Chapter 68
The blade, made of raw energy, vaporizes the water surrounding her owner, creating a light screen of fog around her. She raises her sword above her head, the energy in the blade expanding, then brings it down, throwing an immense column of energy straight at her opponent. The latter dives into his aquatic giant and moves to the side to dodge. The energy attack pulverizes half the giant and comes to rest against the dome created by the Fillian sisters, scattering the energy all around.
"You weren't kidding..." Said the water manipulator, reforming his giant.
Haruko doesn't wait and dives towards him, sword pointed. Seeing this, he shoots high-pressure jets of water out of the giant. Haruko dodges gracefully before making a horizontal attack towards him. He climbs to the giant's head to dodge the blow, which cuts it in two.
Haruko did a backflip to dodge the giant's fists, which exploded on contact with the ground, creating spikes of water scattering on all sides. She uses her sword to counter the attacks, but is still not badly hit several times.
The water giant creates what looks like a huge blade of water and shoots it horizontally towards her, razing everything on the ground. She refocuses the energy in her blade and strikes the water blade, creating a huge screen of steam and splashing the water in all directions.
Haruko shields herself with a layer of energy against the heat and looks around, seeing nothing at all, using her other senses and feeling the earth shake.
Taken by surprise, she's swept away by a huge wave that cuts off her breathing and slams her against a wall, the current crushing her under the pressure. In a moment of panic, she creates a clone, which sticks to the wall by her feet and pulls her out of the water, in turn sticking to the wall. She spits the water out of her body, before tightening her grip on Marukamo. She leaps up, hovering above the water, out of the steam screen to see the water manipulator waiting for her with his water giant with a new pair of arms.
Surprised, she stops as she lands on the water, preparing herself when she sees the first fist on the right hurtling towards her. She leapt up, letting it pass beneath her, before landing on the arm and running along it. A left fist arrives and Haruko cuts it horizontally, passing through it and jumping, having lost her balance. The second right arm races towards her, its hand open to catch her. She lands on the palm and slices off the fingers before she's crushed. The second left fist comes in to crush her, she simply leaps towards the torso. She plunges her blade inside before releasing the energy, vaporizing and creating a gaping hole. She falls back onto the water on the ground and takes a step back, seeing nothing, when the water at her feet catches her and pushes her down. She puts the sword in the water and starts again, vaporizing everything below her, then leaps up and lands on a roof, gasping for breath.
"The most powerful and destructive element, water... if this keeps up... I can't see myself taking over..." Haruko grips the hilt of her sword. "What would you do in this situation... Senji-chan?"
"You're very strong kid, a little too strong for your young age. Your body can't handle all the power coming out of this weapon, and it's not at all suited to your growing body. If you don't find a solution soon, you'll fall from exhaustion and I'll just have to finish you off." Her opponent's voice is heard.
"True, but I'd do anything to defeat you before that. And I noticed something too, you can only use water in its liquid version, the fact that you didn't try anything with the steam we were constantly creating proves it, and I also conclude that you can't use it in its solid version." Haruko explains.
"That's absolutely right, good observation. Then let me say this too. I feel like you're afraid of something. I can feel it because this fear isn't for me, but for something else. Are you afraid of your own weapon?" He asks.
"...It's..." She looks down at her blade, half-extinct. "Yes, to be quite honest, the power of this weapon frightens me, I'm afraid of hurting what's dear to me with it. It's a huge responsibility to carry this weapon and I don't really feel ready for it." She rises to her feet, putting energy back into Murakumo, who begins to glow brightly again. "But today is exceptional, I'm using this power to save two members of the Kuoh school! One of whom is someone I really care about! Knowing that I'm doing this for him gives me all the courage I need to fight serenely!"
"Perfect! That's exactly what I want to hear from my opponent! Fight with everything you've got!"
Hearing his triumphant voice, Haruko let out a long sigh and jumped off the roof to land on the ground. Suddenly, a mighty column of water crashes down on the building, shattering it and digging into the ground. Haruko can only look on, stunned and wide-eyed. She moves forward to get out of the mist of steam around her.
