAAHAHAHAHA!" Kevin laughed as he pointed at the fish-like alien, "Wh-what is that?!"
"We call him Walkatrout in this form," Sonia explained as the alien tried to hit his emblem only for the 'hands' of the alien to be too short to reach it, "We're not sure what kind of alien he is, but we do know that he's extremely slippery and Makoto needed to use her tail just to keep a hold of him since he kept shooting out of her hands every time she tried to catch him."
"Now I'm really glad Ben tuned up the engines a few days ago," Sonic noted as the bus shifted into its vehicle mode upon reaching the shoreline in the far north.
"This is really neat, kyu," Miyuki noted, "Does it still turn into a briefcase?"
"Yep," Sonic nodded as he changed seats with Roll while putting on the blindfold, "Though we don't really use it much anymore."
"Soka...fair enough I suppose, kyu," Miyuki nodded.
"You'll need to put this on, Mai," Tsubaki advised as she handed Mai a blindfold, "We can't really be allowed to see the entrances to Ryugu or the way to them."
"What about that first time I heard Makoto came here?" Mai asked as she took the blindfold.
"There was a really harsh blizzard and we were discombobulated by it, so we didn't know where anything was," Makoto replied as she moved to put one on before Nicole stopped her.
"As a Shield Sister, you're allowed to look," Nicole informed, stopping Noel as well.
"Really?"
"That is correct, Ms. Nanaya," the lynx nodded.
"...Huh. Did not know that honestly," Makoto admitted.
"So it's just Sonic, Tsubaki, and I?" Mai asked, putting the blindfold on.
"Hai," Miyuki nodded, "We take protecting our home rather serious in this manner."
"She is correct," Nicole nodded in agreement, "Ryugu is a very precious home of ours, so we need to keep it hidden from our enemies, such as the Raiju or any other enemy forces."
"You ready to see what has changed since you three were last here?" White asked, looking at Skye, Haseo, and Nicole.
"H...hai," Haseo nodded.
"Yes...I am looking forward to see what has changed, but…" Nicole paused as she held her arm, "At the same time...I am nervous."
"Especially with...why we're here," Skye noted.
A small silence soon followed as Roll began to drive. Minutes later and the bus was stopped before a polar bear sleeping outside a cave. Roll lowered the window and Yacker floated out, tapping the bear's head, making it look up at them.
"The Codeword is Ryoichi," Roll informed.
The polar bear reached up before removing its head, revealing a wolf Beastkin was wearing a polar bear suit. The beastkin nodded before moving to a pile of fish beside her and removing the top, revealing it to be a metal casing for a lever that she then pulled, allowing a tunnel to emerge from before the bus and letting Roll drive into it. The Beastkin yawned before putting her head back on and covered the lever once it reset, letting her curl up and go back to sleep.
"...ano...are we there yet?" Mai cautiously asked.
"In a few seconds, kyu," Miyuki replied before the bus stopped, "Okay. You may take the blindfolds off now, kyu."
"Thank you," Tsubaki sighed in relief as she quickly pulled it off, "I hate wearing this."
"Gomen," Roll apologized.
"It's fine," Tsubaki assured as everyone got out of the bus to look out at the hidden city.
"There are a few more buildings than I remember," Skye noted.
"H...hai…" Haseo agreed as he looked around, "I...it certainly looks bigger, too."
"You managed to spread the outer limits further?" Nicole asked.
"It took a lot of work to make sure the ceiling wasn't destabilized, but yes," White nodded.
"Wow…" Mai whispered in slight awe as she looked around, "This place...it's…"
"Amazing, isn't it, kyu?" Miyuki spoke, a soft smile on her face, "We make sure to keep it nice and safe for future generations to enjoy and live in, kyu."
"It always amazes me when I come here," Makoto noted before seeing some blurs jumping along the roofs towards them, "It's those girls again, isn't it?"
'Don't grope me, don't grope me, don't grope me…' Miyuki thought before a pair of hands groped her from behind, "...Katsuragi!"
"Sorry, Miyuki-sama. Had to do it," the fox smirked in a joking manner as she jumped back.
"Uh…" Mai blinked twice at the fox.
"Hmm? Oh hey there," the fox waved, "You're new I see...and well prop-"
"Katsuragi, I swear if you try anything, I will have Ikaruga lock you up in your room," Miyuki warned with a frown.
