Chapter 15: Rematch
22:36 PM (Japan Time), Saturday June the 14th…
"… Finally… Found you! Dark Miyabi!"
"Ancient, was it? More stubborn than Yakuza newbies…"
"Say what you want!"
"And? How much money did you earn from sabotaging the race?"
"Where did you…!?"
Toriyama walked into the main square of an abandoned village.
Miyabi emerged from a ruined house, unimpressed.
He brought up the horse race incident, surprising Toriyama.
"I have my contacts… The cops figured out your little game…"
"Whatever!"
"And it was predictable that you'd come for me, too…"
"You lured me here!?"
"Naturally. Else how would you find this place?"
Miyabi shrugged as if meaning to signal the village.
"Deep in the mountains, where phones and PETs don't work…"
Toriyama clicked his tongue.
"Whatever! This has a battery that lasts 4 hours!"
He opened his bag and drew the Duel Stage.
"Fine. If that's what it takes to catch you, I'll stick around…"
"But I've learnt lessons! Same trick doesn't work twice…"
"I don't care. I always have two aces up my sleeves…"
"Such as "Dark Chips", right?" He sneered.
"How many more times are you going to bring that up?"
"For all I know, that was my previous incarnation…"
Shadow Man shrugged.
"I don't care about that blunder. It's been many years, too…"
"Fine. Let's go, Ronin Man!"
"Delighted, Master!"
He turned on the device and flung it at the ground.
"Plug In! Ronin Man, Transmission!"
"Plug In! Shadow Man, Transmission!"
Both Navis entered the stage.
They both drew their blades.
"Took you long enough… Words are needless…" Shadow Man chuckled.
"So be it!"
"Shadow Man… Whose imitation was it this time?" Miyabi sighed.
"Joshua O'Brian… The mercenary of Colony Aspina…" He chuckled.
"Suit yourself…"
"Naturally…"
Shadow Man readied his blade in a defensive position.
Ronin Man circled around him, keeping his blade up.
He was clearly looking for a chance to attack.
He suddenly stepped forward and stabbed the right flank.
Shadow Man wasn't too surprised and jumped away.
Ronin Man jumped away as well to place distance.
"That's it. Careful. A trap might be waiting!"
"Sorry for deceiving you, but…"
"What?"
"The "Chief" has come to rampage and wants to take you out, too…"
"What kind of irresponsible bureaucrat is that!?"
"Dunno. Ask the "Representative" that he's working for…"
"Careful! Is imitating fictional characters to confuse us!"
"Noted, Master!"
Miyabi sighed and shook his head.
Toriayama chuckled.
"I see that you aren't table to tame your dog, Miyabi!"
"And what of it? Does that provide any tactical advantage?"
Toriyama grimaced and hissed under his breath.
Ronin Man drew his short blade and flung it at the ground.
He used a wire to reel himself towards the blade.
He cut diagonally across the air to open a "crack".
Countless knives flew out of it, headed for Shadow Man.
"Explosion!"
He flung a fireball at them to shake them off.
But Ronin Man opened several more "cracks".
Countless knives emerged and headed for Shadow Man.
"Gust!"
He formed the wind box to blow them away.
Ronin Man suddenly appeared behind him.
He drove his blade through the stomach area.
Shadow Man hissed and plunged his own blade into his body.
It pierced through it and hit Ronin Man, behind him.
"What in the…!?" Toriyama gasped.
Miyabi also raised his eyebrows, surprised.
Shadow Man bent forward and flung Ronin Man away.
Both blades were pulled out of his body.
Ronin Man flipped and skid across the ground.
He flung his short blade at Shadow Man, who repelled it.
He then used the wire to fly for Shadow Man.
"Fireball!"
Ronin Man cut the wire and ignited his jets.
He flew over the fireball and flung a bomb towards the target.
Shadow Man dashed past the location and the bomb hit the floor.
A cloud of smoke ensued, and Ronin Man landed inside of it.
Shadow Man clicked his tongue.
"It foils radar and IR vision…!" He muttered.
"Crafty…" Miyabi drily muttered.
Toriyama merely smirked.