"Now allow me to show you your ultimate challenge! Face me and win or die, with honor student of Kuoh!" He exclaims.
Haruko emerges from the fog to see the giant with three pairs of arms and a huge orb of water above. She squints to see the water manipulator still in the water giant's head, raising its six arms towards the orb. This quantity of water jolts and shoots out huge high-pressure jets of water hitting and digging into the ground, heading towards Haruko. She waits for the last moment, letting it get closer and closer to dodge and advance towards the giant, she repeats several times. Then the orb brings down a wall of water, which falls to the ground and slides towards her. She widens her blade and strikes, creating an opening in the wall and passing through it before the wall forms again.
She runs with all her might, feeling her energy gradually drain away, as the huge jets of water continue to fall and try to target Haruko, who dodges with increasing precision. The giant lowers his arms and quickly extends them towards Haruko. She charges energy into her weapon and performs a diagonal strike, cancelling the attack and cutting the giant in half.
Blood began to pour from her nose, and she could feel her body screaming in pain, but Haruko continued to put one foot in front of the other, running towards her opponent. She realizes that the attacks coming from the orb above her head have stopped. She raises her head to see the orb getting closer and closer. Seeing this, she stops, contemplating death falling on her.
"If this much water falls on me... I'm dead..." She squeezes Murakumo in her hand, to the point where it hurts. She raises her weapon and an astronomical amount of raw energy is released, where the blade transforms into a massive pillar of light that greatly enhances its reach and striking power. She lets out a long sigh, blood pouring out of her nose, eyes and mouth, before looking determined: "This blade that even the gods fear, cut down that which stands in my way! Split the heavens," She recites. "Kusanagi!"
She brings her weapon down, hitting and destroying everything in front of her, cutting in half and vaporizing the orb above her. The blade hits the giant who disappears under the explosion of raw energy. The attack is so powerful that it passes through the protective dome around the port, creating a huge crack through the entire barrier.
When the attack ends and Murakumo disappears, she falls to her knees, gasping for air, starting to feel dizzy. She looks ahead to see the extent of the damage. There's nothing left, she's destroyed everything with this last attack. As she tries to stand up, she feels a drop of water, then another, then another, before a heavy downpour starts, lashing her body.
"Very strong, but you're still missing something else..." Her opponent's voice is heard, faint but ever present. suddenly water gathers around her head, beginning to drown her. "But you're terribly inexperienced. I suppose I can't blame you, you're still young, but that's what makes the difference between a novice and a professional. Thank you for this duel, I'll never forget it, you can die in peace."
The water manipulator emerges from the surrounding smoke, his body badly burned, having even lost his hair. His right hand raised to control the water around Haruko's head, he uses his hand to amplify the pressure of the water, crushing Haruko's blow. She struggles, trying to remove the water but nothing can be done; her hand passes through but changes nothing. Her movements become slower and slower, gradually losing consciousness until she can't move at all. Then Haruko is suddenly replaced by a piece of debris. Taken aback, the water manipulator releases his hold on the water to turn and sees Haruko swing her left fist towards his face. She hits him in the jaw, shocking his whole body, and he staggers, close to unconsciousness, before falling to the ground, completely exhausted.
"Ha... Ha.. Ha... Don't hope I die... like that..." Haruko falls to her knees, holding and massaging her neck.
"It looks like I'm the one who got screwed. Well done, you've won, I have no strength left in me. Not even this generous rain can help me in my condition..." He reaches for the sky, trying to manipulate the water, but the element doesn't obey.
He lowers his hand and closes his eyes, defeated. Haruko gets up and walks over to him, taking his pulse, checking to see if he's still alive.
"Can I ask you a question?" He asks.
"Um... Yes, I guess so." She accepts, surprised.
"Why didn't you use this last attack right from the start?"
"It's the kind of attack that's easy to see coming, I initially wanted to do everything I could to wear you down and defeat you without using it, but I was the one who ended up exhausted first... And as I said earlier, it scares me, so I wanted to avoid using it at all costs..." She bows her head, feeling a little ashamed.