"...I'll be good," Katsuragi pouted a bit as she stepped back, crossing her arms underneath her well developed bosom while a cat Beastkin landed beside her.
"...Huh. I knew there was a high probability of that happening, but...still…" Skye blinked twice.
"Gomen. Katsuragi does that...a lot...mainly with Asuka...and Miyuki-sama," the female cat Beastkin apologized/stated.
"Right," Skye nodded before holding his hand out behind him, "Skye Sakurai."
"Uh…" Asuka blinked twice as Skye's hand before her, "W-Wait. Skye Sakurai? Y-You're...but...We all thought…"
"Reports of my demise were greatly exaggerated," Skye informed, "Along with my son's and Nicole's."
"...eh?" Asuka slowly blinked before Skye pointed to Haseo and Nicole, the former giving a rather shy wave, "...EH?!"
"They're alive…" the cat beastkin whispered with wide eyes, "...Miyuki-sama, d-"
"I did, Ikaruga, kyu," Miyuki nodded, "And while I am glad they've returned to Ryugu, we have more important matters to deal with at the moment."
"...Of course, Miyuki-sama," Ikaruga bowed in response, "Asuka, Katsuragi, let's go."
"Hai/yeah," the two nodded before the three left in a trio of blurs.
"Before we left, I gave orders to deliver the bodies to where they needed to be placed for your Family's funeral traditions," Miyuki explained as they started walking, Sonic carrying the bus in its briefcase mode.
"Thank you," Skye nodded, "Did you get the needed items for a mass funeral?"
"White-kyun did," Miyuki replied.
"Ahh…" Skye nodded.
"...Do you want to see her one last time?" Miyuki whispered to Skye, "Aphrodite, I mean…"
Skye nodded, "It needs to be done."
Miyuki nodded before turning over to Roll, "Roll-chan, please give your Shield Sisters' friends and Haseo-chan a look around the city real quick. I need to talk to your father about something, kyu."
"Hai," Roll nodded, "Come along, minna."
"Be back at the house before sunset," Skye ordered.
"Hai, Tou-san," Roll replied as she lead the others away, leaving Miyuki, White, and Skye.
"...Please follow me then, Skye-san," Miyuki ordered as she and White began to walk.
Skye nodded as he followed the two.
"This was one of the first recreational areas rebuilt during reconstructed," Sonia explained as they walked through the city's large park, "With Mobians, Overlanders, and Beastkin deciding to take residence in the city along with children orphaned being reintroduced to their families that were recovered after Perfect Chaos's rampage in Robotropolis, New Mobotropolis's park was quickly made for a place to let children, their families, and others enjoy their lives."
"I see," Max noted, "Well you've certainly done a pretty good job with the place."
"We had a bit of help with grass deliveries and Ben using Wildvine and Swampfire to help the grass take root," Sonia explained, "A few metalworkers made the equipment for kids to play on in the sandboxes place in the four corners of the park from recycled metals found in the destruction of Robotropolis."
"Ferrel managed to get a good deal on sand for Mom for the sandboxes while Lady Winnemier was able to use some old connections she had with florists to provide flower seeds that Ben grew around the park with his aliens," Manic added, Sonia giving Manic a small smile.
"Heh heh...it was nothing really…" Ben sheepishly laughed a bit at that as he rubbed the back of his head.
"Seems that side job of working at Bellwood Park was handy," Max noted, patting Ben's back.
"Yeah...it was," Ben nodded while muttering, "While I wasn't busy dealing with the Vreedles or Animo...or dealing with Harangue slandering my name."
"Harangue?" Manic repeated, having overheard that.
"Newsman who really hated me and tried to get everyone to turn against me, saw me more as a threat than a hero," Ben replied, "Heck, from what my other self told me-long story, Grandpa-he sided with the Incursians and praised them for finally 'freeing the planet from me'."
"I'd like to get the story later and you don't really have to worry about Harangue anymore. A few weeks after you were, well…" Max cleared his throat, "He was sued by quite a few people for slander and libel."
"Yeah...and hoo man. Your gramps was not happy when Harangue said that everyone should be relieved that, and I quote, 'menace Ben Tennyson was finally gone and out of our lives'," Kevin added.
Ben raised a brow at Max, who looked away with a faint blush.