The short blade emerged from the smoke, spinning and flying forward.
"Shadow Clone!"
Shadow Man formed his copies and created a circle around the smoke.
"Fireballs!"
He shot 8 fireballs inside of it.
However, a thunderbolt hit the real Shadow Man instead.
He hissed and quickly sidestepped.
He dodged the thrust of the foe's blade, coming from behind.
"You swapped with a Jizo Statue!" He deduced.
"In essence!" Ronin Man laughed.
"Struggle!" Toriyama laughed, too.
Miyabi merely crossed his arms and didn't beat an eyebrow.
"But if you thought that that was enough to beat me…"
Shadow Man's wounds healed.
He vanished in a cloud of smoke.
Several shuriken rained down and hit Ronin Man.
He hissed and tried to shake them off.
He raised his blade to block a diving attack from Shadow Man.
Shadow Man flew back into a cloud of smoke.
Ronin Man formed a bomb and flung it inside.
It detonated, but a thunderbolt hit him.
"Eye for an eye…"
"Damn you!"
Shadow Man reappeared higher in the air, above the foe.
He dived downwards with his blade.
Ronin Man backflipped and moved out of the trajectory.
Shadow Man vanished in a cloud of smoke again.
He repeated his earlier move.
Ronin Man rolled to end up in the opposite end of his location.
"Heat Body! Flame Tower!"
He was surrounded by an "aura" of heat.
A Flame Tower emerged next, and he sheltered inside of it.
Shadow Man couldn't dodge in time and was hit by it.
He warped and landed on the ground, full of burns.
He shook off the cinders and focused.
He jumped away as a Flame Tower emerged beneath his feet.
He backflipped to dodge several more of them.
He rolled to draw a circle and head forward.
"If you meant to corner me at the edge of the battlefield…"
He stood up and jumped over a hole before the attack emerged.
"Think it again… Ice Cannon Ball!"
He formed the projectile and flung it at the main Flame Tower.
The ball melted when hitting it and boiled into steam.
Several knives flew out from there.
"Suction!"
He formed the wind box to draw them into the gizmo.
"Fireball!"
He flung the fireball at the steam.
It was suctioned by something hiding inside of it.
He ducked as it flew back towards him.
"Ever heard of baseball?" Toriyama laughed.
"A pitching machine, is it?" Miyabi calmly deduced.
"Exactly!" He laughed again.
"Become a baseball coach…" Shadow Man fumed.
"Why not…"
"Instead of a horse race destroyer…"
"Destroyer? That's art!"
"Whatever. Suit yourself…"
Miyabi didn't bother to argue and remained expressionless.
Toriyama grumbled and became annoyed.
"That face! As if I was but a peeble! I'll crush it, too!"
Miyabi calmly drew a kunai from his right sleeve.
"Make it past this toy first…" He challenged.
Toriyama gulped and stepped back, nervous.
"T-that's nothing! I've iced countless men!"
He drew a survival knife from a sheath on his right hip next.
"It's soaked in the blood of countless fools!"
"Really. Jack the Ripper?"
"Laugh if you want!"
Miyabi remained silent and merely glanced at the Duel Stage.
"Fine. Let's settle it through our proxies first!"
"… Alright. Time to draw the heavy weapons…"
Shadow Man formed five kunai on his left hand.
He held his blade in the right hand.
"Interesting. Come!" Ronin Man challenged.
Shadow Man flung the five kunai at Ronin Man.
He spun, drawing a full circle with his blade.
He bounced off the projectiles and stopped Shadow Man's strike.
"And? Going to bring out the drugs?" Shadow Man taunted.
"I don't need them. Unlike you!"
"So be it…"
Shadow Man backstepped and aimed his blade diagonally.
Ronin Man hovered over the ground and struck, clashing blades.
Both struggled in the deadlock.
Ronin Man formed a bomb behind him.
He kicked it upwards with his right foot, as if it was a soccer ball.
It landed behind Shadow Man and exploded.
Shrapnel flew off and stabbed his back.
Shadow Man winced but didn't yield terrain.
He was also hovering over the ground.
Ronin Man poured more strength into his blade, which hummed.
Shadow Man's blade snapped in two, to his surprise.
The foe's attack cut through the chest, opening a burning wound.
Shadow Man hissed and formed a new blade.
"High-frequency blade, is it? Mr. X…" He grumbled.
"I can also imitate things, too!"
"I can tell that!"
"Well? Did you lose confidence, Miyabi?" Toriyama laughed.
"Far from it…"
"I'm going to burn that face!" He hissed.
"I should've called the firefighters…" Miyabi shot back.
Toriyama hissed and grumbled under his breath.
"… Eye for an eye, then!"
"Come!"
Shadow Man clashed his new blade against Ronin Man's one.
Both hummed and the air around them vibrated.
Someone invisible suddenly howled.
"What!?" Both gasped.
"What!?" The Operators were equally surprised.
"That voice…! Over there!"
Shadow Man quickly flung his kunai at a point some meters away.
They hit something and broke its camouflage.
Laser Man became visible.
He was gripping his head with both hands, as if in pain.
"That man has been stalking me!?" Toriyama gasped.
"Guess that he meant to take us out in one blow…"
"Damn it! Ronin Man! Deal with it!"
Ronin Man cut the distance and swung the blade.
Laser Man's head hit the ground and rolled across it.
Shadow Man appeared behind him and plunged his blade through him.
Ronin Man drew a circle by plunging his blade in the floor.
The ground section sunk under the mole's weight.
A shockwave of energy was released beneath the ground.
"I knew it. It had an "annihilation bomb" inside of it…"
"Damned interlopers!" Toriyama growled.
"Regal is becoming more of a stalker with each passing day…"
"It's about time to settle the score, Shadow Man!"
"Delighted, Ronin Man…"
Both ran for each other and mutually stabbed each other.
Their HP hit the 1 mark, and they were automatically retrieved.
A red LED on the Duel Stage turned on and began to flash.
"Devil!"
Toriyama grabbed it and put it inside of the bag.
He quickly looked around.
He ran into an abandoned house and opened an old fridge.
He closed it and ran away before a muffled explosion happened inside it.
He grabbed a bucket of rainwater and opened the fridge.
The bag and the Duel Stage were burning.
He threw the water at it to put out the fire.
"That was close!"
"I'll admit that. However… Time's up…"
"What!?"
A chopper's sound grew closer and one hovered above the village.
Ropes were flung out and SWAT officers rappelled down through them.
Miyabi used a bomb to create a cloud of smoke and vanish.
The SWAT officers rushed in and aimed their weapons at Toriyama.
"Toriyama Masuo! You're under arrest for wrecking the horse race!"
"Impossible!"
"Charge!"
22:49 PM (Japan Time)…
"… That fool was caught, then…"
"Yes, Lord Manfroy. However…"
"What is it?"
"Did you add a self-destruct system to the Duel Stages, sir?"
"No. There was no need for it…"
"Then who did it, sir?"
"… Could it be…?"
Annihilator Man reported to "Manfroy".
The latter was surprised by the report and stopped to think about it.
"Maybe it's been there from the start, and I wasn't aware of it…"
"How could that be, sir?"
"Because while I made the software, I didn't make the hardware…"
"I apologize. I was under the impression that you did, sir…"
"You're not to blame. I didn't bother to properly explain…"
"Understood, sir…"
"We were going to cut him loose sooner or later, anyway…"
"Yes, sir. It saved us the hassle, sir…"
"Any progress in the front of Prophetess?"
"I managed to track down the opponent that she fought, but…"
"What of it?"
"It was a commoner. Nothing special about them…"
"It really was a farce set up by a third party…"
"However… I have a candidate…"
"It's not Anaya?"
"No. It's someone else… Viper of the Desert Wraiths…"
"What? Weren't they caught by the Choina Army?"
"The two main executives, Meta and Scorpion, were…"
"But she managed to flee before that…"
"It's possible that she set it up for her own entertainment…"
"Lovely!"
"However… I can't tell where she is or her current face or name…"
"Naturally. It's been several months since then…"
"Manfroy" sighed and leant back on the chair.
"But I doubt that she wants to call for our attention…"
"True, sir. Maybe it's to poke at Anaya…"
"Rivalry between women? I'd rather stay out of that!"
"As you desire, sir…"
"Don't chase this line anymore. Focus on the original goal…"
"Acknowledged, sir…"
"Are the other members behaving?"
"Yes, sir. They all stay true to the standby orders…"
"Good. Keep it up…"
"Delighted, sir…"
"And make sure that the project progresses…"
"Yes, sir. It's 92.5% complete. Will soon begin simulations…"
"Excellent. Not a moment to be wasted!"
"I am aware, sir! Time is money!"
23:03 PM (Japan Time)…
"… Here you have the data, Mighty Warrior of Light…"
"Save me the Final Fantasy jokes, Shadow Man…"
"Beware. My cousin, Wodahs Nam is lurking in Vietnam…"
"Very funny. Patent it…"
Shadow Man met with Omega and handed over the data.
Omega wasn't impressed by his joke attempts.
"I see that you wrapped your business!"
"If it isn't Eldeen Nam…"
"What the heck is that?"
Needle Man sighed as he joined them.
"Anyway. Omega. We found something fishy…"
"A base of Rama?"
"Hard to tell. It's a pyramid…"
"Pyramid?"
"Hidden in the depths of a shaft that's part of an old factory…"
"Let me guess. It's protected by some barrier…"
"Correct. I analyzed it, but normal Navi attacks won't break it…"
"Guess that we need to find the generator or bypass it…"
"Possible…"
"Beware. The Chamber of Horus is waiting for the greedy fools…"
"Go showcase you love for Egypt in a forum!" Omega grumbled.
"Delighted… Farewell!"
He vanished in a cloud of smoke.
"Good job finding that thing…"
"Pure chance. Was going over abandoned factories…"
"True. Regal might repurpose them for something…"
"This one wasn't working, but had that thing there…"
"I'll note it down and send a probe to study it…"
"Sure. Least Regal is hiding something nasty there…"
"Maybe it's the weapons of the Desert Wraiths, even…"
Yuriko joined the conversation.
"It's a possibility, true…" Omega admitted.
"That aside, I scouted 31 locations, but all were empty…"
"Good work out there. Will increase the reward…"
"Don't worry about it. It's my way to make up for my mistakes, too…"
"Alright. Suit yourself…"
"I did use some contacts, and have found something too…"
"What is it?"
"A list of dummy businesses names ideas…"
"What kind of names?"
"They were all anagrams of the same name…"
She displayed a list.
"… "AYANA INC"… "YANA INC"… "NAYA INC"… "AAA-NY INC"…"
"See? It's anagrams of Anaya…"
"What do you think, Boss?"
"Sounds like her usual, lazy naming sense…!"
"But they're ideas. Doesn't mean that they are in use…"
"Good point. But doesn't harm to check…"
"I also heard rumors of some murky business in an abandoned resort…"
"Wouldn't be odd for her to be running that through a proxy…"
"But since I dunno the place, can't investigate further right now…"
"It's a rumor. Maybe it doesn't exist to begin with…"
"I am aware. But I don't want to leave any stones unturned…"
"Alright. Suit yourself. Won't ask questions about the how…"
"Thanks. What about Clark?"
"Has been very quiet on the surface. Must be chasing Regal, too…"
"Fine. If it helps keep him busy, so be it…"
"And let's make sure that his nuke isn't lurking nearby, either…"
"That would be annoying. We'll keep our senses sharp…"
"See ya!"
Needle Man left the plaza and Omega sighed.
"We both need some rest. The scouts will handle the watch…"
"Regal might attack in the midst of the night, even…" Omega warned.
"But we'll show him that he's not catching us unaware…"
"Correct…"
"As a precaution, I'll make sure to turn off Dragon's PC…"
"Do that. Keep it locked under key, remove the battery as well…"
"Naturally…"
Omega went over a list of data and nodded in agreement.
"Set up the automated routines, too… Let's rest…"
"Tomorrow will also be a long day, too…!"