"I see... I'm sure that when you're older, you'll understand the importance of your power and make it your own." He smiles. "But it was the power of love that helped you, how cliché, but effective isn't it. And who's the lucky one?"
"What?! Love?! No! There's nothing between Senji-chan and me! Just childhood friends! Ha!" She puts her hands in front of her mouth, stopping to speak, embarrassed.
"Emiya Senji huh..? Then let me give you this advice. Wear your feelings loud and clear, and above all declare them as soon as possible. Today, it's rare to love those who are still alive..."
Haruko said nothing, watching her opponent's face gradually calm down. Suddenly, she's thrown back into a fragment of her memory, a young Senji, in front of two tombs, carrying flowers and laying them down, not crying, there's no emotion in his eyes, his movements almost mechanical. No sooner does he stand up than his parents grab him by the arm and lead him away, not even looking at him.
She is awakened by a wave of energy coming out of the warehouse, the shock is so strong that she is pushed back and the rain stops for several seconds before resuming.
She looks at her hands, which are trembling, her whole body is shaking and, above all, a voice in her head, her instinct, begging her to get away from here.
"What's going on...?" She mumbles.
Kakashi, Sasuke and Inukai watched the mass of white organic matter grow larger and larger with every pulse. It's getting so big that it's starting to climb up the wall of the warehouse. Radames has completely disappeared, absorbed by his power, then a deformed face burrows into the matter, one eye looking at them and the other at Sakura running towards them.
"Sakura." Kakashi turned to his student, who crouched beside them. "You found something against him, didn't you?"
"Yes. Brute force won't work against his power. Think of it as rubber, the shock of a direct blow will only be absorbed, causing very little damage. What's needed are clean, precise attacks, cutting through. Or, a blow powerful enough to tear through organic matter." Sakura explains.
Kakashi massaged his jaw, watching the pulsing material slowly move towards them, creating veins moving across the concrete.
"Sakura, can you do the same thing you did to your kunai to mine?" Sasuke asks, pulling a kunai from his pouch.
"Sorry Sasuke-kun, my mastery doesn't go as far as transferring my power to others..." Sakura apologizes.
"Speaking of which, Sakura, you still haven't explained your little trick there." Kakashi pointed to the golden aura around Sakura's hand and kunai.
"It's a technique taught by a family friend from Italy. It's a controlled breathing technique that allows me to use my energy in the form of undulations throughout my body. It's a bit complicated, sorry..." Sakura explains.
"No, I understand the broad strokes. So to get back to Radames, the only way to get rid of him is to cut his matter or destroy him with enough force? We should have kept Senji..." Kakashi pondered.
"What do we do, Kakashi-sensei?" Sasuke asks, looking behind him.
"...We do what Sakura said, split up and ravage this slimy thing, to force him to maintain his power, his energy is bound to run out after a while. But above all, every blow must be made to kill, understand?" Kakashi raises a finger to draw everyone's attention.
The children nod, ready for battle.
"Very well, Sasuke, you stay close to me, you'll be the one to give the coup de grâce. 3...2...1... Let's go!"
At Kakashi's signal, Sakura moves to the left and Inukai to the right. Sasuke stepped back, meticulously observing the enemy in front of him. Kakashi moves towards the white matter, which retracts.
"I'm counting on your judgment, Sasuke." Kakashi turns his head toward him.
Then he refocuses his gaze on the cluster of viscous matter. He raises his hand, concentrating energy, before transforming it into a lightning element, creating a bright blue light and above all a shrill sound, as if a thousand birds were singing at the same moment. Electricity surrounds Kakashi's hand, fluttering in all directions. Then he leapt forward, striking the white material, which tore and destroyed itself on contact. The latter reciprocated and attacked, throwing numerous hands at Kakashi. Kakashi hits them all before they can reach him, and resumes his attack at full speed.
On the right, Inukai makes a little leap to warm up, putting on his goggles as he stares at the flailing material.
"I see and hear that Kakashi-sensei has already started. So it's my turn, at maximum speed!"