"He may or may not have decked him in the face," Kevin added.
"Wow. You go, Grandpa," Ben noted.
"Th-thanks, Ben...ahem! Um, anyways, let us resume with the tour, shall we?" Max asked.
"Agreed," Sonia quickly agreed.
"I kinda wanna hear more about him decking a dude," Manic noted with an amused grin.
"I am so glad for this spread you made for me, Noel," Mai noted in relief as she took another bite of a malasada coated in a censored spread.
"Why do you even have these here?" Makoto asked as they were eating the treat at a fountain in the center of the city.
"We have a few ancestors in some families that come from where these were originally made," Roll explained, "While the majority is from the far east, there is a multitude of different races that mix here." she pulled out her family's book and opened it, "Our family has Scottish ties since Astrid Sakurai was a Viking before she became the leader of the Family."
"...Huh. Interesting," Makoto noted.
"So I guess Roll's family is a pretty important part of Ryugu then," Mai noted.
"Well, our ancestor did bring Ryoichi Cooper here and introduced sushi," Roll noted, pausing as she, Nicole, and Haseo made noises of content at the mentioning of the food, "Though, it was the Prower Family that was the first who brought together the original families here to make Ryugu."
"Really?"
"That is correct, Ms. Natsumi," Nicole nodded, "The Power and Sakurai clans are among the first to form Ryugu, starting with their clans' leaders, Hikaru Prower and Hisako Sakurai."
"Th-That's amazing," Noel awed.
"Indeed. For the longest time, the Prowers and Sakurai have been loyal friends and stuck by each other through thick and thin," Nicole added, "Even during the latter's feud against the Raiju."
Tsubaki nodded, knowing the reason why for the feud.
"Oh yeah...Isn't Mom a Prower?" Sonic recalled.
"Yes, before she was married to the late King Azure, she was one," Nicole replied.
"Oh cool...that means me, bro, and sis are half Sakurai then," Sonic noted with a slight chuckle.
"Something along the lines," Nicole replied, "More of an honorary status, but not blood."
"Right…" Sonic nodded.
"...It's almost time," Roll noted as she looked out at the nearby clock tower.
"...What exactly do we need to do when it's time?" Makoto asked.
"W...Well…" Roll spoke before her ear twitch, "Eh?"
"What is it?" Nicole asked.
"I heard something," Roll replied before looking towards their right to see a crowd cheering in a nearby open noodle shop, "What's going on over there?"
"Who knows…" Makoto shrugged, "..Though maybe someone should go check and see what it is."
The girls and two boys went to the crowd. Yacker floated above them to get a better look and blinked twice.
"Come on, Panda King, you can do it!" Sly cheered.
"I can't believe you talked him into this," Carmelita sighed, "I can't believe I'm actually rooting for an infamous man outside of this place beside Interpol's most wanted Master Thief."
Panda King ignored them in favor of eating another bowl of noodles. He put the empty bowl on the stack to his left as his opponent added three of them to his pile. A timer going off made the two pause in their reaching of another bowl.
"Time's up! Count 'em," a boar Beastkin called as he came out of the kitchen while two busboys began to count and clean the table.
"Excuse me, but what's going on?" Tsubaki asked as she managed to get through the crowd.
"Eating contest. Haven't had one in years," the boar explained as he stretched, "And I'm starting to remember why. Haven't had a workout like that in years."
"Fifty seven bowls," the Mobian wolf busboy called.
"Sixty-three!" the Overlander busboy called as the crowd looked at the opponent of Panda King's.
"I…!" Panda King began before putting his hands together, "...enjoyed that. Thank you for a grand feast."
"Nah. Thank you for the good opponent," his opponent chuckled as the others managed to get through the cheering crowd, "Always glad to have a great meal with a new buddy."
Sly frowned as he discreetly handed Carmelita a wad of cash under the table, the inspector smirking as she pocketed the cash. Haseo made a tiny noise as he managed to pop out of the crowd before his eyes settled on Panda King's opponent as the two were shaking hands. He was a rather large Mobian Panda, wearing an explorer's jacket over a black turtleneck short-sleeved sweater and explorer's shorts. By his side was a large backpack that seemed fit to burst. Topping his head was a straw hat, slightly askew on his head.
"Never seen many pandas here in Ryugu," the panda noted as the crowd began to dissipate s he pulled out a checkbook and began to write a check for the bill, "Been here long?"
"It has been rather enjoyable here. I work as the head firework maker here," Panda King explained.
"Awesome," the panda grinned, "Now don't get me wrong, the fireworks here are pretty nice, but compared to fireworks made by someone from the land where they first came from? Hoo boy, no contest."
"Hey, Sly!" Sonic called.
"Huh? Oh, hey," Sly greeted before seeing Roll and Haseo staring at the panda.
"Oh. Inspector Fox," Noel greeted, "Hello."
"Hello," Carmelita greeted, "It has been a while, hasn't it?"
"Just a week or so," Makoto shrugged, "Great to see you again."
"Oh, forgot to introduce myself before we started this," the panda chuckled to Panda King, still unaware of the others, "I'm…"
"Uncle P'li!" Roll and Haseo exclaimed.
"AH!" the panda yelped, turning around with the sudden movement added on to the weight of his backpack making him fall over, "Oof!"
"Uncle!" Haseo beamed, his twin tails wagging excitedly as he ran over.
"Oh dear," Roll gasped as she zipped over, "Gomen nassai."
"Ha-gah-agah-geih," the panda grunted, trying to get up, before Panda King sighed in annoyance and pulled him up, "Ugh. Thanks, man."
"Gomen nassai again," Roll apologized once more.
"Ah, it's alright, Roll," the panda replied, looking at her and then at Panda King, "Seriously, thanks. I mean, I could've gotten up, but it'd take me a few hours with that on my back and…" he turned around, scooping Roll up into a bear hug, "Roll! Look at you! You've gotten so much bigger! What has it been? Four years since I last saw you? You haven't had to start getting some Yacker help to deal with the boys, have you?"
"Iie," Roll giggled as she got out of the hug, "But you may want to look behind you."
"Huh?" P'li blinked before looking over his shoulder to see a giddy Haseo, "Hey." he looked back at Roll, "Seriously? Man, boys here m…" he turned and scooped up Haseo, "Haseo! My little awesome godson! I knew you were alive!"
"Uncle! It really is you!" Haseo beamed as he hugged him, his tails going so fast that his lower half was practically floating.
"And there's the Awesome Hug of Hugging!" P'li laughed, "And you got the flying with your tails down, too! So awesome!"
"...Uh, Roll? A little…" Sly began.
"This is our uncle P'li. He's Tou-san's cousin from the tropics," Roll explained, "He's also Haseo-chan's godfather."
"...Riiiight…"
"Tou-san's Obaa-chan was a Hedgepanda," Roll added on.
"So you're-what-one-eighth panda?" Sly asked.
"I think so," Roll replied.
'And now I see why she was so trusting of me/Panda King when we/they met,' Sly and Panda King thought.
"How did you get here, Uncle?" Roll asked.
"Well, a few days ago and I get a call from someone I hadn't heard from in years with proof that it was him and he was very much not a Robot," P'li explained, "And I was actually a few miles away from here on a diving trip to some underwater ruins, so I thought 'hey. Why not just come here and greet them when they get back?' So, after I finished doing some stuff at the site, I just made my way here, got stuck in some snow, got saved by these wolf twins Hati and Skoll, and they bring me here after I showed them my proof of relation to a Sakurai." he pulled out a white charm shaped like a fox's head, "Never leave anywhere without it." he frowned as his bear hug became looser, "It's terrible what happened, even with this great news."
Roll nodded, "It's why we're here today. The ice is finally melted."
P'li nodded before looking down at Haseo, whose tails had stopped spinning as he looked down sadly, "..." he gave a small smile, "Hey now, kiddo." he lightly wipe a tear he saw forming in Haseo's eye, "It'll be okay. You still have your big sis, right?" Haseo nodded, "And you've got your dad back, so that's even more awesome." he nodded again, "And that's awesome. But what's even more awesome? That you're still here. What's important is that you live. Have a great life with all kinds of neat stories in it so that when you meet them all again, you can impress them with it all." Haseo nodded, "They'll be all like 'Wait. You did that? No, no, no. No way. That can't be. You're much too awesome to have done something so awesomely epic like that.'" Haseo giggled, "And there's my godson's smile! Man, I've missed that."
"Heh heh...hai.." Haseo chuckled, "I really did miss you, uncle, after I got my memories of you back."
"Yeah. I-wait. Just got…"
"A-amnesia."
"Ooh…" P'li cringed, "I know how that feels. Once whacked my head with a coconut and next thing I know, it's ten months later and I've apparently become a western country singer."
"R-really?"
"Oh yeah. Hoo boy, was your dad livid with me," P'li chuckled.
"Hey, Panda King," Sonic greeted as the fox and hedgefox talked with their uncle.
"Prince Sonic," Panda King nodded, "Good to see you once more."
"Same," Sonic nodded, "So...Roll and Haseo have a panda uncle."
"Surprising. Then again, it is also not surprising considering she is a hedgehog/fox and that they most likely have had a few fox-raccoons," Panda King noted, glancing over at Sly as he was just watching it all.
"And judging from how he acts around a certain Inspector, the Cooper Clan isn't that far off from their Sakurai Family relatives," Sonic chuckled, earning a nod from Panda King.
"Welcome home, Miyuki-sama," a pair of vixens bowed as they stood in front of a sealed door.
"Thankyu...but we're here on important business, you two," Miyuki informed the two, "We're here to see Aphrodite...or rather…" motioned over to Skye, "He is."
The vixens gasped.
"Is that…?"
"I am," Skye nodded.
The vixens nodded before one pulled out a bag and threw red sand at him. Skye closed his eyes, letting himself be hit. A soft white aura came off him and the vixens nodded.
"It is as you say," both spoke before moving to the side, "You may enter, Leader of Ryugu, Husband and brother to those of the Sakurai that have fallen."
The two nodded before walking to the door. It slid open and a wave of cold air came through. The two walked in to reveal rows of covered bodies. The two walked along the two rows before stopping before one at the very end, facing towards the sealed door. Miyuki moved back as Skye moved towards the covered figure and removed the fabric over the head area. Skye inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly, seeing the signs of repairs for the body to be decent and in one piece just faintly. Skye looked over to Miyuki.
"When...when she changed...it was the first to go," Miyuki explained.
"She always knew how I loved her hair so long," Skye nodded, a hand reaching out to the short locks, "She hadn't been sleeping well in the end, from the faint bags under her eyes. Regrets? Nightmares? I will never know. ...She was bisected down the middle, the weapon coming from a diagonal and taking her arm from just above the elbow and half of her hand before all was frozen."
Miyuki shuddered and it was not from the cold. It never bothered those who trained in it like the Hyorinmaru women did. What she was witnessing was something she had only really heard stories of involving him; able to perceive things that most wouldn't be able to. Mixed with his probability thinking and...she shook her head of the thoughts.
"I cannot change the past, my love of the cherry blossoms," Skye spoke, his hand cupping the cheek and not feeling the warmth the action once held, "Oh, how I wish I could, though...The last I remember speaking with you was of when I'd return that we'd have another child or two, that we'd go and see the Festival of Lights in Apotos, that we'd do so much...but we cannot. Not anymore." a tear fell from his eye and landed on her face, sliding down in such a way that it looked as if it was shed by her, "You will always be within my heart and when we unite once more, our souls shall be reunited as they once were in life." Miyuki looked towards him as he moved from the recovered form, "Thank you for this, Lady Prower. For letting me see her one last time."
"Of course…" Miyuki nodded as she gave him a light hug, "She was a dear friend of mine, a beloved aunt of sorts, so I wanted to make sure you'd be able to see her again before she joins the souls of our ancestors…"
Skye nodded as he began to walk out, "Bring them to the fields they tended to."
"Of course…" Miyuki nodded before looking out at the deceased vixen's body, "...Please go join my husband outside. I...wish to say my last words to her as well."
"Of course," Skye nodded.
Miyuki nodded as she approached Aphordite's body, a small sad smile on her face, "Dite-chan...if you can hear me in the afterlife...I'm happy to tell you your son is finally home, kyu...He's grown into a fine young man…" she then slightly held the vixen's cheek, "You were always a dear friend of mine...when my parents had moved on, I was so saddened...so emotionless...but then we met, and…" small tears began to drip from her eyes, the tears forming into ice crystals as she tried to remain calm, "You were my best friend in the whole world, Dite-chan...you've been a loyal friend to me and my family these past years...I…" a sob began to escape her mouth as her tears began to increase, "I wish we could've talked one last time...as you used to be before Haseo disappeared...I….I'm truly going to miss you…good bye...Aphrodite Sakurai..."
With that, the nine-tailed vixen began to put the cloth back on Aphrodite's face before she began to leave the room, the tears not stopping once as she stepped outside, where Skye and White had been waiting on her.
"The Marketplace," Sonia informed, "It's one of the busiest parts of the city and the lives who live here try to make sure that they can give the best deals on everything here."
"Yup. We got Mr. Smoothies, the deli, th…" Manic listed off before he noticed one store in particular, "...Ugh...Meh Burger."
"...something wrong with that place?" Sonia asked.
"Aside from the ONLY employee/manager purposely giving you the wrong order and ripping you off?" Manic countered, "Seriously, me and bro went to go check it out once while you and Roll were busy at another store, and the dude gave bro extra pickles on his burger when he said he wanted none while he gave me a RAW fish sandwich! And by raw, I mean the thing was still alive!"
"And no one has complained about this why?" Max asked.
"He plays the 'innocent' card," Manic replied, "And trust me, I know the 'innocent' card all too well."
"...Let me see if I can talk with him," Gwen offered as she walked over to the stand.
"Good luck," Manic waved off before Sonia nudged him, "Ow! What?"
"Um, excuse me."
"Hello, and welcome to Meh Burger," the person behind the stand greeted...in a really dull and bored tone, "Can I take your order? We're having a special. Buy Two Meh Burgers for ten Rings, get your drink for ninety nine bronze Rings."
"See?!" Manic hissed as the others watched, "Now he's ripping people off with ludicrous prices!"
"Shh!"
"...I'd like to buy one of your Meh burgers, no pickles" Gwen stated.
"Sure…" the person behind the counter said as he walked off...before coming back with a burger, "Here."
"..."
"...Something wrong?"
"The meat is undercooked, and there are extra pickles when I said no pickles."
"Oh...sorry…" he said as he tooked the burger, turned around once, and placed it back down, "Here. Fixed…"
"See?! That's what he did to me and bro!" Manic hissed to his sister..
"One difference between you two and Gwen," Kevin noted as a green light flashed, "While she may not be allowed to threaten guys since she's a full time Plumber…" he moved to the side and let Rath stomp over to Gwen, "She has a good cousin that you guys probably never told about this place."
"...I don't feel pity for the guy," Manic chuckled.
"LEMME TELL YA SOMETHING, MEH BURGER EMPLOYEE!" Rath roared.
"Please don't."
The ceiling above fell to the colors of the 'setting sun,' casting its final lights of 'day' upon the city. Only those who were close to the Sakurai Family stood in the backyard of their ancestral home. A fire burned bright as Yacker in his Burst finished igniting the woods. Ryukendo walked up to a table, picking up a bow and a single arrow.
"May Inari's foxes welcome you and lead you through Enma Daiou's lands and through his blessings of the life after. May you be graced with Amaterasu's audience and her blessings as your souls find peace," Skye spoke as the seven-tailed dragon walked along the Prowers, three Sakurais, one Hedgehog, three Shield Sisters and the friends of two, three Kings, P'li, and Carmelita before giving them to a morose Sly, "May they sing your names with Love and Fury so that we may hear them echo from the life after and let us know that you have taken your rightful places amongst those we have lost and will join upon our times. For a great family has fallen, aunts, sisters, friends, a mother," he took in a deep breath, "A wife."
Roll walked up to the fire first, a cauldron beside it. Roll wrapped a cloth around her arrow near the tip and dunked it into the cauldron. Pulling it out and, with the cloth drenched, held it before the flame. The cloth erupted into flames as she turned from the flame and looked out towards the field of strawberries, littered with the bodies of those who had fallen, covered with their broken weapons and an item cherished upon them.
"We remember you as you were, not as this," Skye continued as one by one, the other soon followed Roll's lead, "We will never forget that you all Loved everyone you knew, be they good or bad. For Love never dies." Roll pulled back on the string, her arrow aimed at a cloth covered by a broken katana and a framed picture of a family of four, "And that is why it is the greatest gift one can give to another."
Roll released the string. The arrow shot into the sky above, sailing tried and true, before landing on the lumber beneath the covered body, the flames growing stronger upon contact. Roll looked out as more arrows filled the air, landing on the wood or near it for the covered bodies. As the last of the arrows struck, the flames began to burn bright, the sky glowing from the flames. Miyuki watched as the flames engulfed each of the bodies and the fields of strawberries beneath them, tears still in her eyes as she looked on.
'...I should be sad...truly….and yet….why…' the nine-tailed vixen mentally paused as she placed a hand over her heart, 'Why do I have this sense of uneasiness in my soul? Aphrodite...I wish you were here...' her eyes soon widened for a second when she saw something within the flames for a moment; a shaded cloaked figure, 'Wh...what was that?'
"Miyuki…" Miyuki turned to look at her husband, "Are you alright?"
"I...I'm okay, kyu," Miyuki replied as she rubbed her eye, "J...just something in my eye, kyu…"
White nodded as he looked out at the flames, the layer of ice surrounding each patch of strawberries preventing the flames from spreading, "Fire does tend to hurt the eyes at times when you stare at it for too long."
"...Hai, kyu…" Miyuki nodded as she looked back at the flames, that uneasy feeling still in her, '...Who was that figure…? D...Did I even see a figure?'
"I do hope your tour today was enjoyable," Aleena noted as she and Max were in the dining hall.
"It was," Max nodded, "Your city is lovely and has so much potential in it."
"Thank you," Aleena smiled before her smile ended, "Tell me more about the situation the planet is in, please."
Max nodded, "The most recent sightings all point that a dangerous SS-Class Criminal is either coming to this planet or is already on it. We're talking about someone who has the potential to destroy planets with ease."
"Oh dear…" Aleena gasped.
"We believe that he traced the Ultim...the Omnitrix's signal to this planet," Max explained.
"And you are sure of this?"
"He's obsessed with the power of the device, wanting it for his own purposes," Max frowned, "He'll stop at nothing to obtain it, by any means necessary. There's also been rumors he's been seen with a pair that attempted to assassinate Azmuth four years ago, yet failed."
"...What course of actions do we need to take?"
"Contact the nearest Plumber if any of them are spotted. If there's even the slightest chance we can arrest them, the better," Max replied before pulling out two papers, "These are the two that attempted to assassinate Azmuth."
Aleena looked them over, "While one of them could easily be mistaken for a Mobian, the other…"
"Yeah. And he has a dangerous beast with him at all times. If you hear him whistle, be ready for his beast," Max warned.
Aleena nodded at that, "I'll be sure to keep you updated in case they're sighted."
"Thank you," Max nodded.
"Roll's Character Interviews!" A Chibi Omake
A set of curtains rise up, revealing a white room with a large window in the background depicting the night sky. Before the window was a large couch, a few potted plants, a wooden desk, and a comfy chair behind the desk. Sitting at the desk was Roll, dressed up in a black and pink formal women's business suit. On the table was a coffee mug filled with hot cocoa with the word 'I' followed by a heart and then a picture of Sonic's symbol.
"Konnichiwa, minna!" Roll greeted, "And welcome to another episode of 'Character Interviews'! I'm your host, Roll Sakurai." She looked towards the couch, "In this segment, we interview characters in the story thus far and may even revisit some characters later on!" she looked back at the 'audience,' "So, minna, let's give a big round of applause for our next guest; Sonikku!"
"Yo," Sonic greeted, the hedgehog already sitting down on the couch.
"Arigatou for coming on."
"Hey. No prob," Sonic shrugged as he rested his arms behind his head, "So what do ya wanna ask?"
"A few things, really," Roll replied, "How have you been feeling now that New Mobotropolis has finally finished doing the rebuilding efforts?"
"Pretty good," Sonic replied, "Great to see the city rebuilt after so long. Oh, and it's neat that there's quite a few new buildings there too...though…" a frowned a bit in annoyance, "I wish mom would do something about that Meh Burger place…"
"It's really tricky. He's able to hide the evidence whenever she comes," Roll nodded before looking at another question, "Ano...This is actually from one of the knights that were under Aleena-sama before Eggman took over."
"So what's it say?"
"They want to know…" Roll looked at it before taking in a deep breath and exhaling slowly, "Your stance on the death sentence."
"...I...I see…" Sonic noted before taking in a breath, "Well...There are times when I become the king that there will be hard choices in life. I'll need to, well, be the bad guy a few times when it comes to making decisions to protect the people that are under me. If it has to come to the death sentence...well...I'll only give it if there is no chance for redemption or if not doing it will just cause more suffering for others. I'm not really that all for killing, but...I'll be a bad guy if I need to be."
"Soka…" Roll nodded.
"Yeah. If it has to get to that point, then...yeah. Like I said, I won't like it, but there are times I'll need to be a bad guy if it protects those under me."
Roll nodded as she looked at her other questions, "What have you been thinking about? With the recent news that our planet will be introduced to the known universe through the Plumbers?"
"Well, for joking's sake, I still can't get over that their organization is, in our language, a job where you fix pipes with the stereotype being a fat guy with perpetual butt crack…" Sonic paused to let Roll giggle a bit, "While on the serious side...I'm kinda worried for our world. I mean, we just got through with a big war and just finished rebuilding our capital while dealing with the forces that Eggman has. And now we're dealing with things and guys from space with all kinds of powers like Ben's shown us with his Omnitrix starting to come here. And, well, I know there will be a lot of good guys out there, but...it's the threats out there that worry me."
"Ahh...understandable," Roll nodded, "In truth, I am a bit worried as well. Demo...We've been learning a lot from Ben-san while we've traveled around, ne?"
"You got that right," Sonic chuckled, rubbing his nose, "All those spars we had with his different alien forms will come in handy, especially when someone of XLR8 and Fastrack's races challenge me to a race. Joke will be on them though. I'm the fastest thing alive."
"Hai," Roll nodded, discreetly switching her digital book that was currently on a race that could move so fast there were reports that they could move back in time for a drawing app under her desk, "Oh, has there been anything new with that voice?"
"Not yet. Honestly, I think it only comes out when I'm in tough battles when I need to use the sword," Sonic frowned as he looked at his Medallion, "I tried talking to it, but it goes silent on me the moment I do."
"Soka…" Roll nodded as Yacker poked out of her hair.
"And that brings up another thing," Sonic noted, pointing at the Wisp, "I still don't know how Yacker and I did all of that in the fight against Shadow. It was weird, really. I mean, it felt like I had all this energy inside of me and it just wanted to erupt in different ways when he went into me." a small, awkward silence followed, "...And now I just realize that what I said could be taken in another way."
"H-Hai…" Roll blushed before shaking it off while Yacer floated out, shifting between his forms, "I haven't seen it in any of the entries in my family's book, so what Yacker-chan did with you was something that's brand new."
"And the splitting for that last attack?"
"Ano…" Roll opened her family's book, "Oh. It was recorded by Amadeus Sakurai when Yacker-chan first used it in a fight against a group of bandits in Chunan when he was traveling. Apparently, when Yacker-chan needs to, he can split into two different forms to let our family's blade change into a new weapon."
"Heh. That's pretty cool, Yacker," Sonic gave a thumbs up to the Wisp, who chittered in happiness at the praise, "Any other questions, Roll?"
"Not at the moment," Roll replied, "Arigatou for answering the ones I had today, though."
"Well, that's a relief. We went through a whole episode and not once mentioned your figure," Sonic grinned before seeing the annoyed look on her face, "And I just said it, didn't I?"
"Hai."
"...I'm in trouble later, aren't I?"
"No Chili-Dogs."
The curtains fell.
"...Dammit."
GT: Well, this was a chapter, ne?
SZ: Indeed. We had a bit of a happy reunion with Roll and Haseo's uncle, but we also had a truly sad moment with the funeral, and Skye and Miyuki saying their goodbyes to Aphrodite.
GT: *nods*
SZ: Yeah...but now two things worry me...that figure Miyuki saw within the fire, and that warning Max gave Aleena.
GT: Very true.
SZ: Yeah...but we'll have to find out about those next time, folks. So before we end it off, GT, anything you'd like to say regarding your stories? Any previews you'd like to share?
GT: Well, be on the lookout for a new story based on Pokemon Sun.
SZ: Cool. As for me...well, be on the lookout for a new chapter for my story, Omniverse Shift, and hopefully the movie chapter for my and Z0's collab story, Friendship is Timeless.
GT: Excellent. So until next time, I am GammaTron and this is Seanzilla115.
SZ: And we will see you all next time. Ja ne, and have a good day...oh! And be sure to review and leave questions for the omake in chapter 50.