Suddenly he disappears, leaving an image of himself behind. Organic matter is struck, exploding and flying in all directions, then another blow, yet another. The slimy white thing only reacts to the fourth blow, growing and forming a shell with spikes protruding from it. Inukai barely dodges and strikes at the side, still with the same speed.
"So you can't keep up, you bastard! Take that!" He strikes again, gradually destroying the white matter.
On the left side, Sakura cuts the white material into pieces, passing through it like butter. The organic power defends itself, creating a large hand and tries to strike Sakura, who easily dodges and cuts it off. The slimy hand falls to the ground and begins to spread, seeking to return to the main body.
As the rain began to fall heavily, it doesn't take long for the organic matter to begin to weaken and gradually shrink. Seeing this, Sasuke got ready, taking out a kunai, attaching an explosive paper and preparing to pounce. Suddenly, the center of Radames' power opens up, letting him out, weakened.
"Now!" Kakashin exclaims, spitting out a huge fireball.
Sasuke runs with all his might and uses Kakashi's crouching shoulder to get over the white matter. Only a few meters remain before he thrusts his weapon into Radames' body, but the matter around him turns into a jaw that rises up and prepares to crush Sasuke. Being in the air, he can only stare in surprise and terror at Radames' feint.
"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura shouts, trying to get closer to him.
"Shit! Even I'm not going to be fast enough!" Inukai steps back to gain momentum.
Suddenly, an invisible force pushed Sasuke backwards. He's drawn towards a group of three, caught by Shiria, who like Demitra, is dressed in a bright red military outfit with elongated shoulder pads, a short dark red skirt, grey tights and black boots.
"You're a friend of Senji-kun's, aren't you? Everything okay, nothing broken?" Shiria asks, resting him on the ground.
"No, thanks for the rescue." Said Sasuke, still slightly shocked.
"Venus, even though I can see that one of them is missing." Kakashi approached them, followed by Sakura and Inukai.
"Ahh... Yan Min is really in over her head, all to impress Senji-san. I swear, the stupid things we do when we're in love." Akaya sighs.
The leader of Venus is dressed in a white officer's uniform with the same shoulder pads, white pants and black boots.
"Now there's a terrifying opponent, watching you, you're not really at your best against such an adversary." Demitra says.
"You could say that... hihihi..." Sakura laughs, slightly embarrassed.
"No need to feel embarrassed, leave it to me." Demitra steps forward.
She summons her trident and conjures up an orb of water at the tip of her weapon, using the rain which, instead of falling to the ground, is drawn to the tip of the trident. She shoots the water orb skywards, falling in a bell shape towards Radames. Seeing this, Radames takes refuge in his power, which covers him and grows, forming an immense shield. The orb passes through it and explodes inside, spraying high-pressure water on all sides, destroying three-quarters of the white organic matter with a thud. Radames emerges, somewhat wounded, but is soon healed by his power, replacing his destroyed limbs with white matter.
"Now there's a problematic adversary..." Demitra observed.
"We're all going to have to pull together to defeat him, so if you have any ideas or information, it might help." Said Akaya, pulling out a silver revolver.
"I'll explain! The enemy is weak to attack..."
Sakura is cut off by a powerful aura freezing everyone in fear, closely followed by a wave of energy passing through the entire port, stopping the rain for several seconds before resuming.
"What's that?!" Akaya asks, losing his usual composure.
"I've never felt such an overwhelming aura..." Demitra grips her trident tightly.
"I... That seems familiar..." Sasuke said, looking around the warehouse with wide eyes.
"I'm so scared... There's so much hate in this energy..." Sakura falls to her knees.
"...The mission failed..." When Kakashi says this, all eyes turn to him. "Kodai-san, kids, we have to get out of here and fast."
They turn their gaze towards the warehouse, seeing Radames heading there, his power spreading across the entire wall.
"We can't leave! Senji-chan's inside!" Shiria exclaims.
"Kakashi-san, don't tell me that..." Akaya frowned.
"Precisely because Senji is still inside, we're going to get out of here fast. Besides, there's a good chance he won't be himself." Kakashi helps Sakura to her feet.
"What does that mean...?" Demitra asks, as confused as the others.
"What do you mean by that? What's going on? You're not telling us that this horrible aura is coming from Senji-chan?" Shiria asks in a panic.
"I'll answer your questions later..." Kakashi turned suddenly, feeling the aura grow larger and larger. "We have to leave now, or we'll be targeted too. Come on!"
A few minutes earlier.
Ryuji, Rain, Sui and I circled around to arrive at an emergency door in the warehouse. We stand to one side, waiting to give the signal, beneath the battle going on around us.
"Shall we go, big chief?" Ryuji asks me
"Go!" I signal and we go inside.
"Uh... but..." Sui hesitates to enter.
"Sui... you're coming with me!" Rain grabs her by the shoulder and pulls her further away.
We run between the piles of cardboard and large storage units, but there's no sign of life inside, not a sound apart from our own footsteps. We're covering every nook and cranny, but there's nothing to report, which is really starting to worry me.
"Isn't there anyone?" I ask, somewhat bewildered.
"What does it mean?" I can't see him under his mask, but Ryuji is just as confused as I am.
(They have to be there... But where?! Where are they hiding?!)
"Don't tell me the warehouse is empty! Did we come for nothing?" I wonder, but I don't believe it myself.
"What if they'd gone out the back door?! I don't really believe it, given the number of law enforcement agencies around the warehouse!" Ryuji says.
(He's right, it doesn't make sense! They wouldn't have left without all the Eighth members out there!)
"That smell..."
Suddenly we hear footsteps all around us.
"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha..." A familiar laugh is heard. "So this is it... You've finally decided to show your face?!"
"One!" I shout, seeing him on a tall rack. "Your methods make me want to puke! Release my friend!"
"My methods?" One plays the fool. "Oh, you mean the little fat one..."
"I've come to fight, as you wished! You don't need him anymore!" I preheat my magic circuits.
"What are you singing to me? Who said I wanted us to fight?" One asks, with his unhealthy gaze. "There's been a misunderstanding! All I want is to see your face distorted by pain and despair!" The Eighth members around us start laughing. "You're right about one thing, though... I don't need the piglet anymore... In fact, I've already given it back to you! Don't tell me you didn't notice! And you call yourself his friend?!" He points behind me. "Look closely, he's right next to you!"
I can't help but feel confused when I hear this.
"Partner, please don't turn around."
I hear Ddraig's voice echoing in my head, but I ignore him. I turn around to see a box in the middle of the room. I approach it and begin to smell something familiar. I suddenly freeze as I see a reddish liquid leaking from the box.
My body no longer responds to me, I fall to my knees right in front of it, widening my eyes, I feel something rising inside me, and deep inside I can hear a muffled laugh.
"No... It's not true..." My voice trembles, I hear my heartbeat hammering my brain.
I touch the box and begin to open it.
"Don't open the box, Partner!"
"Stop Senji!" Ryuji tries to call out to me, still keeping his gun pointed at One. "Don't look!"
The box is wide open, and all that's left inside is an arm and the head of Shinozuka Youta. I take what's left of his arm, being in denial.
"Y...Yota?" A faint voice emerges from my vocal cords. "Ah... Aah..." My vision blurs, turning redder and redder.
"Hi Hi!" I can hear One's laughter behind me.
"AAAAAAAAAAAH AAAAAAAAAH!" I hug my friend's arm tightly to me, a mad rage seizing me.
"You bastard!" Insult Ryuji.
"You've only got yourself to blame Senji! You shouldn't have antagonized me, who was ready to haggle in all honesty!" One scoffs.
"It's... It's because of me that he..."
"Exactly! It's all your fault! You've taken the piss out of someone stronger than you... As a result, piglet ended up in slices! The poor thing! There were still lots of things he would have liked to do! He had a family! Dreams of the future, of happiness! And he lost it all... Because of you!" exclaims One theatrically.
I look at Youta's face, frozen in fear and pain. My heart races against my ears, my vision blurs, locked on Yota's fear-filled eyes, I clutch his arm tighter and tighter, my breathing louder and faster...
"He's right."
Suddenly, I'm no longer in the warehouse, but in front of a red cage, with a seal in the middle, and water on the floor. The box is still there, but Youta is watching me.
"It's all your fault. I warned you, little one. You wanted to play a dangerous game and you've just paid the price. Oh but wait, we could have avoided the worst if you hadn't told him to fight to buy time, but no, you had to motivate him. More of your actions. How terrible. You thought you'd gotten stronger, didn't you? It's a pity, but you're still as weak as ever. The same Senji who couldn't save the little nun."
The water ripples beside me, and I turn to see Asia's pale, lifeless body standing there, staring back at me.
"No, please..." I start to panic.
"We always come back to the same conclusion. Your parents were right, you're a failure, you should never have been born. Killing your own family members..."
"That's not true..."
"An innocent little girl, who was the victim of fate..."
"Stop..."
"Your friend who you have taken into your delirium."
"It should never have happened..."
"And the funniest part of this story! A man who sacrificed his life to save you! Hahaha! What a mistake! The world would be a much better place if you had died that night! Like your parents always wanted!"
"STOOOP!"
I scream, letting go of my friend's arm and holding my head, which is about to explode. I look at the water that is stained with blood. I lower my hands and look at them, filled with blood, I look at the reflection of my face in the water, also covered in blood.
"What should I do... Someone tell me..."
"Kill."
I slowly raise my head, to look at the two red eyes with feline pupils staring at me with hatred through the bars of his prison.
"Kill everyone who has wronged you. Isn't that the only solution, or should I say, the only way to relieve your suffering, you who have done nothing but suffer since your early childhood, it is now time to return the favor to them all."
Drinking in his words, I stand up and slowly walk towards the prison. I can feel the heavy gaze of Asia and Youta on me, but not only that, I can also feel and see the gaze of my family members, looking at me with disgust and horror. I can't take it anymore, I'm at the end of my rope, I want it to stop...
Suddenly a gentle warmth is felt in my back. I turn to see a bright red and green light, projecting fragments of memory.
Students I recognize in a familiar classroom, smiling and laughing. A teacher with short brown hair, who comes to my house every day and has been for years now. I also recognize some members of my family, those who tried to give me a semblance of a normal childhood. And this man, with a tired look, who smiles at me with all his affection, somewhat clumsy, who saved my life on that fateful night.
Why did he save me that night and not someone else? Because I was the first one he found? Or was I the only one that could be saved? I will never know. All I need to know is that this second life must be used to save others, that is my one and only purpose.
"I can't..." I find some lucidity in my madness...
"Too late, your mind is already wounded enough."
One of the bars breaks and the fox demon's hand comes through and grabs me, crushing me with all his might.
"Let yourself go, you will finally find peace."
One looks at Senji, who remains motionless, staring at the box. He stays a few more seconds, waiting for him to react but nothing happens. Bored, he lowers his arms and turns around.
"Okay, I'm sick of it... Take them down!" He orders his men.
"I'll take care of it! I messed up earlier, but now I'll make up for it!" Said a blond guy.
"Yeah, yeah... whatever you want!" One said boredly.
"Senji! Pull yourself together! This is going to get hot!" Ryuji exclaims to the young man behind him, but the only response he gets is the presence of energy coming out of Senji's body.
"Die, you bunch of losers!" The blond points his gun at Ryuji and Senji, followed by the rest of the clan.
"Gh..." Ryuji points his gun, having accepted his fate.
But a blast of energy from Senji cancels everything out. Everyone is thrown back. Ryuji falls into a pile of cardboard that falls on him, covering him completely. One gets up to see red energy gathering around Senji and forming a ball around him. A column of energy escapes from it and passes through the roof to touch the sky.
"What the fuck is going on..."
One squint to see Senji inside the energy bubble. His skin peels away to reveal a layer of raw, dark red energy. His eyes turn red and several arms suddenly shoot out from his body and reach out to grab the blond and several other Eighths and crush their heads and bodies, spraying blood everywhere.
The bubble disappears, Senji or at least what's left of him is free, completely covered in a layer of dark red energy, standing in a bestial manner, with four tails.
"RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH"