ã€ŠJinsei no Hogoã€‹


 A Word From The Author + Prolouge + Chapter 1 - Peace and Agony

    A Word From The Author

    This book is not in any way, shape, or form encouraging or promoting self-harm and/or suicide. If you have any sorrow, share it with others. The longer you are in the dark, the longer you will saturate yourself with it. It is never too late to try to make friends who will help you feel better, so what are you waiting for? Go enjoy your life!

    Please do not choose the other route¡­

    <hr>

    Prolougue

    Suicide. The world is plagued by too much of this word. In today¡¯s media, the term ¡°I¡¯m gonna kill myself¡± is seen as a joke.

    Because let¡¯s be real. Who would ACTUALLY kill themselves over some stupid stuff that happened in their lives?

    Nonetheless, there are many people who become overwhelmed by the need to do the deed, and quite frankly, it¡¯s laughable.

    Who would be so weak as to have to quit life early?

    There¡¯s no point to even committing suicide..Honestly, even if you were brain-dead and given the option to end it all, what would the point even be?

    In the end, you may as well make your life of some value.

    Hell, the nurse would probably love you. You¡¯re giving her a job that allows her to put food on the table.

    Who cares if you¡¯re suffering?

    You¡¯re you, and they¡¯re them.

    These are the rules that are followed by a certain kid in the small town of Shifuku. Shifuku was quite a quiet town. Most of the history is still standing and being used, as the worn brick buildings are inhabited by old women running ¡°antique¡± shops. The suburbs are typically clean, and tolerate only a few houses that are unbearable appearance-wise. The cracked sidewalks are a bother to no one, and in the early months of fall, the trees give off a beautiful glisten of orange-reddish colors. With little to no traffic in the town streets, the only noise you usually hear is that of the highway in the middle of town, which if not for that, would make the town virtually dead. In the center of town is the River Shoturo. This river is the very reason the town came to be, and as such, is memorialised and treasured among all the residents as a sustainable water source, and also as a place to make memories with family and friends. Nothing was really wrong with this town.

    Now it is nothing but rubble. And believe it or not, all due to one man¡¯s incapability to stop it¡¯s imminent destruction.

    This man is Yami Shinpai. While he was only 16 years old at the time of the town¡¯s destruction, it truly undermines him to call him a child.

    <hr>

    Chapter 1 - Peace and Agony

    ¡°Ain¡¯t-no-tellin¡¯-what-I¡¯m-feelin¡¯. I¡¯M BEYOOOOND-¡±

    A slam that could be heard a mile away came from Yami Shinpai¡¯s room as he slammed his fist down onto his alarm clock. The young boy groggily began to wake up, and put on his favorite shirt, as well as a pair of blue jeans. As he looked at the time, he began to feel anxious.

    ¡°Today¡¯s the day!¡± He thought to himself.

    That day, he performed his routine the same as any other day. Grabbing his backpack, he darted down the stairs, jumping from the third step, then preparing a glass of chocolate milk within a few seconds of which was already drank completely. After he brushed his teeth. He looked in the mirror one last time, truly glaring into his reflection¡¯s eyes. His light blue eyes glistened, and his freshly gelled hair looked crisp as it formed a faux hawk. His grin extended across his face as he popped his collar.

    ¡°Today¡¯s the day I¡¯ll ask out Shippai!¡±

    He made himself a promise that very moment that he would not fail this girl like he did the last one as he zipped up his collar and left his household. It was the last meet of the track season, and Yami was planning on asking a young girl named Shippai if she¡¯d like to start seeing him. As Yami threw his last shot 35 feet, a new personal record for that season, his confidence grew tenfold. As he approached the bus, he caught Shippai just before boarding and asked if she minded if he sat next to her. Shippai gladly obliged, as they had been friends since the fourth grade, As Yami sat next to her, he began to shake. If he wasn¡¯t sitting down, he¡¯s knees would be buckling at that moment. Shippai simply stared out the window. Yami gulped as the bus ride home started, and turned to her.

    ¡°So Shippai, there¡¯s actually something I¡¯ve been needing to ask you¡­¡±

    The happy Shippai turned to look at Yami, replying with a ¡°What¡¯s up?¡±

    As Yami felt his cheeks begin to turn red, he looked away, if only for a brief moment. Butterflies fluttered in his stomach. He thought of every moment with her up until now, giving him a burst of relief, and he turned to face her again, this time more determined.

    ¡°I¡­.¡±

    His voice trailed off as he stared into her beautiful blue eyes and red hair, which was now flowing with the wind due to the open window on the bus.

    ¡°...well?¡± Shippai said, as if she did not pick up on anything.

    ¡°I¡­ I¡­ I really, really want to date you!¡± As Yami said this, he looked down. ¡°I cannot guarantee anything, but I will do my absolute best to please you, so if you please just try to let me show the love I¡¯ve been feeling for you, surely I can-¡± Yami was stopped as he looked back up, just to see her staring outside the window of the bus. They were nearing home, and Yami began to feel worried.

    ¡°Shippai, I understand if you don¡¯t want to, but at least let me know why. Please, you¡¯re the only person I lo-¡±

    ¡°Shut up.¡± Shippai looked at Yami with furrowed eyebrows. The anger was present on her facial expression.

    ¡°You ask me something like that? How dare you think I could ever love you. This is all some stupid prank, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not, I swea-¡±

    ¡°YAMI, I DO NOT LIKE JOKES!¡±

    Yami began to tear at this statement.

    ¡±You truly think this is just a joke?¡±

    ¡°Wait, you''re not joking?¡± Shippai began to laugh in his face, but not long after she looked at him with anger again.This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    ¡±I don¡¯t know if you think just because you lost your mother I¡¯d feel bad for you and marry you, but you¡¯re sure as hell not anywhere near dating material. Don¡¯t speak to me ever again.¡±

    And with that, the bus came to a halt, and Shippai shoved Yami out of the seat and exited the bus. Yami walked home that night, feeling more lonely than he could ever remember. As he arrived at his doorstep at 9 p.m., the sun had already set, and the full moon shined brightly above his house.

    As he entered, he already heard his sister, Reikoku Shinpai yelling for him. As he begrudgingly walked into the kitchen where his sister called for him, Reikoku looked at him with displeasure.

    ¡°Where the hell have you been. You realize how long it has taken me to do your chores? I have shit to do you worthless piece of shit!¡± As Reikoku said this, Yami simply nodded, and began to walk away.

    From the living room, he heard his father yelling for him as well.

    ¡°YOUR GODDAMN SISTER HAD TO DO ALL OF YOUR CHORES AND SHE HASN¡¯T STOPPED BITCHING SINCE! WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU! YOUR MOTHER AND I SHOULD¡¯VE GOTTEN RID OF YOU!¡± Yami simply nodded to this as well, and walked back up the stairs and laid his backpack on the ground. It was like this everyday. Since his mother passed, these sort of remarks were made to him regularly, and he frankly didn¡¯t care. His sister, nor his father never showed him any love or support, and were never pleased with what he had done. But nonetheless, they demanded everything be perfect from him. Although he was but a mere 14 years old, they treated him as though he were an adult, with his father constantly stating he¡±wouldn¡¯t make it in the real world.¡±

    ¡°If I won¡¯t make it in the real world,¡± he thought to himself, ¡°I¡¯ll make myself known in the online world.¡± With this mindset, Yami began scrounging through the deep web, as that was his favorite place to explore. He soon found himself at his favorite deep web page, Sh¨¦nmi¡¯s Corner.

    As soon as he clicked the archives link though, he found himself at a page claiming that the website had been shut down, right then and there. He sat at the screen blankly for a moment, then smiled, as he saved Sh¨¦nmi¡¯s e-mail, which through complicated methods and know-how, he could find the new website Sh¨¦nmi had been rumored to have started.In doing this, he only found a blank page. He knew all about Sh¨¦nmi¡¯s ways, and opened his browser''s developer tools and began to scroll through the HTML code. He found only one thing. It was a message from Sh¨¦nmi himself, saying only this:

    Never leave yourself in the dark. If you are truly thinking about committing suicide, don¡¯t. Talk to someone - ANYONE! Christ, even I¡¯LL talk to you, and if you don¡¯t heed my warning, yet you fail, or rather, survive, contact me. We¡¯ll talk. Here¡¯s my info:

    With that, there was a long hash - more than likely his e-mail encrypted. Yami chuckled slightly at this before biting his lip and becoming upset. How could this have happened so easily? Rather, so suddenly? What could¡¯ve possibly happened that¡¯d make Sh¨¦nmi shut down his website, as well as leave some cryptic message? Yami began to ponder this, but soon he found himself drawn back into his despair. As he slowly drifted into sleep, he began to cry. The sorrow he felt then was too much for him to handle, yet he felt as though there had to be some reason for his being.

    <hr>

    Two months passed, with his life not changed at all for the better. The only the aspect of his daily life was now that he was out of school for the summer, he had far more chores to complete before his sister and father had returned home to yell at him some more, and far less time to converse with his friends, which was the only part of his day he could enjoy.

    One day, however, his life changed completely. He just had enough of his life. Yami paced around his living room for hours after he had awoken from his slumber, which at this point, had become this best part of his life. The thought of never waking up again sounded so magical to Yami. At the same time, he found himself crying and in anger, asking himself the same question:

    ¡°Why aren¡¯t I good enough! What more must I do?!?!¡±

    With tears now streaming down his face, Yami furrowed his eyebrows.

    ¡°I¡¯ve had enough of this shitty life. There¡¯s nothing for me to accomplish anyways. I¡¯m just waiting to hopefully give birth to a kid who can surpass me and right my wrongs. Even then, I¡¯ll probably mess that up too.¡±

    With a chuckle, Yami loaded a 20 gauge shotgun, and cocked it. He looked at the time on his wristwatch. The time was 11:21 a.m.

    ¡°I lose. You win, world.¡±

    Yami closed his eyes, and began to think of all his experiences up until this point. Smiling, he held the shotgun underneath his chin, and pulled the trigger. He heard a click, and he felt his mind explode.

    That''s when everything became surreal for him. He no longer felt any sense of sadness, anger, nor happiness. Just peace and tranquility. Yami¡¯s once tightened up face had now become relaxed, and his tears dried soon after that. Yami breathed a sigh of relief.

    ¡°Grand, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    Yami quickly glanced over his shoulder and opened his eyes. All Yami could see was a blinding white sheet of fog, which was equally blinding as it was shrouding. Through the immense fog of white, he saw a silhouette of a rather fit looking man. Yami squinted as he tried to make out this strange figure, and began to adjust to the brightness of the engulfing white.

    ¡°Hello?¡± Yami asked. ¡°Who are you? Where are we?¡±

    The figure remained still.

    ¡°This world must seem far more peaceful than any others, yes?¡± The figure turned to look at Yami. In the spot where a face would be was nothing more than a mere mannequin-esque head.

    ¡°Though, now that I think about it, you must have never experienced another world before. Well, not that you can recollect anyways. All you can remember is your world, Toskophium, or as you know it, Earth. Regardless, you have no place doing anything here, do you? I can see it on your face. You are unaware of what this place is and are confused as to who I am. Though I must say, I am intrigued as to the fact that I cannot sense any fear from you. Most P¨³bi¨¤n F¨£nxi¨£ng are at first, if not only a little, scared of me. Tell me what led you here, Yami Shinpai.¡±

    Yami¡¯s expression suddenly changed in response to hearing his name.

    ¡°Who the hell is this guy, and how does he know my name?¡±

    ¡°If you don¡¯t know who I am, just ask.¡± Yami looked back even more shocked than before. The uneasy feeling he had felt in his stomach began to strengthen as he clutched his abdomen.

    ¡°Who are you, how do you know my name, and where the hell are we?¡±

    The figure remained motionless, staring at Yami as if he could see into his very existence and reach the darkest recesses of his mind. Yami felt a cold shiver flow down his back, and the figure began to move towards Yami. Yami began to feel the urge to run away, but could not bring himself to it. Yami simply stood where he was, only as the figure approached nearer, he felt his fists clench tighter, and sweat began to drip down the side of his head.

    The figure stopped 3 feet away from Yami and continued staring into him.

    ¡°I am now beginning to sense fear, but worry not, I shall not harm you. You asked three questions, and as such, I will provide three answers. To begin with, I cannot give you a name for who I am. Many humans have tried to come up with a suiting name for me, but neither religious nor scientific believers have even come close to identifying me. As you may have guessed, I know everything. I know what you are thinking right now, what will happen at the end of our little conversation, how many people will enter the local market in two years, 45 minutes and 23 seconds from now, and even how you will die.¡±

    Yami began to feel a pain under his jaw. As he rubbed it, a sense of shock came over him as he remembered what had just transpired.

    ¡°How I¡¯ll die? Didn¡¯t I just die?¡±

    ¡°No, you are very much alive. This, I suppose, shall lead into your third question. As I had mentioned earlier, there are different worlds. This is, simply put, just another world. Unlike Toskophium, however, this world is my own.¡±

    ¡°Your own world? You mean you share this place with no other people or animals?¡±

    ¡°Typically, yes. I am alone. But there are certain circumstances, such as this, where people, such as you, attempt to barge their way into my domain. I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve already remembered what you did to come to this place, don¡¯t you?¡±

    Yami simply gulped and nodded.

    ¡°What is going to happen to me?¡± Yami asked this with a calm and collected voice.

    ¡°What you should be asking is not what will happen to you, but rather what you will do. As I said earlier, many people attempt to come into this realm, but only a handful manage to make it through. Those who come in and entertain me are granted a gift. This gift is one that is beyond normal comprehension. And whether or not you can use it depends on how strong you are. You may choose to take this gift, and I shall give it to you, or you may choose to not take this gift, and you may leave empty handed with no memory of what occurred in this little blackout period. The choice is yours.¡±

    Yami clenched his fists tight, and chuckled.

    ¡°You said it earlier, that you know everything, so you know what I choose.¡±

    The figure blankly stared back at Yami as he began to raise his right arm.

    ¡°Raise your left arm.¡±

    Yami, still sweating, began to raise his left arm, and the figure hovered it¡¯s hand over his.

    ¡°Do not move. I must examine you to truly see if you are worthy.¡±

    ¡°I thought you already knew,¡± Yami said laughingly. Nonetheless, Yami found none of this humorous.

    ¡°How am I not dead? No, what is the guy going to do to me? I really messed up big time.¡±

    An oddly bright darkness began radiating from the figure¡¯s hand, which quickly engulfed Yami¡¯s.This strange light began to cause a burning sensation in Yami¡¯s hand.Yami yelled out in pain.

    ¡°Hmmm¡­ You are worthy. Are you ready to receive my gift?¡±

    Yami, still recovering from the pain he had just felt, looked up at the figure and silently nodded. The light began to radiate from the figure onto Yami again, once again with the same excruciating pain. The light began to travel up Yami¡¯s arm, eventually wrapping itself all around his body. As soon as Yami¡¯s body had been completely covered in this shroud of light, the figure moved its hand away from Yami, and, screaming in agony, Yami began to stumble around, pawing at his body.

    ¡°Congratulations on becoming this century¡¯s new Jinsei no Hogo! Feel free to drop by if it overwhelms you!¡±

    With that, Yami fell over and began to go unconscious as the figure walked away.

 Chapter 2 - Side Effects

    Yami found himself in a state of numbness. As he tried to imagine where his left arm had once been, yet he felt nothing. Once again trying to lift his leg, there was no response. He felt as though he were drifting down a stream with no control to where he was going. His body, although not feeling anything, gave him a sense of heaviness, as if he were incredibly tired. His thoughts drifted far and wide with no clear structure or meaning.

    After what seemed like hours, Yami began to slowly awaken.

    ¡°My eyelids.... They feel so heavy¡­ I¡¯m so tired¡­¡±

    Yami squinted his eyes hard, and slowly started to open them. The light shining in through a window blinded him, forcing him to shut his eyes once again.

    ¡°Where am I? I¡¯m laying on something soft¡­ like carpet¡­¡± Yami slid his right hand around, confirming his thoughts. Yami smiled.

    ¡°I could lay here forev-¡± Yami suddenly felt a sharp bolt of pain throughout the back of his head, causing him to strain his face. As he concentrated on it more, he noticed it was throbbing as well. Yami forced his eyes open, exposing his eyes to the place in which he laid - his living room. Shocked, Yami began to sit up, causing him to bump the 20 gauge shotgun that lay on his stomach, knocking it onto the ground. With a horrified look, Yami threw himself away from the shotgun.

    ¡°What is going on?!?! The last thing I remember is pulling the trigger, and then¡­¡± Memories of the mysterious figure flooded his mind. Yami quickly grasped his left arm, remembering the pain he felt. He looked at his watch. The time read 11:22 a.m.

    ¡°That-that couldn¡¯t be possible! Our conversation took at least 10 minutes!¡± The pain of the headache increased, causing Yami to reach behind and feel it with his hand. As he inspected his hand, he noticed there was blood. Yami reached over and picked up the shotgun. As he unloaded it, he quickly checked it over.

    ¡°There¡¯s no way that this should¡¯ve misfired. Nothing appears to be broken or otherwise inoperable.¡± Yami shrugged and put it back where he had found it.

    As Yami walked into his bathroom and prepared to wash his head, he looked at his hand once again. The blood had moved to form what looked like a circle with triangles that made the circle appear it was in motion, as though it were spinning counter-clockwise on his palm. Thinking back to the injury he had just been victim to, he came to the conclusion that as he fell backwards, the force of hitting his head on the floor caused it to bleed some.

    ¡°For all I know, that¡¯s what caused my dream as well. It was so surreal though¡­¡± Yami looked at his hand, inspecting it, as though he were looking for any sign of the pain he felt, or rather the gift he received, actually occurring. Almost with a sigh of sorrow, he looked in the mirror. His expressionless face glared back at him. Yami did not look relieved nor disappointed he was still alive. He simply felt tired.

    ¡°Welp, back to gaming!¡± Yami returned to his bedroom and turned his computer on. As he went to click on a game titled ¡°Bottom Fragger Online¡±, he paused. Yami quickly slid his mouse back across his screen, instead clicking his browser. He furiously began typing in the address of Sh¨¦nmi¡¯s mirror website. Once more, it led to a blank page. Yami opened his developer tools and scrolled down to the message Sh¨¦nmi had left. Quickly skimming through it, a piece of the message stuck out at Yami once again:

    ¡°...yet you fail, or rather, survive, contact me.¡±

    Yami looked at the hash that Sh¨¦nmi had left:

    0b4a5df0cb92f54edac63537f3f5490e

    Yami opened a decryptor, and upon entering the hash, found out Sh¨¦nmi¡¯s e-mail address. Yami opened his instant messenger and began typing his experience, praying for an answer as to what had happened. After clicking send, the loud typing that had been echoing throughout the house suddenly ceased as Yami sat in his room alone, waiting.

    A month later, there was finally a reply:

    Meet me at 2 p.m. today at Yagusimi if you want answers. Come alone.

    Yami, numbed from the experience, read the message cautiously at first, then smiled.

    ¡°I will.¡±

    As Yami began to get ready for his departure to the park, he reached towards his desk and opened a drawer from he which he withdrew two knives. One had a metallic silver color, and was surprisingly light yet durable. The blade consisted of a sharp slicing front and a serrated back, which had been recently sharpened by Yami, as he had originally planned to end his life with that very blade.

    The other knife that Yami grabbed was a metallic rainbow color. This knife, as opposed to its companion knife, was meant to be thrown rather than to slash or cut. The blade came down like a crescent, reaching a relatively light handle wrapped in black cloth.

    Yami placed his silver knife in his back right pocket of his jeans, and the rainbow knife in his back left pocket. Yami then grabbed his black smartphone and checked the time. It was nearing 1:30 p.m., and Yami had a 15 minute walk ahead of him. Placing the phone in his front right pocket, he walked out his door and headed towards the park.

    Nearing arrival, Yami checked his wristwatch, noticing that it was now 1:48 p.m., 12 minutes away from his designated meeting time. Beginning to have second thoughts, Yami began clenching his fists. As he walked past the sign at the entrance of the park that read ¡°Welcome to Yagusimi Park,¡± Yami began to search for anyone that may be at the park. As it was August, Yami was surprised to see that there were little to souls present at the park.Yagusimi Park was usually thriving with people during the summer months as children were relieved from their duty to return to school during the summer period.

    Feeling relieved that nobody suspicious had yet to arrive, Yami as felt a sense of anxiousness to meet Sh¨¦nmi in real life, as he had been somewhat of a hero to him. Yami sat on a bench and began thinking to himself.

    ¡°I wonder if this guy is actually going to help me. He seems like a nice person to me, but you can never truly know someone, I suppose.¡±

    Yami checked his wristwatch again, noticing it was now 1:58 p.m., a mere 2 minutes from his meeting time. He sighed slightly, as if he was expecting Sh¨¦nmi to be earlier than himself. He began to whistle notes in a pattern of G A C, G A C, G A, G A C, G A E D E. On his second loop through the notes, he suddenly stopped. With a look of concern on his face, sweat started to bead up, and his heart started pounding rapidly. Yami clenched his left forearm forcefully, and gulped back his fear.

    ¡°This is exactly like then¡­ Only this time it¡¯s real! I have to get out of here!¡±The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    Looking for a way to escape, Yami jumped up from the bench on which he sat and began to sprint. Running as fast as he could, the sensation only continued to grow stronger. Clambering for a grip on the fence, he began to climb up. He felt that this mysterious presence was only a mere 10 feet away, and he stopped in fear.

    ¡°Why are you trying to run? You are the one who contacted me, so why are you afraid?¡±

    This familiar voice shook the air, and sweat dripped from Yami¡¯s chin and splattered on the ground. Yami dropped himself from the fence and clenched his fists.

    ¡°Are you Sh¨¦nmi?¡±

    The man chuckled.

    ¡°Of course! Who else would I be?¡±

    Yami turned to look at the man. The man¡¯s head little hair on top, yet had a grizzled goatee around the mouth. His black glasses were square, yet the lenses seemed to magnify the brightness of his green eyes. His face appeared to show around 40 years of life, but it also began to show shock.

    ¡°Wait, is that you Yami?!?!¡±

    Yami chuckled.

    ¡°Is that you Mr. P?¡± Mr. Phil Posche was a rather nerdy individual. Sci-Fi Movies always intrigued him, which may explain why he chose to teach science related classes at Shifuku High School. Due to this, Yami had seen him multiple times, yet he had only conversed enough times with him that he could count it on one hand.

    ¡°Come with me. We¡¯ll go to my house. It¡¯s just a ways over here.¡±

    As Posche ushered Yami towards an exit from Yagusimi Park, Yami couldn¡¯t help but notice that a strange power seemed to be seeping out of Posche¡¯s body.

    ¡°Just how strong is he?¡±

    As Posche welcomed Yami into his household, he refrained Yami from taking off his shoes.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about those, we¡¯re going to be going into my basement for a little while. And don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m not going to harm you.¡±

    Yami carefully followed Posche into his basement. He smelled a faint trace of the dampness of concrete. Hearing the creaks of the wooden staircase, Yami also felt the atmosphere change into a chilling draft as he placed his feet onto the floor of the basement. As Posche beckoned him towards a door, Yami noticed stacks of books and papers which he presumed to be notes about something, most likely school related. A Posche neared the door, he placed his right hand onto it. Yami sensed a very small, almost miniscule amount of Posche¡¯s power surge through the door. With a creak, the door opened, and showed a large office. The office contained a large desk with books and papers all over it, as well as a soft green carpet. There appeared to be three chairs as well. One sat behind the desk, which was a luxurious red spinning chair, while the other two sat before the desk, only being a dark leather. As Posche went behind the desk, he pointed towards a seat, indicating Yami to sit on it.

    ¡°So tell me your story, Yami. From the very beginning.¡±

    As Yami gulped, he began to recall that day.

    ¡°I¡­¡± Not sure whether or not it was safe to tell Posche, Yami shook his head to reassure himself that he could trust him.

    ¡°I reached the conclusion that I wanted to end my life. I loaded my shotgun and placed it against the bottom of my chin and pulled the trigger. When I did though, I awoke in a very white place. It was so foggy, yet it was blinding. I felt the calmest I think I¡¯ve ever been. Then a figure, a silhouette of a person began talking to me. This person began explaining to me that many people break into their world, and that for amusing them, they would gift me a present. They grabbed me left hand and sent a burning sensation all throughout my body. It felt as though a presence crawled up my arm and eventually covered me. The pain was so immense, I fell over and passed out. Just before I lost consciousness however, they said I had become this century¡¯s Jinsei no Hogo. When I woke back up, I was on the floor of my living room. The shotgun had somehow misfired, and when I finally remembered what had just happened, I contacted you, as I figured you somehow knew what happened.¡±

    Posche looked at Yami with disbelief.

    ¡°What pattern did the ¡°presence¡± form on your arm.¡±

    Trying to remember the specific pattern, Yami began to feel around his arm. As he did so, however, the feeling of it crept through his entire body.

    ¡°It isn¡¯t just my arm. It¡¯s everywhere. On my neck, my back, my legs. Everywhere.¡±

    Confused, Posche shook his head. He rose from hiss chair and rolled up his right sleeve. As his muscles strained, a black pattern appeared on his forearm, almost as if it were a tatoo. It had a spiral to it, forming the shape of a spring which appeared to connect his wrist to his elbow.

    ¡°Did you see anything like this?¡±

    ¡°Yes, but like I said, it was all over, not just one piece.¡±

    ¡°What was the most profound one you saw? One that stuck with you the most.¡±

    Yami looked at the palm of his left hand. Remembering the pattern that the blood from his head had created, he nodded.

    ¡°Here. It was a ball with lines tangent to it. It was big enough to cover my palm, but it didn¡¯t touch my fingers.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s more like it!¡± Tossing Yami a black marker, Posche began to exit through room.

    ¡°Go ahead and draw it like you saw it. I¡¯m gonna go grab something. It¡¯ll be only a moment.¡±

    As the door shut, Yami began to wonder what all the other symbols meant if he was only supposed to use one. He uncapped the marker and began to draw the symbol on his hand. Just as he finished, Posche came back into the room, this time wheeling in a cart with a drape over it, hiding what was underneath.

    ¡°Do you know the history of tattoos,¡± questioned Posche?

    Yami shook his head.

    ¡°Well, it all began back in the early years of humanity. People would take various paints, made from berries, mud, even blood, and would rub it on themselves in certain patterns. As you may infer, all of those forms of markings were very inefficient. They would wash off the body of said person rather quickly. To counteract this, some would grab a sharp stone and etch it onto themselves, scaring their skin permanently. The reason for this, historians say, was to show their loyalty to their tribe. But as it was investigated more, things began to not add up. People who were not part of tribes began to show the same markings, and furthermore, members of the same village would oftentimes not have the same symbols on their bodies. So then what was the reason people would go as far as etching symbols into their skin be ? Was it simply for fun? Were they crazy? No, quite the opposite actually. They were what I consider to be geniuses. They, like us, had attempted to commit suicide, in turn making oneself a P¨³bi¨¤n F¨£nxi¨£ng, an echo if you will. You see, when we visit The Palace and meet The Creator, the silhouette you saw, it means we were unsuccessful, or to some, successful. In return for meeting The Creator, we are granted a sought after yet unknown power. It has had many names over the years, but it is currently referred to as Sirushi Inochi, translated as a Mark of Life. These Sirushi Inochi are personalized, and typically only one person can master it. Any other people who want to learn it could spend a lifetime trying to master it, but only develop basic skills regarding it. As you can see from my Sirushi Inochi, I received one I like to call Heya Tatsujin. It consists of three skills: Sensei, Sent¨­, and Yasumi. In order to achieve mastery, I had to train constantly, giving me ease of access to all skill traits with little to no problem at all. As your teacher, I am here to help you with your uprising, but past that, it is up to you to decide how you use your power. You may come to me for guidance, but if I see you take the wrong path, if you start to use your Sirushi Inochi for evil purposes, I will not help you, nor will I greet you without resentment. And if you go as far as to kill innocent people with your power, I will not be deterred from annihilating you with my own two hands. Do you understand?¡±

    Yami, startled by what Posche had just told him, simply nodded with an expression of fear.

    ¡°Good. Now that I¡¯ve lectured you, I can begin to teach you the process. I see that you¡¯ve drawn your pattern onto your skin.¡±

    Posche began to inspect the drawing, occasionally murmuring an occasional ¡°Hmmm¡­ interesting.¡± Posche wheeled the cart over closer to Yami and revealed what lay underneath the sheet which had covered it before: A tattoo machine, a bowl of what appeared to be tattoo ink, a green popsicle, and a set of bandages. Posche turned to look at Yami, noticing his uneasy face.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter? You aren¡¯t scared, are you?¡±

    ¡°No,¡± Yami said. ¡°But I can¡¯t say I¡¯m exactly ecstatic about getting a tattoo. I mean, I¡¯m only 14! What will people think if they see me with a giant tattoo on my hand?¡±

    ¡°That is the reason I¡¯m going to teach you a neat trick,¡± explained Posche. ¡°Your Sirushi Inochi is powered by your life essence. In laymen''s terms, your soul. You only have so much of it, and you can train it to increase your power and capacity. However, we are going to give you a little bit of a jump start so you can infuse some into this ink. Once you infuse your life essence, the ink will become much more easily accepted into your body, and you can even control its appearance on your skin. As you can tell, I make mine invisible. But don¡¯t get any crazy ideas, black ink is still black ink. You can¡¯t make any crazy shades of purple or green. Once it is accepted into your body, granted you remembered at least a rough shape that The Creator gave you, your life essence will rearrange it into it¡¯s perfect design over time and training. The ideal Sirushi Inochi will always come out to be very smooth in design, and commonly starts as a polygon. When you train it, you should notice it is becoming smooth. Well, let¡¯s get started, shall we? Here, eat this.¡±

    Posche handed Yami the green popsicle. Yami unwrapped it without question and ate it. It tasted oddly sweet. It felt cold on Yami¡¯s tongue, but as he swallowed it and digested it, he felt his stomach begin to burn. Soon, the burning sensation began to spread throughout his limbs. The sensation felt just like when he had met The Creator, yet it was bearable this time. It even felt as though he controlled it instead of being swallowed by the sheer power. By the time he had finished the popsicle, he noticed his senses had become clearer. Yami raised his left hand, palm facing his face, and quickly clenched it. It was power that he had never dreamed of having. He felt as though he could do anything, but before he could finish his thoughts, he was interrupted by the bowl of ink being handed to him.

    ¡°Roll up your sleeves and put your hands in here,¡± Posche told Yami. Yami followed the instructions, rolling up both of his sleeves to his elbows and dipping his hands into the ink. He began to feel a slight pull of the ink at his power.

    ¡°I¡¯m sure you can feel it. The ink wants to feed on your life essence in order to adapt to your body, so let it. Try to act like the ink wants you to and seep some of your life essence into it.¡± Yami became focused, and as he tried, he noticed it wasn¡¯t being pushed into the ink. The harder he tried, the more he felt as though his skin was blocking him. It was as though he was trying to thread a needle with a rod of iron.

    ¡°I¡¯ll come back in an hour to check on you. Have fun.¡± With that, Posche began to exit the room. ¡°Oh, and a tip: Try to feel around your hands for easier exits. You aren¡¯t skilled enough to use all of the pores possible quite yet, that takes much more training. Bye!¡±

    Yami looked in disbelief as Posche exited the room. Turning back at the bowl, he began to try to force more life essence into the ink.

    ¡°This is gonna be a long day,¡± thought Yami.

 Chapter 3 - Body

    Sweating, Yami looked up at the clock on the wall. It had now been 20 minutes since he had started his attempts at saturating the ink with his life essence. Constantly trying to find a new way to pour out life essence into the ink, he would strain his muscles, as if he were trying to force it out, but to no avail. It felt as though his muscles would try to fit through one hair follicle, yet he continued to strain himself, causing fatigue. With a heavy sigh, Yami leaned back in his chair, being careful to keep his hands in the bowl to not spill any ink. Beginning to think out-loud, Yami spurted out his frustrations.

    ¡°Man, this stuff is hard. How am I going to master something that can take a lifetime if I can¡¯t even saturate the ink? Everytime I try, it just gets harder. It¡¯s as if I¡¯m trying to push something through too small of a hol-¡±

    Yami was overtaken by a look of both excitement and realization.

    ¡°This¡¯ll definitely work.¡±

    Calming himself down, Yami sat upright in his chair and closed his eyes. He began to take deep breaths, and he felt the air rush through his nostrils down to the bottom of his lungs as they filled, sending bursts of relaxation with each exhale. With these bursts, his muscles began to loosen and relax themselves, allowing Yami to reach a deep state of meditation. As he did so, he felt the power inside of him, only this time much clearer. Instead of him feeling it as just an idle liquid inside of his vessel, waiting to be sucked out, he instead felt a fluid like motion coursing through his body. He also felt that this liquid was in different areas in different densities than others.

    ¡°I see,¡± Yami thought to himself. ¡°So this power truly IS alive inside of me¡­ It¡¯s a part of me. So if I truly concentrate, I should be able to control this beast.¡±

    Yami squinted as he focused all of his might into moving the vast amounts of life essence towards his hands.

    ¡°Up my back left leg¡­ Across my chest¡­ Down through my arms.... There!¡±

    With a large open smile, Yami opened his eyes. He felt the amassed life essence in or close to his hands. Calming himself once again, he focused again on the ink. With a disappointed grunt, he acknowledged that the ink was not absorbing the life essence any faster than beforehand. Contemplating his next course of action, he began to try his muscle straining again. In doing so, he noticed something he hadn¡¯t before. With an excited laugh, Yami began to focus on his new method.

    <hr>

    After the hour elapsed, Posche walked up to the door into the hidden room.

    ¡°I sure hope the kid is okay. No, I hope he could even complete it. If he is truly what he says he is¡­ He needs to be the best of the best.¡±

    Upon placing his hand on the door and discharging some of his life essence, he pushed the door slightly inward, which easily gave into his push. As Posche looked inside, he noticed that Yami still sat in the position he left him in. Walking towards him, he let out a stern voice.

    ¡°Well? How are you progressing? Harder than you thought, eh-¡±

    As Posche looked at Yami¡¯s face, he saw an expression which appeared to be serious concentration. Eyebrows furrowed inward, Yami continued to focus on his task at hand as he responded to Posche.

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure if this is enough, but I¡¯m giving it all I got.¡±

    Posche, letting out a small chuckle, began to move towards Yami.

    ¡°Hand me the bowl. We¡¯ll see if you have enough the instant you take out your hands.¡±

    Yami began to raise his hands slowly. His arms shook not only in fear of not having completed his task, but also in fatigue. The hour had taken it¡¯s toll on the young Yami, yet he had not once lowered his guard to the task at hand. Soon, his wrists and been at the edge of the ink, and Yami continued to raise his hands out of the ink, and as he did so, his face turned from one that looked as if it were bracing for pain to that of one that had seen a horrific scene. His eyes widened and his pupils dilated. As he looked at his hands that were now out of the ink entirely, he noticed that there was not a trace of ink on them. Hands quivering, he turned to look at his teacher, which in turn gave him a smile.

    ¡°Very well done! I¡¯m impressed that you picked this up so easily! Since you merged your life essence with the ink, it no longer feels the need to bond with other things than your life essence, so it is essentially as if we spilled a liquid in outer space! Fascinating, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    Yami simply sat in his chair, yet the knowledge that he had succeeded did not lessen his anxiousness. Letting his hands fall to his lap, he grinned.

    ¡°I did it.¡±

    Letting out a long sigh, Yami fell over in his chair, prompting the rest of his body to fall down, landing not so softly on the floor. Posche, setting down the bowl, ran over to Yami and set him back in the chair. Snores had begun to protrude from Yami¡¯s mouth as he slept peacefully. With a quizzical look on his face, Posche walked back over to the bowl.

    ¡°Just how much did he put in?¡±

    Slowly dipping his hands into the bowl, he sent a small amount of his own life essence in. In doing so, his hands began to burn, sending Posche backwards trying to get any ink off of his hands.

    ¡°What the hell,¡± Posche said out loud as if he were asking the now asleep Yami?

    Upon wiping off all of the ink with a towel that laid on the cart, he inspected his hands. The redness and swelling of them indicated burns. Posche looked at his hands, stunned.

    ¡°What an absurd amount of life essence! He didn¡¯t even know it existed until now, so how is it possible for him to acquire this much, let alone be able to harness and use it? I suppose he is the Jinsei¡­ Just what exactly is he? How powerful is this child? Should I even train him to learn a Sirushi Inochi, to fully utilize his abilities? He has the prowess of a master as he is right now!¡±This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

    Posche turned to look at Yami, and although he witnessed the power he had exerted, his mind simply saw a boy sleeping in his chair, not that of a skilled Pubi¨¤n Fanxiang.

    <hr>

    Yami groggily opened his eyes. Daylight blurred them, and he rubbed them with his hands to help awaken himself. With a yawn, Yami stretched and stood up from his chair. He cracked his neck as well as his back. As he read the time on the clock, he gave a look of disbelief. He had slept nearly three hours, as it was nearing 7 p.m. and he was to be home by 8 p.m. or he would be yelled at. Readjusting his clothes, Yami began to rush out of the room when he was stopped by Posche¡¯s hardy voice.

    ¡°Where are you going?¡±

    Yami turned to look at Posche. Yami saw bandages wrapped around Posche¡¯s hands as though he were going to box him.

    ¡°I need to be going home now. Can we continue this tomorrow?¡±

    As Posche looked at the clock, he turned to Yami just to simply nod. Yami through up his right hand in a wave as he opened the door and darted through Posche¡¯s basement, up his stairs, and out his door. As Yami passed by Yagusimi Park, he checked his wristwatch that read 7:34 p.m.

    ¡°At this rate, I¡¯m gonna be late!¡±

    As his thoughts of being late jumbled in his head, Yami tripped on a rock and fell to the ground, knocking his glasses off in the process. As Yami began to pick himself up, he looked at his hands for any scrapes.

    ¡°Good. Now I don¡¯t have to explain two things. Now for my glasses...¡±

    Beginning to look for his glasses, he spotted them in the grass a few five feet away. As he reached for them, he suddenly stopped. He turned his palm towards himself and looked at it.

    ¡°How can this be¡­ This is¡­ impossible.¡±

    The blurred picture of a hand was no longer able to be seen, being replaced with a normal hand. Grabbing his glasses, Yami closed his eyes, placed the glasses in front of them, and opened them once again. In shock, Yami paced backwards a few steps. The world had become as blurry as it was without the glasses. Taking them off, the cloudy world became clear again. Yami shook his head in disbelief and read his watch. It was now 7:41 p.m., and he had no time to waste. Pocketing his glasses, Yami began to sprint towards his house once again.

    ¡°I wonder how much life essence I have left¡­¡±

    Entering his meditating state, Yami continued a sprint ahead as he looked for any spare life essence.

    ¡°C¡¯mon¡­ I know you¡¯re here somewhere¡­ The excess should still be around my hands¡­¡±

    Concentrating heavily on his hands, Yami closed his eyes and squinted.

    ¡°Where are you.. Where are you¡­ THERE YOU ARE! Now get on down to my legs!¡±

    As if he were grabbing the life essence with his mind, Yami pulled it from his palms up his arms, down his torso, and spread it throughout his legs and feet. Yami entering a determined state opened his mouth.

    ¡°NOW ACTIVATE,¡± yelled Yami!

    He felt a throbbing sensation in his legs, as if there laid a second heart inside of them. Yami¡¯s speed picked up drastically, leaving small imprints on the concrete sidewalk that lay underneath his rampage. Nearing his house, Yami felt his legs begin to slow down. Allowing his body some rest, Yami rested his body against a tree in his front lawn. He glanced down at his wristwatch. 7:48 p.m. He had not only made it in time, but completed a trip that should¡¯ve lasted him 15 minutes only took 4 minutes.

    Grinning ear to ear, Yami walked into his house and went straight into his room, shutting the door upon entry, and promptly laid on his bed. Staring at his egg white ceiling, Yami let out a small chuckle.

    ¡°I never would¡¯ve thought Sh¨¦nmi would be a loser like Mr. P! Maybe there is more to life than just living.¡±

    As he turned over onto his side, Yami removed his phone from his pocket and read the time. It was now 8 p.m. Accordingly, Yami felt the consequences of vigorous training. Fatigue overcame his muscles, and his breathing became deeper. Tapping the screen of his phone, Yami opened an application labelled ¡°Messenger,¡± and tapped on a conversation labelled ¡°The Group.¡± The light blue circle that resided next to the name indicated that there were new messages. Upon opening, Yami began to scroll through the messages. The messages that were present were nothing more than three friends attempting to setup a time schedule for a gaming spree. Yami pressed the power button on the side of his phone, simultaneously setting it on his desk and rolling over onto his stomach. Closing his eyes, Yami¡¯s thoughts began to drift with no real direction.

    ¡°I wonder if Shippai is well¡­¡±

    Burying his head farther into his pillow, Yami¡¯s thoughts faded as he fell asleep.

    He had no dreams that night.

    <hr>

    With a yawn, Yami sat up in his bed and stretched, yawning violently. Wiping his groggy eyes, Yami¡¯s thoughts began to recollect.

    ¡°Man, I really slept in¡­ What time is it?¡±

    Attempting to open the blinds that covered his window, Yami quickly turned away from the brightness of the outside light which penetrated his room. Grabbing his phone, Yami turned it on, which caused it to display the time. It was 9:24 a.m.

    ¡°What¡¯s this?¡±

    Noticing there was a notification at the top of the screen, Yami swiped down to see that he received an email. Tapping on the notification caused an app titled ¡°E-Mail¡± to launch, and loaded an email from Posche. Yami¡¯s eyes quickly scrolled down through the email, and nearing the bottom, his eyes widened sporadically and he jumped up from his bed. The email that he read kept echoing throughout his head as he got dressed and began to run to Posche¡¯s house.

    ¡°Upon inspecting the concentration of the ink, I have found it to be of the utmost importance that you come to my house. However, if you are too late, I will forbid you from learning from me. I expect you to be here by 9:30 a.m. Just walk into my basement when you arrive.¡±

    As Yami sprinted in desperation, he checked his wristwatch. It firmly read 9:28 a.m., causing Yami to sprint at an even more considerable speed.

    ¡°At this rate, I¡¯ll definitely be late! I must hurry¡­ I know! I¡¯ll try to do the same thing I did yesterday!¡±

    His heart racing, Yami closed his eyes and searched his body for anymore life essence to be used. Anticipating an excruciating hunt for life essence as he had to the night prior to this morning, Yami became shocked as he found he had a plentiful supply within him, more than he had yesterday. As he calmed himself, Yami focused on moving the life essence back into his legs for his increased speed. As he did so, he felt his speed drastically increase. Almost unable to control his speed, Yami found himself on the road that led to Posche¡¯s house. In the distance, he saw a car driving in the same direction he was heading. Yami glanced down at his wristwatch. The time now read 9:29 a.m. As Yami stared at his wristwatch in disbelief, he felt something brush near him, creating a wooshing sound. Glancing behind him, Yami widened his eyes at the car that was ahead of him not a moment earlier.

    ¡°There¡¯s no way¡­ The speed limit is 30 mph on this road!¡±

    Turning his head back, Yami saw Posche¡¯s house on his right, and with extreme force, Yami began to slow himself down, grabbing onto a pole which was part of the house¡¯s staircase, swinging Yami up the stairs and into the house. Slamming the basement door open, Yami jumped down the staircase, causing him to hit the concrete wall of the basement with great force. As pain surged through his body, Yami pounded on the door into the room in which he infused the ink.

    ¡°Hmm¡­ You are 3.43 seconds late¡­ I suppose I¡¯ll let you pass.¡±

    Posche stood behind Yami with two cups.

    ¡°I don¡¯t suppose you¡¯d want some coffee, seeing as how you just woke up?¡±

    Posche held out his left hand, allowing Yami to gratefully accept the cup of coffee that resided within it.

    <hr>

    Sitting in the office-like room once again, Yami sat in his chair sipping on his coffee. Posche sat in his large chair behind his desk, leaned down and opened a drawer, retrieving the bowl of ink that Yami had been feverishly infusing with his life essence.

    ¡°After you fell asleep, almost as soon as I took the bowl out of your hands by the way, I checked the content of this ink, and you have infused just enough. I suppose you¡¯re ready to get it tattooed onto your skin, so long as you¡¯re ready. Is the pattern still on your hand?¡±

    Yami rolled up his sleeve, and nodded accordingly. Posche rose from his desk and began to walk over towards Yami, bowl of ink in hand.

    ¡° It¡¯ll be done in about an hour or two, so feel free to put in some earbuds or take a nap.¡±

    As Posche sat the bowl of ink down onto the cart of supplies, he pulled a stool up to sit next to Yami. Loading the ink into a large cartridge, Posche loaded an ink gun with it. Turning the gun on, he quickly began tracing the pattern Yami had drawn. Feeling the pain, Yami gulped and clenched his right hand tightly.

    ¡°Sleep?!?! How the hell am I supposed to sleep?¡±

 Chapter 4 - Mind

    The buzzing of the tattoo gun continued for what seemed like hours. The longer Yami sat in the chair, the less he felt the tattoo gun, and the more he felt the ink forming into the pattern on his left hand. Posche had started near his fingertips, and Yami could now feel that he was nearing his wrist. With his mind left wandering, Yami began to draw about unclear thoughts, but a recurring character continued to invade his mind - Shippai.

    His thoughts had been nothing but peaceful. He imagined what his life could have been like if she had accepted him, and the thoughts of him holding her in her arms as they watched the sunset atop a hill sent relaxation through his nerves.

    ¡°That seems so wonderful¡­ Maybe I can still convince her! I can¡¯t stop trying!¡±

    But as he felt the tattoo gun raise from the bottom of his hand, his once peaceful thoughts became filled with hatred. Yami¡¯s faced began to scrunch up as if it were in pain. He once again thought of himself sitting underneath a sunset, except Shippai was nowhere to be seen.

    ¡°Where is she!¡±

    Yami jumped up and began looking around, seeing Shippai nowhere. He began to jog down the hill towards a lake that was facing him. Nearing the edge of the lake, Yami found a dock, at which point he ran towards. Upon reaching the edge of the dock, yami stopped and looked up at the setting sun, feeling extreme loneliness. As he did so, he felt something bump into the dock, and he glanced down into the lake. As he stared, a large bag became visible, and he reached into the water and pulled the bag up onto the dock. It was very heavy, causing Yami to struggle. Once the bag was atop the dock, Yami saw that at the bottom of the bag, there was a rope tied to the end. Pulling the rope up revealed that the other end was tied to a large rock. Fearing the worse, Yami gulped and pulled out his pocket knife, cutting open the bag. As he opened it, his eyes widened in terror, and his face showed terror. Dropping the knife, Yami began to tear at the bag until what was inside was now in his arms. Shippai.

    Wet and cold, Shippai laid in Yami¡¯s arms, not moving in the slightest of her own accord. Yami felt her wrist for a pulse, but there was nothing. Beginning to lose himself, Yami began to yell.

    ¡°HELP! THIS GIRL WAS DROWNING!¡±

    Putting his ear against her chest revealed a very faint beat. Face becoming determined, Yami grabbed his knife, cutting open her shirt, revealing her stomach and bra. Yami placed his hands firmly on her chest and began to push with all of his might at a steady rate. After minutes, he began to doubt himself.

    ¡°Shippai, please! Please don¡¯t die.. I need you¡­ Please!¡±

    Tears rolled down Yami¡¯s face, and as they hit Shippai¡¯s face, she coughed up water and choked on the freshness of the air. Relieved and happy, Yami smiled and wiped the tears from his face.

    ¡°Thank god you¡¯re alive. I¡¯m so happy I found you in time. I really thought you would-¡±

    ¡°SHUT UP!¡± Visibly scared, Shippai covered herself and began to cry.

    Blushing, Yami put his head on the ground.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry I did that, Shippai! I was just trying to save you!¡±

    In a low voice, Shippai looked down into the lake.

    ¡°You did this¡­ to help me?¡± Bending down, Shippai picked up Yami¡¯s knife. ¡°You wrapped your arms around me, making me go unconscious, tied me into a bag, and threw me into the lake... In order to help me?¡±

    Yami widened his eyes, and fear overcame his face.

    ¡°What¡­ what do you mean? I didn¡¯t do this!¡±

    Walking slowly towards Yami, Shippai glared at him.

    ¡°I swear, I will help you Shippai! I didn¡¯t do this! Let¡¯s calm down and-¡± The blade of the knife was now against Yami¡¯s throat. The tip felt as though it would puncture through Yami¡¯s thyroid like a balloon that was filled to the brim with air.

    ¡°Goodbye, you piece of shit!¡± The blade forced itself through Yami¡¯s throat and out the other side of his neck. Removing the knife from Yami¡¯s throat, Shippai dropped the knife onto the dock and began to run away, yelling for help.

    Yami fell onto his stomach, leaving himself in a now rather large pool of blood that was growing by the second. The sunset reflected off of his now dull eyes.

    ¡°Why did I do this... I¡­ I loved her¡­¡±

    As his vision darkened, Yami was brought back to consciousness by Posche, who was shaking his shoulder.

    ¡°Hey, you okay? I finished your Sirushi Inochi. You can look at it now if you wish.¡±

    Yami hazily looked at his palm, noticing that the pattern was on his hand, yet it was very crude. What Yami had drawn was very rounded, yet what appeared on his hand was jagged. What was once a circle with triangles forming what looked like a shuriken was now a square with equilateral triangles on each corner.

    ¡°What the hell is this? I thought you were going to draw what I showed you!¡±

    Posche shook his head.

    ¡°I have told you before, at first it will be very rough around the edges, but as you perfect it, it will come out to be more rounded. You must give it time.¡±

    Now opening and closing his hand, Yami remembered what he had seen.

    ¡°Hey Mr. P. While you were inking me, I began to zone out. I was thinking very peaceful and happy thoughts, but as soon as you removed the tattoo gun, they quickly changed into something much worse. They became the exact opposite of what they were before. My peacefulness and happiness was replaced with rage and anger. Do you have any theories as to why?¡±If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

    Posche squinted as he thought to himself.

    ¡°Well, there were tales of side effects due to being the Jinsei no Hogo. It makes sense that insanity must be one of them. I must do more research to figure out how to control this.¡±

    Quickly finding an excuse, Posche blurted out.

    ¡°It must just be that you were so used to the ink pouring in that you felt a small shock to the sudden stop of it. It¡¯s never happened to me personally, but others have had this happen to them. Don¡¯t worry about it!¡±

    Picking up the supplies that were used for this task, Posche began to exit the room.

    ¡°It¡¯s around noon now. Go home, get something to eat, and get some rest. You will begin to feel very exhausted due to the body accepting the ink as a Sirushi inochi, so I recommend that you get some rest. Starting tomorrow, I¡¯m going to try to train you to figure out what your Sirushi Inochi does. In the meantime, I¡¯ll do some research and see if i can dig up some info on other ones that have a similar pattern to yours. If you feel anything that you think may help discover the potential of it, make sure to write it down. Be here at 9:30 again. See you later!¡±

    Standing up and stretching, Yami rubbed his right shoulder with his left hand. Beginning to lower his hand, his face was overcome with a look of surprise. Rushing out of the room, Yami began to yell.

    ¡°WAIT! MR. P! HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO MAKE THIS GO INVISIBLE!¡±

    Running out the door and into the basement, Posche looked behind and smiled.

    ¡°About that¡­ You better find some gloves until you learn to make it invisible. Good luck!¡±

    Posche walked away laughing. Filled with anger, Yami yelled so loud, it echoed throughout the town.

    ¡°YOU OLD BASTARD!¡±

    <hr>

    Sneaking through his garage, Yami found a pair of old work gloves. Putting them on, he felt how dirty they were, and the dirt settling underneath his fingernails was unsettling, Yami knew it was better than if his family saw his Sirushi Inochi, which they would assume is just a tattoo, but for good reason. Yami quickly paddled up the staircase towards his room, but he was suddenly stopped by the bellowing voice of his father.

    ¡°Why are you wearing my gloves?¡±

    Yami, already planning ahead for when this question was asked, simply replied, ¡°I¡¯m doing some woodworking stuff on my furniture.¡±

    ¡°Well,¡± his father started, ¡°If you cost me anymore money, you can figure out how to live on your own.¡±

    Shrugging this off, Yami proceeded into his room, shutting the door behind himself. As he threw himself onto his bed, he took off the gloves and stared at his palm.

    ¡°I really should try to make this invisible. The sooner the better. I guess we¡¯ll start by redirecting some life essence into it...¡±

    Closing his eyes and beginning to meditate, Yami channeled life essence into his palm. It began to vaguely vibrate in response.

    ¡°Haha! I got it now! Activate Invisibility!¡±

    Sending waves of heat throughout his body, Yami felt immense pain from the center of his palm. As Yami rolled around in his bed, he scratched at his palm in an attempt to reduce or stop the pain, but it was to no avail. The pain could not be stopped, and as Yami rolled around in pain, he reached for his pocket and pulled out his phone. Hardly able to type the numbers into the phone, Yami managed to start a call with Posche. After a few rounds of ringing, Yami begin to curse under his breath.

    ¡°Posche, you better pick up right now! So help me god, I¡¯ll-¡±

    ¡°Yami? What is it?¡±

    The pain had yet to reduce in the slightest, so as Yami attempted to speak, it came out in short bursts, of which sounded very muffled.

    ¡°Please¡­ Help¡­ Me¡­ Tried¡­ To¡­. Go¡­. Invisible!¡±

    Posche shook his head. Grabbing his bags, he began to walk down his basement stairs.

    ¡°Is anyone in your room?¡±

    Yami was now in such a state of pain, he could only make the first sound of ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°Okay, just stay calm. I¡¯ll be there in 10 seconds.¡±

    Posche firmly stood in front of the door that led to the office. He unrolled his sleeves, then, sliding his left hand down his right forearm, Posche yelled.

    ¡°Heya Tatsujin: Sent¨­!¡±

    Posche then smashed his right palm onto the door. Posche then rushed into the door, and found himself in the same room as Yami, who was now on the floor squirming. Posche reached into his left pocket, retrieving two dark blue pills. Grabbing Yami, he ordered him to swallow the pills. Yami obeyed, and took the pills. Near simultaneously, his pain stopped. With a sigh, Posche began to speak to Yami.

    ¡°There, now you just need rest. DO NOT ATTEMPT THAT AGAIN.¡±

    These words fell on deaf ears, though, because Yami had already fallen asleep. Shaking his head, Posche walked back through the door which he had entered through, finding himself at his house.

    ¡°This boy has a long way to go.¡±

    <hr>

    Sunshine splattered on Yami¡¯s window, spreading beams off in many directions, one of said beams hitting Yami in the eyes. Yami groggily opened his eyes, feeling vulnerable to the harsh sunlight that had awoken him from his comfortable state of slumber. As Yami began to push himself up with his hands, he felt the soft strains of carpet run through his fingers.

    ¡°It¡¯s already been a month since all of this happened...¡±

    Standing up and stretching, Yami looked at the palm of his left hand. The once very square-like shape was replaced with a perfect circle. The four triangles that surround it, though, was no longer present. Picking up the gloves from his bed, Yami looked at his phone. The time displayed 9:33, causing Yami to dart down the stairs and slip on his shoes whilst fumbling to put on his gloves. Shutting the door behind him, Yami jumped off the porch that resided in front of his house and began to sprint down the sidewalk, he was grabbed by a hand residing behind a building. With a gasp, Yami was flung through an open door, and fell flat on his face. Lifting himself up, he turned to see the door slam shut, and a man walk towards him.

    ¡°What do you want with me,¡± Yami asked scaredly?

    ¡°I want to begin our training,¡± the man revealed his face from the shadows. It was Posche. ¡°You ARE 5 minutes 23 seconds late, so I figured I¡¯d come and see how you were doing.¡±

    Still regaining his breath, Yami stood up, not quite sure how to react to the situation. Looking around, Yami noticed that the room he was pulled into was a small field of grass which was surrounded by a forest about 100 meters away. The scent of pollen drifted through the air, and the wildlife even chirped in the distance.

    ¡°So,¡± Yami began. ¡°What was so urgent I couldn¡¯t be a little late?¡±

    ¡°You are far too lax with the use of your abilities. Do not even begin to pretend last night did not happen. I will take part of the blame for not properly telling you the consequences of what you did, but I did say to not do anything until I said you were ready, did I not?¡± Posche continued to glare at Yami until he got the response he wanted.

    ¡°Yes, you did.¡± Looking down at his hand, he promptly removed his glove. ¡°Hey Posche, you said that most Sirushi Inochi start off as polygons and slowly turn into more smooth as I learn to use it, right? Well look at this.¡± Raising his palm towards Posche, Posche nearly fell backwards when he saw the transformation that had taken place.

    ¡°When did you see this had happened?¡± Posche¡¯s tone was now one of urgency.

    ¡°When I woke up today, I guess.¡±

    ¡°I see.¡± Inspecting Yami¡¯s hand further, he asked another question. ¡°So what happened to the triangles that surrounded it?¡±

    ¡°I have no idea, but I guess I have no idea about all of this. You end up researching this pattern?¡±

    ¡°Yes, I did. It appears as though you have a pattern which resembles that of an offensive symbol. From what I read, it¡¯s safe to assume that the triangles are the specific skills, while the squa- erhm, circle is your level of power and is where it is formed. As for how the shape of the square changed so suddenly¡­ I have no explanation for it.¡±

    ¡°That doesn¡¯t matter anyways, that¡¯s only one piece of the puzzle. What do I need to do to learn these skills? I want to master this as soon as possible!¡±

    ¡°Yami,¡± Posche barked at Yami. ¡°You forget that you couldn¡¯t even make your Sirushi Inochi go invisible, yet you think that you can master your technique? You truly are insane. Now sit down so I can lecture you.¡±

    Begrudgingly, Yami sat on the soft grass below him. ¡°So what do I need to know?¡±

    ¡°Well,¡± Posche started, ¡°As I have already told you, life essence is the fuel for your Sirushi Inochi. The Sirushi Inochi can, to some extent, be compared to that of a light bulb. You send an amount of your life essence, electricity, from your soul, your battery, into the Sirushi Inochi, the light bulb, which will produce whatever effects you desire it to do, granted it is part of the symbol. There are a few common traits between all Sirushi Inochi, however, which you don¡¯t necessarily have to train repeatedly to control, such as the technique I am going to teach you, that being transparency. Transparency is arguably the simplest skill all P¨³bi¨¤n F¨£nxi¨£ngs hold. To accomplish this feat, one must send a small amount of life essence into the Sirushi Inochi and shroud it completely in life essence, almost as if you are covering it with a blanket.¡±

    Yami looked at Posche with confusion. ¡°How is that going to change it?¡±

    ¡°Well, to the naked eye you can¡¯t see life essence. Adept P¨³bi¨¤n F¨£nxi¨£ng may be able to sense it, but aside from that, it is invisible. So in the act of covering the Sirushi Inochi, you are just covering it up.¡±

    Yami jumped up with excitement. ¡°Sounds easy enough! Let¡¯s give it as go!¡±

    Posche nodded in agreement. ¡°But do take it easy, your control isn¡¯t refined to the point that you can send the exact amounts. You send too much, and you¡¯ll be out for the rest of the day. Small bursts.¡±

    ¡°Alright!¡± Yami closed his eyes and began to enter a state of focus. With his eyes quickly fluttering open, he prepared to endure his first training session with Posche.

 Chapter 5 - Spirit

    The forest was alive with the bustling movement of wildlife and the silent work of vegetation yielded a very peaceful environment. A small creek could be hear as water rushed down it into a lake. A small fire crackled as Posche snored on a hammock tied between two trees. A small pot full of a water like substance was steaming over the fire.

    Yami stood in the middle of the field, gripping his left forearm and straining his muscles. The mark on his hand would occasionally flicker.

    ¡°This is different from trying to get the life force into the ink! Instead of a small port, you need a larger one, like a floodgate!¡±

    Yami took a breath and relaxed his tense muscles. As he walked towards the pot of water, he started to relocate his life essence into his left bicep where he could access it in a moment. Grabbing a mug, Yami poured himself a dark liquid from the pot, which was almost as thick as syrup.

    ¡°Hey Mr. P, what exactly is this stuff?¡±

    Posche talked with his eyes closed, as if he was never sleeping in the first place. ¡°That is a nutritious drink that the ancient echoes had created to give small boosts of life essence, like an energy bar if you will. It¡¯s called Jono.¡±

    Yami began to slurp down the liquid. It left a foul aftertaste in his mouth, and clung to his throat as the residue of the liquid entered his stomach.

    ¡°Jesus! I was gonna ask why no one just drank this for their power, but then I tasted it!¡±

    ¡°Well, they don¡¯t do that because if they were to solely rely on this for their power, their body would eventually build up a resistance to it, and reduce the effect until it no longer had any. If they attempted to increase the amount they drank, their body could effectively stop producing it¡¯s own life essence, and expect to receive it all from Jono. They would lose their ability to wield it at all.¡±

    With one last gulp, Yami set down his mug and cracked his neck.

    ¡°Well, let¡¯s hope I don¡¯t end up like that.¡±

    Returning back to the middle of the field, Yami took a breath. Gripping his forearm once again, Yami sent his life essence in a giant wave, covering the mark. It became completely invisible. Excited, Yami ran over to Posche.

    ¡°Check it out! I did it!¡±

    Posche opened his eyes and looked at Yami¡¯s palm.

    ¡°Good job. Now keep it like that for 18 hours.¡±

    Posche rolled back over and closed his eyes. Yami¡¯s mark appeared on his hand.

    ¡°What the hell do you mean?!?! Why 18 hours?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t get frustrated at me. Think about it. You need to hide your Sirushi Inochi throughout the entire day, right? So what is being able to hold it for one minute going to accomplish?¡±

    Defeated by this remark, Yami lost his frustration.

    ¡°Ok. But where am I supposed to find the time to do this?¡±

    Posche shrugged.

    ¡°Just act like you are going to watch TV all day or something and stay in your room. Go to a friends house. I don¡¯t care.¡±

    Unsatisfied with this answer, Yami walked towards the door.

    ¡°I¡¯ll see what I can do. Thanks for all the help, Mr. P.¡±

    Posche took the sarcasm in his voice with a grain of salt.

    ¡°You have to learn it on your own, there¡¯s no book I can show you.¡±

    Yami slammed the door behind him and disappeared from the meadow.

    <hr>

    Yami lay on his bed, simply resting and listening to music on his phone through a pair of black earbuds.

    ¡°18 hours. Huh. Looks like it¡¯s time to grind out a new anime.¡±

    Yami switched the TV on and loaded a show. He sat on the edge of his bed and as he hit play, he turned his mark invisible.

    ¡°Let¡¯s do this!¡±

    <hr>

    ¡°So that¡¯s how it is¡­ I guess I have no choice. I¡¯ll help in any way I can, but to keep this clear, I am not helping for his sake, nor for yours. It¡¯s just repayment for earlier.¡±

    Posche nodded his head.

    ¡°Thank you. I know you never wanted to be involved again, but I feel that your skills will be needed once Yami becomes more equipped with his dormant talents.¡±

    Posche walked away from the woman standing in darkness of a shadow.

    ¡°As the Jinsei no Hogo, it is inevitable he will find danger. Her healing prowess and medical background will be essential in Yami¡¯s training.¡±

    <hr>

    The time on Yami¡¯s watch was 12:31 a.m., approximately 13 hours after he had started another attempt at maintaining the Transparency Technique. Bits of his mark flashed on his skin, until, with his entire arm falling to his side, the entire mark appeared once again on Yami¡¯s hand. Panting, Yami wiped the set off of his forehead with his left arm.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

    ¡°That was about 13 hours, and it wasn''t completely transparent either! To make matters worse, this was my fourth attempt!¡±

    Standing under the constant drizzle of the shower head, Yami closed his eyes. The sensation of stress seemed to wash away with the water and flow down the drain where it would never be seen again.

    ¡°Just like the water, my Sirushi Inochi must be washed away with my life essence.¡±

    <hr>

    Pounding forced Posche to open his door.

    ¡°Ah, so you''ve come. Have you made any progress?¡±

    Yami held his palm up so Posche could see it. It was transparent.

    ¡°I¡¯ve held it like this for 23 hours. Is that long enough?¡±

    Posche smirked.

    ¡°Why Yami, aren¡¯t we the overachiever today. Come. We¡¯ll start the next part of the training.¡±

    Posche opened the door to the meadow. It was evident that it was early morning in the meadow as well due to the dew found on the grass and the sun¡¯s rays began to warm the chilly atmosphere. Posche rolled up his sleeve and showed Yami where his Sirushi Inochi would be.

    ¡°As you already know, the Transparency Technique can be active subconsciously, and as a result require as little effort to control as breathing. This can be done one of two ways. One way is how you have accomplished this feat. You have had to apply a consistent amount of life essence to your Sirushi Inochi in order to keep the technique active, which is not only taxing on your body and life essence, but on your mind as well. You will not be able to concentrate on other tasks you may have at hand, and in turn, your ability to utilize other techniques would be very limited. So in order to counteract this, I will teach you the second way to maintain a Transparency Technique. Using our electricity analogy again, you power it from you soul, which we could say is the main battery, say for a car. Knowing this, we can attempt to make smaller pockets of this container, as if they were AA Batteries. This will make your soul be divided, however, and depending on how big your life partition, or ¡°battery¡± is, that will be taken out of your soul, yet, they will still be connected. So when you recover life essence, it will fill up your partition as well. Keep in mind that you can still transfer life essence out of your partition to other parts if you so need it, and you can manually shut it down. Anyway, let¡¯s cut the chit-chat.¡±

    Posche walked over to his hammock and revealed a notebook and a pen. On it, he drew a diagram of sorts. A large circle labelled ¡°Soul¡± covered the majority of the page.

    ¡°Here is what we are going to do. You have felt how much constant life essence it took to use Transparency all day, so what you must do is take that amount of energy and form a pocket with it somewhere in your body.¡±

    Posche drew a section of the large circle and showed it moving to the right of it¡¯s predecessor, independent of it.

    ¡°You must then hold that pocket of life essence in the area that you want it and your body will begin to develop an envelope around it, and that¡¯s all.¡±

    Yami cracked his knuckles.

    ¡°Alright! Here I go!¡±

    As Yami grabbed his forearm, Posche held up his hand.

    ¡°Whoa there, I haven¡¯t even told you how to do it!¡±

    Yami let go of his arm, turning back towards Posche.

    ¡°So what¡¯s up?¡±

    Posche began.

    ¡°Well, you are going to literally tear your soul into smaller chunks. The pain of doing this will likely be intense, and seeing as how you will need to hold your life essence in one place, there is a high probability that you won¡¯t be able to hold it in one place for as long as needed. When this happens, you will need to expend that energy that has built up in your body. The best way to do this, if it does happen, would be to use it through your Sirushi Inochi. However, since you can¡¯t use it, the only option for you would be to expand it through your muscles like you have before.¡±

    Yami smirked.

    ¡°You said IF it does. That means I can do it my first try!¡±

    Posche grinned.

    ¡°Go get it, Yami!¡±

    Yami grabbed his forearm and began to focus on his life essence.

    ¡°I¡¯ve used up about a sixteenth of my overall supply of life essence. I¡¯ll give it just a little bit over that.¡±

    Yami began to focus his life essence into flowing into a pool in his arm. Stopping it just before it reached his Sirushi Inochi, Yami made an outer wall with his life essence and held i firm as more poured into it. Yami gave a grimace of pain.

    ¡°I see what Mr. P was talking about when he described the pain. I¡¯m not even halfway there in terms of the amount of life essence, and after that I still have to let it form an envelope around it, and who knows how long that will take!¡±

    Posche saw Yami¡¯s arm began to react to the pain, which led to Yami start to sweat. Posche laid onto his hammock and began to read a book titled ¡°Secrets of Toskophium.¡±

    ¡°If Yami is going to work this hard, maybe I¡¯ll have to out-do him.¡±

    <hr>

    Five minutes passed. Yami was now covered in sweat and gasping for air. He had successfully managed to get the needed amount of life essence gathered into an area in his forearm, but due to the pain, his focus was dwindling.

    ¡°I can feel it all. My arm is twitching so badly, my life essence is acting almost ass if it were sloshing around inside of me. At this rate, there¡¯s no way it will be able to get enveloped by my body.¡±

    That¡¯s when Yami felt it. The life essence had begun to solidify. The first of it felt like a stone had been thrown into the pool that was his life essence. Yami smirked.

    ¡°I can do this!¡±

    Yami felt a sharp pain in his arm that caused him to flinch. This sent his life essence splashing outside of his container. Worried, Yami attempted to relocate it back into the pool that he had formed. Before he could, however, he felt the part of the pool that was covered by the life essence that had spilled over begin to envelope itself like it had earlier.

    ¡°Maybe this¡¯ll help!¡±

    <hr>

    ¡°Hey Mr. P, I¡¯m done.¡±

    Posche looked up from his book. Yami stood over him, drenched with sweat.

    ¡°Ah, so you¡¯re giving up this easily? Oh well, you gave it your best sh- Your hand¡­ Don¡¯t tell me you did it.¡±

    Yami¡¯s mark was Transparent. He grinned.

    ¡°I did it!¡±

    Posche was taken back.

    ¡°My god, he truly is a prodigy! It took me more than five attempts, and here he does it in one!¡±

    ¡°If I may ask,¡± Posche started, ¡°how did you accomplish this feat?¡±

    ¡°I came up with my own way to speed it up. I had felt the life essence spill over top of another, and in doing so the pool began to harden, so I took a small amount and covered the rest of the pool! Pretty ingenious, right?¡±

    Posche looked at Yami with bewilderment.

    ¡°¡®Harden¡¯? What do you mean?¡±

    ¡°Well, the pool became enveloped by something almost crystal-like. Is that not how this training was supposed to work out.¡±

    Posche shook his head.

    ¡°It should have been a gel-like substance, not crystal. Does it not feel awkward in your arm?¡±

    Yami moved his arm around.

    ¡°Nah, not really.¡±

    Posche grinned and patted Yami¡¯s back.

    ¡°Well, we¡¯re all different! In any case, good work today. I think we should both get some rest.¡±

    Yami waved his hand as he walked out the door. Posche opened the door after Yami had shut it, leading to a different room that was filled with books, like a personal library of sorts. Placing the book he had been reading earlier into a shelf, Posche walked into another aisle and scanned it, eventually pulling out a book titled ¡°Jinsei no Hogo: A History and Culture.¡±

    ¡°There has to be more to this kid than what any past Jinsei no Hogo has had. There must be an underlying secret that is altering this kid. Crystals? A pattern that has changed? This is different from all of his predecessors.¡±

    Flipping through the book at an astonishing speed, Posche found something that caught his eye. Flipping backwards a few pages revealed a chapter titled ¡°Haisen: The Dark Angel.¡± Beginning to read the pages, Posche felt a buzz on his phone. He had received a text message.

    ¡°Thank christ he¡¯ll help. Hopefully he can help shed some light on this situation, or at least give me some time to research some more on this kid. He exceeds anything I¡¯ve ever seen. I almost fear for his health.¡±

    Posche set the book down on a table near the door and walked out.

    <hr>

    Yami arrived at his house, feeling more than ecstatic to not have to wear the old gloves anymore. Shutting his door behind him, he sat down onto the edge of his bed and disrobed, putting on looser garments, sweatpants and a T-Shirt. Falling down onto his back, Yami stared at his ceiling as he felt his eyelids begin to feel heavier. Closing them, Yami fell asleep.

    Ass he awoke, he opened his eyes to the meadow where he trained with Posche. He was no longer in his home attire, and Posche was nowhere to be seen. Looking around, Yami called out for Posche, but to no avail. As Yami looked around, there was not even a door for him to exit through.

    ¡°Hey kid, where are you going? Come over here! There¡¯s a party!¡±

    Yami looked around.

    ¡°Who are you? How did you get here?¡±

    ¡°I am you. Now come, I am just over this way.¡±

    Yami looked over towards the woods.

    ¡°Yes, just over here.¡±

    Yami began to jog through the woods, and as he did so, a feeling of insecurity became stronger. Passing over creeks and fallen logs began to make Yami question not only where this voice was leading him, but also where all of the wildlife had disappeared to. As Yami turned a corner, he found a dark, musty cave, whose entrance was covered in moss and vines.

    ¡°Please, make yourself at home. It¡¯s been so lonely all these years, I can only imagine how nice it must be to feel the sun¡¯s rays. Do be careful though, I¡¯m afraid I¡¯ve been asleep too long to do any cleaning.¡±

 Chapter 6 - Caught In A Trance

    The inside of the cave was musty, cold, and damp. Yami¡¯s footsteps echoed as he carefully walked in the cave. He tripped over a root in the ground, causing him to splash into a puddle of mud. Yami took off his sweater and wiped his face off with his undershirt.

    ¡°Looks like this cave heads down,¡± Yami noted.

    ¡°Indeed,¡± the voice acknowledged. ¡°They made me stay deep in this cave so that they wouldn''t have to watch me.¡±

    ¡°Why would they have to do that in the first place?¡±

    ¡­

    Yami was met with a silence that seemed more fearful than an answer could''ve been.

    ¡°In any case, I''m going out od my way to come down here, could you at least tell me who you are and what I''m doing?¡±

    ¡°That answer,¡± the voice began, ¡°is not an easy one. You may call me Akahishi. I am a very old person, almost as old as the Jinsei no Hogo goes back. In fact, I would go as far to say I am about two centuries younger than you. That being said, I do not reincarnate like you do. I am one, and I am all.¡±

    Yami shook his head.

    ¡°That doesn''t make any sense,¡± Yami said. ¡°I''m only 14! And what''s this about reincarnation? You must be insane.¡±

    The voice chuckled.

    ¡°So, that failure of a P¨³bi¨¤n F¨£nxi¨£ng knows what you are, is aware of the risk, and STILL doesn''t teach you about yourself? What a fool!¡±

    A voice of confusion came from Yami.

    ¡°What do you mean ¡®he knew¡¯? You don''t know a damn thing about me OR him!¡±

    Akahishi chuckled.

    ¡°I know a lot more than you may think. Since a few months ago, I have been learning about your life. I would venture to guess I could explain your heritage far better than him, but I suppose I will keep that information for myself.¡±

    ¡°Tell me. Now.¡±

    Akahishi¡¯s mouth grinned.

    ¡°Not until you find MY heritage. Now, go forth and keep exploring.¡±

    <hr>

    Using his phone for a flashlight, Yami continued to pace himself deeper into the cave. The dripping of the water had stopped, and it seemed as though the air itself did not move. Suddenly, the tunnel ended into a small hole, hardly large enough for Yami to fit through.

    ¡°Yes,¡± Akahishi said. ¡°I can sense it from here. Quickly, follow that hole!¡±

    Yami gulped in anticipation.

    ¡°This better be worth it.¡±

    Yami slowly inched himself into the hole. The length of his arms was just enough to pull him forward. As he did so, the hole seemed to become larger. After ten minutes of dragging himself, Yami saw a sliver of light produced from something other than his phone. Yami continued to pull himself toward the light, but he now had enough space to army crawl, significantly increasing the rate of which he moved.

    ¡°Yes. This is where I¡¯ve slept.¡±

    Blue light penetrated from the walls of the room which Yami had just flung himself into. Falling on the ground, Yami picked himself back up. The blue light appeared to be originating from gel orbs inside the wall. He paused to take in what he was seeing.

    ¡°Yes, yes, it is very amazing the first time you see it, but we really must be going.¡±

    Yami walked towards a small passage that seemed to lead to another room. The gravel floor seemed to match the color of the moss covered walls. The air inside this room was moving in the direction of the passage entrance. Yami closed his eyes as he entered, and as he felt that the passage end, he opened them.

    What he saw was beautiful. A small rock staircase led to a pedestal which sat in the middle of this dome room. The blue resonated in this room as well, except it was much stronger, and Yami nearly shut his eyes from the brightness.

    ¡°I am getting shivers just knowing it is this close,¡± Akahishi remarked. ¡°Go now. Up to the container of my heart.¡±

    Yami walked up the staircase and reached the pedestal. A wooden box with an ancient language engraved on it sat before him.

    ¡°Akahishi, what does that say?¡±

    ¡°Do not open. You know what you have to do.¡±

    Yami grabbed the box and lifted the lid. Inside resided a large red crystal that sat on a purple cushion. Yami grabbed the crystal and inspected it in the palm of his hand.

    ¡°Thank you, Yami. You made my many years of waiting finally come to an end.¡±

    <hr>

    Yami jumped upright in his bed. Sweat dripped from his forehead. It was 3:30 am, and not a single noise could be heard.

    ¡°...hello? Akahishi?¡±

    Yami was met with no response.

    <hr>

    Posche knocked on the front door of Yami¡¯s house at 8:30 am. He was greeted by Yami¡¯s father.

    ¡°What the hell do you want?¡±

    ¡°Hello, Mr. Shinpai. I am Phil Posche, your son''s teacher. I was planning on meeting with him today to help him with his courses he is going to be taking this coming school year?¡±Stolen story; please report.

    ¡°Hmm,¡± Yami¡¯s father grunted. ¡°You can have him. Lazy fucker is probably still sleeping.¡±

    Yami came out of his room with bags under his eyes. His father looked down on him.

    ¡°Mr. Posche is taking you to study. Have fun.¡±

    Yami yawned and waved his hand as he walked out of the house with Posche.

    ¡°Well,¡± Posche began, ¡°Your father truly made a first impression.¡±

    ¡°Yup,¡± Yami replied. ¡°He really is one of a kind. I don¡¯t think anyone can be as much as an ass as he can be.¡±

    Posche placed a stern look on his face.

    ¡°So he¡¯s the one. The one who drove you to the edge.¡±

    ¡°It would be ignorant of me to say he was the sole cause, but he was definitely a factor.¡±

    Posche grinned.

    ¡°Well, to lighten up the mood, I suppose I¡¯ll tell you our plans for today!¡±

    ¡°Oh boy, let me guess, more lectures?¡±

    ¡°Nope, today we have a two guest teachers. I believe you have already met them both as well!¡±

    As Posche opened the door, Yami¡¯s jaw almost hit the ground. Standing in the meadow was a boy Yami¡¯s age, wearing a black hoodie and jeans. His short, blond hair gifted his central heterochromia eyes a spotlight on his face.

    ¡°Yo, Yami! How¡¯s it hanging?¡±

    ¡°S-S-S-Shitto?!?! WHy the hell are you here?!?!¡±

    Posche smiled.

    ¡°He is one of your teachers today!¡±

    ¡°Wait, Shitto¡­ You tried to, well¡­¡±

    ¡°Yup, and so did you, so I guess I won¡¯t beat your ass for it!¡±

    ¡°How long ago?¡±

    ¡°A couple of years before I met you. Though, I guess I didn¡¯t attempt to harness my abilities until last year.¡±

    ¡°Wait, so if you are one of my teachers, then who is my other?¡±

    Posche looked around.

    ¡°Good question. Where is she?¡±

    ¡°I have no clue,¡± Shitto shrugged.

    Posche shook his head.

    ¡°I would prefer that we didn¡¯t start lessons until she arrived, but I guess we can at least get through the lecture first.¡±

    ¡°Alright ya little punk,¡± Shitto said, pointing at Yami. ¡°Sit your ass down and prepare to be educated!¡±

    <hr>

    ¡°So what exactly am I going to be learning?¡±

    ¡°Well,¡± Posche began, ¡°Your friend, Shitto, happens to have an offensive Sirushi Inochi, which you also have.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right, friend-o! I have a Sirushi Inochi that allows me to manipulate my life essence to create an amazing attack that can destroy any being near me!¡±

    ¡°Mr. P, is he serious,¡± Yami asked?

    Shitto glared at Yami.

    ¡°I do not appreciate your sarcasm, Mr. Shinpai. Do not make me send you to the principal''s office.¡±

    ¡°Shitto,¡± Posche interrupted. ¡°How about we carry on with the lesson and stop the whole charade you¡¯re putting on right now.¡±

    Shitto shrugged.

    ¡°Fine, let¡¯s get started. Alright Yami, let me see that mark of yours.¡±

    Yami held out his hand towards Shitto. Shitto inspected it.

    ¡°Phil already gave me the rundown on your situation. So your mark removed the triangles and replaced the square with a perfect circle?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t call me Phil you little shit!¡±

    ¡°Anyways,¡± Yami replied. ¡°Ya, that¡¯s what happened.¡±

    ¡°Muy interesante. You ever try running life essence through it? Not like Transparency, just like, using it?¡±

    ¡°Well, there was one time from when I just got my marking. I tried to use Transparency but instead activated it. I couldn¡¯t move a muscle due to the pain I was feeling. Mr. P had to come save me.¡±

    ¡°Sounds like soul deficiency to me. You basically used more life essence than you had, causing your body to go into shock. Lemme guess, Phil gave you some kind of pill?¡±

    ¡°You hit the nail on the head, dude.¡±

    ¡°Judging from how much life essence I can feel resonating from you, your Sirushi Inochi likely uses a lot of life essence. Let¡¯s see how large your soul is right now.¡±

    Shitto held up a piece of paper.

    ¡°Really, Shitto? We¡¯re doing math?¡±

    ¡°Not quite right, but good guess! This, my friend, is no ordinary piece of paper. This paper is produced from the trees specifically from the forest near this area. You see, they love to feed off of life essence, and the color of its bark shows how much life essence it has. So if you temporarily connect it to your soul, you can roughly judge how much life essence you have. Here!¡±

    Shitto passed the paper to Yami.

    ¡°If the paper turns violet, you have a below average amount of life essence. If it turns blue or green, it is the average amount a person has. Yellow and orange shows high amounts of life essence.¡±

    Yami gripped the paper with his right hand. He began to channel some life essence into the paper. The paper quickly turn from a purple, to blue to green, yellow, orange, and then red. Shitto gasped and stole the paper from Yami. It quickly turned back to white.

    ¡°There¡¯s no way¡­ That level of life essence is only attainable by gods! Yami! Try again!¡±

    Yami gripped the paper once again, only this time in his left hand. He began to channel his life essence, and this time it only changed to a green color. Shitto sighed in relief.

    ¡°Must¡¯ve held it the wrong way the first time. Well, you must have a sufficient amount of life essence to use your Sirushi Inochi, it¡¯s just a matter of determining how to use it.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean, Shitto? I thought you already knew what I had to do!¡±

    ¡°Nope, but I¡¯ve studied so much about offensive Sirushi Inochi, I consider myself an expert. Let¡¯s start with your circle. It started as a square, right?¡±

    Yami nodded.

    ¡°Squares typically indicate that it is a creation type ability. Luckily, Mine is a creation type as well, so that part will be easy. As far as your triangles go, they can be anything. Typically they are just enhancers or modifiers of the base creation, and, once again, you are lucky that you have me. Mine only has one triangle, though, so the other three can be anything.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s get started then,¡± Yami said.

    ¡°Whoa there stud. You need to chill out. We should go over everything first. Yo, Phil! You bring that book?¡±

    Posche threw the book at Shitto, hitting him square in the face.

    ¡°Here it is. Now stop calling me Phil!¡±

    ¡°Thanks, pal! Alrighty, let¡¯s see here¡­¡± Shitto flipped through the pages. Finding a section labelled ¡°Shape Creation,¡± Shitto handed Yami the book.

    ¡°What exactly am I looking at?¡±

    ¡°Shape Creation. This is the first part of your Sirushi Inochi, and arguably the most important part. Shape creation is the foundation of your technique, and despite it being a shape, there is no telling what shape it may be. For example, my technique works like this.¡±

    Gripping his right forearm revealed Shitto¡¯s Sirushi Inochi on the palm of his hand.

    ¡°Ken!¡±

    A purple substance poured itself from Shitto¡¯s hand. The speed at which is climbed up itself was remarkable, but what was even more remarkable than that was what it created.

    ¡°Pretty dope, huh.¡±

    A large purple sword was gripped by Shitto. Its short handle did not match the length of the blade, which was serrated the entire length of the blade.

    ¡°Whoa,¡± Yami exclaimed! ¡°That at least looks cool, but is it actually effective?¡±

    ¡°Does your grocery store carry tree saplings?¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°Uh, what?¡±

    Shitto sighed in frustration.

    ¡°Just shut up and watch!¡±

    Shitto grabbed a branch of a tree and broke it off. The inside of the tree turned yellow. Shitto threw the branch into the air, and in a flurry of swings, he attacked the branch. The blur of purple assured Yami that Shitto truly was a master of his art. While Yami could not see the devastation happening before him, he heard the thumping of the sword against the branch. Shitto swung his sword at the ground, causing dust to fly up from the speed of the blade. The branch, which was still falling, hit the ground and shattered into pieces.

    ¡°Well, well, well, Yami. Need to ask Phil if I know what I¡¯m talking about again?¡±

    Yami grinned.

    ¡°Nah, you win this one.¡±

    <hr>

    A girl was just waking up. He sat up in her bed. She wore only a loose top and panties. Her red hair was the only color in her dark room.

    ¡°I guess I¡¯m late,¡± she thought to herself. ¡°Better hurry up before Posche gets mad.¡±

    Walking into her bathroom, she turned on the shower. Removing her clothes, she stepped into the shower. The hot water splashed on her smooth skin, appearing to roll off like it hit marble. The steam fogged up the mirror which showed her outfit, a yellow t-shirt and jean shorts. As he brushed her teeth in the shower, she gargled her mouth out with the water from the shower head and turned off the shower. As she walked out of her apartment, she locked her door. Her fingernails were painted a shiny red, and her hands looked as soft as feathers. As she walked down the road towards the park, her legs flexed with her movement. Her legs were not too muscular, but were far from weak.

    Reaching the park, he found a door that led to the girls bathroom. She gently touched her right hand''s fingertips against it and sent a small amount of life essence into it.

    ¡°At least Posche was thoughtful enough to put this entrance relatively close to my apartment rather than making me walk to his house everyday. Rumors may have started to be spread about me and him, maybe for the sake of getting grades.¡±

    He pushed the door open, revealing the meadow. She saw Yami and Shitto in the distance, looking at the book and laughing. Posche laid next to the entrance on his hammock. He looked up from his book.

    ¡°Ah, so you¡¯ve finally made it. How nice of you to show up. We¡¯ve been postponing his training for nearly an hour now. You¡¯re lucky that Shitto is such a smooth talker.¡±

    Her expression didn¡¯t change in the slightest.

    ¡°Does he know I¡¯m his second teacher?¡±

    Posche shook his head.

    ¡°Nope. I was going to let you introduce yourself.¡±

    The girl sighed.

    ¡°Fine.¡±

    She walked towards Yami and Shitto. Shitto looked over and smiled.

    ¡°Hey! Nice of you to finally show!¡±

    ¡°My second teacher?!?!¡±

    Yami looked over his shoulder.

    In the middle of the meadow stood Shippai.

 Chapter 7 - On The Offensive

    Her red hair flowed in the slight breeze that resided within the meadow. It seemed as though she outperformed the flowers themselves with her pure beauty and sweet scent. Her deep yet bright blue eyes reflected Yami off of them.

    Yami began to stutter as he spoke to her.

    ¡°S-S-Shippai! What are you doing here?!?!¡±

    She smiled.

    ¡°I''m your second teacher! Well, I won''t be doing any of the teaching for the most part, I''m mainly going to back up Shitto with my healing abilities. I suppose they''re mainly for you, though.¡±

    Yami glared at Shitto.

    ¡°You knew about this?¡±

    ¡°Of course I did,¡± Shitto replied. ¡°We''re training you to use a Sirushi Inochi that is used for attack, so this is no horseplay we''re dealing with.¡±

    ¡°Anyways,¡± Shippai began. ¡°He will be teaching you how to use your ability, and I will be here to heal you in the event that you harm yourself.¡±

    ¡°Alright Yami! Enough with the boring explanations,¡± Shitto said excitedly. ¡°Let¡¯s get on to the nitty-gritty training!¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s do it!¡±

    <hr>

    Shitto stood five feet away from Yami. Yami had rolled his sleeve up and gripped his left forearm.

    ¡°Alright Yami,¡± Shitto said, grinning. ¡°Like I said earlier, your square proves that you have a creation technique. Try forming a basic shape, like a polygon.¡±

    Yami gulped. He began to build up an abundance of life essence in his forearm, and tried to think of a shape to create.

    ¡°A polygon, huh? What shape should I try to make? I could try to make a triangle like Shitto¡¯s sword.. Nah, that seems to clich¨¦.¡±

    Looking around for inspiration, Yami¡¯s eyes glanced to the forest. Then to a flower petal, then over to Posche. But what Yami visualized was Shippai¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°That¡¯s it. I¡¯ll make it as spherical as her eyes.¡±

    Pushing the life essence into his mark, Yami felt a different feeling than that of the Transparency and the pooling of the ink. The mark seemed to absorb the life essence and release it in a different form, similar to that of a coal furnace. Eating up the life essence, it spewed out a bright blue color, yet at the center it was so bright it appeared as white. The substance began to pool itself into a circle on Yami¡¯s palm. Although it looked dense and slimy visually, it was as light as air, and Yami could hardly feel it on his skin.

    ¡°Hey!¡± Shitto patted Yami on the back so hard he lost focus. ¡°You''re a child prodigy!¡±

    The life essence had suddenly lost its shape and pooled out of Yami¡¯s palm before dissipating into nothing.

    ¡°I''m the same age as you, and next time don''t hit me!¡±

    ¡°Regardless, nice job! It took me a week to achieve my handle, so I suppose this isn''t a bad start. Try again, but hold it for five minutes.¡±

    Yami pooled the life essence back into his palm and formed the circle again. He could feel his life essence continue to pulse throughout the mark, and within ten seconds, life essence had begun to pour over his hand yet again.

    ¡°Too much.¡± Yami looked inquisitively at Shitto who had said this. ¡°What? I''m just telling you how it is. You are not limiting how much goes to your mark. That''s why it''s overflowing like that.¡±

    ¡°Hey! That''s not how he needs to be teached,¡± Posche yelled at Shitto.

    ¡°Phil, my man, we have two different teaching styles. He will learn just as much if not more with straightforward help rather than vague answers.¡±

    ¡°Fine. If he doesn''t completely master his Sirushi Inochi by the end of this week, you''re out!¡±

    ¡°Phil, you asked me to help you teach him. Is this really what you wanna do?¡±

    Posche didn''t answer. He simply looked back down at his book.

    Shitto chuckled. ¡°I hear you loud and clear! Alright Yami, let''s pick up the pace!¡±

    ¡°Really, Shitto? You said it took you a week just for the handle! How the hell am I supposed to do this?¡±

    Shitto held out his hand.

    ¡°Because you''re a badass! Now let''s show Phil who the REAL teachers are!¡±

    Yami smiled.

    ¡°Yeah!¡±

    Yami slapped his hand against Shitto¡¯s. The gripped at the fingertips, then let go again.

    ¡°Now pool it up again, but try to imagine that you have to form a barrier around it to keep it from going over. Like a dam.¡±

    ¡°Or like how I made my battery.¡±

    Yami once again poured life essence through his hand, this time with only half the force. As soon as it had covered his palm, Yami quickly stopped his flow of life essence. What was on his hand had disappeared.

    ¡°Just because you manifested it doesn''t mean you don''t need to control it, Yami. When you stop sending life essence, you can''t lose so much focus that you forget about the main part.¡±

    Yami formed the circle on his palm yet again. This time, he slowly stopped flow of his life essence, being careful to maintain the shape and not spill any life essence over his hand. Once he felt the flow stop, he looked towards Shitto.

    ¡°Now what,¡± he asked hurriedly?

    ¡°Now play around with it. It''s pretty much silly putty until you find the form it wants to take.¡±

    ¡°Like silly putty? I''ve never been one to play with it, but one thing I always do is¡­¡±This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.

    The life essence in his palm began to twirl around in his palm, as if it were coming alive.

    <hr>

    ¡°Posche¡­ you begged me to come here for this? He hasn''t made any headway since you first told me he had a Sirushi Inochi.¡±

    Posche didn''t look up from his book. He flipped a page and directed his voice towards the questioning Shippai.

    ¡°Just watch. He''s already mastered Transparency, and has a basic understanding of Phys Mods. He''s a natural.¡±

    Shippai¡¯s expression was unchanging.

    ¡°What''s your game, Posche? This child doesn''t need three people to train him. He should learn everything on his own.¡± Shippai paused. ¡°Unless, of course, you''re hiding something.¡±

    Posche turned another page. Shippai glared at him.

    ¡°Well, Posche?¡±

    <hr>

    Yami had a thin rod of life essence still dancing in his hand.

    ¡°Alright Yami, that''s enough for today. It''s getting late.¡±

    Yami looked at Shitto like Shitto was still in the 6th century.

    ¡°What do you mean? Look, the sun''s not even close to the horizon! It''s directly above us!¡±

    ¡°Silly, silly Yami. This meadow is not affected by our world¡¯s time. Have you seriously never noticed it?¡±

    Yami opened the door to the outside world. Sure enough, it was dark out.

    ¡°Huh. Good call, Shitto. Well, I guess I¡¯ll be on my way.¡±

    ¡°Be here by 9:30 am tomorrow,¡± Posche said.

    As Yami shut the door behind him, Shitto sighed. Walking over to Posche, he sat himself down against one of the trees that Posche had his hammock tied to.

    ¡°I suppose you two are wondering why I need you both, as well as the prowess that this boy has shown.¡±

    ¡°And you better tell us without going around any questions,¡± Shippai growled. ¡°Now get to it.¡±

    ¡°Well,¡± Posche began, ¡°This boy is the Jinsei no Hogo.¡±

    Shitto and Shippai did not move their faces, and their expressions did not change.

    ¡°He already has a large amount of life essence, as Shitto saw first hand. The fact that he can even manage to learn so much in such a short amount of time proves it. How long did it really take you to perfect the handle of your blade, Shitto?¡±

    ¡°It took me about two months. Yami may actually be able to perfect his Sirushi Inochi within a week. You knew that, didn¡¯t you.¡±

    Posche nodded his head.

    ¡°I still don¡¯t understand,¡± Shippai said. ¡°Why do you need ME of all people? I can only heal. Shitto is the only one who can teach him what he needs to know.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s for that very reason that I need you, Shippai. Shitto, what you saw earlier when testing his soul capacity could not have been a mistake. When Yami infused his life essence into the ink, I felt how much power was in it. It was a far too vast amount for even the Jinsei no Hogo. I think that Yami has something else inside of him, but I¡¯m not sure as to what that is. In the event that this ¡°thing¡± awakens, he may cause serious injuries to all of us. That¡¯s where you healing ability would come into play.¡±

    ¡°Phil,¡± Shitto said, ¡°no one has ever gotten a red on that test.¡±

    ¡°He got a red on the soul capacity test?¡± Shippai glared at Posche. ¡°Why don¡¯t you tell me these things?¡±

    Posche set down his book.

    ¡°Do you want to inform the kid that he is going to be the target of almost every echo? Do you want to tell him how powerful he is, and that it is his duty to protect every soul on Earth?¡± Posche had raised his voice.

    ¡°He¡¯s gonna find out one way or the other! You hiding this from him will just make him trust you less and less, and you don¡¯t realize this,¡± Shippai yelled!

    ¡°I¡¯m with Shippai,¡± Shitto said. ¡°If he really is the Jinsei no Hogo, there¡¯s no sense in trying to hide it from him. It¡¯s hard enough trying to act like it¡¯s the same process that everyone goes through with him. We need to tell him sooner rather than later. If he becomes awakened any further, his life will be in danger, Phil. We should tell him tomorrow.¡±

    ¡°WE CAN¡¯T!¡± Shitto and Shippai looked shocked as Posche screamed. ¡°WE DON¡¯T HAVE A CLUE AS TO WHAT HE IS, AND TELLING HIM NOW WOULD BE LIKE PULLING THE PIN ON A GRENADE FULL OF GOD KNOWS WHAT!¡±

    ¡°Posche, you need to grow up. This is a child''s life you¡¯re putting in danger. I¡¯m not coming until you tell him.¡± Shippai walked over to the door and slammed it shut as she walked out.

    Posche had his fingers intertwined and was looking at the ground.

    ¡°And you , Shitto?¡±

    Shitto shrugged.

    ¡°I really think you need to tell him. I won¡¯t pause training, but as you said, Yami is full of unknowns right now, and I¡¯d rather not risk it without Shippai around.¡±

    Posche remained silent for a moment.

    ¡°I think he has Haisen trapped within him.¡±

    Shitto acknowledged this, yet remained silent.

    ¡°When we were training for Transparency,¡± Posche started, ¡°he described the making of his second soul holder as crystal-like. The only thing I can think of along with his ridiculous amount of life essence is that somehow Haisen has been sealed inside of him.¡±

    ¡°But he is a legend. And even the legend says that Haisen was defeated by the master Jinsei no Hogo. So how would he randomly appear in Yami, millennia later?¡±

    ¡°Like I said, it¡¯s just a hunch.¡±

    Shitto stood up.

    ¡°Well, I¡¯ll be back here tomorrow. Catch ya later, Phil.¡±

    Posche stopped Shitto before he walked out of the door.

    ¡°Shitto. Don¡¯t tell Shippai this. I don¡¯t trust her.¡±

    ¡°Got it, teacher.¡±

    <hr>

    The sidewalk was barely lit enough for Yami to see as he walked. The sound of his shoes hitting the concrete resonated throughout the neighborhood.

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you go back to our home?¡± The mysterious voice of Akahishi disrupted all of Yami¡¯s thoughts.

    ¡°Is that you, Akahishi?¡±

    ¡°It is indeed, my dear Yami. Now, why is it?¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t realize you wanted me to go there again. Hell, I didn¡¯t even know you were real! I thought that was just a dream!¡±

    ¡°Dreams,¡± Akahishi began, ¡°Can be reality within a blink of an eye. Though, I suppose, this has ALWAYS been your reality. Now, why don¡¯t we head back there?¡±

    ¡°You mean in my dreams again?¡±

    ¡°Why waste your time on silly daydreams when you can go experience the real thing?¡±

    Yami kept walking towards his house.

    ¡°Fine. Tomorrow, you won¡¯t have such a luxury as to ignore me. I am the most persistent of beasts, like a cockroach, yet I am as mighty as a lion.¡±

    ¡°Whatever, you were trapped inside of a cave, so you can¡¯t be too much to handle. Go ahead and sleep for a few more millennia, why don¡¯t you.¡±

    ¡°Full of wise jokes. You are quite the clever one, Yami. Answer me this: What about Posche? Why didn¡¯t you ask him yourself about your history as the Jinsei no Hogo? Surely your heart desires answers to the burning question of ¡®What am I?¡¯¡±

    Yami did not respond.

    ¡°Well?¡±

    ¡°I trust Mr. P far more than I trust you. If it is something that is actually important, I¡¯m sure he would¡¯ve told me by now.¡±

    ¡°Suit yourself. You will see, and when you do, you will understand me. Goodbye now, Yami.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t come back!¡±

    As Yami entered his house, he prepared for a berating from his father, but he was nowhere to be found. Yami walked into the kitchen to find a note from his sister.

    ¡°Ah, so I have the house to myself this night. No better time to game than tonight!¡±

    Yami darted up the stairs and into his room, turned on his computer, and clicked a voice chat program. Just as he was about to click the ¡°Join Call¡± button, he quickly flicked down to his internet browser and searched ¡°Akahishi,¡± yet no results turned up.

    ¡°Trying to find out more about me? No chance, Yami. You would have to find a book about the history of the Jinsei no Hogo for that. Even then, it is unlikely you will find me. Why not just ask Posche? Better yet, go to our home!¡±

    ¡°No. There has to be something online.¡±

    Yami frantically searched for other keywords, such as ¡°Jinsei no Hogo¡± and ¡°P¨³bi¨¤n F¨£nxi¨£ng,¡± yet nothing appeared.

    Shaking, Yami sat in his chair, silently worrying over his burning questions.

    ¡°Interesting, is it not? It is as if the entire world does not know of the world hidden right amongst them, the world of P¨³bi¨¤n F¨£nxi¨£ng. Right under their noses are people with extraordinary powers.¡±

    ¡°There has to be SOMETHING. There¡¯s no way!¡±

    ¡°The only place I know of that may have your answers is a library, yet it is not the type of library that you may be thinking of. There is a library known only to master P¨³bi¨¤n F¨£nxi¨£ng that is filled with knowledge of Sirushi Inochi and the like. Do you know who may have access to such a place?¡±

    Yami stared blankly at the computer screen.

    ¡°...Mr. P¡­¡±

    <hr>

    Posche opened the door to his basement. He yawned as he walked up the staircase to the first floor of his house. As he reached the top step, a hand reached towards him from around the corner. Grabbing his collar, the hand hand threw Posche against a wall, causing some framed pictures to fall over. Through the darkness, Posche could only see a hooded figure. It held up its left hand, and as the sleeve fell, a Sirushi Inochi appeared on the figure¡¯s left forearm. The hand balled into a fist, and the fist became covered in a dark blue coat of life essence before the life essence took the shape and tenacity of electricity.

    ¡°Give me the Jinsei no Hogo, or you lose your life.¡±

    Posche looked the hooded figure in the face, and replied.

    ¡°Or you can go fuck yourself.¡±

    Posche spat in the hooded figures face, causing it to stagger backwards. Posche grabbed a kitchen knife that was next to him on a nearby counter and ducked. The figure pounded a hole straight through the wall.

    Posche drove the kitchen knife through the abdomen at such an angle that the figure began to be picked up with the momentum of the blade. Posche drove the knife, along with the figure that was picked up by it, down onto a table.

    ¡°How did you find us so easily,¡± Posche asked, now with his arms covered in the figure¡¯s blood?

    The figure chuckled.

    ¡°You think I would go down this easily?¡±

    The figure grabbed Posche by the arm and flung him over the other side of the table, causing Posche to slam his face into the side of the table. The figure pulled the knife out of itself and threw it away from Posche.

    Posche, now trying to stand up, was interrupted by the figure, who grabbed Posche by the hair.

    ¡°If you aren¡¯t gonna tell me,¡± the figure said, ¡°then I have no point in letting you live.¡±

    The figure swung Posche around 180 degrees, slamming him face first into a wall. The figure repeatedly slammed Posche¡¯s face into the wall until eventually dropping him on the floor. Posche¡¯s face was badly battered and bloody. The blue electricity formed on the figure¡¯s hand again.

    ¡°Goodbye, Posche.¡±

    As the figure started to swing its fist towards Posche, a bright blue sphere slammed into the side of its torso, sending the figure through the wall into another room.

    ¡°First,¡± Yami yelled, ¡°he¡¯s gonna answer my questions!¡±

 Chapter 8 - Tales of the Ancients

    Posche picked himself up from the floor. His vision was blurred, and the stream of blood on his face caused the tip of his nose to tickle as it dripped onto the ground. A slight ringing was the only sound his ears could pick-up. Posche managed to sit himself against the wall which had a large hole in it from his face being slammed into it. As he turned his head to his left, he noticed Yami wasn''t standing in the same position as when Posche blacked out. Posche began to force himself onto his feet. He saw the kitchen knife on the floor a distance away from him on the floor. Bending down to pick it up, Posche inspected the knife. As he noticed the newly formed burns on the handle, the ringing slowly started to fade, and the muffled sounds of pounding started to pulsate into his eardrums. Turning towards the source of the noise revealed a fresh hole through a wall, creating an entrance into the living room of Posche¡¯s house.

    Climbing through the hole in the wall revealed a scene of carnage. A coffee table was smashed in half with a man unconscious and Yami on top of of him, forcing his fists onto the man¡¯s face with enough force to cause loud flesh-on-flesh sound to reverberate. Posche could now hear Yami grunting as he punched. Yami stopped swinging his fists.

    ¡°Mr. P¡­ what are you hiding from me¡­ what does it mean to be the Jinsei no Hogo!¡±

    Yami turned around towards Posche. Blood covered his fists, shirt, and some had splattered onto his face. Opening his eyes revealed that Yami¡¯s right eye no longer had a pupil or iris. They were replaced by a jagged red line that spanned the entire visible eye, and the typically white padding was replaced by a black void. Posche¡¯s eyes widened in response.

    ¡°Y-Yami, you need to calm down. I will explain everything.¡±

    Yami gritted his teeth.

    ¡°YOU ALWAYS SAY THAT YOU FILTHY LIAR!¡±

    Yami lunged himself at Posche, and at an alarming speed. Posche slid his right hand down a door behind him, then ducked while simultaneously kicking the door open. Yami flew into the meadow, covering himself in dirt. Quickly picking himself up, he threw himself at Posche once again.

    ¡°YOU BASTARD! I¡¯LL KILL YO-¡±

    Posche slammed the door shut, sliding his hand down it once again. In the meadow, Yami hit his head on the door. Throwing himself up again, he began to tug on the doorknob, but to no avail. The door was securely shut. Yami pounded on the door. Yami began to scream for Posche repeatedly.

    ¡°YOU BASTARD! YOU LIAR! GET BACK HERE! I¡¯LL RIP YOU APART!¡±

    <hr>

    In the living room of Posche¡¯s house, Posche walked towards the broken coffee table, in which a man, presumably the hooded figure, laid, covered in blood and bruises from Yami¡¯s onslaught. The right side of the man¡¯s abdomen was seared, and the clothing that had covered the site of impact was missing. Posche heard a gurgle.

    ¡°..that monster¡­ what is he? There¡¯s¡­ no way that¡¯s him¡­¡±

    Posche looked down on this man.

    ¡°How did you find him?¡±

    The man smirked.

    ¡°The Jinsei no Hogo¡­ holds many wonders¡­ Who wouldn¡¯t be attracted? After all¡­ we¡¯re all like flies to shit.¡±

    The man¡¯s breathing stopped.

    ¡°This guy really had no plan, did he.¡±

    Posche examined the man''s left forearm. A chain of three triangles intertwined with each other laid on it.

    ¡°As tragic as this is, I have much more pressing concerns.¡±

    Posche looked towards the door that Yami fell into.

    ¡°I must call them immediately.¡±

    <hr>

    ¡°Why did you lie to me!¡±

    Yami was punching trees, causing large holes to form in them.

    ¡°Everyone always lies to me! I trusted you!¡±

    ¡°Yami¡­ you can trust me. Let us go home.¡±

    Yami stopped punching the tree and gritted his teeth with his fosts clenched at his sides.

    ¡°Even if you aren''t lying to me, I can''t trust you¡­ I can''t trust anyone, not even myself.¡±

    ¡°But you are forgetting our purpose, Yami. Look at how strong I have made you in this very short and abrupt amount of time! Imagine the possibilities if I am released!¡±

    ¡°BURN IN HELL!¡±

    Yami resumed his tree punching routine.

    <hr>

    Posche laid on the floor in his living room as Shippai and Shitto ran in.

    As Shippai ran towards Posche, Shitto yelled at Posche.

    ¡°Where is he?!?!¡±

    Posche stood up and walked to the door and slid his right hand down it once again.

    ¡°Shitto, try to not harm him.¡±

    ¡°Posche,¡± Shippai said, ¡°Come sit down. I''ll heal you.¡±

    Shitto opened the door and darted through it. Posche sat down onto his couch, and Shippai began to have a green substance ooze out from under her shirt, down her arm, and into her hand. She began to coat Posche in it.If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

    ¡°What the hell happened, Posche?¡±

    Posche pointed at the man on the ground.

    ¡°He attacked me, but Yami saved me. That man did something to Yami, though. I think it''s a mind manipulation technique.¡±

    Shippai looked over at the man.

    ¡°Posche, what are you hiding from me?¡±

    <hr>

    Yami was now on a river bank, smashing his hand into the large rocks that lay next to it. Shitto yelled at Yami from a tree.

    ¡°Hey, what the hell do you think you''re doing? Stop that and calm down!¡±

    Yami hurled a medium sized rock, about the size of his torso, at Shitto, who jumped to another branch in response.

    ¡°Shitto,¡± Yami shouted, ¡°do you know what I am?!?!¡±

    Shitto gritted his teeth.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± he snarled. ¡°You''re a fucking monster!¡±

    ¡°What was that?!?!¡±

    Shitto swooped down from the branch and punched Yami in the jaw at an astounding speed. The impact sent Yami falling face first into the river. Trying to pick himself up, Yami was stopped by a hand that was now gripping his head. Yami started splashing around in the water in an attempt to break free.

    ¡°Yami! Stop!¡±

    Yami started to slow his struggling until he was just sitting still in the water with his eyes closed.

    ¡°Yami,¡± Shitto said. ¡°Look in the water.¡±

    Yami opened his eyes and saw his reflection in the water. There was blood and dirt all over him. His right eye was not the same as his left.

    ¡°Yami, you''re a monster, but I know that you''re human. Don''t let whatever that is inside of you take over.¡±

    Yami shut his eyes, and tears rolled down his cheeks.

    ¡°Shitto,¡± Yami choked out, ¡°is Posche okay?¡±

    ¡°He''s pretty beat up, but I don''t know if you did anything to him.¡±

    ¡°And¡­ the other guy?¡±

    ¡°Yami, you killed him.¡±

    <hr>

    Shippai helped Posche walk to the door with his arm over her shoulder. Yami was sitting against a tree in the shade with his back turned away from the door. Shitto was waiting near the door with his arms crossed.

    ¡°Shitto,¡± Posche said, ¡°did you calm him down?¡±

    Shitto didn¡¯t look towards Posche.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Shitto said, with a small tone of anger in his voice. ¡°He¡¯s calm alright.¡±

    ¡°Thank goodness. I hope that person didn¡¯t tell him anyth-¡±

    ¡°He knows, Phil. That¡¯s why he flipped out in the first place. You should¡¯ve told him.¡±

    Posche did not respond.

    ¡°Shippai, please let me go. I¡¯ll be okay now.¡±

    Shippai dropped his arm.

    ¡°Thank you. Both of you. Shippai, can you please tend to Yami?¡±

    Shippai walked towards Yami without a word being spoken. As soon as she was out of earshot, Shitto said something more.

    ¡°He knows something isn¡¯t right with him, too. I think your theory is shaping up to be right.¡±

    Posche silently accepted what Shitto had said.

    <hr>

    Yami silently looked at the huge forest in front of him. The wildlife seemed to be absent, and the only noise he heard was the cold breeze that reminded him of what he had done.

    ¡°Hey.¡±

    Yami did not do anything in response to Shippai.

    ¡°Are you hurt? I¡¯m here to heal you.¡±

    Yami nodded and stood up. Taking off his shirt revealed bruises and cuts all over him. Shippai started to cover Yami with the green substance.

    After a few moments, Yami¡¯s bruises were gone, and most of the cuts were closed.

    ¡°Anything else, Yami?¡±

    Putting his shirt back on, Yami shook his head and sat back down. Sighing, Shippai sat down next to Yami.

    ¡°What¡¯s up, Yami?¡±

    Yami clenched his fists.

    ¡°I went beserk. I tried to attack Shitto, injured Mr. P, and killed that man¡­ I don¡¯t even know what came over me¡­ I¡¯m a monster.¡±

    ¡°You wanna know something, Yami? I really haven¡¯t liked you for a while. You always seemed like you were missing something, and you never had a clue how to treat a girl, but today, you did something that I can¡¯t ignore.¡±

    Yami gritted his teeth to prepare himself for the berating he was about to feel.

    ¡°You saved our teacher.¡±

    Yami loosened his grip and relaxed his mouth. He turned to look at Shippai who was smiling.

    ¡°I have a Sirushi Inochi that was made to save people, but you did it on your own. Good job, Yami.¡±

    Tears began to form in Yami¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°Now stop sulking over that guy and continue training to become the greatest echo, no, PERSON that has ever lived!¡±

    Wiping his eyes, Yami smiled.

    ¡°Thank you, Shippai. I will!¡±

    Shippai stood up.

    ¡°Although this is gonna sound contradictory, I think you should relax for the day. I healed your wounds, but you are still gonna be pretty sore.¡±

    Yami nodded. Shippai walked back to the door.

    ¡°Alright, Posche. I got him in high spirits, but now it¡¯s your time to talk to him. Tell him what he deserves to know. Otherwise, I¡¯m done. I have my own life to worry about too.¡±

    Posche looked at the ground.

    ¡°Phil, go.¡±

    Posche looked up at Yami again, and walked towards him.

    ¡°Yami!¡±

    Yami, quickly remembering that he attacked Posche, turned to face him.

    ¡°Mr. P¡­ I¡¯m so sorry that I lunged at you!¡±

    ¡°Yami, don¡¯t apologize! I came here to thank you. You saved my life. That man would¡¯ve killed me if you wouldn¡¯t have shown up. But I also owe you an apology. I should¡¯ve told you earlier. What it means to be the Jinsei no Hogo, that is.¡±

    Yami fell silent.

    ¡°I was fearful for what may happen to you if I told you, but people are already noticing that you are alive, so there¡¯s no more hiding it. Come with me.¡±

    Walking just behind him, Yami followed Posche to the door, which Posche opened to a large library. The texts on the shelves showed their age.

    ¡°Welcome to the Library of the Jinsei no Hogo. This library contains knowledge of Sirushi Inochi, and the tales of the previous Jinsei no Hogos. One could say that this is your personal library now.¡±

    Yami began to walk around.

    ¡°This huge library¡­ is mine?¡±

    Posche handed Yami a book.

    ¡°Before you read anything else, I want you to read this book.¡±

    Yami looked at the cover of the book. It was titled ¡°Jinsei no Hogo: A History and Culture.¡± There was no author.

    ¡°Mr. P, is this about me?¡±

    ¡°Yes, and all of your previous lives. It also explains what it means to be a Jinsei no Hogo.¡±

    Yami gulped. Opening the cover of the book, Yami saw a message that was glowing blue. It read:

    To the Jinsei no Hogo,

    If you have found this book, that means you are starting, or are already, at the most important point in your lives. This is a message that only you can read. No one can even trace a presence in this book.

    I am Jitsu-

    ¡°Hey, Yami! What¡¯re you looking at? I¡¯m still trying to talk to you.¡±

    Yami shut the book.

    ¡°Yeah, sorry. What were you saying, Mr. P?¡±

    ¡°Currently, only I have the ability to come here. So if you need in here, ask me.¡±

    ¡°I will.¡±

    Posche sat down in a chair.

    ¡°So, there¡¯s something I must tell you before you even begin the book. If someone kills you, they will absorb the ability that you have. The ability to learn any Sirushi Inochi, that is. That is the reason that man attacked me, and you will likely be the target of many people.¡±

    Yami looked down silently at the book.

    ¡°There are things I am doing to help you stay in your own house, though. With the help of Shitto and Shippai, I have placed life essence nodes around your house so that they will mask your presence.¡±

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    Posche smiled.

    ¡°No problem. Let¡¯s call it a day. Go home and get some rest. We¡¯ll resume training in a couple of weeks.¡±

    Yami nodded and began to walk out of the door, but then stopped abruptly.

    ¡°A couple weeks!?!? That¡¯s when school starts!¡±

    Posche smiled.

    ¡°Sorry Yami, but as a teacher, I also have to prepare! Make sure to have that book read by the time school starts, okay Yami?¡±

    Yami grinned and nodded his head once more.

    ¡°For sure. See ya at school, Mr. P!¡±

    Yami walked out of the door, leaving Posche to himself. Sliding his hand down the door, he walked back towards the bookshelves.

    ¡°I suppose I should touch up on how to teach him my Sirushi Inochi.¡±

    <hr>

    As Yami shut the door, Shitto saluted him.

    ¡°Welcome, Jinsei no Hogo, sir!¡±

    ¡°Knock that off!¡±

    ¡°Really though, I can¡¯t wait to help you out.¡±

    Yami smiled.

    ¡°Thanks, Shitto!¡±

    ¡°See ya at school, Yami,¡± Shippai said, walking into the door, which now led outside.

    ¡°Thanks! See you two at school!¡±

    Shippai and Shitto walked through the door, leaving Yami alone. He glanced in the direction of the cave, but then looked back down at the book in his hands.

    ¡°Burn in hell, Akahishi.¡±

    Darting through the door, Yami ran down the street in the direction of his house.

    ¡°Now that all of this boring introductory stuff is done, I can get to being me. The Jinsei no Hogo!¡±

 Chapter 9 - The Student Returns

    Beep beep beep

    Yami rubbed his groggy eyes. He looked at his alarm clock and saw that it was 7:00 a.m.

    ¡°Wow, I woke up on time for once.¡±

    Going through his morning routine again, Yami was interrupted by a knock at his door. As Yami opened the door with his toothbrush still in his mouth, he was surprised to see Shitto.

    ¡°Shitto,¡± Yami said with his mouth still full of toothpaste, slightly muffling his voice. ¡°What''re you doing here?¡±

    Shitto smiled.

    ¡°I''m here to walk to school with you, of course!¡±

    Yami shut the door in his face.

    ¡°Yami, that''s a little mean, don''t you think?¡±

    <hr>

    Yami walked out of his house to find Shitto was sitting on his porch.

    ¡°Shitto, you are serious?¡±

    ¡°Why else would I come over here. To say hi, just to see you later at school?¡±

    Yami began to walk down his porch steps and down the sidewalk.

    ¡°Seriously though, Shitto. What''s up?¡±

    ¡°Phil asked me to escort you to school to make sure that if you are attacked, you have some back up.¡±

    Yami acknowledged this with a subtle ¡°oh,¡± but stopped next to a house with a large porch. From under it, two dogs came out and ran at Yami.

    ¡°Those strays are gonna attack Yami!¡±

    Shitto began to run at them, but stopped when he saw Yami reach out to them and begin to pet them both.

    ¡°Sorry, Shitto. These two are my friends! I pet them everyday on my way to school. They''re very friendly if you''d like to pet them.¡±

    Shitto reached out. One of the dogs walked to him and Shitto began to rub his head.

    ¡°Well guys, keep it real. I gotta go to school now.¡±

    Yami and Shitto continued walking to school. Nearing the entrance, Yami looked inquisitively at Shitto.

    ¡°Do we have any classes together?¡±

    Shitto and Yami both pulled out their class schedules and reviewed them. Upon examination, they both let out of sigh.

    ¡°Only first hour, huh?¡±

    ¡°Yup,¡± Yami replied. ¡°Too bad it''s English, too.¡±

    ¡°You guys have English first hour too?¡±

    Shitto and Yami turned around to greet the warm voice. This voice belonged to Rikai Ikko, whose hazelnut hair was just as elegant as her voice.

    ¡°Oh, how''s it going Rikai?¡±

    ¡°Pretty good. This year is gonna be hard I think.¡±

    Yami looked at her inquisitively.

    ¡°What makes you say that?¡±

    Rikai thought for a moment.

    ¡°Well, we''re freshman now. We''ll have to work our way up to the top again.¡±

    ¡°And then,¡± Shitto chimed in, ¡°we''ll be freshman again in college, and then for our workplace.¡±

    Rikai smiled.

    ¡°That is true.¡±

    ¡°Yami!¡±

    Yami spun around to find Posche.

    ¡°Oh, hey Mr. P!¡±

    ¡°How was your summer Yami? And hello Rikai, Shitto. How are you both?¡±

    ¡°Doing well,¡± they replied simultaneously.

    ¡°Yami, can you help me bring some stuff into my room?¡±

    ¡°Ya,¡± Yami responded.

    As Posche and Yami walked towards the parking lot, Rikai turned to Shitto.

    ¡°Did you see him at all this summer?¡±

    ¡°Nah. Why do you ask?¡±

    ¡°Well,¡± Rikai began, ¡°I heard that he had a falling out with Shippai, and I didn''t know how he was doing¡­¡±

    ¡°Should''ve just texted him. He wouldn''t have minded.¡±

    ¡°I guess you''re right.¡±

    ¡°C''mon, Rikai. Let''s get to class.¡±

    <hr>

    Posche opened a door that led to his classroom from outside the building, but it instead opened to the office where Yami had pooled his life essence into the ink.

    ¡°What''re we doing here, Mr. P?¡±

    Posche opened a drawer from behind his desk, and rustled around in it for a moment before pulling out a large plastic container that was translucent, as well as a notebook.

    ¡°This is your first assignment for the year, Yami. In this container is enough ink to make multiple Sirushi Inochi, and this notebook contains every piece of information I have my Sirushi Inochi. You need to learn it. Soon.¡±

    ¡°Why all the urgency, Mr. P? I haven''t even mastered MY Sirushi Inochi, and you want me to learn yours?¡±

    ¡°You must. Have you already forgotten what happened two weeks ago? People are after you, Yami. So you need to train every moment you have, and I won''t be able to give you access to the meadow or the library any time of day, so it is up to you to learn how to transport yourself.¡±

    Posche opened the door, which opened from a closet in his room.

    ¡°Now get going. Class will start in a few minutes.¡±

    ¡°Right. Thanks, Mr. P.¡±

    Placing the ink and journal into his backpack, Yami ran off to look for Shitto and Rikai. Posche let out a sigh.

    ¡°I wish all of my students were like that.¡±

    <hr>

    The sun was now just past the middle of the sky. A large herd of students walked out of Shifuku High School. Included in this crowd was an exhausted Yami, Shitto, and Rikai.

    ¡°Even though today was freshman orientation, I''m exhausted,¡± Rikai stated, which was a feeling her peers shared.

    ¡°Man, I am too. What about you, Yami?¡±

    ¡­

    Yami seemed lost in deep thought.

    ¡°I need to finish the book, learn Posche¡¯s Sirushi Inochi, MY Sirushi Inochi, and go to school on top of that¡­¡±

    Shitto smacked the back of Yami¡¯s head.

    ¡°Ow! What was that for?¡±

    ¡°We asked you a question!¡±

    Rikai chuckled as they walked home.

    <hr>

    Yami sat at his desk, blindly watching television with his hands in the ink, saturating it all. As the episode ended, Yami pulled his hands out of the ink. Similar to before, his hands had no trace of ink on them. Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

    Creak

    Yami¡¯s door opened behind him. Surprised, Yami turned around fast to see his sister, Reikoku Shinpai.

    ¡°What do you want, Rei?¡±

    Yami closed the ink and put it away in a drawer in his desk. Behind him, he heard a piece of paper fall to the ground.

    ¡°I''m going out with my friends, so you have to do these chores. Bye.¡±

    Yami walked over to the paper and picked it up. As he inspected it, he felt anger boil inside of him.

    ¡°Rei,¡± Yami yelled at her!

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°Paint your room?¡± Yami crumpled the list and through it at her. ¡°You know damn well you wouldn''t do this yourself. Now get lost.¡±

    ¡°YOU LITTLE SHIT! I''M GONNA TELL DAD!¡±

    ¡°Still can''t do anything but yell at me and tell on me, huh?¡± Yami slammed his door shut.

    From under his floor, Yami could hear his sister call for their father. Yami could just barely hear their muffled voices.

    ¡°Paint your room? I¡¯m not paying for that shit. Fuck your friends, you can stay in your room and stare at the paint for tonight.¡±

    ¡°But Da-¡±

    ¡°I said no you stupid bitch!¡±

    Yami sighed.

    ¡°Yet another charming night in the Shinpai household¡­¡±

    Yami got the ink out of his drawer and continued to saturate the ink with his life essence.

    ¡°Hopefully I¡¯ll have some peace and quiet for the rest of the night.¡±

    <hr>

    Rikai sat alone atop her bed in her room, talking on her cellphone.

    ¡°...ya, this year is gonna be so much fun! ...Yami? I have one class with him, why? ...What? Why do you get more classes with him?!¡±

    Rikai hugged her pillow tightly.

    ¡°Let me know if anything happens. He seems¡­ different this year. I think that Shippai really got to him¡­ Oh, it¡¯s already 10 p.m.! I¡¯ll talk to you later, Shinki! Bye bye!¡±

    Pressing the red phone icon, Rikai set her phone next to heer on the bed.

    ¡°I really do hope that Yami and I talk to each other more¡­¡±

    <hr>

    Yami walked with Rikai and Shitto to school the next day. Rikai noticed that Yami¡¯s right hand was tightly clenched.

    ¡°Hey, Yami. What¡¯s wrong with your hand?¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡± Yami looked down at his hand, and noticed it was tightened. Relaxing his hand, he laughed. ¡°Sorry, my arm is sore from working out last night, so it was just tightened up.¡±

    Rikai looked attentively at Yami¡¯s body.

    ¡°He does seem to have gotten more buff¡­¡±

    As they neared the school, Yami stopped suddenly. Both Rikai and Shitto turned to look at him.

    ¡°Hey,¡± Shitto said. ¡°What¡¯s up, Yami?¡±

    Yami walked away from Rikai and Shitto.

    ¡°Sorry, I gotta go see Mr. P. I¡¯ll see you guys in English!¡±

    Rikai and Shitto continued to walk towards their class.

    <hr>

    ¡°Very nice job, Yami!¡±

    Yami¡¯s right forearm was now covered with a zigzagged line.

    ¡°I haven¡¯t tried it yet, but I¡¯m working on it.¡±

    ¡°No,¡± Posche said. ¡°Seeing as though you can already use Transparency with it, it should be no trouble for you to learn it, especially since you know how it works.¡±

    Yami sat himself down in a hair and sighed.

    ¡°Mr. P, this is seeming very overkill. It has been nearly 4 weeks, and no one has attacked me. I¡¯m starting to think that the first guy was just a fluke.¡±

    ¡°Yami, if you do not want to become strong to protect yourself, become strong to protect others.¡±

    ¡°Ya, ya. I¡¯m off, Mr. P.¡±

    Yami walked out of Posche¡¯s classroom. As he turned the corner, he ran into something. Allowing a small ¡°ow¡± to slip out, Yami looked to see what he had ran into. A blond girl lay on the floor.

    ¡°OH! Are you okay? That was totally my bad, sorry!¡±

    Yami reached his hand out to pick her up. Opening her eyelids revealed two orbs that were frost blue.

    ¡°No problem, accidents happen. But man, you sure ran into me hard, didn¡¯t you?¡± The girl giggled and grabbed Yami¡¯s hand. Pulling her up, Yami noticed that her knee was bleeding.

    ¡°Oh, I can give you a bandage for that knee. What¡¯s your first class?¡±

    ¡°I have P.E. first hour.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s sit on this bench then.¡± Yami took a knee as the girl sat on the bench. Yami opened a compartment of his bag and retrieved a large bandage. Taking off the plastic cover, Yami firmly placed the bandage on her knee.

    ¡°There we go, good as new!¡±

    ¡°Thank you, um¡­ What was your name?¡±

    ¡°Yami. Yami Shinpai. And yours?¡± The girl blushed and showed a face of shock.

    ¡°You¡¯re Yami Shinpai?! You¡¯re in my fourth, fifth, and sixth hour! I¡¯m Shinkiya Acuta, but everyone just calls me Shinki.¡±

    ¡°Why did you sound so surprised to find out I was Yami?¡±

    ¡°Well, Rinkai told me about you, and I heard your name in class, but I didn¡¯t expect such a coincidence!¡±

    The bell rang, signifying that class would begin shortly.

    ¡°Well, I guess I¡¯ll see you later, Yami!¡±

    ¡°For sure! Adios, Shinki!¡±

    As Yami and Shinki began to walk away from one another, Shinki blushed.

    ¡°So¡­ You''re Yami Shinpai¡­ It actually worked!¡±

    <hr>

    Sitting in his seat, Yami set his bag down next to him. As he sat back upright, Rinkai turned around to face him. She smiled.

    ¡°Where have you been, Yami?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve been helping Mr. P setup his lab. Poor guy can barely lift 10 lbs!¡±

    Rinkai let out a small giggle.

    ¡°That¡¯s so like you.¡±

    Yami looked at Rinkai inquisitively.

    ¡°So¡­ like me?¡±

    Rinkai nodded.

    ¡°That¡¯s what I said, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    ¡°What do yo-¡±

    The teacher walked into the room and dropped his bags. Class started. The teacher began to draw on the whiteboard and lecture the class.

    ¡°Oh, Rinkai,¡± Yami whispered. ¡°I met this girl named Shinkiya Acuta. Apparently she¡¯s your friend?¡±

    ¡°Oh, you mean Shinki?!?!¡±

    The teacher turned to look at them, halting class temporarily. Yami and Rinkai turned and looked at the board and became quiet.

    ¡°As I was saying before our interruption, the subject directly interacts...¡±

    Rinkai turned herself back towards Yami.

    ¡°Anyways, ya. Shinki is my best friend! She just moved her this year. Maybe we could all hang out sometime, us three and Shitto!¡±

    ¡°Ya,¡± Yami responded. ¡°That sounds good.¡±

    <hr>

    In his room, Yami was swiping his right hand on his door. The zigzagged line was know starting to gain some curvature. Yami opened his door into the meadow.

    ¡°Despite all the training I¡¯ve been doing with Mr. P¡¯s technique, my own Sirushi Inochi is still lacking.¡±

    Yami began to form spheres and slam them into trees. The tree remnants flashed a greenish-yellow.

    ¡°Hello, Yami. Would you pay me a visit? I am getting ever so lonely.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not listening to you, Akahishi. I thought we¡¯ve already been over this.¡±

    ¡°What a shame. I thought I could truly help you with your training this time, but alas, an old dog can never keep up with puppies.¡±

    Yami sat down underneath a tree. As he began to doze off, Yami set an alarm on his phone for 6 a.m., and fell fast asleep.

    ¡°You know, Yami, more things happen in your life than you can see.¡±

    <hr>

    Yami¡¯s phone woke him at 6 a.m. as he had set it to do so. Trying to stand up, Yami felt a pain in his left hand.

    ¡°Man,¡± Yami thought to himself. ¡°I took training a little too seriously yesterday.¡±

    Opening the door from the meadow to his bathroom, Yami began to disrobe. Taking off his shirt revealed that he had become not only more toned, but had more muscle mass as well. What was worrisome, however, was his left forearm and hand. Burn marks and cuts went all the way up his arm to his elbow, which was worst at the palm of his hand.

    ¡°This isn¡¯t good. Looks like I¡¯m staying home today.¡±

    After showering, Yami cleaned his arm more properly and bandaged it. Laying down on his bed in his sweatpants, Yami looked out of his window. The month of October had begun to show its beauty. The various colors of the oak leaves calmed Yami to the point of entering slumber once again.

    <hr>

    ¡°Hey, Rinkai!¡±

    Rinkai walked up to Shitto.

    ¡°Hey Shitto!¡±

    Rinkai looked around.

    ¡°Where¡¯s Yami?¡±

    Shitto shrugged.

    ¡°He texted me and said he was staying home for the day.¡±

    ¡°Is he sick?¡±

    Shitto shook his head.

    ¡°No, he said he hurt his hand yesterday.¡±

    ¡°I see. Maybe after school today we can go check on him?¡±

    Shitto smiled.

    ¡°Ya, I¡¯m sure he¡¯d like that.¡±

    Sitting down in the classroom, the teacher began his normal lectures.

    ¡°Still, I wonder how Yami hurt his arm.¡±

    Without notice, the door to the classroom flew off its hinges and hit the teacher, sending him into his desk. The students in the classroom gasped and stood up. Blood began to flow from behind the desk. The clicking of boots echoed as a man in military fatigues entered the room.

    ¡°Which one of you is Yami Shinpai?¡±

    No one in the room answered him.

    ¡°Oh, of course. May I introduce myself. I¡¯m the guy who will slaughter everyone in this school if you don¡¯t tell me who Yami Shinpai is.¡±

    ¡°Y-Y-Yami isn¡¯t h-h-here today,¡± one of the students managed to spit out.

    The man walked over to the student and grabbed him by the collar.

    ¡°He isn¡¯t here today?¡±

    ¡°Y-y-yes sir.¡±

    The man dropped the boy.

    ¡°I like you. I¡¯ll let you leave. Everyone else, you are staying here.¡±

    The boy began to run towards the exit. A desk flew and hit the boy in the legs, causing him to fall and yell in pain.

    ¡°On second thought, the more hostages I have, the more likely it is that I will get him.¡±

    Shitto grabbed Rinkai and put her behind him.

    ¡°Rinkai,¡± he whispered. ¡°Text Yami and tell him to get to Posche¡¯s class.¡±

    ¡°But, that guy, he killed our teacher and he¡¯s gonna kill Yami too!¡±

    ¡°Do it!¡±

    The man turned to look at Shitto. As he began to walk over to him, Shitto let go of Rinkai.

    ¡°Now who are you? You seem like a tough guy.¡±

    Shitto glared at the man. The man began to inch closer to his face until there was virtually no space in between them.

    ¡°You know where Yami Shinpai is, don''t you?¡±

    ¡°No, but I know your mom sucks a good dick at the local soup kitchen.¡±

    The man grabbed Shitto¡¯s left arm and snapped it with just his index finger and thumb. Shitto let out a blood curdling scream. Shitto received a flurry of punches to his stomach that made him cough up blood.

    ¡°That was a funny joke! You got anymore?¡±

    ¡°No, but I have to ask. Who taught you how to punch? Your mother?¡±

    Another swing was sent towards Shitto, but Shitto avoided it.

    ¡°C¡¯mon dude, you have to swing faster than that.¡±

    <hr>

    Students hurriedly walked into a closet. Whispers could be heard, most of which asking if this was a drill, if someone had died. Posche began to close the door behind the last student.

    ¡°Keep walking down the trapdoor. Keep heading straight until you reach outside. The cops will rescue you there.¡± Posche shut the door to the closet and slid his hand down it.

    ¡°There. Now even if I fall to these terrorists, they won¡¯t get the students.¡±

    Posche hugged a wall as peeked through his door. In the hallway, he could see three people. All of which had masks. One in the middle was much more slim, and looked more feminine compared to the other two, who were much more masculine.

    ¡°I thought Akiji was going to grab the kid and leave within a couple of minutes! What¡¯s the hold up?!¡±

    ¡°Shut it! He said he was absent today, so we¡¯re gonna have to find his house.¡±

    ¡°So, they¡¯re after Yami? I have to stop them, somehow.¡±

    The group was about to pass Posche¡¯s door.

    ¡°Oh well. You guys see the game last ni-¡±

    A gurgling noise was heard as one of the men fell with a slice across his throat. Posche stood behind him with a scalpel in his right hand.

    ¡°You prick!¡±

    The other man leapt towards Posche at an alarming speed, promptly leading Posche to fall backwards as if to avoid the man barreling at him.

    ¡°So, they¡¯re using Phys Mods? I¡¯m not gonna stand a chance unless I can take this guy out fast. As for the girl¡­¡±

    Posche darted down the hall and hid behind a pillar.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to have to determine what it is she has.¡±

    The woman pointed at the pillar Posche was behind.

    ¡°Go get him, Jiro.¡±

    Posche looked behind him to see the man dart at him again.

    ¡°What the hell?!?! He got faster!¡±

    Jumping to the other side of the hall, Jiro crashed into the pillar that Posche had been behind. Letting go a sigh of relief, Posche turned his attention to the woman, who remained in the same spot she was earlier.

    ¡°Looks like I¡¯ll have to take her out first.¡±

    Posche threw the scalpel at Jiro¡¯s leg, hitting him in the upper left thigh. Jiro promptly let out a scream of pain. Taking advantage of this time, Posche drew another scalpel and darted at the woman.

    ¡°You¡¯re mine now!¡±

    The scalpel was on point with the woman''s eye.

    <hr>

    A fist punched a brick wall with such force that it left a clean hole. Shitto was now on top of a bookshelf. His left arm was now turning shades of purple and red, and was limp. Shitto looked around. Everyone was gone.

    ¡°Thank god everyone got out. Now I can use my Sirushi Inochi.¡±

    A purple substance began to crawl into the shape of a small dagger.

    ¡°Let¡¯s dance, prick!¡±

    Shitto jumped off of the shelf and ran at Akiji. Akiji threw a nearby desk in the direction of Shitto, who side stepped to the left and vaulted over a desk. Leaping back at Akiji, Shitto flipped the knife over in his hand to do a more powerful stab. As he landed, Shitto felt the knife drive into Akiji.

    ¡°It¡¯s over.¡±

    <hr>

    A hand grabbed Posche¡¯s leg, pulling him back and into the floor. The impact was so hard that it caused Posche to spit up blood.

    ¡°You underestimated Jiro. Now, you¡¯ll die.¡±

    ¡°At least I managed to save some of my students. Yami should be okay now, too. The cops will arrive any moment now.¡±

    <hr>

    A foot stomped on Shitto¡¯s body. Grabbing him by the face, a hand pulled Shitto up.

    ¡°It¡¯s over? Take a better look, pal.¡±

    Through the gaps between his fingers, Shitto managed to look. Akiji had a knife sticking out of his right shoulder.

    ¡°I could¡¯ve sworn I got him in the heart!¡±

    ¡°You missed, kid. Now tell me where Yami Shinpai is, and I won¡¯t make your end hurt as much as I want it to.¡±

    ¡°Go¡­ To¡­. Hell¡­¡±

    Akiji chuckled.

    ¡°You got balls, kid. I¡¯ll give ya that. But now, I¡¯ll kill you and go find Yami.¡±

    A rainbow throwing knife drove itself into the elbow of the arm holding Shitto, causing it to drop him. Yami stood in the doorway of the classroom.

    ¡°You won¡¯t have to look far, you bastard!¡±

 Chapter 10 - Emergency Response

    Blood dripped onto the tile floor of the school. A rainbow colored throwing knife fell onto the floor, causing a loud metallic sound to resonate throughout the school. The tip was stained with blood. A pair of feet wearing black dress shoes caused glass to crunch underneath them as the walked. The feet stopped as Posche leaned against a wall. The yelling of cops began to force themselves into earshot, allowing Posche to sit himself against a wall. Removing his hand from his stomach, Posche noticed that the wound had not stopped bleeding. Placing his hand back onto his stomach, he gladly accepted the police officer''s assistance in getting out of the school. Through the ringing in his ears, one officer¡¯s voice broke through to Posche.

    ¡°Is there anyone else in the school other than the terrorists?¡±

    Posche silently nodded his head. He held up his hand and put two fingers up.

    <hr>

    ¡°So¡­ you¡¯re the brat that brought all of this destruction to this school, Yami Shinpai,¡± Akiji chuckled. ¡°You look hardly old enough to have any hair on your nuts!¡±

    Yami glanced at Shitto.

    ¡°Fuck.. I was too late. I need to get him out of here now!¡±

    Akiji noticed Yami had seen Shitto.

    ¡°Ah, ah, ah!¡±

    Akiji grabbed Shitto by the top of his head using his left hand.

    ¡°If you want your friend, you¡¯ll have to give yourself to me first.¡±

    Yami gritted his teeth.

    ¡°Shitto¡­ bear with me a little bit longer,¡± Yami whispered under his breath.

    Yami began to charge his Sirushi Inochi with life essence. His tattoo began to become slightly more opaque.

    ¡°Fine. Just let him go.¡±

    Akiji lost his smile.

    ¡°You really have no bark OR bite. You are pathetic. Put your hands behind your back and walk backwards towards me.¡±

    Yami followed orders, placing his hands behind his back, turning around, and started walking towards Akiji.

    ¡°If I do what he says for now, he should let Shitto go. Then, I can focus on hi-¡±

    Yami heard a thud as Akiji dropped Shitto and charged at Yami. Akiji¡¯s left hand wrapped itself around Yami¡¯s neck as its momentum forced Yami onto the ground, breaking the tile which Yami¡¯s head had hit.

    ¡°You arrogant child! I want to kill you, yet you try to save your friend?¡±

    Yami smiled.

    ¡°What¡¯s so funny? Here, let¡¯s imprint that smirk of yours onto the tile, you scumbag!¡±

    Akiji picked Yami¡¯s head up, then slammed it back into the tile floor, making a loud shattering sound. Yami still smiled.

    ¡°You wanna know what¡¯s funny,¡± Yami asked Akiji?

    Akiji smirked.

    ¡°Let¡¯s hear it, pipsqueak.¡±

    Yami kicked the ground with his right foot, propelling himself into Akiji, causing him to lose just enough balance for Yami to dart out from underneath him. Yami created a sphere in his left palm and charged at the still staggered Akiji. With an unseen speed, Akiji smacked Yami¡¯s left arm into the ground, causing dirt and debris to expel itself from the ground. Yami¡¯s right hand reached behind himself in an attempt to draw his knife.

    ¡°Clever trick, but now..¡±

    Akiji seemingly teleported behind Yami due to his speed. Akiji placed his left foot on Yami¡¯s back while simultaneously gripping Yami¡¯s right arm, and forced his torso forward while leaving his right arm in Akiji¡¯s right arm, causing it to pop as it became dislocated. Yami screamed in pain.

    ¡°I gave you a chance, Yami. Now, I get to have some fun with you!¡±

    Yami was thrown into the air, then received a roundhouse kick to the chest from Akiji¡¯s right leg, sending him into a wall. Blood flew out of Yami¡¯s mouth as he tried to recover his breath. Before having any time to contemplate what had happened, Yami saw Akiji¡¯s fist aimed for his face. Yami threw himself at the ground, and while he avoided the punch that put a hole through the cinderblock wall that had Yami¡¯s imprint in it, he landed on the edge of a tipped over desk, hitting his ribs, which had already likely been fractured from the earlier encounter. Akiji ripped his hand out of the wall.

    ¡°You squirmy fuck!¡±

    Akiji threw his left fist at Yami. Yami rolled to his right, avoiding the attack. While Akiji was still ending his swing, Yami darted to Shitto, who was bleeding profusely.

    ¡°He doesn¡¯t have much time left! I have to end this quick! I only have one shot at this¡­¡±

    Akiji lept at Yami once again. His left hand was moving so quickly, it was as if you could see the air forming currents around it as it flew through the air.

    ¡°You¡¯re mine, Jinsei no Hogo!¡±

    Yami quickly formed a sphere in his left hand, and with a never before seen speed, charged Akiji.

    ¡°Shit,¡± Akiji thought to himself! ¡°He got faster! I¡¯m gonna have to stop it with my right hand!¡±

    As Akiji began to move his right hand toward Yami, Yami smiled.

    ¡°Too slow,¡± Yami yelled!

    Akiji¡¯s right arm was still dripping blood from the earlier conflict. The sphere drove itself into Akiji¡¯s palm, forcing his hand in the opposite direction and burned the flesh of his palm. Yami ducked, and as he flew over him, Akiji attempted to flip over to grab Yami on his descent down. Yami jumped over Akiji as he landed hard on his stomach, then drew his pocket knife with his left hand, slicing it across the back of both of Akiji¡¯s knees. Akiji let out a scream.

    ¡°Anyways,¡± Yami said, ¡°I suppose I should tell you what was so funny. You say I¡¯m pathetic because I was willing to sacrifice myself for Shitto, while you left your friends to die.¡±

    Akiji was overcome with a look of shock.

    ¡°What¡­ what do you mean?¡±

    ¡°Akiji, I killed them.¡±

    Akiji¡¯s expression changed from a look of shock to one of amusement as he broke out in laughter.

    ¡°No, I get that! What I meant was what you said before that! Ha ha ha! You said¡­ that they were my friends! You really have no understanding of this world, do you, Yami Shinpai? Let me tell you this! Friends will only drag you down! Enemies with common interests is where you will succeed!¡±

    ¡°Akiji, I feel sorry for you.¡±

    Akiji stopped smiling.

    ¡°You pathetic child. Don¡¯t ever feel sorry for your enemies.¡±

    They both fell silent.

    <hr>

    ¡°The terrorist has been identified as Akiji Yochi! He has two students hostage! All units, move in!¡±You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

    Large clusters of police with body armor, assault rifles, and assault shields swarmed into each entrance of the school. As the police neared Yami, their shouts and shuffling became more audible. Yami folded his pocket knife and returned it back into his pocket. Walking towards Shitto, Yami also found his rainbow throwing knife in a pool of blood, presumably Akiji¡¯s. Reaching to grab it with his right hand proved to be excruciatingly painful as Yami was forced to remember that his shoulder was dislocated. As Yami let out a small grunt, he reached for it instead with his left hand, then placed it next to his pocket knife. Finally reaching Shitto, Yami knelt next to him.

    ¡°Sorry I was a little late, Shitto.¡±

    Shitto forced a small grin.

    ¡°About¡­ time¡­¡±

    An officer appeared in the doorway.

    ¡°Don¡¯t move!¡±

    The officer reached for his radio.

    ¡°I found them! They¡¯re in room number 331! The students are critically injured, as well as the terrorist!¡±

    Yami looked down at his left hand. As he wiped the blood off his palm onto his shirt, he saw that Transparency was inactive. Confused, Yami tried to reactivate it, but his muscles simply strained.

    ¡°Over¡­ work? I¡¯m going to have to force some life essence to hide this or I may as well be dead.¡±

    Upon activating Transparency, Yami began to feel dizzy, and his vision began to blur.

    ¡°Shit¡­ I¡¯m all out of juice.¡±

    As Yami fell over onto the floor, more police and stretchers came into the room.

    <hr>

    Posche sat underneath a tree just outside of the school. A bandage was wrapped around his forehead and his leg. Taking a sip from a water bottle, Posche nearly choked when Yami and Shitto were wheeled out of the school doors on stretchers. Their clothes were stained with blood, and neither of them had retained their consciousness. As Posche attempted to stand, a firm hand kept him from overexerting himself. Posche looked up, and an older man, looking about 60 years old with grey hair and a slightly wrinkled yet stern face, looked back down on him.

    ¡°Dad, I must go with them. They are my students.¡±

    The older man shook his head.

    ¡°I can¡¯t let you do that. I¡¯m pulling enough strings as it is. The police are still going to want to question them.¡±

    ¡°Dad, this isn¡¯t their fault.¡±

    ¡°I know. I¡¯ll see if I can conduct the interviews. I am the Chief of Police, after all.¡±

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    The man rubbed Posche¡¯s head.

    ¡°Take it easy. Let me know if you need me to come over.¡±

    ¡°I will.¡±

    As the man began to walk away, he stopped for a moment.

    ¡°Also, I will need to explain all of this to me before the interviews.¡±

    With that, the man walked away from Posche and the tree.

    ¡°If Yami hadn¡¯t come and saved us, who knows what would¡¯ve happened. It is unfortunate that one other student was put in the ICU, and the teacher was killed, but considering how strong each member was, it¡¯s rather lucky we got off so easily¡­¡±

    ¡°Hey! Mr. Posche!¡±

    Rikai came running up to him. As she approached him, she covered her mouth with her hands.

    ¡°M-Mr. Posche¡­ You¡¯re all beat up¡­¡±

    Posche chuckled.

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing, really. I¡¯ve been worse. In any case, how are you holding up? You were in the same class as Shitto, right? If I recall correctly, you texted Yami for us,too.¡±

    Rikai nodded.

    ¡°It was terrible, to say the least. That man bust in, killed our teacher, hurt our friends¡­ Mr. Posche, how is Shitto?¡±

    ¡°Both him and Yami are a little beat up, but they¡¯re tough. Give them a couple of days and they¡¯ll be back to normal.¡±

    ¡°Yami was hurt too?!?!¡±

    ¡°I said too much already, I suppose.¡±

    ¡°Yes, but not nearly as bad as Shitto.¡±

    ¡°So Shitto is in a really bad condition right now?!?!¡±

    ¡°Oh man.¡±

    ¡°Ri...kai¡­¡±

    Rikai turned her head towards the ambulance. Peeking inside, she saw Yami and Shitto on the stretchers. Shitto held his thumb up and smiled.

    ¡°Thank¡­ you¡­ We¡¯re¡­ alright!¡±

    A tear slid down Rikai¡¯s cheek as she nodded her head. A paramedic asked her to step aside as he shut the doors, and the ambulance drove away hurriedly.

    ¡°See, Rikai? They¡¯re both very strong.¡±

    Rikai nodded.

    ¡°But how did they fight him, Mr. Posche? They didn¡¯t bring any weapons, so how?¡±

    Posche looked at the ground.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±

    <hr>

    Beep beep beep

    Yami laid still with hazy thoughts.

    ¡°Oh, my alarm clock¡­ I¡¯ll be late for school if I don¡¯t get up¡­¡±

    As Yami tried to move his left arm to reach for where he usually puts his alarm clock, he felt nothing. His arm did not move.

    ¡°What the¡­ Oh well, I¡¯m tired anyways.¡±

    Yami strained his face as he felt a numbing sensation in his arm. As his arm tensed, Yami still felt no response.

    ¡°I¡¯m not sleeping! Something is wrong!¡±

    As Yami strained all of his muscles in an attempt to move, he began to hear a distant voice call for him.

    ¡°Yami¡­ Yami¡­ Yami!¡±

    Yami jolted up as the voice seemed as though it was in his ear. Almost immediately, Yami clenched his stomach and fell back onto the hospital bed.

    ¡°Hey, you good man?¡±

    Yami looked over and saw Shitto, who was almost completely covered in bandages.

    ¡°Damn! They turned you into a mummy!¡±

    They both laughed.

    ¡°Ya, he was strong alright. Plus with Rikai being clingy to us, it was even harder to get her to leave so I could fight him.¡±

    Yami¡¯s face looked serious as he stared at the ceiling.

    ¡°Thanks, Shitto.¡±

    Shitto turned at looked at Yami.

    ¡°For what?¡±

    ¡°You saved everyone when they came after me. Thank you for covering for me.¡±

    Shitto turned back.

    ¡°Don¡¯t mention it. Besides, you said ¡®they?¡¯ What do you mean?¡±

    Yami closed his eyes.

    ¡°Akiji wasn¡¯t alone. There were three others. Posche got one of them, but I helped him clean them out.¡±

    Shitto turned to Yami, and if it weren¡¯t for the bandages covering his face, he would¡¯ve shown a shocked expression.

    ¡°You fought two others?!?!¡±

    ¡°Ya, but they weren¡¯t nearly as strong as Akiji.¡±

    ¡°What happened?¡±

    ¡°Well¡­¡±

    <hr>

    Posche drew a scalpel and darted at the woman.

    ¡°You¡¯re mine now!¡±

    The scalpel was on point with the woman¡¯s eye. Without warning, a hand grabbed Posche¡¯s leg, pulling him back and onto the floor. The impact was so hard that it caused Posche to spit up blood.

    ¡°You underestimated Jiro. Now, you¡¯ll die.¡±

    ¡°At least I managed to save some of my students. Yami should be okay now, too. The cops will arrive any moment now.¡±

    As Jiro raised his left leg to stomp on Posche¡¯s head, he was propelled into a glass case. A large hole was burned through his shirt, charing his back. The woman turned back to see the carnage that was made by Jiro¡¯s impact.

    ¡°What the..!¡±

    Turning back, she saw Yami lifting Posche onto his shoulder.

    ¡°Who are you!?¡±

    Yami walked Posche over to a wall and sat him down. Then, he turned to the woman.

    ¡°I¡¯m Yami Shinpai, and I¡¯m gonna kick your ass!¡±

    Yami charged towards the woman, but had to duck in order to evade Jiro¡¯s large swing.

    ¡°I thought I just took him out!¡±

    ¡°Yami! They¡¯re using Phys Mods!¡±

    ¡°Mr. P, I have no idea what you¡¯re talking about.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right, I have yet to teach Yami what Phys Mods are.¡±

    A flurry of punches sent at Yami caused him to stumble backwards, forcing him to trip. Looking up, Yami saw Jiro take a knee. His left leg was forming a pool of blood on the floor.

    ¡°Sanae¡­ I can¡¯t go on any longer¡­ I¡¯m losing my thoughts¡­¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s alright, Jiro.¡±

    A blade forced its way through Jiro¡¯s neck and out of his throat. As Jiro began to asphyxiate on what little blood he had left, he fell the the floor. The woman stood behind him with a stiletto heel in hand. The heel itself was a blade.

    ¡°Poor Jiro. While he wasn¡¯t blessed with smarts, he was incredibly strong. Wouldn¡¯t you agree?¡±

    Yami looked the woman in her eyes.

    ¡°You heartless bitch.¡±

    The woman¡¯s shoeless right foot drove itself into Yami¡¯s chin, sending him backwards. Catching himself, Yami landed on the ground and ran at the woman again. As Yami formed a sphere in his left hand, the woman seemingly vanished for a moment before appearing right in front of Yami and drilling her fist into his stomach.

    ¡°How is she so strong?!¡±

    As she pulled her fist away, she began to kick her right foot up again. A scalpel flew and sliced the bottom of her foot, causing blood to spurt out, as well as a scream.

    ¡°You fucker! I¡¯ll kill the Jinsei no Hogo, then obliterate you!¡±

    ¡°I saw it,¡± Yami said.

    The woman looked at Yami.

    ¡°What was that?¡±

    ¡°I saw it¡­ Your Sirushi Inochi!¡±

    Yami lept at the woman, swinging his fist at her. Barely blocking the incoming attack, the woman gritted her teeth.

    ¡°He saw my Sirushi Inochi? What does that even mean?¡±

    Yami forced another swing, pushing the woman into a wall. As the woman tried to recover from the attack, she glanced down at the floor to see Jiro crawling up behind Yami.

    ¡°Yes! Just a little more, Jiro!¡±

    ¡°You lose, Jinsei no Hogo!¡±

    Jiro reached for Yami. Yami turned to see Jiro, but was still unable to avoid his hand.

    ¡°Fantastic job, Jiro!¡±

    Yami fell onto his back as Jiro pushed him aside.

    ¡°So that¡¯s how it is¡­¡±

    The blade of the stiletto heel found itself a new home inside of Sanae¡¯s body, with a little help from Jiro. As Sanae coughed blood onto Jiro¡¯s face, he hugged her.

    ¡°Jiro¡­ You big softie¡­¡±

    The two collapsed onto the floor. Yami picked himself up, still unable to comprehend what had just happened. He jogged over to Posche who was still in a bad state.

    ¡°You good, Mr. P?¡±

    ¡°Yes, Yami. But Shitto¡­¡±

    Yami nodded.

    ¡°I¡¯m on it.¡±

    Yami pulled out a pen from his pocket and sat next to Posche. He then pulled off his right shoe and the sock that followed it.

    ¡°What are you doing, Yami?¡±

    Yami unscrewed the pen¡¯s handle, removing the ink cartridge.

    ¡°This is only temporary, but I found a way for me to use Sirushi Inochi I encounter. The book you gave me said I could do this, so I¡¯m trying it.¡±

    Yami replaced the ink cartridge with a capsule which he pulled from his pocket. Screwing it back into place, Yami took a deep breath, then forced the pen into the bottom of his foot. He drew a symbol that somewhat represented a flame, then put the pen back in his pocket.

    ¡°I saw this as she tried to kick me. It seems as though she could activate it to augment her body more than if she used her life essence normally.¡±

    Yami put his sock and shoe back on, then stood up.

    ¡°Alright, Mr. P. This is where we part ways.¡±

    ¡°Good luck, Yami.¡±

    ¡°Thanks.¡±

    As Yami began to jog away from Posche, Posche began to stand up. Glass crunched as his two black dress shoes walked past the display case Jiro had been smashed into. He leaned himself up against a wall, and inspected his stomach wound, which hadn¡¯t stopped bleeding.

    <hr>

    ¡°I see. You truly are one of a kind, Yami,¡± Shitto said, resting in his bed.

    Yami opened his eyes.

    ¡°I guess you lasted longer than Mr. P, huh.¡±

    Their laughter was cut off as Posche¡¯s father entered the room.

    ¡°Hello, gentlemen. I¡¯m Mr. Frank Posche, Chief of Shifuku Police.¡±

    Shitto and Yami looked at each other before turning back to the old man.

    ¡°Hello,¡± they said in unison.

    ¡°If I may ask,¡± Yami said inquisitively, ¡°why are you here?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m glad you asked! I¡¯m here to arrest you two!¡±

 Chapter 11 - Questioning

    Clicks were heard as handcuffs wrapped themselves around Yami¡¯s wrists.

    ¡°Why am I under arrest?! I was the one who was attacked!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll explain everything later. Shitto Yuutsu, due to your condition, we are allowing you to rest in the hospital as long as the doctors recommend. Do not attempt to leave this room unless you are under supervision of either police or hospital staff. Let¡¯s go, Yami.¡±

    Yami walked with Frank Posche out of the room and into the hallway. As they drove to the police station and walked into the interrogation room, neither Yami nor Frank spoke a word. As they entered, Frank spoke to the two policemen guarding the room.

    ¡°Both of you, go get some coffee or something.¡±

    Both of the officers responded with a ¡°Yes¡¯sir,¡± and abandoned their posts.

    ¡°There,¡± Frank said as he shut the door. ¡°Now we can speak.¡±

    Inside of the interrogation room sat a metal table with two metal chairs on both sides of it. On top lay a manilla folder, a hot plate with a pot full of coffee, two mugs, sugar packets, and small creamer pouches.

    ¡°What is it you want with me, Chief?¡±

    Frank walked to Yami¡¯s side of the table and undid his handcuffs. Yami rubbed his wrists and Frank began to speak to him.

    ¡°Well Yami, I¡¯d like to start this conversation by saying thank you. You saved my son and stopped those terrorists, who would¡¯ve likely killed some of my men. That being said, I have nothing but the utmost respect for you as a man. However, my occupation as Police Chief leads me to disagree with everything I stand for in regards to your situation. It is a conflict of interest, if you will.¡± Frank began to pour himself a cup of coffee. ¡°Would you like a cup? We have sugar and creamer.¡±

    ¡°Sure,¡± Yami said.

    Frank poured Yami a cup of coffee, and Yami opened one sugar packet and one creamer pouch and poured their contents into the cup.

    ¡°So, as a Police Chief, why am I under arrest? What crimes have I committed?¡±

    ¡°Well, Yami, I¡¯ll be frank with you. This world has a distorted view of justice. What you did was perfectly under law, and you did not inherently cause any trouble. But the President of the School Board will not stand with what has happened inside of his school. Not only does he have to pay for the damages to the school itself, but he must also pay for the hospital bills of the student and for the late teacher.¡±

    ¡°But with all due respect, none of this is my fault! AKIJI attacked the school. AKIJI hurt everyone. NOT ME! Besides, with a school like mine, he should have insurance!¡±

    ¡°I know Yami, but the President of the School Board is a very influential man. You may not know this, but he is also the mayor of this town. He will stop at nothing to get what he wants, may it be damning one of his students.¡±

    ¡°In that case, thanks for the coffee, but I¡¯d rather go meet my cellmate.¡±

    ¡°All hope is not lost yet, Yami. I am aware of your¡­ situation. Your teacher, Phil Posche, is my son. He has informed me of everything thus far, and I know you are currently being targeted by thousands of people right now.¡±

    ¡°Then why don¡¯t you pull some strings with the mayor? Get me the hell outta here!¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t, Yami. All we can do now is wait for the mayor to calm down and see what the media¡¯s reaction is.¡±

    ¡°Chief¡­ What¡¯ll happen to me if I¡¯m not released?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ll likely be locked for for multiple life sentences.¡±

    Yami looked at the ground.

    ¡°I¡¯m not going to sit idly by and be locked up like an animal.¡±

    ¡°I know, and I won¡¯t let you be. Like I said, I think you¡¯re a hero. No matter what the media says, you used your unfortunate circumstances to help others, which is more than you had to do at your age.¡±

    ¡°The media will be persuaded by the mayor, won¡¯t they?¡±

    ¡°They will, but humanity will prevail.¡±

    Yami closed his eyes.

    ¡°I hope.¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°Alright, Yami. I need you to tell me everything that happened on recording.¡±

    ¡°I hope you have enough tape.¡±

    <hr>

    Knock knock knock

    As the door slid open, Rikai walked into the room, waving her hand and carrying a basket full of fruit and flowers.

    ¡°Hey guys! I heard you were hospitalized here, so I figured I¡¯d come by and say hi!¡±Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

    Setting the basket on the table next to Yami¡¯s bed, she opened the curtain that separated the beds. Shitto waved his hand at Rikai.

    ¡°Hey, Rikai!¡±

    Rikai held her hands up against the sides of her face and let out a small scream.

    ¡°MUMMY!¡±

    ¡°Rikai, it¡¯s me! Shitto!¡±

    Rikai stopped screaming.

    ¡°Wait, that¡¯s you, Shitto?¡±

    ¡°Yes ma¡¯a-¡±

    Rikai began to poke Shitto¡¯s arms.

    ¡°Hey! Stop that!¡±

    Rikai sat on the bed behind her.

    ¡°Sorry, I just wanted to make sure that was you!¡±

    ¡°Of course it¡¯s me! Anyways, what¡¯s up?¡±

    ¡°Oh, I wanted to bring you and Yami something while you were staying in the hospital. Speaking of which, where is Yami?¡±

    ¡°Hmm¡­ How do I put this?¡± Shitto turned and looked at Rikai, speaking to her in a playful tone. ¡°He¡¯s under arrest!¡±

    Rikai froze.

    ¡°What do you mean, ¡®he¡¯s under arrest¡¯?¡±

    Returning to a more serious tone, Shitto began to explain the events that had unfolded.

    ¡°I am not to sure myself. A guy named Frank Posche came and arrested him. I think he took Yami to question him.¡±

    Rikai sighed.

    ¡°You guys are always getting into trouble. Why don¡¯t you guys just slow down?¡±

    Shitto chuckled.

    ¡°We just can¡¯t sit still.¡±

    Rikai looked at the floor.

    ¡°Shitto, I need to ask you something.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re always full of questions, Rikai. What is it this time?¡±

    Rikai looked up at Shitto.

    ¡°How were you two able to fight that guy?¡±

    Shitto¡¯s eyes widened.

    ¡°I mean, you two are the same age as everyone else, so why did you ask me to text Yami? That guy said he was going to kill us, Shitto! So why would you want him to kill Yami too?! I understand that you two are friends, but asking him to come and help you fight the guy who was going to kill him and his classmates is too far!¡±

    Shitto clenched his teeth. Tears ran down Rikai¡¯s face

    ¡°You wanted him to die, didn¡¯t you?! You aren¡¯t his friend at all!¡±

    ¡°What did you just say,¡± Shitto growled?

    ¡°I said you aren¡¯t Yami¡¯s friend! Anyone who hurts their friends isn¡¯t a friend of mine, either!¡±

    ¡°If you want to know how we were able to fight him, ask Yami. I don¡¯t have time for your bullshit.¡±

    Rikai was taken back by this remark.

    ¡°What did you just say to me?¡±

    Shitto rolled over in his bed.

    ¡°You heard me. Beat it.¡±

    Rikai wiped her face and stormed out of the hospital room. On her way down the hallway, she ran into Posche.

    ¡°Oh, Rikai! I¡¯m sorry, I didn¡¯t see you!¡±

    Rikai walked past Posche.

    Posche, looking confused, walked into Shitto¡¯s room.

    ¡°What¡¯s her deal?¡±

    Shitto didn¡¯t answer Posche.

    ¡°No problem. Tell me when you feel comfortable. Speaking of which, how are you feeling?¡±

    Shitto rolled onto his back.

    ¡°Minus feeling like I am being crushed on all sides by these bandages, pretty good. They have me on some strong painkillers, so I can¡¯t feel any pain.¡±

    Posche looked at the empty bed.

    ¡°They took Yami in?¡±

    Shitto nodded.

    ¡°No need to worry, Shitto. The Police Chief is my father, and he will make sure you two are taken care of.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s a relief. He said I am going to stay here until the doctors say I am able to go to the station.¡±

    ¡°See? If it weren¡¯t for him, you¡¯d already be in a prison hospital. I just hope that the mayor will drop the charges.¡±

    ¡°The mayor?!¡±

    Posche sighed.

    ¡°I see he didn¡¯t inform you of anything. Long story short, the mayor is trying to make money off of this incident by pinning it on you two.¡±

    Shitto sighed.

    ¡°Well, I hope your dad can help us.¡±

    ¡°He will.¡±

    <hr>

    ¡°Very interesting, Yami. It seems as though I was correct. You are, in fact, a hero. This, along with evidence from the crime scene, is sure to win the media over.¡±

    ¡°I hope so, but if I may make a request?¡±

    ¡°Anything.¡±

    ¡°I need a cover up for my Sirushi Inochi. If anyone finds out who I am, it will only make things worse.¡±

    Frank sat back.

    ¡°I¡¯ve already thought about it. Don¡¯t worry. I will hide those details under the cover of confidentiality.¡±

    ¡°Thank you, Chief.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t thank me yet.¡±

    Frank stood up from the chair and opened the door.

    ¡°Try to get some rest. I¡¯ll be back in a few hours. Do you need anything?¡±

    Yami shook his head.

    ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll be back.¡±

    Yami stood up from his chair as the door shut. Stretching, Yami yawned. Reaching for his phone, Yami remembered that it had been confiscated on his way into the interrogation room. Sighing, Yami laid himself onto the ceramic floor. Yawning, Yami closed his dreary eyes.

    <hr>

    Knock knock knock

    Yami sat up and wiped his eyes. Looking at the door, he saw a woman in a police uniform.

    ¡°Yami Shinpai?¡±

    ¡°Yes?¡±

    ¡°You have a visitor. Under normal circumstances, this wouldn¡¯t be allowed, but the Chief of Police gave the clearance to allow this visit. You had better thank him later.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, thanks.¡±

    ¡°Come in.¡±

    Rikai, blushing, walked into the room.

    ¡°Let us know when you would like to come out. Please refrain from giving the prisoner any items.¡±

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    The door shut behind Rikai. Yami stood up.

    ¡°Hey, Rikai! What brings you here?¡±

    Rikai¡¯s eyes began to tear up. Runing over to him, she gave him a hug. She sstarted to weep into his arms.

    ¡°Y-Yami! I¡¯m so sorry for texting you! I shouldn¡¯t have listened to Shitto!¡±

    ¡°H-Hey, what¡¯re you saying? I really appreciated that text.¡±

    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t! Shitto probably wanted you to die the whole time!¡±

    Yami¡¯s smile turned serious.

    ¡°What do you mean, Rikai?¡±

    ¡°The terrorist came in asking for your head! That¡¯s why he had me text you!¡±

    Yami grabbed Rikai¡¯s shoulders and pushed her off of himself. He felt pain in his right shoulder, but disregarded the pain. He looked her in the eyes.

    ¡°Rikai, do not make that assumption. He needed my help!¡±

    ¡°No he didn¡¯t! He needed you to die so he could get away himself! He isn¡¯t your friend!¡±

    ¡°Rikai, you have no idea what you are talking about.¡±

    ¡°I do to! He is not our friend!¡±

    Yami¡¯s stares were daggers. Rikai froze.

    ¡°I don¡¯t give two shits if you don¡¯t want to be friends with Shitto, but don¡¯t you EVER say he isn¡¯t MY friend. He saved your life, and that¡¯s how you want to treat him? YOU are the only one who is trying to hurt someone.¡±

    Tears rolled down Rikai¡¯s face.

    ¡°Y-Yami¡­¡±

    Yami let go of Rikai.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Rikai. I shouldn¡¯t have blown up like that.¡±

    ¡°No, I¡¯m the one who should be apologizing.¡±

    ¡°Well? Is that all you came to say?¡±

    Rikai turned and walked towards the door. Just as she was about to put her hand on it, she stopped herself. Doing a 180, she stared at Yami.

    ¡°Why are you acting like it¡¯s your duty to save the world? How were you two able to beat him? What are you?!¡±

    Yami gulped. As he opened his move to speak, he suddenly closed it.

    ¡°You don¡¯t want to get involved with us anymore. Just go away, Rikai.¡±

    ¡°Fuck this.¡±

    Rikai turned around and knocked on the door. The police officer opened the door, and Rikai¡¯s back was the last thing Yami saw before the door shut.

    ¡°Time to get some more sleep, I suppose.¡±

 Chapter 12 - Friends In Weird Places

    Thud

    Yami¡¯s eyes opened to see that Frank had returned, this time with a large metal briefcase in hand.

    ¡°Come. Sit.¡±

    Yami picked himself up from the ground and ssat himself in the chair. Heart pounding, he watched as Frank opened the briefcase.

    ¡°Well, Yami, I watched the news and kept track of the media. What do you think happened?¡±

    ¡°If I had to guess, I¡¯d say they hated me.¡±

    Frank pulled out a single piece of paper from the briefcase and slid it over to Yami. Yami looked down at the ground and gritted his teeth.

    ¡°This is your criminal history sheet. Yami Shinpai, you are being tried for two accounts of first-degree murder, as well as twenty-two accounts of attempted homicide. You are also being accused of vandalism of the entire school, along with student belongings.¡±

    Yami set the paper on the table.

    ¡°Frank, please just turn your back. I¡¯ll be gone in a few seconds. You can say I overtook you.¡±

    Frank looked sternly at Yami.

    ¡°Yami, I told you I would get you out of this. You just need to wait a little bit longer.¡±

    ¡°No offense, but I¡¯ve been sitting in this room for a day now. There hasn¡¯t been any change in the situation at all!¡±

    Frank placed the paper back in the briefcase.

    ¡°I understand your anger, but you must refrain from making your situation any worse. If you do anything in here while I try to help you, you WILL go to prison.¡±

    Yami stood up from his chair and walked away from the table and began pacing.

    ¡°Well? What is your plan, Chief?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not quite sure as of yet.¡±

    There was a knock on the door.

    ¡°What is it,¡± Frank asked towards the knocking?

    The officer positioned outside of the door opened into the room.

    ¡°Sir, another visitor for Yami Shinpai.¡±

    ¡°Tell them no. He¡¯s already had one, and he¡¯s supposed to have none.¡±

    ¡°But Sir, the visitor is the mayor¡¯s daughter.¡±

    Frank looked at Yami, but Yami¡¯s face of shock reassured him that he had no idea who this was. Frank turned back to the officer.

    ¡°Let her in.¡±

    ¡°Right away, Sir.¡±

    Frank turned to Yami.

    ¡°Who is this girl? I had no idea the mayor even had a daughter.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know myself.¡±

    ¡°Ahem.¡±

    Both Yami and Frank looked at the door as they heard the young girl¡¯s voice.

    ¡°I heard Yami got himself in a predicament, so I figured I¡¯d come down to the station and see if I could help out.¡±

    Frank stood up as Yami¡¯s eyes widened.

    ¡°Yo-You¡¯re¡­¡±

    ¡°Yup, it¡¯s your beloved Shinki!¡±

    <hr>

    Shitto slept in his bed. A knock on the door woke him up.

    ¡°Come in!¡±

    The door slid open. Shippai¡¯s red hair flowed with the breeze.

    ¡°Hey, Shitto. How are you feeling after that beating you took?¡±

    Shitto let out a small chuckle.

    ¡°I¡¯ve been better.¡±

    ¡°Give me a second and I¡¯ll help you out.¡±If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.

    The green life essence flowed down Shippai¡¯s arm and began to crawl itself around Shitto¡¯s body. Within moments, Shitto let out a relaxing sigh.

    ¡°Man, Shippai. You are better than any of the doctors here.¡±

    The green life essence disintegrated into the air.

    ¡°I fixed up most of your bones and some of your worst wounds, but things like scratches and bruises are still there. Any more healing would ruin your lifespan.¡±

    ¡°Nah, this is plenty enough. Thank you. Maybe I¡¯ll be able to leave sooner than expected.¡±

    ¡°About that,¡± Shippai began, ¡°it¡¯s best if you pretend that you are still immobilized. Need I remind you that you are under arrest?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I guess you¡¯re right. Have you heard anything about Yami?¡±

    Shippai took a seat in a chair near Shitto¡¯s bed.

    ¡°I was watching the news before I came, and yes, I did. You¡¯re both fucked.¡±

    Shitto sighed.

    ¡°I figured as much. Hopefully Phil¡¯s dad can get us out of it.¡±

    ¡°Posche¡¯s dad?¡±

    Shitto laid back.

    ¡°Yeah. Phil¡¯s dad is the Chief of Police. He took Yami in, but pulled some strings so I could stay here and rest.¡±

    ¡°I see. Well, that¡¯s all I came to do. I¡¯ll be leaving now.¡±

    ¡°Already?¡±

    Shippai stood up from her chair and began to walk towards the door.

    ¡°Shitto, I¡¯m not your friend. I¡¯m doing this because we¡¯re partners, and we¡¯ll likely be attacked again soon.¡±

    Shitto was lucky that the bandages covered his grin.

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    <hr>

    ¡°Shinki, you¡¯re the mayor¡¯s daughter?¡±

    ¡°Yup!¡±

    Frank rubbed his chin.

    ¡°I had no idea the mayor had a daughter. How old are you?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll be turning 14 next month!¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re the youngest in our class then, right?¡±

    ¡°No, there¡¯s actually a boy that¡¯s a month younger than me.¡±

    Frank sat down.

    ¡°Anyways, what¡¯re you doing here?¡±

    ¡°As I said earlier, Mr. Posche, I heard that Yami had gotten himself in trouble, so I decided I¡¯d come to see what happened.¡±

    ¡°Well, as you already know, your school was attacked by terrorists. Yami came to help dissolve the situation, and now he is the scapegoat for the entire case.¡±

    ¡°Wouldn¡¯t the evidence be compelling enough for Yami to be cleared of all charges?¡±

    ¡°Well, yes, but¡­ how do I word this?¡±

    ¡°What he¡¯s trying to say,¡± Yami said, staring at Shinkai, ¡°is that your father is pinning this whole thing on me. There is no evidence that I coordinated this, but I am still being targeted.¡±

    Shinkai covered her mouth as she gasped.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry! I had no idea my father would do such a thing! I will have a word with him, if that will help you?¡±

    Frank stood up and bowed to Shinkai.

    ¡°It would help us greatly. Please do.¡±

    ¡°No need to bow, Mr. Posche. I¡¯ll do anything to help Yami.¡±

    Shinkai knocked on the door. The officer promptly opened it, and Shinkai waved as she exited the room.

    ¡°I¡¯ll let you know how it goes, Yami!¡±

    As she disappeared from around the corner, the door shut. Frank turned to look at Yami.

    ¡°We got very fortunate that you are friends with the mayor''s daughter. Why didn¡¯t you tell me sooner?¡±

    ¡°Didn''t you hear me? I had no idea she was his daughter! I just met her a week ago!¡±

    ¡°In any case, you sure are lucky, aren¡¯t you? I would have killed for a girl like that when I was your age.¡±

    ¡°What are you talking about, chief?¡±

    ¡°Nothing, just an old man rambling on.¡±

    <hr>

    Posche opened the door to the interrogation cell.

    ¡°Hey, Yami! How are things going?¡±

    Yami slept on the floor. Frank was sitting in his chair.

    ¡°That poor kid was so bored he fell asleep again. We¡¯ve been waiting for someone to come back for an hour now.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t blame him. He¡¯s been through a lot recently.¡±

    Posche sat a plastic bag on the table. Walking over to Yami, Posche shook his shoulder.

    ¡°Hey, get up.¡±

    Yami opened his eyes slowly.

    ¡°Oh, hey Mr. P. What¡¯s up?¡±

    ¡°I brought you some food. Eat up.¡±

    Yami jumped up and before Posche could react, Yami was already eating the food in the plastic bag, shoveling as much into his mouth as fast as possible.

    ¡°Were you giving him food at all, Father?¡±

    ¡°I asked him, and he kept saying he wasn¡¯t hungry. Besides, all the station really has is coffee.¡±

    ¡°Anyways, who are we waiting on?¡±

    Yami paused his feast to answer Posche.

    ¡°Shinkai Acuta. She¡¯s a girl in my class. Apparently her mayor is her father, so she was going to speak with him.¡±

    ¡°Shinkai? I didn¡¯t even know the mayor had a daughter.¡±

    Yami resumed his hunger fueled rampage. Frank pointed towards the door.

    ¡°Thanks for bringing the kid food, but you really shouldn¡¯t be in here. You¡¯ll just be seen as an accomplice.¡±

    ¡°I know. I¡¯ll leave now.¡±

    Before Posche had time to exit the room, the door slid open. On the other side was an old man, looking about 10 years older than Frank. Wiping the sweat off of his forehead with a cloth, he introduced himself.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for being late, everyone. I came as soon as my daughter told me what happened.¡±

    Frank stood up and bowed for the mayor.

    ¡°Good afternoon, Sir.¡±

    ¡°At ease. I presume you are Yami Shinpai?¡±

    Yami set down his silverware and wiped his mouth with his arm. With a stern look on his face, he stared into the mayor¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°You¡¯re correct.¡±

    ¡°I see. I would like to start off by apologizing for what has happened thus far. I was blinded by my fear for my students¡¯ well being. I did not intend for any harm to come to you.¡±

    Yami became more relaxed in his chair.

    ¡°You¡¯re not forgiven, but I will not hold any ill feelings towards you.¡±

    ¡°Thank you very much, Mr. Shinpai. As I was saying, I had completely overlooked any evidence that was sent to me and continued to burden you with more and more charges. I¡¯d like to happily say that all charges have been dropped.¡±

    Frank and Posche let out a sigh of relief. Yami continued to look at the mayor.

    ¡°You are free to go whenever you please, Ya-¡±

    Yami held his hand up to Frank.

    ¡°Not intending to change your decision, Mr. Mayor, but what exactly did your daughter tell you that made you change your decision so quickly?¡±

    The mayor did not change his expression.

    ¡°Frankly, everything. I truly had no idea of the circumstances and blindly blamed you. You have my deepest regrets and sorries.¡±

    The officer that had remained posted at the door walked in with a blue plastic box.

    ¡°Yami, these are your belongings.¡±

    Yami stood up from the chair and took the box from the officer.

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    Yami sat the box on the table. Out of it, he pulled his wallet. Then, his phone. After that, two bloodied knives. Placing the items in their respective places on his body, Yami walked towards the door. He stopped as he was next to the mayor.

    ¡°Thank you, Mr. Mayor. And tell your daughter I said thanks as well.¡±

    Yami walked out of the room and disappeared down the hallway.

    ¡°That is certainly on impressive young man,¡± the mayor spoke.

    ¡°Yessir, he is,¡± Frank responded. ¡°Good job teaching him, Phil!¡±

    ¡°Haha, thanks. He really is one of a kind!¡±

    ¡°But something is off. What did Yami pick up on?¡±

    <hr>

    Shitto slept in his bed. He was awoken by the sound of rattling in his room.

    ¡°Who¡¯s there?!¡±

    Yami peaked up from behind one of the beds.

    ¡°Sorry I woke you up, pal!¡±

    ¡°Y-Yami? You got the charges dropped?!¡±

    ¡°No. I broke out of jail. It was a bloodbath. So many innocent men¡¯s lives were lost¡­¡±

    ¡°Yami, what have you done?!?!¡±

    Yami broke out into laughter.

    ¡°I¡¯m just messing with you dude! I really had you there, didn¡¯t I!?¡±

    ¡°This isn¡¯t funny at all! Why are you here?¡±

    ¡°I got all of the charges dropped, obviously.¡±

    ¡°Really? How?¡±

    ¡°Shinki.¡±

 Chapter 13 - The Princess of Shifuku

    ¡°So yeah. That¡¯s how Shinki got us out of the slammer.¡±

    Shitto let out a sigh of relief, then began to unwrap the bandages that were around him.

    ¡°Hey! You sure you should be doing that, Shitto?!?!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. Shippai came and fixed me up.¡±

    ¡°Oh.¡±

    Shitto began to put on his clothes from behind the curtain. As he took a turn around the cover of the curtain, he smiled and waved at Yami.

    ¡°Well, how do I look?¡±

    ¡°Um, how do I put this¡­¡±

    Yami drew a line across his left cheek.

    ¡°You got a scar like this!¡±

    Shitto reached up and touched his cheek. Sure enough, he felt the raised skin on his cheek. It had a jagged appearance, and travelled diagonally from near his earlobe close to his mouth.

    ¡°Honestly, Shitto, it looks kinda badass.¡±

    ¡°Does it?¡± Shitto chuckled. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±

    <hr>

    Rikai¡¯s phone read 11:31 p.m. as she sat on her bed, clutching her pillow. She turned her head to look out her window, allowing the warm yet mysterious moonlight to flow directly into her eyes. Looking back down at her phone, she clicked the middle button at the bottom, unlocking the phone and allowing her to open an icon that had a mail logo. About to tap a conversation labelled ¡°Shinki¡±, Rikai paused to glance at a conversation labelled ¡°Yami¡±. In the conversation bubble, it read:

    Recent Message: Yami, we really need you at¡­.

    Tapping ¡°Shinki¡±, Rikai began to furiously peck at her phone with her fingertips. As she hit ¡°send¡±, her message was delivered to Shinkai.

    Rikai: Hey Shinki, can I talk to you about Yami?

    Shinki: What¡¯s up?

    Rikai: Well, I went to visit him today, and me and him got into an argument. I don¡¯t think we¡¯re friends anymore¡­

    Shinki: I don¡¯t think that¡¯s the case at all!

    Rikai made a face of bewilderment at her phone.

    Rikai: What makes you say that?

    Shinki: When I went to get him out of jail today, he didn¡¯t seem angry about you at all. He seemed frustrated with the circumstances, if anything.

    Rikai smiled.

    Rikai: I¡¯m SO happy to hear that! But wait, what was that you said about getting him out of jail?

    Shinki: I didn¡¯t get him out of jail, but I convinced my father to drop the charges.

    Rikai: Who¡¯s your father?

    Shinki: The mayor.

    Rikai¡¯s jaw dropped.

    Rikai: Well, thank you for getting him out!

    Shinki: No problem!

    Rikai began to set her phone aside as she felt it buzz in her hand. Turning it on again, she saw that the conversation continued.

    Shinki: Since we¡¯re on the topic of boys, who are you going to homecoming with?

    Rikai: I was actually hoping that Yami would ask me. Why do you ask?

    Shinki: Just curious. Good night!

    <hr>

    Beep beep beep

    Yami hit his alarm clock. Groggily doing the same routine as normal, Yami began to walk out of his house.

    Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

    ¡°Yo!¡±

    Shitto waved to Yami from down the sidewalk. Yami walked up to him and they continued down the sidewalk together.

    ¡°I can¡¯t believe we got two weeks off from that incident. Knowing Sifuku, we¡¯re lucky to get holidays off!¡±

    ¡°Shitto, our teacher died, and the halls and classrooms needed to be repaired.¡±

    ¡°Oh, right. I guess I¡¯ve never had to go through that before.¡±

    ¡°Neither have I, until now.¡±

    They continued walking along, petting the dogs and stopping to wait for Rikai as normal, yet Rikai was nowhere to be found.

    ¡°She must be sick. Let¡¯s keep going, Yami.¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    ¡°I hope she¡¯s okay¡­¡±

    Entering their classroom, Yami saw the back of Rikai¡¯s head and ran up to her.

    ¡°Hey, you didn¡¯t walk with us today?¡±

    ¡°No, I didn¡¯t feel like it today.¡±

    Offput by this response, Yami rubbed the back of his neck.

    ¡°Ah, I see. Well, I¡¯ll talk to you later, I guess.¡±

    ¡°See ya.¡±

    ¡°Sorry, Yami. I just need to think about some stuff.¡±

    <hr>

    As the final bell for the day rang, Yami walked into Posche¡¯s room. Setting his bags on a table, he walked into a closet, leading into the library of the Jinsei no Hogo. Grabbing a book from a shelf and walking out of the door, Yami locked the door behind him. Placing the book in his bag, he saw Posche walk into the classroom.

    ¡°Hey, Mr. P. I heard you needed to speak with me?¡±

    ¡°Yes. I have found some very troubling news.¡±

    ¡°Well? What is it?¡±

    ¡°One moment.¡±

    Posche began typing on his keyboard, opening webpage.

    ¡°Take a look at this, Yami.¡±

    Yami sat in the chair that Posche had just risen from. Looking at the webpage, there was an Eye of Horus. There was a lack of text.

    ¡°What is so special about this website, Mr. P?¡±

    ¡°Take a look at the source code.¡±

    Pressing F12 on the keyboard, a panel full of HTML code appeared on the screen. Unphased, Yami began scrolling through the code.

    ¡°You¡¯re right. There¡¯s far too much code for just this image. If you look here, there¡¯s all sorts of random text.¡±

    ¡°Yes. But if you look in the document, it¡¯s hidden by the background of the page. Try highlighting the text.¡±

    Dragging his mouse across the webpage, the text began to appear highlighted. As it began to become more highlight, Yami gulped.

    ¡°Now delete the image.¡±

    Deleting the code that called for the image on the webpage allowed the highlighted text to become complete. It read:

    Shifuku Mayor knows something that we don¡¯t

    ¡°So there you have it Yami. The Shifuku Mayor knows something that we don¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°What am I supposed to do about it? And why does this matter to us?¡±

    ¡°This website was posted on a forum that fellow echoes use. I need you to hack the mayor¡¯s computer and scrounge around for documents.¡±

    ¡°And how do you suppose I do that? The office constantly has people in it. It¡¯s not like I can just pop a USB into his desktop and expect no one to notice!¡±

    ¡°Ah, but we are fortunate that this happened now, Yami.¡±

    Posche sat down in his chair.

    ¡°Have you asked anyone to homecoming yet?¡±

    Yami looked at Posche with confused eyebrows.

    ¡°No? Why do you ask?¡±

    ¡°You better start asking, because it¡¯s this weekend, and I need you to attend.¡±

    ¡°Eh?¡±

    ¡°The only window of opportunity I see in the near future is this weekend. While the office is closed, AND while students are allowed inside of the building! It¡¯s the perfect opportunity!¡±

    ¡°Whoa, whoa, whoa. What do you mean?¡±

    ¡°Well, Yami, you are going to infiltrate the office while everyone is in the cafeteria dancing their night away. Inside, you¡¯ll hack the mayor¡¯s computer and find whatever he is hiding.¡±

    ¡°Why can¡¯t you do this yourself?¡±

    ¡°Because I wouldn¡¯t blend in as well. I am a chaperone, afterall. So to leave my post would be alarming. In any case, you better get asking.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d love to help, Mr. P, but I don''t have tickets, and they¡¯ve already sold out.¡±

    Posche handed Yami two pieces of paper.

    ¡°Here. One for you, and one for your date.¡±

    ¡°Why do I need a date to do this?!?!¡±

    ¡°You want an alibi in case you get put in jail again, right?¡±

    Yami sighed out of frustration and snatched the tickets out of Posche¡¯s hand.

    ¡°Don¡¯t have too much fun, Yami!¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t get beat up by an old lady on your way home, Mr. P.¡±

    <hr>

    As Yami walked down the sidewalk back to his house, he began to think to himself.

    ¡°This¡¯ll be my first homecoming, won¡¯t it? I¡¯ve never been one for dancing at social gatherings, but maybe the date will be fun. Wait, I¡¯ve never been on a date before! What will we do? Will she come over to my house before, or will we go out to eat? Will I have to meet her father? What¡¯s gonna happen?! I guess a more important question would be who should I ask?¡±

    As Yami asked himself this, he paused at the corner that Rikai would join him and Shitto at on their daily trip to school.

    ¡°Maybe I should ask Rikai. Of course we wouldn¡¯t go on a date or anything, but at least we¡¯re good friends. What am I saying, she¡¯s mad at me. I can¡¯t ask her. I could ask Shipp- No, I guess that wouldn¡¯t be a good idea either.¡±

    Yami continued to walk down the sidewalk until he bumped into Shinkai.

    ¡°Sorry, I didn¡¯t see you there, Shinki!¡±

    ¡°Oh, no problem. What¡¯s up? You looked pretty deep in thought.¡±

    ¡°Nothing, really. I was just thinking about who I was gonna ask to homecoming.¡±

    ¡°You haven¡¯t asked anyone yet?¡±

    ¡°No, I just got my tickets today.¡±

    ¡°I see. If you want, I can go with you!¡±

    ¡°R-Really?¡±

    ¡°Yeah! It¡¯d be tons of fun! I¡¯ve never gone on a date or anything before, though...¡±

    ¡°Neither have I! It¡¯ll be fun, though!¡±

    ¡°So can I assume I¡¯ll be your date?¡±

    ¡°Yeah! What do you want to do before we go to the dance?¡±

    ¡°Well, you could come over to my house and meet my father!¡±

    Yami rubbed the back of his neck.

    ¡°I think I¡¯ll pass on that, sorry.¡±

    ¡°Oh yeah, I forgot. Sorry.¡±

    ¡°How about we just go somewhere to eat?¡±

    ¡°Sounds good to me!¡±

    ¡°Cool! Text me your address, and I¡¯ll come over and we can go get some food!¡±

    ¡°Sounds like a plan! Bye bye!¡±

    Yami waved to Shinkai as she walked away.

    ¡°Holy shit I got lucky.¡±

 Chapter 14 - Homecoming

    ¡°Do I really need all of this?¡±

    Yami stood in his room not wearing his normal attire. His shirt was replaced with a black suit, and his pants replaced with black suit pants. The tie that was wrapped around his neck was a dark red with stripes dark gray stripes. Reikoku looked ashamed to have Yami as a younger brother.

    ¡°Of course, idiot! You¡¯re going to homecoming with the mayor¡¯s daughter! So help me god, if you ruin our family¡¯s image..¡±

    ¡°What image?¡±

    ¡°Besides. You look decent for once, Yami.¡±

    Yami waved his hand at Reikoku as he walked over to his dresser. Out of the top drawer, which was full of white and black socks, as well as many pairs of boxers and athletic shorts, which were obviously mindlessly thrown into the dresser, Yami withdrew a USB device that had no outer casing.

    ¡°What¡¯s that, Yami?¡±

    ¡°Oh, this? It¡¯s something that has nothing to do with you.¡±

    Reikoku began to exit his room, but turned to let one more comment slip.

    ¡°Oh, and Yami? Don¡¯t get this girl pregnant until you¡¯re out of high school, okay?¡±

    Yami blushed and slammed his door.

    ¡°As if I¡¯d do that!¡±

    Yami walked to his desk and set the device on top of it. Yami put on his watch and put his wallet along with his phone in his pocket. Sitting himself in his chair, he inspected the device and began to remember the conversation he had with Posche earlier.

    <hr>

    Yami held the small device in between his pointer finger and thumb, inspecting it carefully.

    ¡°What is the point of this, Mr. P?¡±

    ¡°I whipped up a little tool for you to find whatever the mayor has on his computer without the hassle of leaving a digital footprint on his machine.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m fine with that, but how do you expect to completely delete the trail? Even if it is very obscure, there will always be records of it on his hard drive, even if we delete it multiple times.¡±

    ¡°But what if we fried the hard drive?¡±

    Yami raised an eyebrow.

    ¡°What are you implying we do, Mr. P? Send a shock through his entire machine?¡±

    Posche sntached the device away from Yami. He pointed a finger to a black button at the end of the device.

    ¡°That is precisely it, Yami. When you are pulling the flashdrive out of his machine, you will press this button down. There are two AA batteries underneath this the device. These two batteries will send the shock through the machine.¡±

    ¡°Won¡¯t it seem kind of obvious that there was tampering on his machine then?¡±

    ¡°I have something planned for that. Just do your job.¡±

    <hr>

    ¡°YAMI! IT¡¯S 6:30! GET THE FUCK OUT OF HERE!¡±

    Startled by his father¡¯s scream, Yami checked his watch to confirm that it was 6:30. Running down the stairs, Yami slipped on a pair of black dress shoes and nearly fell over as he stumbled out of his house. Nearly sprinting, Yami ran towards Shinki¡¯s house. Heart pounding, Yami began to doubt that he would make it to her house in time. Suddenly, an old, white car appeared from around the corner and stopped next to Yami.

    ¡°Yami! What¡¯s up?¡±

    Yami turned to see who was talking to him, and as he did, his eyes widened. A smile as large as the one Yami had would be impossible to hide.

    ¡°Nothing much, bro!¡±

    Ai Shinpai smiled at his younger brother.

    ¡°Hop in! I¡¯ll chauffeur you and your date!¡±

    High fiving Ai, Yami opened the door to the backseat. Securing his seat belt, Yami began to converse with his brother.

    ¡°It¡¯s been a while! How long has it been? A year?¡±

    Ai chuckled.

    ¡°Yeah, I guess so. How¡¯s things been going at home?¡±

    ¡°Dad is still a prick, Reikoku is still a bitch.¡±

    ¡°Hey, don¡¯t be like that. They¡¯re still family, ya know.¡±

    ¡°Yeah¡­¡±

    ¡°Anyways, What about school? This is your freshman year, right?¡±

    Yami stared out of the window, watching the scenery pass by.

    ¡°Yeah. It¡¯s been pretty fun, so far.¡±

    ¡°Besides all of that, you¡¯re like a weed! You¡¯ve gotten taller since the last time I saw you! I bet, with your handsomeness, this girl is going to be really pretty.¡±

    Yami cheeks turned red.Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.

    ¡°I guess she is.¡±

    As Ai parked the car on the side of the road, he looked at the manor that lay before them.

    ¡°Uh, Yami? You sure you have the right address?¡±

    ¡°Oh, you didn¡¯t know? I¡¯m taking the mayor''s daughter.¡±

    Ai gulped.

    ¡°Yami! Why didn¡¯t you tell me?! This car is in no shape for that kind of authority!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s still better than walking.¡±

    Yami got out of the car and walked up to the manor. Knocking on the door caused a butler to open it.

    ¡°Ah, Master Yami, I presume?¡±

    ¡°M-Master?¡±

    ¡°Yes. I have been informed you have arrived for m¡¯lady¡¯s presence?¡±

    ¡°Y-Yeah.¡±

    ¡°Please, Sir, come in! I will have a cup of tea fashioned for you immediately!¡±

    The butler led Yami into the main hall of the manor. Sitting himself on a chair, Yami straightened his tie.

    ¡°No need for that, Sir. I¡¯ll see to it that the tailor presents to you a tie that can rival no other.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s okay, I¡¯m fine with this one. Thank you.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m getting so overwhelmed. I knew that the mayor held a lot of authority, but this is ridiculous! I hope that Shinki doesn¡¯t look at me at ditches me.¡±

    ¡°Good afternoon, Yami!¡±

    Yami gulped as he turned around to face a staircase. Walking down it was Shinkai, wearing a silver dress that barely reached her ankles.

    ¡°Holy shit. She¡¯s not even wearing anything too fancy and she¡¯s beautiful.¡±

    Shinkai blushed and moved her eyes away from Yami¡¯s.

    ¡°H-How do I look, Yami? I tried to not dress as though as I was attending my one of my father¡¯s parties, but¡­¡±

    Yami blinked hard.

    ¡°Shinkai, you¡¯re beautiful!¡±

    Shinkai looked into Yami¡¯s eyes again, causing them to both stare into each other¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°M¡¯lady, I believe it is time for your departure.¡±

    ¡°R-Right! Thank you, Albert.¡±

    Quickly walking down the remaining distance of the staircase, Shinkai grabbed Yami¡¯s hand.

    ¡°Come on! We¡¯re gonna be late!¡±

    Yami was practically dragged by Shinkai as they exited the manor.

    ¡°Be careful, M¡¯lady! Protect her, Master Yami!¡±

    Shutting the door behind them, Shinkai smiled at Yami.

    ¡°So, what¡¯s the plan?¡±

    Yami looked at the time on his watch.

    ¡°Well, he can still go get something to eat, but we¡¯ll be a little late to homecoming if we do.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m fine with it. Let¡¯s go!¡±

    As they walked to the road, Yami began to open the car door. Shinkai looked at him confused.

    ¡°You have your license, Yami?¡±

    ¡°No, but my brother is going to drive us. Say hi, Ai.¡±

    Ai looked out of the car, looking like a nervous stray.

    ¡°H-Hello, Madame! I am Ai Shinpai! A pleasure to make your acquaintance!¡±

    Shinkai chuckled.

    ¡°Hello! My name is Shinkai, but you can call me Shinki!¡±

    ¡°O-Okay.¡±

    Yami held the door open for Shinkai.

    ¡°Go ahead. We need to hurry up if we want to be less late than we already are.¡±

    ¡°Sure.¡±

    Ai drove the car away after Yami and Shinkai were inside.

    <hr>

    Music could be heard miles away as Shitto and Rikai walked down a sidewalk towards the school.

    ¡°Hey, Shitto, do you know where Yami is?¡±

    ¡°Nah. Knowing him, though, he probably didn¡¯t want to come to homecoming. He hates stuff like this.¡±

    ¡°I see.¡±

    ¡°Maybe that¡¯s why he didn¡¯t ask me. I guess I¡¯m okay with that¡­¡±

    ¡°If you were wondering why he didn¡¯t ask you out, that¡¯s only part of the answer.¡±

    Rikai looked at Shitto, who was still looking towards the school. Feeling her gaze, Shitto looked at her with annoyance.

    ¡°What? You know the other part of the reason.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. I¡¯ve been ignoring him recently. He probably thinks that I don¡¯t want to be his friend anymore¡­¡±

    ¡°But don¡¯t get the wrong idea, Rikai. He still wants to be friends with you.¡±

    ¡°Thanks, Shitto.¡±

    ¡°Besides¡­¡±

    Shitto grinned at Rikai.

    ¡°You¡¯re gonna have to work harder if you want him all to yourself!¡±

    Rikai punched Shitto¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°Hey! That hurt!¡±

    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t have said that!¡±

    Rikai looked down at the sidewalk.

    ¡°I hate to say it, but you are right, Shitto. I DO need to try harder if I want him to be my friend.¡±

    ¡°Hey! I¡¯m just giving you a hard time! Liven up a bit, we¡¯re almost at the school.¡±

    Rikai looked up from the sidewalk to see the school greeting them. Handing the supervisors their tickets, Rikai and Shitto walked into the cafeteria to see that the tables were displaced into the hallway in order to make room for the student body that was now dancing.

    ¡°Hey! Rikai! Come over here!¡±

    Rikai turned her head to see a clump of girls waving at her.

    ¡°Hey! Shitto! Get your ass over here, man!¡±

    Shitto turned his head to see a clump of guys waving at him. Looking at one another, Rikai and Shitto simultaneously spoke.

    ¡°Sorry, those are my friends!¡±

    Both laughing, Shitto waved goodbye.

    ¡°See ya, Rikai!¡±

    ¡°Bye, Shitto!¡±

    Rikai walked to her group of friends. Greeting all of them, Rikai began to converse with them.

    ¡°So did you come with Shitto, Rikai?¡±

    Rikai shook her head and waved her hand no.

    ¡°No, Shitto and I aren¡¯t like that. We just live near each other and decided it¡¯d be safer to walk here together.¡±

    ¡°I figured. You have a thing for Yami anyways, right? You¡¯ll get him next year, girl.¡±

    ¡°If he decides to come, that is.¡±

    The girl looked confused.

    ¡°What do ya mean? He¡¯s right over there!¡±

    Rikai turned her head in the direction that the girl had pointed her finger. Pushing people out of her way, Rikai slowly made her way through the crowd. After breaking through one final chunk, Rikai saw Yami and Shinkai together and tried to call out to them.

    ¡°Hey! I thought you weren¡¯t coming, Yam-¡±

    Rikai became frozen as Shinkai wrapped her arms around Yami¡¯s neck and began to slow dance with him. Turning Yami¡¯s back towards Rikai, Shinkai looked Rikai in the eyes and smiled. Overcome with emotion, Rikai ran back through the crowd.

    ¡°You hear something, Shinki?¡±

    ¡°Some girl just had her heart broken, that¡¯s all!¡±

    ¡°I feel bad for her.¡±

    <hr>

    An hour passed, and homecoming was still in full swing. Yami looked at his watch.

    ¡°Alright. I should be in the clear to break into his office.¡±

    ¡°Hey, Shinki. I gotta go to the bathroom. I¡¯ll be right back, okay?¡±

    ¡°No problem! I¡¯ll be waiting for your return!¡±

    Casually walking out of the cafeteria, Yami turned down the hall and proceeded to walk to the office where the mayor¡¯s computer was. Surveying the area one last time to make sure nobody was in sight, Yami lock picked the door with a bobby pin and walked to the mayor¡¯s computer. Booting it up, Yami continued to look for a passersby, but fortunately, there was no one. Plugging the device into the computer displayed a button on screen that asked ¡°Scan files?¡± Hitting ¡°Yes¡±, Yami sat patiently as the device copied nearly every file from the computer. Noticing that a dialogue box had appeared, stating ¡°The process is complete!¡±, Yami went to press the button on the device. Before he could do so, a flashlight shined into the office. Looking at the light, he saw two policemen pointing at him.

    ¡°You in there! Come out of there with your hands up!¡±

    Knowing his only option was to his the button, Yami did as Posche. The device made a sound, like a defibrillator charging up, then a snap came from the machine as the screen went blank. Suddenly, all of the lights in the hallway went out. The music that was vibrating the entire school had become silent. The power was cut.

    ¡°Thanks, Mr. P!¡±

    Seeing this golden opportunity, Yami took advantage of the lack of light to sneak out of an opposite door leading into the cafeteria. Sneaking back into the crowd, Yami paid no attention to the policemen screaming at him to return back to the office. Grabbing Shinkai¡¯s arm, Yami looked her in the eyes.

    ¡°Shinki. Are you alright?¡±

    ¡°Y-Yes? What¡¯s the matter, Yami?¡±

    Yami let out a sigh.

    ¡°I got worried when the power went out, so I came back immediately to see if your were fine.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m happy you did, Yami. I was missing you.¡±

    Shinkai embraced Yami as they hugged.

    A tear rolled down Rikai¡¯s face.

 Chapter 15 - Investigation

    ¡°Here.¡±

    Posche snatched the USB device out of the air as Yami threw it.

    ¡°I heard things didn¡¯t go as smooth as we had hoped.¡±

    ¡°Some police came out of nowhere. It happened just before the power went out.¡±

    ¡°I see. I¡¯m glad that the power outage aided your escape.¡±

    ¡°So I can assume it was your doing?¡±

    Posche plugged the USB into his home desktop.

    ¡°I had a part to play, yes. But the mayor¡¯s ¡°tight¡± budget is what did the trick. With a little bit of tampering, it¡¯s quite easy to send a much larger buildup of energy from the surge protector to the entire power grid.¡±

    Loading the application that Yami had used to extract the files from the mayor¡¯s computer, Posche began to unload everything that it had picked up onto his computer.

    ¡°How long do you think it¡¯ll take you to go through all of these files, Mr. P?¡±

    ¡°Well, seeing as how I had the program copy everything except for the system files, and using a dictionary attack for words that may indicate something, I¡¯d say a week.¡±

    ¡°A week?! Mr. P, we¡¯re still talking about an imminent threat, right?¡±

    ¡°Yami, you must be patient. We¡¯re working with nearly a terabyte of files, most of which are going to be extensions of other programs. This isn¡¯t a simple task.¡±

    ¡°How can we be prepared then? We¡¯re going to be sitting ducks if we do nothing!¡±

    ¡°Happy you brought that up. You need to start training more vigorously than ever before. I, for one, am going to be working non-stop at finding out what he is hiding.¡±

    ¡°What am I supposed to be training, exactly?¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t hold your hand through everything, Yami.¡±

    Yami slid his hand down the door to his closet and it opened to his bedroom

    ¡°Goodbye, Yami.¡±

    Yami left Posche¡¯s room without a word.

    <hr>

    Wiggling her toes while laying on her bed, Shinkai picked up her phone. Tapping icons furiously, she placed the phone against her ear and listened to the phone ring.

    Feeling his phone vibrate, Yami reached in his pocket and retrieved it. Noticing that the caller was ¡°Shinki¡±, Yami tapped the green cellphone icon and placed it against his ear.

    ¡°Hello?¡±

    ¡°Heya, Yami! It¡¯s Shinki!¡±

    ¡°Hey! How are you?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m doing very well! Yesterday was so much fun!¡±

    ¡°Yeah! I had a lot of fun, too. We should definitely hang out more!¡±

    ¡°How about we go to the park for a walk tomorrow?¡±

    ¡°Just us two?¡±

    ¡°Yeah! I could invite Rikai, if you want¡­¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t mean it like that! Besides, I think she¡¯s still mad at me. Have you seen her recently?¡±

    Shinkai smiled.

    ¡°Nope. She must be sick or grounded, because she hasn¡¯t texted me either.¡±

    ¡°Hmm. Whatever the case, I¡¯m down for tomorrow. I¡¯ll see you there at 10?¡±

    ¡°Sure. Bye bye, Yami!¡±

    ¡°Bye!¡±

    ¡°That message was probably a fluke. I don¡¯t ACTUALLY need to train.¡±

    <hr>

    This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    Buzzzz

    ¡°What the hell?¡±

    Yami rubbed his groggy eyes to see that Posche had sent him an e-mail.

    Yami, get to my house IMMEDIATELY. It is news on the threat.

    Zipping up his shirt, Yami jogged down his staircase and grabbed a piece of toast with peanut butter lathered on it. Returning to his room, Yami slid his hand down his closet door and opened it into Posche¡¯s basement. Closing the door behind him, Yami ran up the staircase and was greeted by Posche, Shitto, and Shippai.

    ¡°Sorry, I had to grab a bite to eat beforehand.¡±

    Posche shook his head.

    ¡°Now that you¡¯re here, I¡¯ll get started.¡± Posche opened multiple tabs on his computer. ¡°After looking through the files that we gathered from the mayor¡¯s computer, I¡¯ve finally pieced together some info on the threat.¡±

    Arranging the windows that Posche had opened in a specific order, he continued speaking.

    ¡°The mayor does not know what the threat is, but knows that it is coming. Here are some messages he left on his machine.¡±

    All of the files finally loaded, a message appeared on Posche¡¯s screen.

    December 7

    ¡°December 7th,¡± Shitto mumbled. ¡°Does it have something to do with the Pacific Theatre?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure. But one can only assume this is when the attack will come. We must all be prepared. That being said¡­¡± Posche turned to look at Yami. ¡°How is your training going along?¡±

    Not having trained in the week and a half that Posche had given him, Yami rubbed his neck to help coax a lie out of him.

    ¡°It¡¯s been alright. I think I¡¯m onto something with my Sirushi Inochi, but time will tell.¡±

    ¡°Ah, I suppose that Ms. Acuta assisted you?¡±

    Yami lowered his hand down from his neck and clenched it tightly.

    ¡°What are you implying, Mr. P?¡±

    ¡°Oh, I¡¯m not implying anything, Yami. I¡¯m just clarifying how going on a lover¡¯s week is aiding you in your training, because I¡¯ve never heard of that training technique.¡±

    ¡°How the hell am I supposed to train?! I haven¡¯t gotten any help from you at all other than ¡®I can¡¯t hold your hand!¡¯¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t make me repeat myself! It¡¯s safe to assume that you haven¡¯t finished that book I told you to read before school started either?¡±

    Shippai¡¯s eyebrow raised in intrigue.

    ¡°No, I haven¡¯t. I¡¯m about to be halfway through. You got a problem with that?!¡±

    ¡°I do! For Christ¡¯s sake, Yami! There¡¯s hardly any words on a page!¡±

    ¡°You wouldn¡¯t understand, Mr. P! There¡¯s stuff that you can¡¯t see!¡±

    ¡°Obviously. I couldn¡¯t see that you were lying to me all this time too.¡±

    ¡°How about you tell me what to do!¡±

    Posche slammed his hand down on his desk.

    ¡°WE HAVE A DATE THAT WE ARE GOING TO BE ATTACKED ON, AND YOU¡¯D RATHER ARGUE WITH ME? LEAVE. NOW.¡±

    ¡°Fuck this.¡±

    Yami began to walk down Posche¡¯s basement stairs. Sliding his hand down the door, he walked into the meadow and slammed the door shut behind him. Posche turned his chair back to face his monitor.

    ¡°Shitto. Please teach Yami Phys Mods. He already has a basic understanding on them, as well as a Sirushi Inochi that enhances them on his right heel.¡±

    ¡°Right.¡±

    Walking down the stairs, Shitto opened the door to the meadow and exited Posche¡¯s house, shutting the door behind him.

    ¡°Shippai.¡±

    Shippai looked at the back of Posche¡¯s head.

    ¡°Can you teach Yami your Sirushi Inochi as well?¡±

    ¡°Do you take me for a fool, Posche? I told you I¡¯m not here to help Yami or yourself. This is only a favor.¡±

    ¡°Then leave.¡±

    Shippai turned around and exited Posche¡¯s house.

    <hr>

    Manipulating the sphere in the palm of his hand, Yami was experimenting with his Sirushi Inochi. The life essence in his hand was forming odd shapes, including a rod and a box.

    ¡°Hey! Yami!¡±

    Yami stood up from the grass he was sitting on to turn and face Shitto.

    ¡°What¡¯s up?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m here to teach you a new skill that it appears you have already learned, to some extent.¡±

    Shitto bent his knees, then propelled himself in the air about eight feet. Yami watched in awe. Shitto landed, then brushed the dirt off of his pants with his hands.

    ¡°They¡¯re called ¡°Physical Modifications¡±, or ¡°Phys Mods¡± for short. Essentially, your life essence in your body enhances your muscles to push your body to feats that are unimaginable otherwise.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve heard Mr. P use the term ¡°Phys Mod¡± a few times before.¡±

    ¡°Yes, and from what I hear, you¡¯ve already used them unintentionally. If I remember correctly, you used it in coordination with a Sirushi Inochi you took from a woman you fought during the terrorist attack on the school?¡±

    ¡°Oh yeah.¡±

    Yami took off his shoe and sock, revealing his bare right foot. On the heel, an odd looking oval that looked like it had three prongs coming out of it remained.

    ¡°Ah. So it appears as though you have a Supporting Sirushi Inochi. Those three prongs likely appeared as a flame on her heel?¡±

    ¡°You guessed it.¡±

    ¡°Unlike Offensive Sirushi Inochi, Supporting Sirushi Inochi that have circles as a base indicate that it may be used on others, as you likely noticed in your fight against her henchmen. The triangles are still enhancers, though.¡±

    ¡°So what do you think they ¡°enhance¡±?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not quite sure.¡±

    Rubbing his chin, Shitto began to inspect Yami¡¯s heel.

    ¡°Out of curiosity, what Phys Mod do you use the most?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d have to say ones that enhance my legs, then my arms, but that¡¯s very seldom.¡±

    ¡°I guess you have your answer then.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    Pointing at one of the prongs on Yami¡¯s mark, Shitto began to explain.

    ¡°It looks like at least two of these prongs are enhancers of your own abilities, one being for your legs, the smoother one, and one for your arms, the second smoothest. As for the third prong, if I had to guess, I¡¯d say it¡¯s something to do with enhancing other people. Why don¡¯t you try enhancing me?¡±

    ¡°The problem is that I can¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°You can use everything else just fine! I thought that the Jinsei no Hogo could replicate any Sirushi Inochi?¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s actually some regulations as to what I can use. I must be affected by the Sirushi Inochi, which she kicked me while it was active, and must also see the mark, which I also saw when she kicked me. After that, using them is like any other Sirushi Inochi.¡±

    ¡°Most of us only have one, you know. Anyways, let¡¯s get to training. Show me what you got.¡±

    Yami bent his knees and propelled himself into the air. Shitto stared in awe as Yami went 25 feet in the air, then fell back to the earth.

    ¡°That was incredible, Yami! But I have to ask, was that with your Sirushi Inochi?¡±

    ¡°Yes, though it drains my life essence a lot quicker than without it. It¡¯s not as efficient, you could say.¡±

    ¡°I guess I don¡¯t have much to teach you, then. I suppose you could try to fine tune your Sirushi Inochi to be more cost effective, otherwise it wouldn¡¯t be much use in a battle of attrition.¡±

    ¡°Right. Thanks, Shitto.¡±

    ¡°No problem, Yami. Take it easy.¡±

    Shitto paused after opening the door.

    ¡°But in all seriousness, you need to train more. We don¡¯t know what is coming on December 7th, but we can assume it won¡¯t be anything good if the mayor is involved.¡±

    Yami looked away from Shitto.

    ¡°So you¡¯re going to nag me too?¡±

    Shitto sighed.

    ¡°You know, Yami, I¡¯m really not one for lectures. So don¡¯t make me. See ya.¡±

    Upon Shitto leaving the meadow, shutting the door behind him, a deafening silence could be heard. Yami sat back in the grass and pulled out his phone. He stared at a conversation between him and Shinkai.

    The last text sent by Shinkai read:

    I love you.

 Chapter 16 - Preparation

    ¡°Hey! Rikai!¡±

    Shitto waved down Rikai as she began to walk home from school at the end of the day. Turning to see who was calling her, Rikai sighed as she saw it was just Shitto.

    ¡°Hey, Shitto. What¡¯s up?¡±

    Finally done running to catch up to her, Shitto slowed down to a walking pace as they continued their journey to their homes.

    ¡°Nothing, really. I haven¡¯t talked to you in a minute, so I figured I¡¯d see how you were.¡±

    ¡°I haven¡¯t done much of anything. Just been keeping up with my studies. What about you?¡±

    Shitto rubbed the back of his neck.

    ¡°Eh, that¡¯s a good question. I¡¯ve been preparing for a test that¡¯s coming up.¡±

    Rikai looked confused.

    ¡°What test? I don¡¯t recall any tests coming up.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s for an extracurricular activity. It¡¯s more of a test of courage for my group than anything, I guess you could say.¡±

    ¡°¡®A test of courage¡¯? Sounds pretty lame. How would you even prepare for that?¡±

    ¡°I suppose it¡¯s more of me just fretting over it than me actually doing something. How did homecoming go for you? I guess I missed you leaving.¡±

    Remembering their previous discussion, as well as the events that transpired afterwards, Rikai adapted to a more deprived tone.

    ¡°It was fine.¡±

    ¡°Doesn¡¯t sound like it,¡± Shitto thought to himself.

    ¡°Oh, by the way, Rikai?¡±

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    ¡°Have you seen Yami recently? He hasn¡¯t been showing up in the mornings, and I only ever see him while class is ongoing.¡±

    Rikai shook her head.

    ¡°I¡¯m afraid I haven¡¯t. I haven¡¯t seen him since¡­¡±

    ¡°I should probably stay away of Yami as a topic.¡±

    ¡°No matter. I would just text him, but it looks like his phone is off most of the time.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s strange.¡±

    ¡°Oh well. He¡¯s a big boy. I¡¯m sure he has his reasonings.¡±

    <hr>

    ¡°Yami! Why don¡¯t you let me walk with you just a little bit longer?¡±

    Shinkai clung to Yami¡¯s arm with her right hand¡¯s fingers entwined with Yami¡¯s left fingers.

    ¡°I have stuff I have to do, Shinki. I promise we¡¯ll hang out more, but I¡¯m really busy right now. In a few weeks, We¡¯ll have all the time in the world.¡±

    ¡°Huh? A few weeks? Why¡¯s that?¡±

    ¡°I just have some stuff coming up with my family that I need to attend to in the meantime. Besides, doesn''t your family worry about you being with a teenage boy all the time?¡±

    ¡°Not in the slightest. Granted, I believe it¡¯s because YOU are the teenage boy, Yami. So they have no need to worry!¡±

    Getting a fuzzy feeling in his stomach, Yami kept walking with Shinkai down the sidewalk.

    ¡°All I¡¯ve ever wanted was a kind, loving family. And here it is, right in front of me.¡±

    A tear rolled down the right side of Yami¡¯s face that Shinkai couldn¡¯t see.

    ¡°Just to your house. But I really need to go after that.¡±

    ¡°Okay!¡±

    <hr>

    Posche hit enter on his keyboard. Looking at the time, Posche noticed that it was December 5th at 1:20 a.m., which was a Monday. Becoming relieved and letting out a sigh, Posche closed his browser and shutdown his computer.

    ¡°With a week of my work as a teacher completed, I have time to focus on my work as an echo.¡±

    Walking down to the door in his basement, Posche strained his right arm and yelled ¡°Heya Tatsujin: Sento! Yasumi!¡±

    The door slamming his hand onto the door, it swung open into a large communal room. Walking into the room, Posche examined it thoroughly.

    ¡°The main area appears to have enough space for the majority of the school. Worst comes to worst, the excess population can reside inside of the war room for the duration of our transport.¡±

    Continuing his expedition, Posche entered a bamboo door, allowing himself to be met with a large oval table, a whiteboard, and walls coated in various weapons, from swords to assault rifles.

    ¡°Looking at this room more carefully, maybe I should only allow the adults into this room.¡±

    Closing the door behind him, Posche walked to the opposite side of the room to a white door made of metal. Sliding it open, Posche unveiled a room, nearly the same size of the main hall, yet the majority of the floor was covered in medical comfort mattresses. In contrast with the war room, the medical bay¡¯s walls were aligned with cupboards full of medical supplies.

    Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work!

    ¡°This should suffice. I can only hold this room for about 30 minutes. If I attempt to transport this whole room to a separate gateway, then I have about 15 minutes. If I add into all of the people in here, I¡¯ll only have a third of that time, at most.¡±

    Walking out of the room, Posche closed the door behind him.

    ¡°I should be fine, but as for Yami¡­¡±

    <hr>

    Wiping the sweat off of his forehead, Yami walked over to his backpack. He was in the meadow, and the torn dirt and cracked trees were proof of his training efforts. Withdrawing a bottle of water, he began to gulp down nearly the entire bottle. Feeling his phone buzz, he reached into his pocket and withdrew his phone, seeing a notification from Shitto. Unlocking his phone by pressing a button with his thumb, Yami opened the message that Shitto had sent.

    Yami, Phil is setting up a meeting. Get to his house asap.

    ¡°Ugh.¡±

    Placing his phone back in his pocket, Yami zipped up his backpack and finished the water in his bottle. Crumpling it up and placing it into a pocket on the side of his backpack, Yami walked through the door into his room.

    ¡°I¡¯ve done enough talking with him for a while. Besides, I¡¯ve trained my ass off this past month. He has nothing to say to me.¡±

    <hr>

    I¡¯m like here we go, I did my part for the squad, now we in it tho-

    Yami slammed his alarm clock with his fist. Getting dressed in his typical clothes, Yami hid his two knives in his pants, which, if he removed his shirt, would be easily accessible. Jogging down the stairs to his front door, he slipped his shoes on and ran out the door. As he shut the door, he noticed a strange sight. His father was sitting on the swing in front of his house. Noticing Yami exit the house, his father turned to him.

    ¡°Hey, Yami.¡±

    ¡°H-Hi.¡±

    Pulling a cigarette out of his shirt pocket, his father started to smoke.

    ¡°I¡¯m taking the day off. My shoulder hurts.¡±

    ¡°Okay.¡±

    ¡°So get the fuck out of here. I don¡¯t want to see you near this house until tomorrow.¡±

    Yami walked down the stairs of his porch. Turning to walk down the sidewalk, Yami departed from his house. His father sat on the swing in silence.

    <hr>

    Jogging down the sidewalk, Yami finally saw two familiar backs.

    ¡°Hey! Rikai! Shitto!¡±

    Turning to face him, Rikai and Shitto looked at him with equally cold eyes. They spoke simultaneously.

    ¡°Yami! Where have you been?!¡±

    Rubbing his neck and catching up to his friends, Yami began to muster up an explanation.

    ¡°I have been busy with schoolwork, I guess¡­¡±

    ¡°Yami, I told you we had a group meeting last night!¡±

    ¡°And I haven¡¯t seen you in almost months!¡±

    Once again synchronized, they continued to pummel Yami with words.

    ¡°You were with that girl all this time, weren¡¯t you?!?!¡±

    Looking frustrated, Yami denied them.

    ¡°No! Shinki doesn¡¯t have anything to do with why I haven¡¯t seen you two!¡±

    ¡°Then what is it, Yami,¡± Rikai said, sounding defeated?

    Yami shook his head.

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter what it is. Even if it was Shinki, I¡¯d never say that it was her fault, and it¡¯s asinine for you to even assume that.¡±

    Yami walked ahead of his two friends.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to school. You two can bicker amongst yourselves back there.¡±

    Rikai became frustrated. She threw down her bag and began to scream at Yami.

    ¡°And you can go on living your pathetic life! You have no one you can talk to anymore, and your only ¡®friend¡¯ is that bitch!¡±

    Yami bit his lip. Shitto grabbed Rikai¡¯s arm.

    ¡°Hey, Rikai, knock it off. He gets it.¡±

    Yami kept walking towards the school.

    ¡°Why will he never answer me? I just want to understand him, but he just pushes me farther away!¡±

    ¡°Yami,¡± Shitto thought to himself. ¡°What is running through your head right now? You completely missed the meeting. Don¡¯t tell me you forgot that today is December 7th, the day of the threat.¡±

    <hr>

    ¡°Yami Shinpai to the office, Yami Shinpai to the office. Thank you.¡±

    ¡°You heard them,¡± Yami¡¯s teacher said. Looking at the clock, he turned back to Yami. ¡°You may as well take your things, too. This period is about to end.¡±

    ¡°Right.¡±

    Grabbing his belongings off of the floor, Yami walked out of the classroom and down the hallway towards the office.

    ¡°What do they want with me now, and today of all days?¡±

    Opening the office door and entering, he saw Posche sitting in a chair.

    ¡°Yami, we need to talk. Now.¡±

    Walking into an empty office and shutting the door, Posche began to converse with Yami.

    ¡°What is your problem, Yami? We had a meeting last night. We haven¡¯t been in contact since we confirmed the date of the threat, which if you have forgotten, is today! What have you been doing all this time, Yami? Playing video games? Watching TV? Or bonding with the daughter of the mayor?¡±

    ¡°What does it matter to you? And for your information, I¡¯ve been training my ass off this whole time. You haven¡¯t seen me, so how could you tell I was slacking off? What evidence do you have?¡±

    ¡°I can tell by looking at you.¡±

    Yami bit his lip.

    ¡°Regardless, I¡¯m done scolding you for today. The rest comes AFTER today. I need to show you something.¡±

    Sliding his hand down the door, Posche opened into the evacuation room that he had been testing earlier in the week.

    ¡°This is the room that either you or I will be evacuating everyone to. Chances are that I¡¯ll be the one evacuating people into the room, and with hope, bringing them out. But if something goes ary, I may need you to pull everyone out of this room.¡±

    ¡°Do I just open it like any other gateway?¡±

    ¡°Essentially, but keep in mind you have only opened one specific type of gateway: Sensei. This is a combination of Sento and Yasumi, and with other souls inside of it. It will take a large amount of life essence to successfully open the gateway. Fortunately, there are enough supplies for everyone inside to sustain themselves for about a day, so if need be, you can rest.¡±

    ¡°Understood. I assume you don¡¯t have anymore information on the threat?¡±

    ¡°Unfortunately, no.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll take my leave.¡±

    As Yami opened the door back into the office where Posche and he had their discussion, he noticed his phone got reception again. It began to buzz. Pulling it out of his pocket, he saw that it was Shippai.

    ¡°Hello?¡±

    ¡°Yami, where the hell are you?¡±

    ¡°At the office, why?¡±

    ¡°Did you not here that explosion?¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°I think it¡¯s the threat that was brought to our attention. The school is panicking right now, but nothing has happened inside of the school.¡±

    ¡°Got it. I¡¯ll tell Mr. P right away.¡±

    Putting his phone back in his pocket, Yami stuck his head inside of the door and yelled for Posche.

    ¡°Hey! Mr. P! The threat is happening! Get out here, quick!¡±

    Posche ran to the door and undid the gateway, opening the door into the office. He turned to question an office lady.

    ¡°What is going on?¡±

    ¡°We aren¡¯t sure! We heard an explosion, and on the camera feed outside of the school, a lot of people are beginning to swarm the school!¡±

    ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not entirely sure myself, but it looks like they plan on invading the building!¡±

    Posche turned back to Yami.

    ¡°We need to get everyone ready.¡±

    ¡°Right.¡±

    Posche ran over to the microphone.

    ¡°Attention students: We are currently doing an evacuation drill. Please remain in your classroom until a representative has opened your door. I repeat: This is a drill. Please remain in your classroom.¡±

    Setting the microphone back onto the table, Posche turned to Yami.

    ¡°Nows your time to practice opening that gateway. Good luck.¡±

    ¡°You too.¡±

    Posche turned back to the lady.

    ¡°Please come with me. I¡¯ll guide you to safety.¡±

    Grabbing her hand, Posche ran off into the direction of the West Hall. Yami ran toward the South Hall.

    Opening classroom after classroom, Yami ushered students and faculty alike into the evacuation room. The students seemed to see through the lie that this was all a drill, as many were in a panic.

    ¡°I¡¯m just over halfway done. Only a dozen more classrooms and we can focus on bringing the fight to these attackers.¡±

    Opening the door to a classroom and beginning to herd the people into the evacuation room, both Yami and the students were frozen in shock as a brick was sent flying through a window, smashing it and hitting the tile floor. Yami began to yell at the crowd.

    ¡°Move it! NOW!¡±

    ¡°Shit. There¡¯s no way I can clear every other classroom before they reach us. It¡¯s only a matter of time before they begin to harm the civilians.¡±

    ¡°Yami!¡±

    Looking down the hall, Yami saw Shitto leading a large pack of civilians down the hall.

    ¡°Sounds like we¡¯re about to get swamped, so I figured I may as well try to get as many students out as I could. Will this work?¡±

    ¡°Hell yes! Thank you so much, Shitto!¡±

    Yami and Shitto herded every civilian into the doorway as fast as they could. As the final teacher walked in, Yami shut the door and undid the gateway.

    ¡°Well, Shitto? Are you ready?¡±

    ¡°What forget about us?¡±

    Yami turned to see Posche and Shippai standing behind them.

    ¡°Good. We¡¯re all here.¡±

    Shitto peeked out of a blind in a classroom.

    ¡°Guys, we have our work cut out for us.¡±

    On the front lawn, and surrounding the entire school, were over one thousand strangers preparing to storm the school. Yami gulped.

    ¡°If you guys get injured,¡± Yami began, ¡°just run. I¡¯ll take care of myself.¡±

    Shitto started laughing.

    ¡°You know Yami, you never cease to amaze me. You are such a joker!¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s that supposed to mean?¡±

    ¡°What he means,¡± Posche said, ¡°is that we¡¯re in this together. If one of us falls, we all fall.¡±

    Yami took off his shirt, leaving himself in a white T-shirt. His knives were visible.

    ¡°Let¡¯s do this.¡±

 Chapter 17 - Retaliation

    Reaching behind him, Yami grabbed his pocket knife. Flicking it open in his right hand, he began to analyze the attackers.

    ¡°There are so many!¡±

    Posche stared out of the window.

    ¡°I agree. There¡¯s no way they¡¯re not connected. It must be an organization, in which case, we need to find out who is in charge.¡±

    Shitto chuckled and formed a sword in his hand out of his life essence.

    ¡°Only one way to find that out. Interrogation!¡±

    Posche walked over to a closet in the room. Sliding his hand down the door, then reaching inside, he withdrew a large axe.

    ¡°I¡¯m ready.¡±

    Shitto gripped his sword tightly in his hand, and a bead of sweat dripped down his forehead.

    ¡°I was born ready.¡±

    Shippai rolled up her sleeves and put her hair in a ponytail. Posche reached back inside of the closet and tossed her a knife with a 6-inch blade, which she firmly gripped in a reverse edge out grip.

    ¡°I¡¯m ready.¡±

    Yami glanced at their faces, then turned towards the horde of people. Upon seeing Yami, they began to sprint at the school. Yami formed a sphere in his hand.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±

    Leaping towards the window, Yami thrust the sphere in his left hand at it, causing it to shatter, allowing him to leap through. Posche, Shitto, and Shippai followed.

    <hr>

    Rikai looked around in the room she was in. Familiar faces of her classmates and teachers flooded her vision.

    ¡°Where are we? Mr. Posche just told us to get in the room, and that we were being evacuated, but it seems like no one knows what¡¯s going on.¡±

    A face of shock came over Rikai.

    ¡°Where is Shitto and Yami? I haven¡¯t heard their voices. Students have stopped coming into the room, so they couldn¡¯t have been left behind, could they?¡±

    Panicking, Rikai began to shove her way through the crowd, desperately trying to find Shitto and Yami.

    ¡°Hey! Rikai! Over here!¡±

    Rikai turned and saw hands waving over the crowd. Parting the sea of people once again, Rikai approached a group of her friends.

    ¡°Hey guys. Do you have any idea what¡¯s going on?¡±

    ¡°Not really, no. We heard Mr. Posche say something on the P.A., then before we knew it, we were all being shoved in here. No one really knows what¡¯s going on, either.¡±

    ¡°I see. I¡¯ll be right back, I¡¯m looking for some people.¡±

    ¡°Okay. Don¡¯t get lost in the crowd!¡±

    Rikai began to fish her way through the crowd once again, but almost immediately after leaving, she began to hear her friends quietly talk amongst themselves.

    ¡°Did she say she¡¯s looking for people? Surely she couldn¡¯t have meant¡­¡±

    Rikai shook it off and continued walking. As she shoved people around, she began to hear more and more conversations. Passing a group of boys, she overheard them talk.

    ¡°I heard it¡¯s super dangerous, and that the school is being attacked again.¡±

    ¡°No way, again?!¡±

    ¡°Yeah, and I bet it¡¯s Yami¡¯s fault again, too.¡±

    Putting distance in between them and herself, she heard another group of people talking.

    ¡°Shitto helped guide us to a doorway into here. He sure is courageous!¡±

    ¡°Did he make it in too?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure¡­¡±

    Walking more quickly now, Rikai heard a cluster of girls chatting.

    ¡°Besides, we¡¯re all safe in here.¡±

    ¡°How do you know?¡±

    ¡°Because Mr. Posche shoved us in here! He protected us from the terrorists last time, too!¡±

    ¡°I heard that Yami helped wipe the floor with them, though.¡±

    ¡°Yeah! Besides, HE was the one who put ME in here!¡±

    Rikai paused.

    ¡°What do you mean, ¡®he put me in here¡¯?¡±

    ¡°He came to my class, opened this room, and told us to take shelter in here. He said that we were being evacuated.¡±

    Rikai grabbed this girl''s shoulder and spun her around to face her.

    ¡°You mean that Yami was the one who put you in here?¡±

    The girl, who was confused and visibly shaken nodded her head.

    ¡°No.¡±

    Rikai let go of her shoulder and turned back to continue pushing her way through the crowd.

    ¡°That can¡¯t be. There¡¯s no way that he is out there.¡±

    ¡°YAMI! SHITTO!¡±

    The only response was that of a dense crowd talking amongst themselves.

    ¡°They couldn¡¯t have left me behind again. They can¡¯t be facing an unknown danger right now. They can¡¯t.¡±

    Rikai¡¯s body popped out of the crowd and was up against a wall. Looking to her left, she saw a door. Forcing herself behind people, she finally arrived at the door. Sliding it open, she found that no one was present in the room. Closing the door behind her, she began to investigate the room. Almost as prominent as the oval table in the center of the room was the staggering amount of weapons aligned around the wall. Grabbing a katana off of the wall, she unsheathed it to find a freshly sharpened blade.

    ¡°What exactly is this place?¡±

    She heard a small noise. Turning to the source, she saw a cabinet. Sheathing the katana, she walked over to the cabinet. Hearing a noise once again, she clearly heard screaming, as well as hundreds of stampeding feet.

    ¡°This can¡¯t be..¡±Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

    Pulling the door open slightly and taking a small peak, she gasped.

    <hr>

    ¡°KEN!¡±

    A purple sword sliced through a man¡¯s abdomen, causing blood to paint the surrounding area in a dark red. Shitto wiped the blood off of his face with his shirt.

    ¡°Hey! How are you guys holding up?!¡±

    Posche had a strained face as he gripped the handle of his axe with two hands. A man who resembled more of a grizzly bear than a human grabbed the handle and attempted to pull the axe away from Posche. Pulling his leg up, Posche kicked the man in the stomach as if he were breaching a door. The man maintained his grip as he fell, causing Posche to lose his axe. Behind him, he heard a woman yell. Quickly turning, Posche caught the woman¡¯s forearm as she tried to stab him in a downward motion. Wrapping her arm behind her back, Posche got behind her. With his right arm, he began to choke the woman. Feeling herself losing consciousness, she tried to shake Posche off of her. Turning him 180 degrees, back to where the encounter started, she pushed herself backwards off of the ground, causing Posche to stumble backwards, with the woman landing on top of him. With his arm still firmly wrapped around her neck, Posche squeezed tighter. The woman began to stop squirming, then her grip loosened on the knife. Feeling relieved, Posche shoved her off of him and wiped the sweat off of his eyes. As they opened, he saw the large man raise his axe in the air. A hand wrapped itself around his neck like a snake, then quickly slid back down, slitting his neck open, causing blood to spray all over Posche. Wiping it off of his face, he saw Shippai covered in blood with the knife he gave her.

    ¡°Mr. Posche and I are doing fine!¡±

    ¡°Who I¡¯m most worried about,¡± Posche said, ¡°is Yami.¡±

    Turning his head, he saw a mob of people completely ignoring them and heading in the same direction as everyone else.

    <hr>

    A blast blew a man into the swarm that was surrounding Yami. At least a dozen more bodies fell over as the man tumbled into them. Yami formed another sphere. Turning to his left, he drove the sphere towards a man who grabbed Yami¡¯s arm. Hearing more people swarm behind him, Yami strained his arm, allowing him to break free of the man¡¯s grasp. Driving the sphere into the ground, a large cloud of dirt and debris flew into the air. The man who grabbed Yami rubbed his eyes, but as he removed his hand, a throwing knife drove itself into his skull. Darting out of the dust, Yami held his knife pointing in front of him. His speed drove his knife into the stomach of one person, allowing for his hand to slide through and into the stomach of another. Yami pulled his hand out of the two bellies of these strangers and flicked his knife downward to get some of the blood off of the blade. Behind him, he heard a man yell. Leaping well over the man, Yami did a backflip over him. Upon landing, Yami formed another sphere and drove it into his back, blowing him into another crowd. Now panting, Yami tried to regain his breath.

    ¡°This isn¡¯t good. I¡¯ve probably killed more than two hundred people, and they are still coming. There is no end to them.¡±

    Seeing a woman charge toward him, Yami attempted to form another sphere. A very tiny ball was made in response.

    ¡°Come on you fucker!¡±

    Straining his arm, a medium size sphere was created. Having no more time, Yami thrust the sphere into the woman¡¯s stomach, only blowing her back a foot. Sweat poured down Yami¡¯s face, mixing with the blood already present. He was panting even more now.

    ¡°This isn¡¯t good. I¡¯m almost completely drained. There¡¯s still more coming, too.¡±

    Yami looked up. The circle began to envelope him.

    ¡°So this is how I die. Despite trying to end it earlier, these past few months have really made me happy. I have dreams and aspirations now. I want to fall in love. I want to get married. I want to have kids. I want to get old. I want to be¡­ loved.¡±

    A tear rolled down Yami¡¯s face as he lay on the ground, staring at the cloudy sky.

    ¡°You know, Yami, you do not have to die today.¡±

    Hearing this familiar voice, Yami gasped.

    ¡°I thought you were gone, Akahishi!¡±

    Akahishi chuckled.

    ¡°I will never be gone, Jinsei no Hogo. Now, how about I lend you my power?¡±

    Yami gulped.

    ¡°Fine.¡±

    <hr>

    Shitto screamed as he drove his sword into the abdomen of another person. The serrated edge was faded, and the blade was much more dull. Feeling a blade go through his right arm, Shitto swung his left hand behind him, hitting the attacker in the temple. His sword had disappeared. Gasping for air, Shitto began to dart towards the school. Charging, Shitto broke through the glass in the front hall, causing his body to become covered in cuts. Running back through the halls, the crunching of glass behind him assured him that he had followers. Finding himself back in the classroom that he, Shippai, Posche, and Yami prepared for the assault, he slammed the door behind him, holding it shut with his left arm. Behind him, he heard a gasp. Turning towards it, he saw the closet door quickly shut. Shuffling to the broken window, Shitto grabbed a shard of glass and gripped it so tightly in his left hand that it began to bleed. Walking over to the closet, he pulled the door open to find Rikai holding a katana in a foreign room.

    ¡°Rikai!¡±

    Hearing pounding on the door behind him, Shitto dropped the glass and flung his body into the closet, shutting the door behind him. Running to the opposite side of the oval table, Shitto pushed his body against it, moving the table close to the cabinet. Rikai saw what he was trying to accomplish, and assisted him. Hearing the comforting thud of the table hitting the cabinet door, Shitto fell over onto the ground. A pool of blood began to cover the area of floor he laid on.

    ¡°Shitto! Stay here!¡±

    Opening the door to the main room, Rikai called out into the crowd.

    ¡°I need a stretcher! We have badly injured here! Hurry! Please!¡±

    The crowd shifted their gaze onto Rikai, and onto the room which was previously unexplored. Running back to Shitto, Rikai placed her hand on the stab wound and began to apply pressure.

    ¡°R-Rikai¡­¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t speak. You¡¯re safe now. Just hold still, and save your breath.¡±

    Shitto continued panting for air. A pair of teachers carrying a stretcher burst into the room. Placing Shitto onto the stretcher, another teacher arrived to block students from entering the room, which was filled with weapons. Following the stretcher, Rikai held the katana firmly in her left hand. As the stretcher parted the crowd, students were mumbling amongst themselves, some complimenting Shitto on how cool he was, others fearing for themselves.Finally reaching the empty medical bay, three teachers equipped to do surgery retrieved Shitto from the stretcher. They quickly went to work on Shitto, cleaning his wounds with saline, then stitched the wound shut. They also wrapped his cuts which he received from breaking through the glass pane with an anti-bacterial cream and bandages. Upon completion, the three teachers walked towards the sink to clean their hands. Rikai sat on a bed next to Shitto. He opened his eyes and turned towards her.

    ¡°What¡¯s¡­ up?¡±

    ¡°Is Yami still fighting?¡±

    Shitto nodded. Gulping, Rikai clenched the katana in her hand. She stood up from the bed and began to walk towards the exit.

    ¡°Rikai!¡±

    Shitto¡¯s muffled voice was not loud enough to get her attention. Trying to stand up, Shitto tumbled and fell onto the floor, allowing Rikai to walk right out of the room. Teachers rushed to help retrieve Shitto off of the ground as he became unconscious.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry I couldn¡¯t stop her, Yami.¡±

    <hr>

    Pushing through the crowd, Rikai forced her way to the war room once again. Attempting to enter, she was stopped by a teacher.

    ¡°You can¡¯t come in here. It¡¯s too dangerous.¡±

    Rikai drew the katana and pointed it at him.

    ¡°I was the one who found it, jackass. Let me through.¡±

    Putting his hands up, the teacher backed away from the door, allowing Rikai to enter. Pulling the table away from the cabinet, Rikai opened the door. Climbing through, she found that the closet had been tipped over. Crawling onto the tile floor, she stood up and looked out of the broken window. She gasped at the horror of hundreds of bodies coating the front lawn of the high school. Climbing through the broken window, she began to walk towards a girl with red hair kneeled over Posche. A green ooze was pouring down her arm and was coating Posche¡¯s chest with it.

    ¡°Wake up, damn it! You can¡¯t die now!¡±

    Nearing her, Rikai spoke.

    ¡°Is that.... Mr. Posche?¡±

    The girl turned to face Rikai. Tears were rolling down her bloodied face.

    ¡°Yes¡­ Though, I think he¡¯s¡­.¡±

    The girl began sobbing into her hands.

    ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡±

    The girl looked at Rikai.

    ¡°I¡¯m Shippai.¡±

    ¡°This is the girl who rejected Yami, right? What is she doing here?¡±

    ¡°Where is Yami?¡±

    Shippai shook her head.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. There were so many people¡­ We got swarmed¡­ I think we lost Shitto, too.¡±

    Rikai hugged Shippai.

    ¡°Shitto¡¯s safe. He¡¯s inside of the evacuation shelter. You should head there, too. I¡¯ll help you take Mr. Posche as well.¡±

    With Posche¡¯s arms wrapped around their shoulders, Rikai guided Shippai to the cabinet.

    ¡°Inside there are people who can help you two. Get some rest.¡±

    ¡°What about Yami?¡±

    Shippai looked out towards the lawn.

    ¡°I¡¯ll find him.¡±

    Rikai shut the door behind Shippai and departed to find Yami.

    <hr>

    Body after body was blown into the swarm of people surrounding Yami. Covered in blood, Yami killed person after person. Running into the crowd, Yami wielded his pocket knife in one hand, and sphere in his other. Slicing through bodies as if they were butter, and sending them flying like a ball, Yami continued his rampage. The crowd had been reduced down to nearly twenty people. Yami lept thirty feet in the air, then, aiming at the ground, formed another sphere with a ten foot radius, eliminating the remaining attackers. Landing on the ground, Yami wiped his face with the remainder of his shirt. His clothes were so torn that his shirt was discarded after wiping his face, and his pants had tears all along them.

    ¡°Well, well, well. You have certainly outperformed what I had expected, Yami.¡±

    Opening his eyes, which were now black with a jagged red line, Yami faced Shinkai and her father. Seeing Shinkai, Yami¡¯s eyes turned back to normal.

    ¡°Shinki? W-Why are you here?¡±

    Shinkai chuckled.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it obvious? I¡¯m the one who came here to kill you. I expected you to fall, but it seems like you are much stronger than I expected.¡±

    ¡°But¡­. but Shinki¡­ why would you do this? So many people died¡­¡±

    ¡°Yes, and it is quite a shame. They were going to be my servants after I killed you and obtained your power for myself, but I suppose I¡¯ll just have to get new ones.¡±

    A tear rolled down Yami¡¯s face.

    <hr>

    Rikai heard a large a explosion. Turning towards that sound, she began to run at it.

    ¡°Yami¡­ Please be safe.¡±

    Nearing the sound, she hugged a wall of the school. Peaking around the corner, she saw Yami on his knees. A tear rolled down his face.

    ¡°Shinki¡­ Why do you want to kill me?¡±

    Rikai gasped.

    <hr>

    Shinkai was looking down on Yami.

    ¡°Father, kill that girl over there.¡±

    The mayor held his right hand up towards the corner of the school. Yami turned his head to see Rikai standing at the edge. Shaking, she drew her katana.

    ¡°R-Rikai! Get out of here! You¡¯ll be killed!¡±

    Feeling her emotions begin to bubble inside of her, Rikai began to tear up.

    ¡°And what about you?! You keep thinking about other people, but what about yourself?! I¡¯m tired of you being so arrogant, Yami!¡±

    ¡°Rikai¡­¡±

    ¡°Enough chit-chat,¡± Shinkai yelled! ¡°I¡¯ll tell you what¡¯s about to happen, Yami. My father here is going to shoot a huge ball of fire at poor, little Rikai over there. Seeing that you are so far away, there is no chance for you to reach us, and believe me, my father has a better reaction time than you, so you better not try to attack us. The that I see it, you have two choices. Option A: You let my father shoot this bitch and we continue to talk as adults. Option B: You use that Sirushi Inochi of yours to knock the fireball over into those suburbs. You have 3 seconds.¡±

    ¡°1.¡±

    Yami gulped.

    ¡°She¡¯s right. I don¡¯t think I could reach them in time, and there¡¯s no other angle I could hit it from. All I can do is hit it.¡±

    ¡°2.¡±

    ¡°Yami! Just let it hit me! Don¡¯t risk harming someone else because of my mistakes!¡±

    ¡°What is over there? Wait a second¡­¡±

    ¡°3.¡±

    The mayor formed a large ball of fire in his palm.

    ¡°Let¡¯s see what you do, Jinsei no Hogo!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s the only choice. I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    The ball of fire ejected from the palm of the mayor. Rikai shed a tear.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry Yami. I really messed things up this time. I wish I could¡¯ve told you everything¡­ How I felt¡­ How much it hurt to not see you¡­ To see you with her¡­ I want to know all about what you¡¯ve been through¡­ I hope we can speak in the afterlife, Yami.¡±

    Rikai watched as the ball of flames travelled towards her.

    ¡°Goodbye.¡±

    In a flash, Yami formed a large sphere in his hand and collided with the side of the fireball.

    ¡°If I hit it at this angle¡­¡±

    The fireball was sent flying in the direction of the suburbs. Yami landed from his leap at the fireball. He watched as it landed and a cloud of smoke began to form.

    ¡°Goodbye, dad.¡±

 Chapter 18 - All Is Fair In Love and War

    Smoke billowed into the air from a nearby suburb. Shinkai grinned.

    ¡°So, you chose some poor bastard over there? You truly are heartless, aren¡¯t you? There could¡¯ve been mothers, animals, children, yet you chose to potentially kill any number of people over one, pathetic excuse of a girl?¡±

    Yami clenched his fists.

    ¡°You¡¯re one to talk.¡±

    Shinkai looked at Yami as if he were a child.

    ¡°What was that?¡±

    Yami turned away from the cloud of smoke and faced Shinkai.

    ¡°You have no right to call her a pathetic girl. You put countless innocent lives in danger just for the sake of gaining more power. I could care less if I had to make that decision a thousand times over. It wouldn¡¯t make Rikai pathetic in the slightest!¡±

    ¡°Yami¡­,¡± Rikai mumbled to herself.

    ¡°Fortunately, we won¡¯t have to do it a second time.¡± Shinkai said. ¡°Father, bring him back to me clinging for life.¡±

    The mayor charged towards Yami. Swinging his fists in the direction of Yami, the mayor acted as if he were a wild animal. Blocking the incoming attack, Yami swung his left leg at his opponent¡¯s in an attempt to knock him over, but to no avail. It was caught mid-swing by the mayor, who promptly threw Yami into a window, causing it to shatter, as well send Yami flying into a wall on the opposite side of the room.

    ¡°Yami!¡±

    Rikai began to run towards the shattered window.

    ¡°Rikai! It¡¯s okay! Just get somewhere safe for now! I can¡¯t keep both of us safe!¡±

    The mayor lept through the window and raised his fists as if to hit Yami on the head like a hammer hits a nail. Yami rolled to his left to avoid the attack, which promptly resulted in shards of floor tile spewing around the room. Yami broke a metal leg off of a desk and ran behind the mayor, placing it on his throat and pulling it towards him, trying to make him lose consciousness.

    ¡°Hey! What¡¯s wrong with you? You¡¯re attacking your own school!¡±

    The mayor grabbed the leg of the desk with both of his hands. Quickly, smoke began to flow out of the gaps between his fingers, and the leg became so hot that it caused Yami to let go of it. The mayor strained his hand, and the metal leg became engulfed in flames. The mayor threw the leg at Yami, who formed a sphere and braced his left arm. The leg hit the sphere with such force that as it crushed, the flames present continued travelling towards Yami, burning his arm. Letting out a cry of pain, Yami began to inspect his arm. His arm was blotchy with red marks and peeling skin.

    ¡°Damn it! I can¡¯t make the same mistake with this guy. Without direct contact from his hands, I¡¯ve already got second degree burns.¡±

    Yami¡¯s train of thought was destroyed as the mayor lunged at him again. Yami withdrew his pocket knife and tried to avoid the man pummeling towards him. As Yami slid underneath one of the mayor¡¯s arms, his right shoulder was quickly grabbed by the other. Feeling the heat of the palm that held him hostage, Yami instinctively formed a sphere and swung it towards the arm. Just before contact, the mayor let out a large flame that wrapped itself around Yami¡¯s body. Letting out a scream of pain, Yami finally blew the arm off of his shoulder. The hand hit the wall with such force that it broke not only the brick wall, but also the hand. Blood dripped out of the broken hand as the mayor tried to find his way out of the dust cloud that formed after shattering the wall. The dust cloud finally subsiding, the mayor looked around the room for a sign of Yami. There was no trace.

    <hr>

    Yami darted down the hall towards a pair of doors that led outside. His body was covered in burns of various degrees, with his shoulder being almost completely charred. Pushing himself through the doors, Yami ran towards a sprinkler in the ground. Seeing a hose that connected it to the school¡¯s water supply, Yami made quick use of his knife to cut it and pour to ice cold water onto his shoulder.

    ¡°Shit. I can¡¯t feel my shoulder at all. He burned it VERY badly. If he shoots a fireball as large as the one from earlier and I take it head on¡­¡±

    The door creaked open behind Yami. Yami turned to see the mayor standing in the doorway. Forming another sphere, Yami lept onto the roof above the doorway and slammed his sphere into it, causing to ceiling to collapse onto the mayor. Peering over the edge, Yami saw a hand sticking out of the rubble. It was broken and bleeding.

    ¡°I got him. Now to take care of Shinki.¡±

    <hr>

    Rikai ran over hundreds of corpses as she attempted to go back to the closet from which she came.

    ¡°Hey, where do you think you¡¯re going?¡±

    Rikai turned to see Shinkai standing on top of a body as if she had been there the entire time.

    ¡°Shinki! What do you think you¡¯re doing?!¡±

    ¡°Does it really need to be explained to you? Though, I suppose you have always needed someone to help you get things through your thick skull.¡±

    ¡°Just tell me!¡±

    Shinkai sighed.

    ¡°It¡¯d be a millennia before you understood it all, so there¡¯s no point in me telling you. All you need to know is that both you and Yami are going to die.¡±

    Rinkai gulped. Trembling, she withdrew her katana.

    ¡°I-I¡¯ll never let you do that. I¡¯ll stop you here and now.¡±

    Shinkai looked Rikai in the eyes very seriously. Rikai held the katana tighter. Shinkai¡¯s look of seriousness soon cracked with a grin, then laughter.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Rikai, but you? You are too pathetic to do anything! But I must give you some respect for making me laugh!¡±

    Rikai held the katana firmly.

    ¡°You don¡¯t know what I¡¯m capable of, you rotten bitch.¡±A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

    Shinkai looked down upon Rikai.

    ¡°I¡¯m fairly certain that you¡¯re only capable of crying. At homecoming alone you could¡¯ve filled an olympic swimming pool. Besides, there was no need for you to risk your life over him. He doesn¡¯t even love you!¡±

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter!¡± Rikai looked at the ground.

    ¡°Hmm?¡±

    ¡°Even if he doesn¡¯t love me¡­ Even if he hates me with all of his being¡­¡± Rikai looked Shinkai in the eyes. ¡°I love him! So long as he is happy, I¡¯m happy! That¡¯s why I¡¯ll risk my life! And that¡¯s why I¡¯ll kill you!¡±

    ¡°Well said. Let¡¯s settle this then, Rikai.¡±

    Shinkai reached toward the ground and withdrew a dagger from one of the many bodies surrounding her.

    Rikai yelled as she charged at Shinkai, who simply grinned and ran towards Rikai.

    ¡°I can¡¯t win, but I have to try. If I don¡¯t, then I¡¯d be no better than the people who look at Yami with cold eyes.¡±

    A clash of metal was heard as a blade collided with another.

    ¡°Long time no see, Rikai.¡±

    Yami stood in between the two girls. In his right hand was his pocket knife, which was connected with the dagger that Shinkai wielded. In his left was Rikai¡¯s wrist, preventing her from slicing Yami with her katana. Gritting her teeth, Shinkai lifted up the dagger and attempted to swing at Yami from his waist. Letting go of Rikai¡¯s wrist, Yami threw the knife in the air. Catching it in his left hand, he swung down at the dagger, successfully deflecting it. From seemingly nowhere, the mayor flung himself at Yami. Yami let go of his knife due to the sudden impact of this large man, and lost the air in his lungs as the mayor landed on him. Feeling his left arm being pinned down to an extent that he couldn''t move it in the slightest, he raised his right arm towards Rikai.

    ¡°Rikai! Toss me that!¡±

    Seeing his right hand in the air, Rikai flung her katana towards him. Catching the hilt, Yami flipped the blade around in his hand to drive it through the mayor¡¯s side. Spitting up blood, the mayor rolled off of Yami. Throwing himself away from the mayor, Yami tried to regain some of the breath he lost. Without warning, a dagger tried to slice at Yami. Deflecting it with the katana, Yami launched a counter-attack, pushing Shinkai back.

    ¡°There¡¯s my opening!¡±

    Seeing Shinkai¡¯s left hand in the open, Yami guided his katana over to it. Instead of hitting its intended target, however, it found itself slicing through the palm of the mayor¡¯s right hand, who had dove to protect Shinkai.

    ¡°Good job, father!¡±

    Fearing another tackle, Yami fell back a distance away from Shinkai and the mayor. Shoving his katana into the ground for balance, Yami took a knee to catch his breath. Rikai promptly ran up to him.

    ¡°Yami! Are you okay?¡±

    Panting heavily, sweat beaded all over Yami¡¯s body.

    ¡°I¡¯m a little bit burnt, that¡¯s all.¡± Yami maintained sight on the two targets in front of him. ¡°What about you? Are you hurt?¡±

    Rikai shook her head.

    ¡°No, I¡¯m fine.¡±

    Shinkai walked next the mayor.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with your left arm?¡±

    Upon inspecting it, she saw it was broken.

    ¡°Here. I¡¯ll help you out.¡±

    Yami wiped his forehead.

    ¡°Rikai, liste-¡±

    ¡°Burn to a crisp!¡±

    ¡°What?!?!¡±

    Shinkai held up the mayor¡¯s left arm as he launched a large fireball towards Yami and Rikai. Pushing Rikai behind himself, Yami looked determined. Gripping the katana¡¯s hilt in both hands, Yami strained his arms. As the fireball prepared to hit Yami, he lifted the katana above his head. Swinging it towards the ground with tremendous speed, Yami sliced the fireball with the katana, allowing it to split in half and go in opposite directions, leaving Rikai unharmed. Yami¡¯s hands, however, gained a few more burns. The katana glew a bright orange from the amount of heat it was exposed to. Gripping the katana in his right hand, Yami lifted it as if it were a javelin, then threw it with as much force as a hunting bow would hurl an arrow. The katana burrowed itself into the palm of the mayor, and travelled through his arm until it poked out next to his shoulder. Shinkai sighed.

    ¡°I guess that was the extent of what you could do, father.¡±

    Grabbing his chin and the back of his head, Shinkai quickly twisted the mayor¡¯s head, snapping his neck. His body fell over onto the cold ground. Rikai gasped and covered her mouth in shock. Yami wore a serious look on his face as he stared at Shinkai, who looked up from her father¡¯s body and smiled at Yami.

    ¡°You truly pushed me to my limits, Yami. Normally, I¡¯d retreat from here and attempt to build another army, but I¡¯m out of time. I have to kill you now.¡±

    ¡°Why? Why today?¡±

    ¡°Simple. Because I die today.¡±

    <hr>

    An explosion rattled a stone building, causing dust to fall onto a small blonde girl, about five years old. This girl wore tattered clothing, and looked as though she had not had meal in days, and a bath in months. Crying, she held onto a teddy bear tightly, hugging it in her arms as if it were the only thing she had left in the world. Rustling was heard outside, and a man yelled ¡®Breach!¡¯ as the door to the building was kicked in. A woman walked over the girl and pat her head.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay. I¡¯ll be right back, dear.¡±

    The girl looked up from her teddy bear to watch the woman pick up a submachine gun of some sort, closely resembling an MP5. The woman walked through a doorway, and the sound of screaming and gunshots collided with one another until one final sound ended them both. A thud. A group of soldiers walked through the doorway and saw the young girl hiding behind her teddy bear. One of the soldiers set his assault rifle onto the same table that the submachine gun had sat, and reached out his hand towards the girl.

    ¡°We¡¯re not here to hurt you. Please, come with me, and I can get you to safety.¡±

    Looking away from his hand, the girl saw blood slowly crawl through the doorway. The girl screamed in horror.

    <hr>

    A girl, blonde, sat in front of a mirror and brushed her hair. She was about eleven years old, and was clean, and was also well fed. Setting down her brush, she walked over to her bed and picked up her backpack. Placing it on her shoulders, she ran out of her room, down her stairs, and out of her house. Two other girls who wore the same uniform as the girl waveed at her as she caught up.

    ¡°Geez, you¡¯re always getting later and later.¡±

    The girl laughed anxiously.

    ¡°Sorry, I¡¯ve been getting up late.¡±

    ¡°What, do you stay up at night?¡±

    The girls laughed together.

    As the bell rang for school¡¯s dismissal, the girls walked back to their homes together. Waving goodbye, the blonde girl walked into her house. Setting down her backpack, she went into her kitchen. Opening her fridge, the girl withdrew various snacks and beverages. After finishing them, the girl began to clean her household. First, she did the dishes. Then, she vacuumed. Next, she dusted. Finally, she took out the garbage. Wiping the sweat off of her forehead, the girl walked upstairs and into her bathroom. Disrobing, the girl turned on the faucet in her bathtub. Soaking in the water, the girl relaxed. After about a thirty minutes, the girl stepped out of the bathtub and wrapped a towel around herself, walking back to her room. Putting on a long, white shirt, she picked up the covers on her bed and slid herself into it. Falling asleep, the girl turned to face her window, which allowed her to see the starry night sky. She fell into a trance while staring at the various stars. Her trance wasn¡¯t even disturbed by the door to her room creaking open, allowing light to flood in and hit her window. A large shadow stood in the doorway. It was a man. A zipper was undone in the doorway and the man shut the door behind him as he entered the room. Feeling the covers lift up and another person slide into the bed, the girl bit her lip.

    ¡°Hey there, sweetie. You gonna help daddy out tonight, again?¡±

    A tear rolled down the girl¡¯s face as the bed began to shake back and forth.

    <hr>

    A girl lay in a hospital bed with tubes sticking into her arms. A doctor walked in with a clipboard.

    ¡°Hi there. We¡¯ve just gotten your test results back. I¡¯m afraid I have some bad news. According to our results, your ailment is terminal. We suspect that you have about two years. I¡¯m so sorry. If you have any questions, or need anyone to talk to, everyone here is ready to talk with you.¡±

    The doctor walked out of the room and shut the door behind him. A man sitting in the corner of the room gulped.

    ¡°So.. I guess our time together is limited for only a couple more years, huh.¡±

    The man unzipped his pants.

    ¡°We should make the most with our time.¡±

    The girl spread her legs open. Her genitals were covered only by her thins hospital gown.

    ¡°Wow, you¡¯re getting more friendly with me!¡±

    As the man climbed on top of the hospital bed, the girl reached over, and in her bag, she withdrew a pistol. Blood splattered as a bullet drove itself through the man¡¯s head.

    ¡°Fuck you!¡±

    Crying, the girl placed the pistol against her temple. Screaming, she pulled the trigger.

    Hospital staff burst into the room to investigate the loud noise they had heard. Seeing the body of the man, they urged each other to call the police. The bed was empty, and the window was open.

    <hr>

    A knock on the door was heard by the butler as he was doing chores for the household. Opening the door, a blonde girl greeted him.

    ¡°Hello, madam. How may I be of service to you today?¡±

    ¡°Hello. I would like to speak with the homeowner, please.¡±

    ¡°No soliciting.¡±

    ¡°I am a family member.¡±

    Astonished, the butler scurried away.

    ¡°One moment, madam.¡±

    Walking into the room was the mayor.

    ¡°Who are you, claiming to be my family?¡±

    The girl looked the mayor in the eyes.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    The girl blinked hard.

    ¡°I¡¯m Shinkai, your daughter!¡±

    The mayor blinked.

    ¡°Pardon me! I had no idea where my mind had went! Please, come in!¡±

    <hr>

    Yami looked at the mayor who was laying on the ground.

    ¡°So that¡¯s why no one knew he had a daughter. It¡¯s because he never did.¡±

    Shinkai stared at Yami.

    ¡°You know what I have to do, Yami.¡±

    Yami formed a sphere in his fist. He began to rush towards Shinkai. His eyes met hers.

    Yami fell onto the cold ground.

 Chapter 19 - The Hundred Year Slumber

    ¡°Yami!¡±

    Rikai ran up to Yami¡¯s body which lay on the cold, hard ground. His face was petrified.

    ¡°Yami, what¡¯s wrong?! Get up!¡±

    Shinkai laughed maniacally.

    ¡°This is the best part! He fell for it the moment he looked into my eyes! In about ten seconds after making eye contact, he¡¯ll have spent 100 years in my Sirushi Inochi! I absolutely love the look on peoples¡¯ face as they awake in this world after being dead in another!¡±

    ¡°What are you talking about?!¡±

    Shinkai had an evil grin.

    ¡°You¡¯ll see in about two seconds.¡±

    <hr>

    Yami lay numbly on his back.

    ¡°Where am I? I feel just like that other time¡­ No, this is different. I must be kept in this condition medically. Did I lose against her that easily? I don¡¯t know what happened, I just looked into her eyes and¡­ and now I¡¯m¡­. Where am I?¡±

    Yami felt something warm grab his left hand.

    ¡°What is that? It¡¯s¡­ soft.¡±

    The darkness enveloping his vision began to become disrupted by an annoying white light.

    ¡°I¡¯m not seeing The Creator again, am I?¡±

    ¡°Sei?¡±

    ¡°That voice¡­¡±

    Yami began to blink his groggy eyes. The light pouring in from the windows made it clear that Yami had been asleep for a while. As his eyes began to adjust, he began to make out the shape of a woman.

    ¡°There¡¯s no way¡­¡±

    Yami squeezed his hand around the hand that was grasping his. Tears began to drip onto his hospital gown.

    ¡°Sei dear? Are you awake?¡±

    With his right hand, Yami wiped his eyes. Blinking one more time, he opened his eyes to a woman, about 45 years old. She had blonde hair, glasses, and her wrinkled cheeks made visible how happy this woman had been in her life.

    ¡°M-Mom¡­¡±

    The woman let out a sigh of relief.

    ¡°Thank goodness! If something had happened to you, Sei, I don¡¯t know what I would¡¯ve-¡±

    The woman¡¯s sentence was interrupted as Yami jolted up and wrapped his arms around her.

    ¡°Mom¡­ I¡¯ve missed you so much¡­¡±

    Yami¡¯s mother smiled and embraced Yami back.

    ¡°I¡¯ve missed you, too.¡±

    After a few moments, Yami released his mother and wiped his teary eyes with his arm. As he did so, he noticed all of the wristbands with his identification and IV¡¯s sticking out of his arms.

    ¡°How are you here right now, Mom?¡±

    Yami¡¯s mother looked at him with confusion.

    ¡°What do you mean, Sei? I drove here.¡±

    Yami shook his head.

    ¡°And why do you keep calling me Sei?¡±

    Yami¡¯s mother chuckled.

    ¡°Stop it, you! That¡¯s not funny!¡±

    Yami became frustrated.

    ¡°This isn¡¯t either! How are you here? And what happened to me?¡±

    Yami¡¯s mother covered her mouth in shock.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be right back. Stay here.¡±

    Yami watched as his mother ran into the hallway. A few minutes later, she returned to the room with a doctor, presumably the one taking care of Yami.

    ¡°Hello there, young man. How are you feeling?¡±

    Yami clenched his left fist.

    ¡°Confused. I don¡¯t know what¡¯s going on. I especially don¡¯t understand why the hell she¡¯s here, and why she keeps calling me Sei! I need to go ba-¡±

    A comforting hand held Yami¡¯s left fist. His mother smiled at him.

    ¡°I want to know what happened as well, so we need to stay calm for now, alright?¡±

    Yami¡¯s fist loosened.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, young man. I¡¯ll try to help you fill in as many gaps as possible. Firstly, my name is Dr. Fulbeak. You are currently in the hospital. Do you remember anything prior to waking in here?¡±

    Yami looked down at his stomach.

    ¡°I was fighting outside of the school. Oh shit, that¡¯s right! I need to get my classmates out! How long has it been since I was admitted!?¡±

    Dr. Fulbeak flipped through a clipboard he was holding.

    ¡°What school do you attend?¡±

    ¡°Shifuku High.¡±

    Fulbeak shook his head as he went through the clipboard. Yami¡¯s mother looked towards the ground.

    ¡°It¡¯s as we expected. Son, what¡¯s your name?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m your patient, and you don¡¯t even have my name? I¡¯m Yami. Yami Shinpai.¡±

    His mother looked at him in shock.

    ¡°How?¡±

    Yami looked at her with confusion.

    ¡°¡®How¡¯ what?¡±

    ¡°How do you know your father¡¯s last name?¡±

    Fulbeak held up his hand.

    ¡°Ma¡¯am.¡±

    She nodded in apology.

    ¡°Alright. Yami Shinpai, you say?¡±This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    Fulbeak sat on a bed next to Yami.

    ¡°Yami, I can understand why you¡¯re confused, so if I may, I¡¯d like to explain what happened. Your name is Sei Kiraku. You attend Yume High. About a month ago, you were struck by a drunk driver while walking home from school. You were in a coma this whole time, and, for a period, on life support. It appears that being in a coma for this whole extent of time has caused you to develop amnesia, and you are replacing your memories with ones made of hallucinations.¡±

    Yami shook his head.

    ¡°No. That isn¡¯t what happened. And my name isn¡¯t Sei. It¡¯s Yami.¡±

    Yami¡¯s mother began to cry.

    ¡°I understand that it may be difficult to overcome this obstacle. Amnesia is one of the most difficult things to break out of, and truthfully, you may never be able to. If I may, I¡¯d like to do an MRI to make sure your brain wasn¡¯t damaged. Afterwards, if you are feeling well, I¡¯d like you to go for a walk. Laying still for a month has likely caused your muscles to atrophy.¡±

    Yami looked defeated.

    ¡°Fine. I¡¯ll go along with what you want.¡±

    <hr>

    Yami walked alongside his mother in the hospital¡¯s courtyard. Yami occasionally began to stumble, and promptly, his mother caught him.

    ¡°Mom, since I obviously have no memories of me in this world, please tell me about myself.¡±

    ¡°Well, you are an only child. Actually, that¡¯s not fair to you. You had a brother and sister, but they, along with your father, died in a car accident before you were born. To escape the bad memories, I moved up here and gave birth to you, which is why you have my maiden name.¡±

    ¡°I see. I understand why you were confused now.¡±

    ¡°What are the chances of you knowing your father¡¯s last name after waking from a coma? Anyways, you don¡¯t look it now because you haven¡¯t eaten in a while, but you were slightly chubby. That didn¡¯t matter though, because it didn¡¯t cause you any problems. You always stopped to help people, and hated any kinds of violence.I don¡¯t think you have a girlfriend, and I never met a lot of your friends, but I could hear you talking to them on your computer every night.¡±

    ¡°Heh. I guess some things never change.¡±

    ¡°What were my interests?¡±

    ¡°Hmmm¡­. You really enjoyed painting in your freetime.¡±

    Yami chuckled.

    ¡°Sorry, Mom, but as it stands right now, that is one of my least favorite things.¡±

    Yami¡¯s mother frowned.

    ¡°That¡¯s a shame. I always enjoyed seeing your paintings. I found it really inspirational.¡±

    ¡°What about my education?¡±

    Yami¡¯s mother laughed nervously.

    ¡°You never particularly excelled in any subjects. You worked hard, don¡¯t misunderstand me, but you would only manage to get by. Nothing ever stuck.¡±

    ¡°How old am I?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re 15. You¡¯re currently a freshman.¡±

    ¡°Me too.¡±

    ¡°Well, you are the same person, after all.¡±

    Yami¡¯s mother smiled at him, hoping to get the same response, yet Yami kept looking forward with a stern look on his face.

    ¡°Why don¡¯t you tell me about yourself, Se- I mean, Yami?¡±

    ¡°You can call me Sei. I understand how you feel. Like I said, I¡¯m 15 and a freshman. I excel in all subjects, yet I still enjoy online gaming. I have a brother and a sister, as well as a father. My mother¡­ You died when I was 12. My life has been hell ever since. My father and sister constantly harasses me, and my brother rarely comes home, but I don¡¯t blame him.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m so sorry to hear that. I¡¯d never imagine my husband would be so cruel to you.¡±

    ¡°Actually, I think my life is going to change again. Shortly before I awoke here, I killed my father¡­¡±

    ¡°S-Sei! You killed him?!¡±

    Yami looked at the ground as he kept walking.

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    <hr>

    A month passed, and Yami opened the door to his new house.

    ¡°Wow! You must be rich, Mom!¡±

    For just two people living there, the house was huge. A large open living room, completely furnished with new appliances welcomed Yami immediately.

    ¡°We get by.¡±

    Yami turned to face his mother.

    ¡°So what is it you do, Mom?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m a vet, primarily, but I also do research for animal medicines, which provides us with the majority of our income. You also sold your paintings from time to time. Some would go up to $500, you know.¡±

    ¡°Wow, really? That¡¯s pretty hard to imagine myself doing.¡±

    Yami¡¯s mother opened a door which led to Yami¡¯s room. It was a spacious room with a balcony, skylight, and gaming setup.

    ¡°This¡­ this is a dream¡­¡±

    Yami¡¯s mother put her hand on his shoulder.

    ¡°Nope. This is your life.¡±

    Yami¡¯s mother walked out of his room.

    ¡°By the way, I¡¯d like you to return to school as soon as possible. I don¡¯t mean to rush you, but as soon as you feel able to, I feel it¡¯d be best.¡±

    ¡°Y-Yeah.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll be downstairs if you need anything. Get some rest.¡±

    ¡°Okay.¡±

    As Yami¡¯s mother shut his door, Yami looked at his palm. There was no Sirushi Inochi on his palm.

    ¡°Looks like this is a different world. If what they say is true, I must¡¯ve died in this world, and I somehow slipped in to replace him.¡±

    Yami fell back onto his bed.

    ¡°The real question is what happened. I need to to get back to my world, but I don¡¯t have any idea how I was put in here in the first place. I just remember seeing those eyes¡­¡±

    <hr>

    One week later¡­

    ¡°I¡¯m heading out!¡±

    ¡°Do you remember the street names?¡±

    ¡°Yeah!¡±

    ¡°Okay! Do your best!¡±

    As Yami shut the door behind him, he slipped his backpack over his right shoulder. As he walked down the street, he heard someone yelling towards him.

    ¡°Sei! SEI! Wait up!¡±

    Yami stopped and turned to face the voice. It was a beautiful korean girl with short black hair with pink highlights running towards him. Finally reaching her destination next to him, she stopped to catch her breath.

    ¡°You¡­ usually¡­ wait for me¡­¡±

    Yami rubbed the back of his neck.

    ¡°Sorry, I don¡¯t know who you are.¡±

    ¡°Oh, right. I¡¯m Shukumei Shin, but you always called me Alexis.¡±

    ¡°Nice to meet you, Alexis. I assume you¡¯re my friend?¡±

    ¡°Of course we are! We¡¯ve known each other since Elementary School! Besides, our parents are close friends, so we see each other often anyways.¡±

    Yami turned back in the direction of the school.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get going then.¡±

    Alexis nodded as they continued their journey to the school.

    ¡°So, how are you feeling? I imagine this whole thing must have you shaken up.¡±

    ¡°To be honest, I kinda just accepted that things are what they are right now, and that I¡¯ll live this life to its fullest.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean, Sei?¡±

    ¡°I mean this isn¡¯t my life, Alexis. For all I know, the Sei that you know is in my body in a different world. If that¡¯s the case, I need to reverse this as soon as possible.¡±

    ¡°Sei, what¡¯re you saying? You¡¯re so serious all the sudden¡­¡±

    Yami paused and looked Alexis in the eyes.

    ¡°Alexis, you seem like a very kind girl, and I¡¯m sure that Sei loved you. The truth is, though, that I¡¯m not him. He died in that car accident. My soul somehow drifted from my world into yours. I am Yami Shinpai, not Sei Kiraku. My skills and aspirations are completely different from Sei, and so is my past. As it stands right now, you don¡¯t know me. You only know this body. If you¡¯d still like to be friends, I wouldn¡¯t mind, but do not assume you know me so intimately.¡±

    Alexis gulped.

    ¡°Yup. You¡¯re different for sure. But don¡¯t worry. As long as we live near each other, we''ll be friends!¡±

    Alexis smiled at Yami, and Yami turned to smile back.

    ¡°Okay, Alexis!¡±

    ¡°So, what classes do you have?¡±

    ¡°Looks like I have¡­ Algebra 1? Regular Biology, Regular English 9¡­ Was I really THAT bad at school?¡±

    Alexis chuckled.

    ¡°Yeah¡­¡±

    ¡°HEY! YOU TWO!¡±

    Yami turned to see a group of five boys, his age, walking towards them. Alexis grabbed his arm.

    ¡°C¡¯mon, Yami,¡± she whispered.

    Before Yami could follow her, one of the boys grabbed Yami¡¯s arm and pulled him to the ground.

    ¡°Hey there, Sei! We haven¡¯t seen you in a while! You got skinnier, too! Don¡¯t tell me you became bulimic?¡±

    ¡°Who are you?¡±

    The boys snickered.

    ¡°Wow, so you really did lose your memory! Well, let me help you remember who we are. We¡¯re your friends! You see, we all have fun together. We go to the arcade, the movies, restaurants, wherever! Plus, you¡¯re always such a good friend, you always pick up the bill for us, even if you don¡¯t come!¡±

    ¡°Really? What if I don¡¯t?¡±

    ¡°Then we show you the new shoes you bought us. That usually changes your mind, but you ALWAYS cover the bill, so we only do that if we want to. In fact, you¡¯ve been in the hospital for a while, haven¡¯t you? Why don¡¯t we help you remember our shoes?¡±

    Yami¡¯s stern eyes peered into the boy¡¯s soul.

    ¡°If you want to try, go for it. I might even teach you a lesson you won¡¯t forget.¡±

    The staring contest was abruptly interrupted by the bell signaling class would start soon.

    ¡°Maybe later, Sei.¡±

    The boys walked into the school laughing. Alexis walked up to Yami and picked up his backpack for him.

    ¡°Sorry, Yami. They always harass us, but if we just do what they want, then they¡¯ll beat us up less.¡±

    Yami picked himself off of the ground and dusted off his pants.

    ¡°Are you telling me they beat you, too?¡±

    Alexis nodded.

    ¡°You would try to protect me, but you¡¯d just get it worse.¡±

    Handing him his backpack, Alexis waved.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to class, then. See you after school, Yami!¡±

    Yami waved.

    <hr>

    Yami looked down at a piece of paper. It was his schedule.

    ¡°I¡¯m glad that the counselor understood my circumstances. By dropping painting and switching it with gym, I should be able to regain some of my muscle mass.¡±

    Walking into the locker room, Yami began to change. All of the boys in the room left, leaving Yami alone in the locker room.

    ¡°Simply put, I¡¯m in no physical condition to keep fighting. When I blacked out, I was so exhausted, I don''t know if I could even form two more spheres from my Sirushi Inochi.¡±

    The door to the locker room opened, and Yami heard the footsteps.

    ¡°Five people.. Don¡¯t tell me¡­¡±

    Yami set his wallet and phone in his gym locker and shut it, placing the combination lock on it to lock it. From around the corner, the same group of boys from earlier in the morning walked up to Yami, making a circle around him.

    ¡°Hey, Sei. I figured we could cut class just this once to help our friend. We were thinking that all of us could go to laser tag, but only five are allowed on a team, so if you could cover us again, we¡¯d appreciate it.¡±

    ¡°The only thing I should cover you guys with is a bedsheet to hide your ugly mugs.¡±

    The boys laughed.

    ¡°OOOoooo, he¡¯s gotten more feisty after the accident. Well, Sei, to give you a little encouragement, we brought our toy that you bought us before you got hit.¡±

    The boy flipped open a switchblade.

    ¡°So, Sei, what¡¯ll it be?¡±

    Yami looked disappointed in the boys.

    ¡°Seriously? You¡¯d go to prison for the rest of your life over some laser tag money?¡±

    ¡°Do you want us to show you how serious we are?¡±

    The boys inched closer to Yami. Yami threw up his hands.

    ¡°Alright, you win. One second, my wallet is in my locker.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s more like it, Sei!¡±

    Yami began to undo the combination lock.

    ¡°You know, I really like knives. I¡¯ve practiced with a lot of them before. I just wanted to say that yours doesn¡¯t look too good. If you want, I can give you some more money to buy a better one?¡±

    The boys smirked.

    ¡°Well, how can you say that? You haven¡¯t even held it.¡±

    Yami undid the lock. Slipping it out of the locker loop, he opened his locker door quickly. Simultaneously, he locked the combination lock around his pointer finger on his right hand, then while the boys were watching the locker being swung open, Yami swung something else: his fist. Thee lock made contact with the fingers wrapped around the switchblade. Hearing a crunch and feeling extreme pain, the boy dropped the knife. Yami scooped it out of the air with his left hand. Swinging towards the ceiling, Yami hit the boy in the jaw, sending him on his back. Turning to face the other four, Yami clutched the knife in his hand. Seeing blades be opened in front of him, Yami deflected the incoming attacks, parrying and countering with his lock. Many swings later, all five boys were on the floor.

    ¡°Like I said, this knife is terrible. I wouldn¡¯t have spent a nickle on this.¡±

    Yami dropped the knife onto the belly of the boy who once held it.

    ¡°Thanks for the fun guys. But now for the lesson I was going to teach you. I am not the same person anymore. Also, if I hear that you worthless sacks of shit walked within 50 feet of Shukumei Shin, we¡¯ll just have to have more fun. Got that?¡±

    Blood flowed into the drain in the floor. The boys were covered in bruises.

    ¡°Sounds like you got the message. Bye, friends!¡±

    Yami shut and locked his locker, then left the room. The boy with the switchblade had an angry expression on his face as he shed a tear.

    ¡°You¡¯ll regret this, Sei. You AND this shithole of a school!¡±

 Chapter 20 - Nine

    Knock knock knock

    ¡°Sei! A pretty girl is here to see you!¡±

    ¡°One sec!¡±

    Yami opened his door. In the hallway stood his mother and Alexis. Alexis smiled and waved.

    ¡°Hi, Sei!¡±

    Walking into his room, Alexis sat herself on the edge of Yami¡¯s bed. As Yami shut the door, his mother whispered.

    ¡°Don¡¯t make too much noise, okay?¡±

    Yami sighed and shut the door. Walking over to his desk, Yami opened a drawer to pull out a notebook.

    ¡°Alexis, I assume you came to help me?¡±

    Alexis nodded.

    ¡°Yes, but I¡¯d like to know what exactly I¡¯m getting myself into. Why are we researching tattoos?¡±

    Yami handed Alexis the notebook. She began to flip through it.

    ¡°As I¡¯ve already mentioned, I do not belong to this world or universe. I have no recollection of any events in this world, yet I still remember my past events from my world.¡±

    ¡°But how could that have happened?¡±

    ¡°In my world, there are humans who have been given a power from a being, presumably the creator of the universe. From my studies in that world, it seems as though people can typically only have one power that they are proficient with. They can, however, study and train, and with a great amount of time, can use other powers, but not completely master it as if it were their own.¡±

    ¡°You say ¡®typically¡¯...¡±

    ¡°Yes. About once a century, one of these people are granted the title of ¡®Jinsei no Hogo¡¯, the Protector of Life. The Jinsei no Hogo is capable of learning and mastering any power used on them. In my world, I was the Jinsei no Hogo.¡±

    ¡°Wow¡­ So you are meant to protect life?¡±

    Yami looked out of his balcony.

    ¡°I suppose so. I still haven¡¯t completely understood what it means to be the Jinsei no Hogo, but I do know that being the Jinsei no Hogo also puts you at risk. It seems that if a Jinsei no Hogo is killed, the person who kills them will have complete knowledge and mastery of every power, known and unknown to man. When I was transported here, I was in one of those situations where I had to fight to protect myself and my friends.¡±

    ¡°So what does all of this have to do with tattoos? Right now, it sounds like you¡¯re talking nonsense.¡±

    ¡°In order to use these powers, someone must tattoo themselves with ink and life essence, the fuel for these powers, these ¡®Sirushi Inochi¡¯. You obviously can¡¯t walk around with so many tattoos without being suspicious, though, so you can do extra training to make them invisible, which is why I thought I may have still had them, but I can confirm that I have no life essence either.¡±

    ¡°Why would you have to hide them? Wouldn¡¯t everyone be walking around with the power regardless?¡±

    ¡°No. Like I said, the creator has to give it to you.¡±

    ¡°What do you have to do to meet this ¡®creator¡¯?¡±

    Yami stared at the blue sky.

    ¡°You have to commit suicide.¡±

    Alexis stared at Yami, who had his back turned to her. His clothes rippled in the wind.

    ¡°That¡¯s.. Horrible. If I may ask, what drove you to that point?¡±

    Yami began to remember his life before he became the Jinsei no Hogo. The time he tried to ask out Shippai. When he returned home everyday to be yelled at by his father and sister. Sitting alone in his dark room until late hours of the night. He then thought of everything that happened after. Friendships being built, then destroyed. Akiji slowly dying. The hundreds of people he had to kill to protect himself. Dancing with Shinkai. Fighting Shinkai. Waking up to his mother¡¯s smile. Rikai walking away from him. Yami wiped his face with his sleeve, then turned to face Alexis.

    ¡°Maybe another time.¡±

    He grinned at Alexis. She smiled back.

    The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    ¡°No need to rush. Take your time! Anyways, let¡¯s get started on this.¡±

    Yami nodded, then walked to his computer.

    ¡°So right now I¡¯m reading on the history of ancient uses of tat....¡±

    ¡°Yami¡­ What have you already gone through?¡±

    <hr>

    Two years passed. Yami and Alexis have diligently researched the possibility of echoes residing in this world. During school, Yami and Alexis would go to the library at every free moment they had to find information together. At home, Alexis would fall onto her bed and sleep into the next day, while Yami would stay up until late hours of the night compiling notes and training his body.

    Alexis opened the door to the school library.

    ¡°I can¡¯t believe how long it¡¯s been since Yami took Sei¡¯s place. From what his mother has told me, the doctors think that it¡¯s impossible for Sei to regain his memories, so right now, Yami has the only explanation for this supernatural occurrence, yet we still aren¡¯t sure of a way to prove anything.¡±

    Walking to the table where Yami and her always met during school, she set her backpack on the ground next to her chair and sat beside Yami.

    ¡°Hey, Alexis.¡±

    ¡°Hi.¡±

    Yami didn¡¯t stop scribbling things into his notebook, nor did he glance up to speak to Alexis¡¯ face. Next to the notebook Yami was writing in was four other notebooks, all with wear visible from their usage.

    <hr>

    The group of boys pulled into the school parking lot in a black van.

    ¡°You guys ready? There¡¯s no going back.¡±

    The leader of the group looked at the people behind him. All six nodded.

    ¡°Alright. I already planted the surprise. Everyone put on your costumes.¡±

    The boys walked to the back of the van. Opening the doors, they all opened their own duffle bag. Inside of it was padded pants, padded shirt, a vest, and a face mask, all of which were black. At the bottom of the duffle bag were M16 assault rifles.

    ¡°Lock and load, boys. Remember, you have six magazines each. After that, you all have knives.¡±

    The leader looked at the group of armed boys.

    ¡°I¡¯ll ask one more time. Are you all ready for this?¡±

    Every boy looked at their assault rifle, then looked back the leader and nodded, except for one boy, whose knees were trembling.

    ¡°I can¡¯t do this. I¡¯m going home.¡±

    The leader walked up to him and put his hand on his shoulder.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. Go.¡±

    The boy turned around and ran away from the school. The leader aimed his assault rifle at the boy¡¯s back.

    <hr>

    ¡°How are your grades looking, Yami?¡±

    ¡°Well, I¡¯ve accepted a while ago that I will be stuck here forever, so I began to actually attempt to learn in my classes. Since freshman year, I¡¯ve had a 5.0 GPA. When I¡¯m not spending time on this, I¡¯m spending it on school. My intentions are to carry these memories back to my world so I can be successful. I mean, this is a whole life we¡¯re talking about. You normally only get one, but I¡¯ve gotten three. May as well put them to good use. What about you?¡±

    Alexis chuckled.

    ¡°I¡¯m at a 4.0.¡±

    Yami raised his left hand in the air, but continued to write in his right.

    ¡°Nice job! Keep up the good work!¡±

    ¡°Yeah!¡±

    As their hands clapped together, five gunshots were heard from outside.

    Yami and Alexis both sat up from their chairs.

    ¡°How close was that?!¡±

    Yami gritted his teeth.

    ¡°That sounded way too close for something bad not to happen.¡±

    Children in the cafeteria all began to look around, frightened. Within a moment, explosions burst out of the trashcans and from underneath tables. Students all around the school were screaming.

    Alexis clenched onto Yami.

    ¡°Yami! What¡¯s going on?!?!¡±

    ¡°What the hell is happening?! A terrorist attack? No, a school shooting?!¡±

    Yami shoved all of his notes into his backpack and swung it over his shoulder. He grabbed Alexis¡¯ backpack and put it on his other shoulder. Alexis stood shocked.

    ¡°Hey! Alexis! We need to get out of here. Grab my hand, and don¡¯t let go. Don¡¯t say anything, and I¡¯ll get you out of this if it¡¯s the last thing I do!¡±

    Alexis began to cry and nodded her head, grabbing Yami¡¯s hand tightly.

    ¡°Okay. Let¡¯s go.¡±

    Yami ran to the entrance of the library. He began to whisper commands to Alexis.

    ¡°Stay low.¡±

    Peaking through the blinds, Yami surveyed the halls, yet saw no gunmen.

    ¡°Come on. We¡¯re going to run.¡±

    Yami swung open the door. Reconfirming that it was safe to run, he saw a crowd of students running to the same exit.

    ¡°Shit. This isn¡¯t good.¡±

    Yami pulled Alexis with him as he ran into the crowd of students that were blocking the exit. As the crowd slowly pushed through the doors, screams were heard from the back of the crowd. Yami turned his head behind him to see one of the gunmen raise his assault rifle. Instinctively, Yami pulled Alexis into his arms, then fell onto her, covering her body with his. Just as they hit the floor, the assault rifle opened fire into the defenseless crowd of children. The screams almost drowned out the sound of the bullets being fired. Alexis looked behind her to see her friends and peers fall over one by one as a red mist flew in the air. She was in shock of the horror. Yami put his hand on her cheek and tilted her head to face him. Their gazes met each other.

    ¡°Alexis, don¡¯t look back. You¡¯re okay. Everything will be okay. Just don¡¯t turn around.¡±

    As the gunshots subsided, Yami lifted Alexis over his shoulder and ran to the door. The gunman yelled behind him.

    ¡°Don¡¯t run you fuckers! You are really going to let your friends die?¡±

    Yami recognized the voice. It was the leader.

    ¡°So it¡¯s you.¡±

    With the crowd moving all at once again, the doors quickly became overwhelmed, and the sound of the clip being inserted into the assault rifle warned Yami. Yami turned to his left and saw a wall of glass. He began to charge at it, being careful to use the shoulder that Alexis wasn¡¯t on. The sound of the bullet being chambered assured Yami that hell was about to resume. Just as Yami broke through the glass, the bullets rained upon his classmates once again. Alexis landed on Yami as the fell onto a bush, then rolled onto the ground. Yami grabbed Alexis¡¯ hand.

    ¡°Come on! We have to go!¡±

    Alexis was practically dragged as Yami sprinted to his car, a black sedan. Opening the back door, he helped Alexis sit herself onto the backseat.

    ¡°Hey, are you alright?¡±

    Alexis had glazed eyes. Yami examined her to make sure she wasn¡¯t hurt, then gave her a reassuring hug.

    ¡°We made it. We¡¯re safe.¡±

    Yami set their backpacks on the ground next to the car. Yami turned back towards the school as the gunshots continued.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be right back.¡±

    Yami began to walk back to the school, but was quickly stopped by Alexis, who grabbed his hand.

    ¡°Please, Yami. Don¡¯t leave me. It¡¯s too dangerous back there.¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t just let my peers be killed. We need to stop them. I need to stop them.¡±

    Yami walked away from Alexis, causing her to lose her grasp.

    ¡°Yami! Don¡¯t go!¡±

    Yami walked back to the entrance where he had ran from. Bodies of students covered the floor of the halls. Yami clenched his fist. He placed one foot in the entrance of the school, but was quickly pulled back. It was an officer. Behind him, four more charged into the school.

    ¡°What do you think you¡¯re doing, kid? Go to the ambulance over there! You¡¯re injured!¡±

    Yami looked down at himself. He was covered in cuts from the glass.

    ¡°I can¡¯t do anything.¡±

 Chapter 21 - 7

    ¡°Today is the ten year anniversary of the tragedy that befell Yume High School. Five gunmen assaulted the school after detonating pipe bombs in the cafeteria. After an astounding hour of shooting between SWAT and police, the gunmen were ultimately shot dead. 867 victims were injured, and 84 were pronounced dead on scene. The following program is dedicated to the victims and their families. This is-¡±

    Yami clicked the remote, turning off the television. Sighing, he walked away from his TV to his bedroom. Opening his closet, Yami picked one of his many white dress shirts, slipped it on, then tucked it underneath his black dress pants. Tying a Pratt Knot around his neck, Yami grabbed his coffee, keys, and wallet, then walked out of his house. Driving in a crowded expressway, he took sips from his coffee as he listened to the radio at 4 a.m..

    ¡°As many of you already know, today is the ten year anniversary of the shooting at Yu-¡±

    Yami turned off his radio and continued his drive to work. Pulling into a dimly lit parking lot, with nearly no one else in it, Yami got out of his car and locked it. Walking up to the doors of the building, Yami held his ID card up to a scanner and walked inside of the building. Walking down many halls and down many stairs, Yami finally hit the basement. Walking to his own cubicle, Yami sat in his chair, then opened his cabinets and withdrew many pieces of paper. Pulling out a pen, he began to scratch away at the papers.

    People walked past his cubicle, yet none talked to him. Yami¡¯s focus was solely on the papers in front of him. Yami set his pen down. Looking at his phone, he saw that it was already noon. Swiping his phone to unlock it, he tapped to his contacts, then to ¡®Alexis¡¯. He held the phone up to his ear. A groggy Alexis answered the phone.

    ¡°Hey, Yami. What¡¯s up?¡±

    ¡°Nothing, really. I wanted to make sure you were okay driving home. I know how hard you had to work these past few days.¡±

    Alexis sighed.

    ¡°You¡¯re one to talk. You only get four hours of sleep each night!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m used to it, though.¡±

    Alexis smiled.

    ¡°How is your day going?¡±

    <hr>

    Yami repeated his cycle of working 18 hours everyday, while Alexis became familiar with the all too uncertain schedule as a surgeon. The two would rarely spend time with each other, as Alexis would be called in most weekends, and regardless, Yami would spend that time doing research. The only time they would ever see each other is when they managed to find a time where they both fell asleep in the same bed.

    Years passed with this schedule. One day, however, was different from the others. Yami repeated his cycle of driving to work and doing research. At about noon, Yami circled his paper. His usual expression of no emotion and seriousness began to lose its place on his face.

    ¡°No¡­ No way¡­¡±

    Heart racing, Yami began to look through every piece of paper that resided in the many large stacks that they formed. Coming back to the final piece of paper, Yami carefully inspected it once again.

    ¡°Rikai¡­ Shitto¡­ Posche¡­ Everyone... ¡°

    Tears began to roll down Yami¡¯s face.

    ¡°I can finally come back¡­¡±

    As Yami began to cry, he was interrupted by a phone call. Looking at his buzzing phone, he saw it was Alexis. Wiping his face of tears, he picked up the phone.

    ¡°Hey, Alexis. What¡¯s up?¡±

    ¡°Did you lose track of time?¡±

    Yami looked at his phone. It was 1:23 a.m., and he had not so much as called Alexis.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Something important happened at work, and I couldn¡¯t just leave.¡±

    ¡°Really? What happened?¡±

    Yami smiled.

    ¡°I¡¯ve solved the largest piece of the puzzle. I want to tell you in person.¡±

    ¡°What, your puzzle? That¡¯s amazing! Will you be home soon?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll be there in an hour.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll be waiting!¡±

    Yami closed his phone, shoved all of the papers into a briefcase and ran to his car. Doing 100mph on the expressway, Yami raced to his house. Pulling in the driveway, Yami bolted from his car into the house. Alexis was on the couch in the living room with the TV on, but trying to stay awake that late in the night proved difficult for her, as she lay asleep on the couch. Yami smiled and took off his shoes. Walking to the couch, Yami sat next to Alexis. Yami relaxed for the first time in what seemed like forever. Closing his eyes, he began to reminisce about his life as the Jinsei no Hogo.

    He opened his eyes and looked down at Alexis. He smiled and placed his hand on her shoulder and rubbed it. She slowly opened her eyes.

    ¡°Hey, sleepy-head.¡±

    ¡°Y-Yami!¡±

    Alexis quickly sat up and blushed.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. How long have I been asleep?¡±

    ¡°Not too long.¡±

    ¡°So, what do you have to show me?¡±

    Yami opened the briefcase that he had sat on the table and sat out 10 pieces of paper.

    ¡°This is all of my research that I compiled over the past few decades. I managed to find a new element, which has amazing chemical properties. I can form bonds with almost everything, and just from the few examples I came up with, it has nearly infinite applications! With this, I can finally show you my past! I can help solve the puzzle of my life!¡±

    Alexis looked down at the ground.

    ¡°Then what? If you actually find a way to go back to your own life, are you just going to leave this one behind?¡±

    Yami turned to look at Alexis. Seeing her despair, he replaced his smile with a stern face.

    ¡°Alexis¡­¡±

    She began to yell at Yami.

    ¡°Will this life have been for nothing?! Do your friends mean anything to you?! Will you even remember us?! Do you even love me?! What do I mean to yo-¡±

    Alexis¡¯ voice was muffled as Yami grabbed the back of her head and pulled her into his arms. Holding her tightly, Yami felt her begin to sob on his chest.

    ¡°Alexis. I know I haven¡¯t been around much, and I¡¯m sorry for that. But I want to ask you something.¡±

    Letting go of her, Yami stood up from the couch and walked into another room. Alexis wiped her face of tears. Moments later, Yami walked back into the living room.

    ¡°Close your eyes.¡±

    Alexis shut her eyes, yet tears still dripped through her eyelids.

    ¡°Open.¡±

    Alexis opened her eyes to see Yami on his knees holding open a box in his palm. Inside of the box was a ring. Alexis covered her mouth with her hands.

    ¡°Alexis, I¡¯ve had this rig for almost 14 years now. I didn¡¯t want to marry you knowing I wouldn¡¯t be around much, but now that my work is essentially complete, I want to spend the rest of my life in this world with you. You have been my best friend, even when I didn¡¯t know who my friends were. You¡­ are the love of my life - no, of my lives.¡±

    Alexis began to cry.

    ¡°I¡¯m sure that we¡¯ll have many more hardships ahead of us, but I want to go through them like I¡¯ve gone through others - with you. Alexis, will you marry me?¡±

    Alexis began to sob. Yami stood up and hugged her. She wrapped her arms around Yami and held him tightly so that he wouldn¡¯t be able to run away from her anymore.

    ¡°Of.. Of course I will!¡±

    Yami smiled and shed a single tear.

    ¡°This life is truly a great one.¡±

    <hr>

    Yami woke up on the couch. Rubbing his eyes, he saw Alexis sleeping with her head on his lap. He ran his hand through her hair.

    ¡°Yami, you awake?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve been thinking¡­ You¡¯ll need to create an apparatus to show me your memories, right?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s the train of thought, anyways.¡±

    ¡°I want to be sure you¡¯re safe, so why don¡¯t you come to the hospital to test the machine? We can monitor your vitals and ensure your safety.¡±

    Yami smiled.

    ¡°Yeah, that sounds great.¡±

    Yami locked hands with Alexis. Their rings glistened next to each other.

    <hr>

    ¡°Alright. I¡¯ve completed the apparatus.¡±

    ¡°Awesome! Follow me, please.¡±

    Alexis led Yami to a prepared hospital room. Setting the apparatus, which looked like a helmet, onto the bed, Yami stretched his arms.

    ¡°So, what do I have to do?¡±

    Alexis tossed him a hospital gown and gave him a smile.

    ¡°C¡¯mon, Yami! Off with your clothes!¡±

    <hr>

    Yami, in the hospital gown, laid back onto the bed. Entranced by Alexis¡¯ fluid movement around the room, Yami watched her turn on different machines and computers, all for the sake of monitoring his health. She walked up to him and began to stick different wires and devices onto his body. Getting cold from the hospital air, goosebumps formed on Yami¡¯s arms.

    ¡°What if I leave her? What if I don¡¯t wake up? What if this was all for nothing?¡±

    Yami began to grit his teeth. Alexis kissed his cheek.

    ¡°I¡¯ve known you for a while, Yami. I know that when you grit your teeth, you¡¯re getting anxious. I also know how meticulous you¡¯ve been with your work these past few years, so I know everything will be okay!¡±

    Yami began to cry.

    ¡°I love you so much, Alexis.¡±

    ¡°I love you too, Yami.¡±

    Alexis stood next to his bed with her hands on a keyboard.

    ¡°You ready?¡±

    Yami sat still for a moment, then took a deep breath.

    ¡°Yeah. Let¡¯s do this.¡±

    <hr>

    Yami fell onto the cold, hard ground. As he took gasps of air, he tried to move his arms and legs, but it led to stumbling and him falling back onto the ground. As he turned his head back, he saw Rikai frozen in mid-sprint, and in front of him was Shinkai, who was grinning.

    ¡°Rikai!¡±

    Rikai remained frozen in the air.

    Yami, shaking from trying to control his body, walked to Rikai, and saw her tears on her cheeks. Then, Yami turned to glance at Shinkai, but had to look away. Yami looked into the sky.

    ¡°You getting this, Alexis?¡±

    An overwhelming voice, which could¡¯ve easily been mistaken for the voice of a goddess, responded.

    ¡°Y-Yeah¡­ I¡¯m getting it. Is this¡­ you?¡±

    Yami looked down at himself. Sure enough, he was decades younger, and was covered in blood, dirt, bruises, and the like.

    ¡°Yeah. This is the exact moment I was put into your world. But this doesn¡¯t make any sense. I should be 30 years older in this world too, right?¡±

    ¡°Yes, but we can¡¯t dwell on that. After all, this machine only lets you relive your memories. Wouldn¡¯t that mean you couldn¡¯t relive anything that you don¡¯t remember?¡±

    ¡°I suppose, but in that case, the next memory I have would be waking up in the hospital as Sei. I need to go more in-depth with this machine. The element used may be exclusive to your world, just as Sirushi Inochi are exclusive to my world. So maybe, in some way, they are connected.¡±

    ¡°I see. I¡¯m going to drag you farther back, okay?¡±

    Yami thought hard.

    ¡°Yeah, but don¡¯t look until I give you approval, alright?¡±

    Alexis gasped.

    ¡°Was being the Jinsei no Hogo gruesome?¡±

    Yami rubbed the back of his neck.

    ¡°Y-Yeah¡­¡±

    ¡°And I was going through puberty¡­¡±

    Yami felt his body, or rather, his soul being pulled backwards as he appeared in the mayor¡¯s office at homecoming. Yami looked at a clock on the wall, and time was moving again.

    ¡°Hey Alexis, it¡¯s safe to look. In fact, I need you to.¡±

    Alexis looked back to the monitor.

    ¡°Pretty soon, two policemen are going to shine lights in here. I need you to save their faces.¡±

    ¡°Right.¡±

    Sure enough, two policemen shined lights in the office.

    ¡°You in there! Come out of there with your hands up!¡±

    ¡°I got their faces. Where to?¡±

    ¡°About an hour before my final memory.¡±

    Yami¡¯s soul was tugged forward. He looked up to see hundreds of people swarming him.

    ¡°Alexis, please pull up the two faces into my memory and put the memory on auto-pilot, then look away.¡±

    ¡°R-Right.¡±

    Yami¡¯s body moved independently of his will.

    ¡°Pefect. Now, to see if those people are in here.¡±

    <hr>

    Watching the horrors of the slaughter unfold in front of Yami once again, he yelled for Alexis.

    ¡°Pause it!¡±

    As time stopped, Yami broke free of the auto-pilot and walked to the police officers. Although they were in civilian clothes, it was the two men.

    ¡°So, she knew that we found out the whole time. Why wouldn¡¯t she do the assault sooner?¡±

    ¡°Alexis, are my memories done backing-up?¡±

    ¡°Yes. Would you like to be pulled out?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. I¡¯ve had enough of this for now.¡±

    <hr>

    Yami blinked a few times. The bright light of the hospital room contrasted the darkness of his eyelids. Taking off the helmet, Yami put his hands behind his head and laid back.

    ¡°Hey, Alexis, can I ask you for a favor?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, what is it?¡±

    ¡°Could I see what Se- no, what I was like?¡±

    Alexis smiled.

    ¡°Yeah, but only if I get to see you as the Jinsei no Hogo!¡±

    Yami chuckled.

    ¡°Yeah. Just promise you won¡¯t talk about anything embarrassing, okay?¡±

    ¡°I thought that was implied!¡±

    They both laughed as the sun set.

 Chapter 22 - 2

    Two hands interlocked fingers.

    ¡°Hey Yami! That¡¯s all of them, so pull me out now!¡±

    Yami, who was sitting in front of a computer, typed a command, then hit enter. He turned his head to the hospital bed that Alexis lay in. As the lights on the front of the helmet, which corresponded to the vitals of the helmet, turned off, Alexis slowly opened her eyes and blinked a few times. Yami stood up from his chair and walked over to Alexis. Alexis smiled and sat up as he did so. Reaching to the sides of it, Alexis pulled off the helmet and handed it to Yami.

    ¡°All of my memories are backed up. I hope you don¡¯t mind, but I took some time to relive some of my favorite ones.¡±

    Yami set the helmet on the same desk that the computer was on, then walked back over to Alexis.

    ¡°I don¡¯t mind at all. Were they as good as you remembered?¡±

    Alexis looked down, yet continued to smile.

    ¡°Yes. They were maybe even better after I saw them again.¡±

    Yami stretched, saw it was dark outside, then turned to face the clock.

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s 10:30. You wanna head home?¡±

    Alexis nodded.

    ¡°Yeah, just give me a moment to get dressed.¡±

    Yami sat back at the computer and began to copy files to another hard drive, then turned off the computer. Reaching below the desk, Yami withdrew a flash drive that stuck out of the tower. Sliding it into his pocket, he stood up from his chair. He spun around to talk to Alexis, who had already put on all of her clothes, and was trying to tie her hair back.

    ¡°You ready?¡±

    With a hair tie in her mouth, Alexis could only nod as if to say ¡®yes¡¯. Yami patted her back and led the way out of the room.

    Driving down the expressway, Yami had his left hand on the steering wheel, and his right on the arm rest. Yami looked at Alexis, who was resting her head against the window with her eyes shut. Yami grinned.

    ¡°I love you, Alexis.¡±

    Yami felt something warm grab his right hand. Looking at Alexis again, he saw her left hand resting on his right. Alexis opened her eyes.

    ¡°I love you, Yami.¡±

    Sitting farther up in her seat, Alexis shifted her head to rest it on Yami¡¯s right shoulder.

    ¡°I¡¯ve never felt so¡­ complete. Thank you, Alexis.¡±

    <hr>

    Yami was in his old body, forming spheres in his left hand, and kicking up large rocks with his right foot. Slamming the sphere into the rock caused pebbles to fly and trees as if they were shrapnel. Taking a breath, Yami held out his pointer and middle fingers in his left hand as if he was about to poke someone, then swiped the to the right. A user interface appeared before him with controls. In order, they read:

    Resume

    Pause

    Freeze

    Auto-Pilot

    Fast-Forward

    Reverse

    Notes

    Exit

    Yami tapped notes, then began to speak to Alexis.

    ¡°Hey Alexis! You said I should try this?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. It may be the next triangle for your Sirushi Inochi.¡±

    ¡°Okay, I¡¯m going to try it. Keep searching for something, alright?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    Yami cracked his knuckles, then gripped his left forearm.

    ¡°So it¡¯s just like those other two. If I just visualize my life essence like how they did, it may just be the next step to mastering my Sirushi Inochi.¡±

    <hr>

    After typing some things into the computer, Alexis slipped on a pair of glasses. While no one could see what was behind the glass, Alexis could see perfectly well that she was in Yami¡¯s memories. Pieces of Yami¡¯s life since he became the Jinsei no Hogo flashed at Alexis. Her eyes took in every detail.

    Alexis gasped.

    Hitting a button on the side of the glasses paused the memory that Alexis was watching. Hitting another button on the side of the glasses and the memories began to go in reverse. She watched closely. It was the assault on the school. It was apparent that Yami had just begun to fight the hordes of people advancing on him as he wasn¡¯t separated from the others.

    ¡°Everyone, are you still holding up fine?!¡±

    Posche¡¯s voice resonated as everyone responded.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Shitto yelled.

    ¡°These bastards don¡¯t give up, do they,¡± Shippai replied.

    Yami cut through three people as he ran into Posche. Alexis paused it.

    ¡°Hey Yami!¡±

    Yami looked up from where he was standing, which had become singed.

    ¡°What¡¯s up?¡±

    ¡°I think I found something. I¡¯m sending the memory and timestamp.¡±

    Yami opened his UI, and, as Alexis said, there was a message from a sender simply called ¡®HQ¡¯. Yami tapped it, and was dragged backwards to the exact moment that Alexis had paused. Yami looked around, but didn¡¯t see anything special.

    ¡°Look at Posche¡¯s chest!¡±

    Yami turned to see that, as Alexis claimed, there was a diagonal cut on Posche¡¯s shirt that revealed another tattoo - another Sirushi Inochi. Excited, Yami opened ¡®Notes¡¯ and began to draw the pattern that was on his chest. It was a very simple one. It was three lines,which ran horizontal above one another. Closing his notes, Yami unpaused the memory. The slaughter resumed.

    ¡°Hey, Alexis. You feeling alright?¡±

    Alexis was no longer at the computer. She was standing above a trashcan, coughing and spitting out the residue that the vomit had left in her mouth. Yami ripped off the helmet and ran up to her.

    ¡°Hey, you okay? What happened?¡±

    Alexis tried to answer him, but instead began to throw up more. Yami held her hair and rubbed her back. As she stopped puking, she walked over to the sink and washed out her mouth. As she wiped her lips, she looked Yami in the eyes.

    ¡°How am I? How are you? I¡¯m not the person who owns these memories, and even I¡¯m traumatised by them.¡±

    Yami sat down on the bed.

    ¡°I guess you could say that I have just gotten used to it.¡±

    ¡°Yami, if you ever need someone to talk to, you know¡­ that I¡¯m¡­¡±

    Alexis tried to walk over to Yami, but stumbled and fell onto the ground.

    ¡°Alexis! Are you alright?!¡±

    Yami rushed over to Alexis, who lost consciousness.

    <hr>

    Alexis was blinded by the bright light as she opened her eyes. Wiping them, Alexis sat up to see Yami sleeping in a chair next to the hospital bed that she lay in. Feeling an annoying throbbing, Alexis reached up and touched her head, promptly feeling bandages wrapped around it. Looking back to Yami, she lightly shook him, but it was enough to wake him.

    ¡°Alexis! You¡¯re awake? How are you feeling?¡±

    Alexis¡¯ lips moved, but hardly made any sound.Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

    ¡°Alexis, you gotta speak up.¡±

    ¡°I said what happened to me, Sei?¡±

    Yami shook his head.

    ¡°I¡¯m Yami, and you fell and hit your head. Luckily we were already in the hospital, so we ran some tests and made sure you were okay.¡±

    Alexis shook her head.

    ¡°No, you¡¯re Sei, right?¡±

    ¡°Alexis¡­¡±

    Knock knock knock

    A doctor, dressed in all white, walked into the room.

    ¡°Why, good morning, Alexis! Glad to see you¡¯re up! How are you feeling?¡±

    ¡°My head hurts, but aside from that, confused.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t blame you. Yami, did you tell her what happened?¡±

    ¡°I was in the process of it¡­¡±

    ¡°Alexis, I have some good news, and some bad news. The good news is that you didn¡¯t injure your brain when you fell, so aside from some bruises and a headache, you¡¯ll be okay. However, when we were doing some tests, we identified some complications.¡±

    ¡°What kind of complications?¡±

    Yami put a hand over his face and looked at the ground.

    ¡°I¡¯m afraid you have some type of disorder in your brain. That is, your brain matter is becoming deteriorated, if not destroyed.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t understand. So my brain is being¡­ destroyed?¡±

    ¡°Yes. What this means is that overtime you will begin to lose memories, motor functions, and it may even be terminal. The fact of the matter is that we have no idea how to tackle this. We¡¯ve never seen anything like it before, so we don¡¯t know how fast it is acting, nor do we know if it will end.¡±

    Alexis looked at her hands, then glanced over to Yami, who was sobbing in the palms of his hands.

    ¡°I¡¯ll leave you to rest. You¡¯re free to leave or stay in the hospital. I wish you the best.¡±

    The doctor left the room and shut the door. Alexis looked at Yami.

    ¡°That¡¯s Sei, right? Why is he crying?¡±

    Alexis shook Yami.

    ¡°H-Hey, are you alright?¡±

    Yami looked up at Alexis. He wiped his eyes.

    ¡°Y-Yeah. I guess you must not know who I am, huh.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re Sei, right?¡±

    Yami nodded his head.

    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m Sei.¡±

    ¡°Why are you crying, Sei?¡±

    Yami grabbed her hands.

    ¡°Because I¡¯m your husband. I love you.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s my¡­ husband?¡±

    ¡°Really? I didn¡¯t know I was married.¡±

    ¡°Y-yeah, we are. We got married about a year ago. Do you remember when we first met?¡±

    Alexis thought hard for a moment, but drew a blank.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know, Sei.¡±

    ¡°Do you remember what we were working on?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°Do you feel okay to walk?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°Follow me, then.¡±

    <hr>

    Yami opened the door to the hospital room with the machine and patted the bed.

    ¡°Lay down here.¡±

    Alexis did as she was told, and laid on the bed. Yami turned on the computer and picked up the helmet. He walked over to Alexis.

    ¡°Can I put this on you?¡±

    Alexis nodded.

    ¡°Alright.¡±

    Yami pulled her up away from the bed so he could slide the helmet on. Making sure that it was put on right, Yami slid the helmet down onto Alexis¡¯ face. She looked into Yami¡¯s eyes. Yami looked back into hers. The two pairs of soft lips embraced each other as Yami kissed Alexis.

    ¡°I love you.¡±

    Alexis nodded.

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure why, but I love you, too.¡±

    Yami walked to the computer and plugged in a flash drive.

    <hr>

    ¡°Where am I now?¡±

    Two hands interlocked fingers.

    ¡°Wait a second, this is when Yami proposed to me. Am I in the memory helmet?¡±

    Alexis swiped with her fingers, and as expected, the UI popped up.

    ¡°Yami! You here?¡±

    ¡°Yes. I¡¯m here. Do you remember everything?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, and I know I have a disease. What is going on?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure, but I think that somehow¡­ somehow the memory helmet corrupted your brain.¡±

    ¡°So what can we do?¡±

    Yami was silent.

    ¡°I-I¡¯m sorry, Alexis. I don¡¯t think there¡¯s anything we can do.¡±

    Alexis forced a smile.

    ¡°Well, I¡¯d rather die like this. Old and experienced.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m so sorry. If I¡¯d have been more careful - no, if I wouldn¡¯t have dragged you into all of this, then maybe¡­¡±

    Yami¡¯s sobbing was heard from the ceiling of the living room. Alexis¡¯ face became enraged.

    ¡°Yami Shinpai!¡±

    Yami looked up at the computer screen, pausing his tears.

    ¡°I¡¯m the wife of the Jinsei no Hogo! For you to dare say I shouldn¡¯t have been involved in this is blasphemy! I love you, and I¡¯d die for you a million times over, because I know you¡¯d do the same!¡±

    ¡°I know, but if I¡¯d only been more cautious, maybe none of this would¡¯ve happened¡­¡±

    Alexis sighed.

    ¡°Yami, you can¡¯t blame this on yourself. We both knew the risks. You have to keep moving forward. You aren¡¯t even part of this world, so you need to focus on getting back to your own world, okay?¡±

    A faint reply answered her.

    ¡°Okay?¡±

    Yami repeated his answer once more, only more loudly and certain.

    ¡°Yes ma¡¯am! I will fulfill my duty as the Jinsei no Hogo to go back to my world and protect as many lives as I can!¡±

    Alexis smiled and shed a tear.

    ¡°That¡¯s more like it.¡±

    The couple sat in silence for a few moments.

    ¡°So, Alexis, what do you want to do?¡±

    ¡°What are my options,¡± Alexis asked defeatedly?

    ¡°You can choose to stay in the helmet and retain your memories and thoughts until you die, or you can leave the helmet and live the rest of your life without strong memories and weakened motor functions. Staying in the helmet may seem better, but you¡¯ll, in all honesty, die faster.¡±

    Alexis shook her head.

    ¡°There¡¯s no decision to be made. I¡¯m staying in and helping you until the very end.¡±

    Yami nodded.

    ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s try to do this. I need help finding the Sirushi Inochi that was used on me. Can you investigate my last memory and try to determine what it looked like and where it was?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m on it.¡±

    Alexis was dragged into Yami¡¯s memories, just after Shinkai killed the mayor. She gasped for air, then looked up at Shinkai. She ran at her, and sure enough, the memory reset.

    ¡°I have to try to see if she uses a hand, a leg, ANYTHING.¡±

    Alexis ran at Shinkai again, but she seemingly stood still.

    ¡°Damn it! What is it?!¡±

    Attempting to run at her again, Alexis fell onto the ground, out of breath.

    ¡°My brain is already shutting down! I need to at least do this much!¡±

    Alexis reset the memory and ran at her again. Just as the memory was beginning to reset, a look of shock ran across Alexis¡¯ face.

    ¡°Hey! Alexis! You okay?!¡±

    Yami put on the glasses, then pulled out a cable from a drawer. Plugging the cable into the helmet, then into his glasses, Yami powered on the glasses. He awoke standing next to Alexis. He kneeled down next to her.

    ¡°Hey! Are you okay?¡±

    Alexis opened her eyes. She opened her mouth and attempted to speak, but no sound came out.

    ¡°Alexis, are you okay? Please, tell me you¡¯re fine!¡±

    ¡°I have to tell Yami. With the last of my strength¡­ Yes. With the last of my strength, I will help Yami one last time!¡±

    Alexis¡¯ arm slowly started to lift. She began to point, then continued to lift her arm.

    ¡°It was her... ¡°

    ¡°Eye.¡±

    Alexis¡¯ finger was pointing directly at her own eye.

    ¡°Thank you, Alexis.¡±

    Alexis smiled.

    Yami watched as her lips moved.

    ¡°Yeah, I love you too.¡±

    With one final kiss, Yami laid her on the ground.

    ¡°I¡¯ll see you in a better place, Alexis.¡±

    <hr>

    12 years later¡­

    ¡°Yami Shinpai¡¯s marvelous release of his decades of research has continued to pay off as the first affordable cure for cancer has been released globally!¡±

    A hand clicked a button on the remote, causing the TV to turn off. Yami stood up from his couch and walked over to the kitchen, where he prepared a cup of coffee, which he enjoyed while reading the newspaper.

    ¡°Extinct species are being brought back to life after applying ¡®Universal Element¡¯ research!¡±

    Yami set down the newspaper and put the coffee cup in the sink. Walking out of his house, he promptly locked the door behind him and entered his car. Driving down the road, Yami pulled into a large cemetery. Pulling onto the side of the road, Yami turned of his car and exited it, making sure to grab the bouquet of flowers, then began to walk down one of the rows of headstones. Finally, he stopped in front of one headstone. The name read ¡®Alexis Shinpai¡¯. Yami set down the flowers.

    ¡°Hey, Alexis. Today¡¯s our anniversary, so I figured I¡¯d give you some flowers.¡±

    Yami looked up at the sky.

    ¡°I think it¡¯s been long enough. I¡¯ve done as much as I can in this world, and now it¡¯s time for me to return to mine. But¡­¡±

    Yami began to tear up.

    ¡°You made this world a blessing in disguise, Alexis. I can never forget what happened here, and I know that we will meet again, someday.¡±

    Yami set his hand on the headstone.

    ¡°I love you, Alexis.¡±

    <hr>

    Yami opened the door to his house. Closing the door behind him, Yami took off his coat and his shoes, neatly setting them next to Alexis¡¯ old clothes. Calmly walking up the stairs, Yami walked into his mother¡¯s old room.

    ¡°Goodbye, mother.¡±

    Yami walked into his room. Shutting the door behind him, Yami turned on his computer and plugged in the flash drive with Alexis¡¯ memories. Then, Yami put on the helmet and laid down on his bed.

    ¡°Goodbye, world.¡±

    Yami shed a final tear as he powered on the helmet.

    <hr>

    Yami drifted through Alexis¡¯ memories, absorbing them and becoming entranced with them. Yami wiped his eyes as he saw her point of view on all of their significant points in their relationship. Than, a new memory which Yami had never seen before appeared.

    Alexis stood up and waved to Yami.

    ¡°Hey, future Yami! This isn¡¯t a memory of mine, but rather a quick thing I did. I implanted this in my memories right before I died, so I could tell you how I felt forever, whenever you needed it.¡±

    Yami began to tear up.

    ¡°Alexis¡­¡±

    ¡°Since I met you as Sei, then as Yami, I knew I¡¯d love you. I knew I¡¯d do anything for you, and I followed the will of my heart until the very end. Yami, I don¡¯t have much more time, so I just wanted to say two things. The first being that my death isn¡¯t your fault. I know you, and even though we talked about it, I know you¡¯ll still hold resentment against yourself, because that¡¯s just how caring you are. Nothing would¡¯ve stopped me from dying, Yami. We all do one day or another, so I¡¯d rather it be helping you than dying in my sleep with no one beside me.¡±

    Yami began to cry profusely.

    ¡°The second thing I wanted to tell you is that I love you. Forever and always. I¡¯ll be by your side wherever you go, and don¡¯t forget that. I can¡¯t wait to see you on the other side, Yami.¡±

    Alexis¡¯ hand reached towards Yami, but her image disappeared just as she reached him.

    ¡°Alexis¡­¡±

    Yami rubbed the tears off of his face, then became determined.

    ¡°I will win. For you.¡±

    <hr>

    Yami pulled himself to his last memories.

    ¡°Yami!¡±

    Rikai ran up to Yami¡¯s body which lay on the cold, hard ground. His face was petrified.

    ¡°Yami, what¡¯s wrong?! Get up!¡±

    Shinkai laughed maniacally.

    ¡°This is the best part! He fell for it the moment he looked into my eyes! In about ten seconds after making eye contact, he¡¯ll have spent 100 years in my Sirushi Inochi! I absolutely love the look on peoples¡¯ face as they awake in this world after being dead in another!¡±

    ¡°What was that?! My memories are supposed to have stopped at that moment! Why this? Could it be that¡­ time itself hasn¡¯t stopped in my world? She said I¡¯d have spent 100 years in this world¡­ So that means I still have about 40 more years to spend here¡­ No. I¡¯m not going to waste any more time.¡±

    Yami cracked his neck and began to adjust to his old body again.

    ¡°I will win.¡±

    <hr>

    Rikai¡¯s chest was pounding as she stood over Yami.

    Shinkai laughed maniacally.

    ¡°This is the best part! He fell for it the moment he looked into my eyes! In about ten seconds after making eye contact, he¡¯ll have spent 100 years in my Sirushi Inochi! I absolutely love the look on peoples¡¯ face as they awake in this world after being dead in another!¡±

    ¡°What are you talking about?!¡±

    Shinkai had an evil grin.

    ¡°You¡¯ll see in about two seconds.¡±

    Rikai closed her eyes and counted in her head.

    ¡°One Mississippi¡­ two Mississippi.¡±

    Yami¡¯s eyes opened.

    ¡°Yami,¡± Rikai screamed!

    ¡°This isn¡¯t where my memories end. This is the real deal.¡±

    Yami pushed himself off the ground, then pulled out his knife. He slashed three horizontal lines on his chest, then clapped his hands together and poured all of his thoughts into them, then slapped one of the hands onto the marks, encoding it with life essence. He then used the knife to begin cutting around his eye. The pattern he carved appeared to look like the outline of an eye wrapped around twice. Then, Yami grabbed the katana.

    Yami shed a tear.

    ¡°I¡¯m back.¡±

 Chapter 23 - Awoken

    ¡°Go ahead and practice these problems on your own. Come up if you need help.¡±

    A young girl, about nine years old, tapped her pencil as she looked out of the window into the small courtyard. Her long brown hair matched her hazel eyes.

    ¡°Class is so boring. I just want to go home and have my friends over.¡±

    ¡°Oh, Yami! What do you need? Does it have to do with the multiples of three?¡±

    The girl, along with the rest of the class, looked towards the front of the classroom, where the teacher¡¯s desk was at. Just as she heard, Yami, who was about ten, stood next to the teacher¡¯s desk. He wore his hair at about two inch length, letting his bangs cover his forehead. His glasses were black and bulky.

    ¡°What does he need help with? I bet he gets it better than everyone in our class put together.¡±

    Yami shook his head.

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t have to do with math.¡±

    The teacher nodded her head.

    ¡°I figured as much. What¡¯s up?¡±

    Yami held his hand up to the teacher¡¯s ear and whispered. The teacher smiled and let out a giggle.

    ¡°Then go and tell her! She''ll love to hear that!¡±

    The girl sighed.

    ¡°Really? He has a crush and he tells the teacher? He really doesn¡¯t have any friends, huh.¡±

    Yami walked down the aisles of desks towards the girl, but was stopped by a blonde girl with blue eyes. Yami leaned over her desk and began to talk to her.

    ¡°Ah, so it¡¯s her. I¡¯ve seen them together a lot, so it¡¯s not a surprise.¡±

    Yami got up and gave her a high five, then continued to walk down the aisle.

    Thump

    He drew nearer.

    Thump thump

    ¡°Why am I feeling so excited? Is it because of this nerd?¡±

    Yami stopped at Rikai¡¯s desk.

    ¡°Alright boys and girls! Time for recess!¡±

    Children poured out of the classroom, leaving Yami and the girl behind. The girl¡¯s hazel eyes were shimmering as she looked at Yami.

    ¡°Hey, Rikai.¡±

    Rikai blushed and looked down to hide her face.

    ¡°What do you want?¡±

    ¡°Thanks!¡±

    Rikai looked back at Yami with confusion.

    ¡°Thanks? For what?¡±

    ¡°In my dream, there was a tornado coming towards me, and you flew out of the sky in a ladybug costume and flew us away!¡±

    Rikai was stunned by this remark.

    This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

    ¡°Heh, is that right?¡±

    Yami nodded his head.

    ¡°Yeah, you were awesome! I really like you!¡±

    Thump thump thump

    The teacher poked her head back into the room.

    ¡°Hey! What¡¯re you two still doing in here? Go outside!¡±

    Yami turned away from Rikai and ran out of the room.

    Stunned, Rikai watched his back as he ran out of the room.

    <hr>

    Rikai stared at Yami¡¯s back as he wielded the katana. Shinkai¡¯s face stared at him in disgust. Yami smiled at her.

    ¡°Hey, Shinki. Confused as to how I¡¯m even able to stand?¡±

    Shinkai¡¯s face began to twitch as she became angered.

    ¡°You aren¡¯t Yami. This is a different world. Don¡¯t you want to go back to yours?¡±

    Yami chuckled.

    ¡°You¡¯re right. Right now, I feel like this isn¡¯t my world. I feel like I¡¯m in hell. But as much as I hate to admit it, this shitty world is mine.¡±

    Shinkai turned around. Her hands slowly made their way into her coat.

    ¡°It¡¯s amazing, honestly. You¡¯re the only one who has not only completely broken out of their trance, but was also able to comprehend what was happening. Tell me, Yami, how did you do it?¡±

    ¡°It was simple, really. All it took was one lifetime and a lot of remembering. I¡¯ll give credit where it¡¯s due, though. The average person would be done for.¡±

    ¡°Yes, well, I think we can all agree that you¡¯re above average, you wouldn¡¯t even fall for the slightest tricks!¡±

    Shinkai turned herself and threw three pins, which Yami deflected with his katana. As he lowered his katana to see, Shinkai¡¯s filled his vision. Hitting his face as hard as she could, Shinkai sent Yami flying backwards. Yami rolled over top bodies and bounced off the cold ground like concrete.

    ¡°Yami,¡± Rikai began to yell, ¡°are you okay?!?!¡±

    Yami shoved the katana into the ground and used it as a cane to pick himself up.

    ¡°Yeah, just a little bit dizzy, that¡¯s all.¡±

    Shinkai grinned.

    ¡°So you are still feeling some side effects, huh. That¡¯s good to hear. You won¡¯t last long then!¡±

    Yami lifted up his katana in a defensive manner as Shinkai seemingly vanished in thin air, blocking her karambit, which hit the katana so hard that sparks flew. Using the curvature of the karambit to her advantage, Shinkai pulled Yami¡¯s katana away from him, sending it flying away from the battle. Yami glanced to see it land, then looked back as Shinkai lunged at him with a bayonet. Using his left arm, Yami blocked the incoming attack by diverting Shinkai¡¯s arm towards the ground next to him. Yami fell onto the ground and curled up as Shinkai began to fall onto him. Yami caught her by the stomach with his right foot, then kicked her away from him. Shinkai flew away from Yami, landing on her feet. Yami grabbed his left forearm.

    ¡°You never cared about anyone in your life, did you? You only cared about your own, from what I understand.¡±

    ¡°You could never understand me, Yami Shinpai!¡±

    ¡°So be it.¡±

    Yami¡¯s sphere began to form.

    ¡°Your ¡®Father¡¯ helped me, despite you killing him before I could meet the real man.¡±

    Shinkai continued to stare down Yami.

    ¡°Oh yeah? And how¡¯s that?¡±

    Yami¡¯s sphere turned from its light blue color to a bright orange, and began to glow brightly.

    ¡°He gave me inspiration.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s as Alexis thought. My training in the helmet could be transferred to my world.¡±

    Shinkai began to charge at Yami again.Yami drove the sphere into her stomach. The sphere began to burrow into her, but also sent flames shooting out in a cone from the site of impact. Shinkai began to scream as she and her surroundings caught fire. Yami watched as she dropped her knives and began to paw at her face in an attempt to put out the fire, but to no avail. She tumbled backwards and began to roll in agony.

    Yami stood and watched.

    ¡°Yami! Put her out!¡±

    Yami turned to face Rikai, who was shaking in fear.

    ¡°Put her out, Yami! No one deserves this!¡±

    Yami turned back to Shinkai, who was still rolling around. Yami took a deep breath. As he exhaled, the fires went out. Shinkai''s skin was now a mixture of pink and black. Yami walked up to her as she laid still on the ground.

    ¡°Shinki, why¡¯d you do all of this? We could¡¯ve lived a happy life.¡±

    Shinkai looked into the cloudy sky.

    ¡°I want to live forever, Yami. I don¡¯t want to die.¡±

    Yami closed his eyes.

    ¡°I know how you feel, Shinki.¡±

    Yami opened his right eye, which had received the carving earlier. Shinkai¡¯s eyes became widened, as if she were in shock, then relaxed.

    ¡°Yami, you truly are a merciful god. I¡¯m sorry for everything.¡±

    Yami shut his eyes and rubbed them.

    ¡°Shinki¡­ I had no idea¡­¡±

    Shinkai smiled and closed her eyes.

    ¡°Goodbye, Yami.¡±

    A tear ran down Shinkai¡¯s face.

    ¡°Goodbye, Shinki.¡±

    A single beam of light hit Yami as he stared down at Shinkai. Rikai stood and watched.

    ¡°Yami¡­ Is it over?¡±

    Yami nodded.

    ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s over.¡±

    Yami clenched his fists, then began to walk away from the school.

    ¡°Yami, where are you going?¡±

    Yami broke into a run.

    ¡°Hey! Wait up! You¡¯re injured!¡±

    ¡°Please¡­. Please¡­¡±

    Yami ran down roads, passing houses one after another. Hardly having enough strength to walk, let alone run, Yami began panting. Yami knew that he was at his destination as he felt the immense heat piling onto him, as well as the ever-growing smell of smoke. Turning around the corner of another house, Yami saw where his house should¡¯ve been, but where his house once stood was now a pile of charred wood, which was still ablaze, and red-hot ashes. Yami fell to his knees. Placing his hands on the ground in front of him to prevent him from falling, Yami screamed at the top of his lungs. His tears hit the ground like rain. Opening his eyes, he saw a lit cigarette with smoke still flowing out of it.

    ¡°Dad¡­ I¡¯m so sorry¡­ I could¡¯ve been stronger, but¡­¡±

    Yami picked himself up off the ground.

    ¡°I have to get everyone out of the evacuation area¡­¡±

    Yami began to walk down the sidewalk, exhausted and supporting his body with fences near him.

    ¡°Dad¡­ Shinkai¡­ Alexis¡­¡±

    Yami¡¯s breathing slowed.

    ¡°Posche¡­ Shippai¡­ Shitto¡­ Rikai¡­¡±

    Yami¡¯s hand slipped off of the fence, allowing his body to tumble onto the ground. His glossy eyes watched parallel to the ground as a single snowflake hit the ground in front of him. Blood trickled onto the sidewalk, forming a small river and flowing. Yami laid still, losing consciousness.

    The sky became white with the snow fall.

 Chapter 24 - Post Trauma

    ¡°Rikai!¡±

    Shitto jolted upright on the bed in the med bay. Bloody rags were around him, and his right arm was tightly bandaged. Realizing his defeat, Shitto took a deep breath to collect himself and stood up from the bed. Looking into a mirror that hung on a wall, Shitto saw how badly he was beaten. While there was hardly any blunt force trauma, cuts were found all over his body from the glass window he threw himself into, yet these cuts had already began to scab over. Walking over to a cabinet labelled ¡®Replenishments¡¯, Shitto began to rummage around in the tightly packed item storage.

    ¡°Aha!¡±

    Shitto withdrew a metal cylinder from the cabinet. Unscrewing the lid on top, Shitto tipped the cylinder into his hand, causing a brown ball that had the consistency of clay into his hand. Shitto bit a large chunk out of the ball, forcing himself to chew and swallow it.

    ¡°This stuff isn¡¯t as bad as Jono, but it¡¯s damn close.¡±

    Shitto walked back to the bed he awoke from and returned to how he once was, lying on the bed with his eyes shut.

    ¡°I¡¯ll give myself five minutes for the pill to activate, then I¡¯ll head back out.¡±

    Teachers burst into the room. Shitto sat up.

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    The teachers were in awe that Shitto was able to sit up.

    ¡°Shitto! We just got let out, so we¡¯re going to transport you to a hospital, okay?¡±

    ¡°Wait, it¡¯s done? What happened?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re not really sure. Frankly, you likely know more than any of us, but we do know that the threat has been defeated.¡±

    ¡°Who told you this?¡±

    ¡°Some girl came in, bloodied. She told us that it was okay to leave, that the terrorist attack had been prevented.¡±

    ¡°A girl? Was it Shippai? Or was it Rikai¡­¡±

    ¡°Alright,¡± Shitto said, pushing himself up off of the bed. ¡°Let¡¯s go already.¡±

    <hr>

    Rikai¡¯s breathing caused the air in front of her mouth to condense. Her jeans were wet from the blood on the ground, and her green hoodie was cut and dirtied as well. Feeling the freezing wind blow into her face, she ran down the same sidewalk that Yami had taken.

    ¡°Yami¡­ where are you?¡±

    As snow began to crunch under her feet, the white blanket underneath of her had begun to turn pink, then a dark red. Taking a moment to breath, Rikai stopped at the edge of a house. The snow continued to turn to a darker red, and it was apparent that she was near the source of the river and the blood began to swirl around her shoes. Gulping, Rikai turned the corner of the house to see a shirtless, battered boy laying on the cold concrete sidewalk with snow building on top of him. Blood poured from all around his body.

    ¡°Yami! Hey! Can you hear me?!¡±

    Rikai ran over to Yami, who was far past consciousness. Hyperventilating, Rikai grabbed Yami and propped him against the fence he had fallen next to. Rikai took off her hoodie and slipped it over top Yami¡¯s head, allowing him to retain some body heat.

    ¡°Come on. We¡¯re gonna get you somewhere safe, okay?¡±

    Rikai lifted Yami¡¯s left arm and wrapped it behind her neck, allowing her to prop Yami up and begin walking to her house. Yami¡¯s feet left trails of blood as they dragged in the snow. Rikai¡¯s face showed nothing but determination.

    ¡°R-Ri¡­¡±

    Rikai did not stop dragging Yami as she listened.

    ¡°What is it, Yami?¡±

    If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

    Yami¡¯s breathing was irregular as he tried to speak.

    ¡°The kids¡­ Take my pen ink¡­ In my pocket¡­ Draw a circle with a dot and a triangle¡­ on a door¡­¡±

    ¡°What do you mean, Yami? Your pen ink on a door will open to the kids? Yami?¡±

    Her words fell on deaf ears as Yami slipped back into unconsciousness.

    Rikai walked blocks. Cops as well as ambulances sped past them with their lights and sirens blaring. Yami would occasionally slip out of Rikai¡¯s grip, but she would quickly yet firmly pick him back up before he fell.

    ¡°Yami¡­ You¡¯ll live no matter what.¡±

    <hr>

    The door to Rikai¡¯s house was wide open. The cold winter breeze slightly opened and closed the door with each gust. Rummaging could be heard in the kitchen as Rikai banged different utensils around in an attempt to make food. Turning off the flame underneath of a large pot, Rikai took of the lid and spooned some of the yellow liquid into a bowl, then walked to a large living room. Passing by a thermostat, she made sure that it was still at 76 degrees Fahrenheit. As she walked through her house on the hardwood floor, her socks would stick to it due to the blood that was drying on it. As she neared a couch, she walked past a coffee table, which had bloody rags and dirty clothes piled on top of it. Kneeling in front of the couch, Rikai put some soup on the spoon and held it up to Yami, who was covered in a mountain of blankets. Sweat trickled off of his forehead as Yami seemingly tried to catch his breathing. Irregular patterns of inhales and exhales displayed Yami¡¯s exhaustion.

    ¡°Yami, try to eat some of this.¡±

    Rikai held the spoon up to his lips. The yellow liquid poured itself into Yami¡¯s mouth, which was like a dry reservoir. As Yami choked down the liquid, he coughed a little from the moisture helping his dry throat.

    ¡°Yami¡­ You have found yourself to be in a predicament, have you not?¡±

    Yami opened his eyes to find himself at the entrance of the cave that was in the meadow. Looking down at himself, he noticed that his normal attire was on himself, and the burns on his hands were gone. Yami opened his shirt and looked at his chest, but the marking he had carved into himself when he awakened was not visible.

    ¡°What the hell happened?¡±

    ¡°Come pay me a visit, Jinsei no Hogo. I feel that we need to catch up.¡±

    Yami looked down into the cave that he had been led into before. He shook his head.

    ¡°I don¡¯t wanna see you, Akahishi.¡±

    ¡°Despite the fact that you willingly used my power?¡±

    Yami gritted his teeth.

    ¡°Fine.¡±

    Yami was careful as he clambered into the cave. Unlike his prior experience, the cave wasn¡¯t pitch black. It was as if a dimly lit lightbulb follow him as he walked into the cave. Being cautious as he climbed over obstacles, Yami slowly descended farther into the cave.

    ¡°You are nearing my chambers once again, Jinsei no Hogo.¡±

    Akahishi¡¯s claim was proven by a bright light shining into the depths of the cave. The hole that Yami had to crawl through was now more open, allowing him to crouch into the open room which blue light poured into. Feeling an unwanted nostalgia, Yami quickly proceeded into the main chamber. The beautiful rock staircase that had been built to reach the pedestal had now crumbled and laid on the chamber floor.

    ¡°Please reach the pedestal once again, Jinsei no Hogo.¡±

    Yami walked up to the large pillar which held the pedestal and attempted to jump up using a Phys Mod, yet was met with a regular jump. Sighing, Yami placed his hands on the pillar and began to climb up the side. Bits of the pillar crumbled as Yami pulled himself up. Finally reaching the summit, Yami pulled himself up and collected himself. He then proceeded to the box and picked it up off of the pedestal.

    ¡°Open it for me, Yami.¡±

    Yami placed his hand on the lid, and prepared to lift it, but he stopped himself.

    ¡°Why? What is this doing?¡±

    ¡°Well,¡± Akahishi growled, ¡°it shows me that you are willing to repay debts. We are bound to become one, Yami. I know that you can already feel it inside of you. Every time I lend you power, you get one step closer to me. You need to open that box, Yami.¡±

    ¡°And if I don¡¯t?¡±

    Akahishi chuckled.

    ¡°You know you will.¡±

    Yami looked down at the box. Placing his hand on the lid once more, Yami opened the box. Inside was the same red crystal, but it appeared to have gotten smaller.

    ¡°Thank you, Yami. What was it that pathetic girl said as you killed her? ¡®Yami, you truly are a merciful god¡¯.¡±

    Yami slapped the spoon out of Rikai¡¯s hand, causing the viscous liquid to spill on the floor, as well as cause a loud clanging sound as the spoon hit the hardwood floor. The loud sound made Yami¡¯s expression of anger revert to a more natural state. Realizing what he had done, Yami turned to Rikai, who was shocked.

    ¡°Sorry, Rikai. I¡¯ll clean it u-¡±

    As Yami attempted to get up, the pain that had fallen asleep woke up, causing Yami to tumble back onto the couch.

    ¡°Yami! You need to rest! You¡¯re badly injured, but I figured you didn¡¯t want to go to a hospital after last time¡­¡±

    Yami began to catch his breath.

    ¡°Ya¡­ Thank you, Rikai¡­¡±

    Rikai smiled.

    ¡°No problem. Do you want some water?¡±

    ¡°Please.¡±

    Rikai picked herself up and walked to the kitchen. Opening the fridge, Rikai pulled out one of the many water bottles and walked back to Yami. unscrewing the top, she handed it to Yami.

    ¡°Be careful, and don¡¯t drink too fast.¡±

    Yami politely accepted the water and proceeded to swallow all of its contents. Wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, Yami saw the burn marks and blood. He handed the empty water bottle to Rikai.

    ¡°Thanks.¡±

    Yami pushed the blankets off of himself and began to stand up. Rikai put her hand on his chest.

    ¡°What do you think you¡¯re doing? You¡¯ll hurt yourself again!¡±

    Yami looked down at himself. The majority of his body was covered in bandages, gauze, and cloth. His right shoulder in particular was so heavily covered in bandages that it was as if he were wearing pads for football. The pain and fatigue made Yami want to fall to his knees.

    ¡°I have to save them. All of the victims¡­ My friends¡­ They¡¯re all waiting to be let out¡­¡±

    Rikai held up an empty pen.

    ¡°When I was dragging you home, you told me how to get them out, so I did. Everyone¡¯s out.¡±

    ¡°But how? How could she do that with just some ink and my life essence?¡±

    Yami gently sat himself back onto the couch. Feeling cold due to anaemia, Yami placed the blankets back over himself.

    ¡°Thank you, Rikai. I need one more thing.¡±

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    Yami held out his pointer finger, then ran it down the top line of the three he had carved on his chest.

    ¡°I need a laptop that has a full battery and a charger.¡±

    No longer questioning his absurd requests, Rikai nodded and walked away. A few moments later, she handed Yami a laptop and plugged the charger into an outlet.

    ¡°What¡¯re you going to do?¡±

    Yami took a deep breath.

    ¡°Remember.¡±

 Chapter 25 - Those Not Forgotten

    Yami cracked his knuckles.

    ¡°Before I start doing this, can you make sure that nothing interrupts me? I¡¯m gonna be typing for a while, and I can¡¯t stop no matter what.¡±

    Rikai was cleaning the blood from the floors.

    ¡°Yeah. How long do you think that will take?¡±

    Yami tapped his finger in anticipation on the side of the keyboard.

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure. From what I remember, I omitted some of the details of what I¡¯m trying to remember, but it will still take me more than four hours of typing.¡±

    Rikai sighed.

    ¡°What are you trying to remember so much that you¡¯d write for four hours?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m trying to figure out. So if you¡¯ll leave me to it¡­¡±

    ¡°Yeah, go ahead.¡±

    Yami gulped back the bad feeling in his throat and placed his right hand on his chest. Manipulating his life essence through the tips of his fingers to pour into the cracks in the marking, Yami pulled at the life essence embedded deep within his chest. After slowly feeling it crawl out of him, he looked down to see a two foot monster of blue life essence which took the shape of a single helix. Using his left hand, Yami connected the helix to his fingertips.

    ¡°Alright. I¡¯m starting.¡±

    ¡°Good luck.¡±

    In one quick motion, Yami slammed his hands back together, just as he had done to seal it within himself. Yami¡¯s pupils dilated, and his hands immediately began to type furiously on the keyboard. The blank document that he had started with quickly began to fill itself up.

    After about thirty minutes, Rikai wiped the sweat off of her forehead. Aside from the couch that Yami lay on, the rest of the house was sparkling clean. Grabbing two water bottles, Rikai walked to the couch and saw that Yami was still typing at ridiculous speeds. His eyes were beginning to go bloodshot from hardly blinking. Setting a water on the table next to the couch, Rikai unscrewed the one in her hand and drank half of its contents. She then picked up a notepad and pen from nearby and scribbled a note for Yami and sat it on the table next to the water.

    Yami,

    I¡¯m heading out for a little bit to see how everyone is doing. I should be back by 5, which is when you said you¡¯d be done. Take it easy if I¡¯m not there when you wake up, okay?

    -Rikai

    With that, Rikai walked out of the door into the blizzard.

    <hr>

    As Shitto limped out of the evacuation room with support from some staff members, he noticed that he was no longer at the school.

    ¡°This is Yami¡¯s street, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    Shitto was blinded by the immense glow of ambulance and police lights. As people poured out of the room, many were captured by police or news stations for interrogation. Shitto was guided to the ambulances, who sat him in the back and inspected him.

    ¡°Looks like you¡¯re going to need some work done on that right arm, and some stitches in some of the cuts from the glass. We¡¯ll take you right now.¡±

    Shitto nodded and began to climb into the back of the ambulance when he heard a familiar voice.

    ¡°Shitto!¡±

    Shitto turned around to see Rikai running up to him.

    ¡°Rikai? Were you the one who let us out?¡±

    ¡°Y-Yeah, something like that. Anyways, are you alright?¡±

    Shitto pointed at his right arm.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

    ¡°They got me good, but they¡¯d need to more than that to get me down.¡±

    Rikai and Shitto shared a chuckle.

    ¡°Say, Rikai, do you know where Yami is?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, he¡¯s at my place right now. I figured that being with the police would be the last thing he¡¯d want to do.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sure. With what happened, he¡¯d probably be locked up without any medical care. Tell him I need to talk to him, though.¡±

    ¡°Sure. He¡¯s doing something at the moment, but when he¡¯s done, I¡¯ll let him know.¡±

    ¡°Thanks, Rikai.¡±

    Shitto smiled and waved as Rikai began to walk away.

    ¡°Oh, Rikai, one more thing!¡±

    Rikai stopped and turned to see Shitto no longer smiling.

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°Try to not get involved with us, Yami and I. We¡¯re only going to pull you down, so get away while you can.¡±

    With that, the ambulance doors shut.

    ¡°Wait! Shitto!¡±

    The sirens began to wail as the ambulance pulled away. Rikai was stunned.

    ¡°What the hell does Shitto mean? We¡¯ve been friends forever, and I¡¯m supposed to just stop? I know I don¡¯t have any place in whatever the hell their lives are, but I¡¯m not gonna stop just because they might pull me down!¡±

    Rikai glanced over to a curb where she saw Shippai sitting alone, rubbing her arms for warmth. Rikai walked up to her.

    ¡°Hey, Shippai. You doing alright?¡±

    Shippai shook her head.

    ¡°He died. Mr. Posche died. I couldn¡¯t save him. Now everything may be lost.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s gonna be alright. He did it to protect all of us. It was his choice, and I think we should all be thankful for his sacrifice.¡±

    ¡°Y-Yeah.¡±

    A police officer walked up to Shippai. It was Frank.

    ¡°Excuse me, ma¡¯am. I¡¯m going to need you for a few moments.¡±

    ¡°Okay.¡±

    ¡°Text me if you need to talk, Shippai.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, thanks.¡±

    Rikai got up from the curb and began to walk towards her house when a group of girls approached her.

    ¡°Rikai! What happened?! Are you okay!?!¡±

    Rikai looked confused.

    ¡°Yes? Why?¡±

    ¡°You look like you went to the slaughter house!¡±

    Rikai looked down at herself. She had forgotten to change, and was still wearing her bloodsoaked apparel.

    ¡°Oh, I was just talking to Shippai and Shitto over there. Must¡¯ve gotten some off of them. Anyways, I gotta be going. The folks are worrying about me.¡±

    ¡°Alright. Be careful, Rikai.¡±

    Rikai continued to walk down the sidewalk, and suddenly her head started to throb. Walking up to her house, the pain only continued.

    ¡°Yami, you done yet?¡±

    Yami still laid on the couch typing mindlessly. His his were completely glossed over and dried. It looked as if he hadn¡¯t slept in years. Feeling tired herself, Rikai walked up a set of stairs into a bathroom. Removing her bloody shirt and jeans. The blood had soaked into her underwear as well. Removing the last of her garments, Rikai turned on the faucet to the showerhead and held her hand underneath until she felt the temperature she desired, at which point she stepped inside. As steam began to fill the bathroom, the hot water swept away the dirt and blood from Rikai¡¯s body, leaving a colorful mess on the floor of the shower. As she began to shampoo her hair, the throbbing sensation in her head increased tenfold, causing her to grimace in pain.

    ¡°What is happening to me?!¡±

    Suddenly, the pain ended, and Rikai¡¯s eyes widened.

    Wearing a white labcoat, an adult Rikai handed a pile of papers to a man who clearly looked exhausted.

    What is that memory? It seems too vivid to be a dream, but that place doesn¡¯t seem familiar at all, and I don¡¯t know that man.

    <hr>

    After a relaxing shower, Rikai stepped out and had two towels, one wrapped around her body, and one wrapped around her hair. Walking into her room, she began to put on clothes as she heard a thud come from downstairs.

    ¡°Yami?¡±

    Quickly sliding her sweatpants on, Rikai ran out of her room and down the staircase to find that Yami wasn¡¯t on the couch.

    ¡°Yami?!¡±

    Rikai ran up to the coffee table to see that Yami had typed 168 pages. Hearing rustling behind her, Rikai turned to see Yami clawing his way towards the door on the floor.

    ¡°Yami!¡±

    Rikai ran up to Yami.

    ¡°What are you doing, Yami?¡±

    Yami continued to crawl towards the door.

    ¡°I¡­ have to find her¡­¡±

    ¡°Find who?¡±

    ¡°Alexis.¡±

    ¡°Yami, what are you talking about?¡±

    ¡°Alexis¡­ she¡­ can¡¯t be¡­ in this world¡­.¡±

    Yami¡¯s tired arms gave out, causing him to lay and pant on the floor.

    ¡°Yami, what did you remember?¡±

    Yami¡¯s eyes began to tear up, but his face was planted in the floor, so Rikai could not see.

    ¡°I remembered too much¡­¡±

    Yami began to tremble and sob on the floor. Rikai picked his face up off of the cold, hard floor and placed it on her warm, soft legs.

    ¡°Yami¡­¡±

    <hr>

    ¡°That¡¯s all I know, sir.¡±

    Frank slid everything off of the table. He and Shippai were inside of the interrogation room at the police department.

    ¡°Bullshit! My son died today, and I know that you are one of the little shits he was protecting! Now tell me where Yami is, what happened to my son, and why he died!¡±

    Shippai looked at the floor.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, sir. That¡¯s all I know.¡±

    Screaming, Frank turned and punched the metal wall, leaving a dent in it, but causing his knuckles to split and bleed.

    ¡°We¡¯re not done here. You will stay here until I get everything out of you and that scumbag Shitto.¡±

    Frank walked out of the room and slammed the door behind him. Shippai sat alone in the dimly lit room. She rubbed her arm.

    <hr>

    Rikai ran her hand through Yami¡¯s hair as he slept on her legs. His tears left his face a bright red.

    ¡°Alright, Yami. Come on.¡±

    Rikai lifted Yami up onto one arm and guided him back to the couch where she laid him back down.

    ¡°Sleep here. I¡¯ll be in my room. Just yell if you need anything.¡±

    Her voice didn¡¯t reach Yami¡¯s conscious as he slept.

    ¡°Good night, Yami.¡±

 Chapter 26 - Loneliness

    ¡°Hey, future Yami!¡±

    Yami jolted up from his slumber. Sweat poured down his forehead as he was not only frightened by his dreams, but also due to the infection that his body was fighting. Taking a sip from the water next to him, Yami wetted his dry throat. Glancing at a clock on the wall, Yami noted that it was only 1 a.m. Yami walked upstairs to the bathroom and began to search the cabinets, finding himself a clean towel. Taking off his bandages, Yami inspected his wounds in front of the mirror. Despite only resting for not even half of a day, his wounds were almost healed up, likely due to Akahishi¡¯s presence. Stripping himself of the remaining clothes on himself, Yami turned on the faucet. Stepping inside of the boiling hot shower, Yami was quick to turn down the heat due to the pain throbbing from his burns. He started washing himself.

    ¡°There might still be a way to rediscover that element¡­ No, I already know that it¡¯s impossible in this world. It¡¯s a shame, there were so many advancements in technology that came with its discovery. And to think that it was all due to my own selfish wish¡­ It¡¯s odd, isn¡¯t it, Alexis?¡±

    Turning off the faucet, Yami stepped out of the shower into the steamy bathroom. Patting himself dry with the towel, Yami realized that he had no clothes to put on. About to open the door to his room, Yami also remembered that he no longer had a room. Overcome with sorrow, Yami clenched his fist and strained his arms, making Yami seem as though he was going to scream. Yami didn¡¯t scream, however. He simply let out a sigh, and walked out of the bathroom, right into the boys¡¯ locker room. Walking over to a locker with a blue combination lock, Yami spun the numbers into the proper positions and opened the locker. Inside was a small drawstring bag, which inside of it reside a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt which were covered in sweat. Sighing out of annoyance, Yami walked out of the boys¡¯ locker room into the hallway in Rikai¡¯s house. Walking downstairs, Yami found the laundry room. A washing machine and dryer, along with soaps and softeners, were lined against the wall. Shoving his gym clothes and pouring some soap and softener into it, Yami turned on the washer. Hearing water pour into the machine assured Yami that his only clothes were being washed. Looking at a pile of clean, folded clothes, Yami noticed a pair of basketball shorts that were about his size, if not a tiny bit larger. Sliding the shorts on, Yami caught a shiver. Despite the temperature in the house remaining constant, feeling his skin be naked to the air after spending its time underneath of thick blankets made his sensitivity to the cold grow. Not knowing how long the washer would take, Yami decided to scavenge for food in the kitchen. Standing in front of the open fridge, Yami scarfed down the leftovers he found. Hearing buzzing, Yami walked back to the laundry room and switched his clothes into the dryer. After turning it on, Yami yawned. Walking back to the couch, Yami felt nothing but sick as he looked at it. Blood was still dried onto the cushions, and the blankets weren¡¯t any better. Rubbing the back of his neck, Yami paced back up the stairs. Walking past the bathroom, Yami knocked on a white door. Hearing rustling behind the door, Yami was focused on keeping his eyelids open. The doorknob wiggled, and the door creaked open to reveal Rikai wearing a long, white T-shirt. Her hair along with her groggy eyes made it apparent that she was deep in slumber.

    ¡°What¡¯s up?¡±

    Yami pointed at her bed, a queen size with pink sheets.

    ¡°You mind if I sleep with you tonight?¡±

    Rikai¡¯s eyes widened as she began to blush. She glanced at her bed, then back at Yami¡¯s face, which was clearly not implying what was going through her mind.

    ¡°You mean you want to sleep in my bed?¡±

    ¡°Yeah? That¡¯s what I said.¡±

    Rikai sighed.

    ¡°Fine, but just this once, alright? And don¡¯t get any funny ideas.¡±

    Rikai allowed Yami to enter her room. Her room was neat, with the her backpack and a couple of textbooks being left on the floor. The scent of a girl filled Yami¡¯s nose. It was completely unlike his sister¡¯s room, which had no distinct smell. Rikai¡¯s room seemed so kind, so inviting.

    ¡°Wait. You did shower, right?¡±

    Yami nodded and plopped on top Rikai¡¯s bed, who promptly smacked the back of his head.

    ¡°That¡¯s no way to sleep in someone¡¯s bed! Get under the covers, silly.¡±

    Groaning, Yami slid his body underneath the pink sheets. The softness massaged his skin, relaxing his muscles. Feeling rustling on the opposite side of the bed, Yami looked over to see Rikai place herself next to Yami. Looking back at the ceiling, Yami closed his eyes and began to drift into sleep. Rikai turned her head to catch a glimpse of Yami.

    ¡°Despite all the things you¡¯ve done, you¡¯re still like a child. You have to cry on my lap, sleep in the same bed as me, and when you sleep, you look so innocent.¡±

    Rikai stretched out and accidentally bumped Yami¡¯s hand. Flinching, Rikai looked at Yami to see if he¡¯d react, but he was already asleep. Blushing, Rikai timidly moved her hand back to Yami¡¯s and locked her hand around his. Her arm began to lay on top of his, allowing her to feel the rigidness of his muscles.

    ¡°You¡¯ve grown a lot since we were little, huh. When did you get to be so tall?¡±

    Rikai smiled and closed her eyes.

    ¡°I must be dreaming.¡±

    <hr>

    Sunlight poured into the room, gently hitting Yami¡¯s face. Rikai¡¯s finger was also gently poking Yami¡¯s face.

    ¡°Wakey, wakey!¡±

    Yami slowly opened his eyes and blinked them groggily. Wiping his eyes, he sat up.

    ¡°What do you want?¡±

    ¡°Breakfast is ready.¡±

    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll be down.¡±

    As rikai opened the door to leave, she paused.

    ¡°By the way, I found your clothes in the dryer. They¡¯re next to the bed.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, thanks.¡±

    As the door clicked shut, Yami threw the covers off of himself and stood up. Stretching and yawning, Yami found his clean clothes, which were folded into a neat pile. As Yami slid off the shorts he had found and prepared to put his sweatpants on, the door swung open.

    ¡°Yami! I said breakfast is ready!¡±

    Rikai blushed as she saw Yami, who had already finished putting on his sweatpants.

    ¡°Rikai, what were you trying to do?¡±

    Rikai grinned and patted Yami on the head.

    ¡°Nothing, nothing at all! Just making sure you were up! That¡¯s all!¡±

    ¡°Right¡­¡±

    Yami followed Rikai out of the room as he slid on his shirt.

    ¡°So what did you make?¡±

    Walking into the kitchen, Yami saw that two plates were already on the counter. Both had a serving of scrambled eggs along with some fresh fruit.

    ¡°I¡¯m not that big on fruit, you know¡­¡±

    ¡°Yes, I do know, and you need to eat it so you can recover faster.¡±

    Yami and Rikai sat down at a round table and ate their meal. Rikai paused her eating to look at Yami.

    ¡°So what are you going to do today?¡±

    Yami shrugged.

    ¡°I figured I¡¯d see how everyone held up.¡±

    Yami began to gulp down some milk.

    ¡°Like Shitto, Shippai, and Mr. Posche?¡±

    Yami paused his drinking, then with one final gulp, he set down his cup and wiped his mouth with his hand.

    ¡°How do you know about them?¡±

    ¡°When I came out of the room, I ran into them.¡±

    ¡°I see. In any case, yeah. Them.¡±

    Rikai sat still for a moment while Yami continued to eat his breakfast.

    ¡°Does Yami not know yet? Then again, I don¡¯t think I should be the one to tell him¡­¡±

    ¡°Hey, Yam-¡±

    ¡°Alright, thanks for the food! As always, it was great!¡±

    Yami stood up from the table and rinsed his plate in the sink.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be off now. Do you know where Shitto is?¡±

    ¡°At a hospital somewhere. Why don¡¯t you text him?¡±

    Yami held up a phone with a blank screen.

    ¡°It must¡¯ve broke yesterday. I¡¯m gonna have to do some shopping later, too.¡±

    ¡°So you haven¡¯t been in contact with your sister or brother either? They must be worried sick!¡±

    Yami looked down at the ground.

    ¡°Yeah, they must be¡­¡±

    Yami walked out of the room and opened a door in the hallway.

    ¡°Bye, Rikai.¡±

    <hr>

    The door opened to Posche¡¯s basement.

    ¡°Hey! Mr. P! You here?¡±

    Yami paced up the stairs, anticipating that he would see someone, but there was no one in the house.

    ¡°You must¡¯ve gotten beaten up pretty bad, huh.¡±

    Yami sighed.

    ¡°Guess I¡¯ll go to Shitto¡¯s house and see where he¡¯s at¡­¡±

    As Yami began to take a few steps down the basement stairs, he heard the upstairs door open.

    ¡°Hey! I was just looking for you!¡±Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    Yami turned around and saw Shippai standing in the living room.

    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s you. What¡¯s up, Shippai?¡±

    ¡°Nothing really, just getting some of his stuff¡­¡±

    ¡°Ah, so he is in the hospital! He should¡¯ve taken it easier, being so old.¡±

    Shippai opened her mouth, as if wanting to say something, then closed it immediately.

    ¡°So where is he and Shitto at?¡±

    ¡°Shitto is in holding right now. As soon as the hospital cleared him, Frank took him in.¡±

    ¡°What for? Just questioning? Isn¡¯t Mr. P good enough for that?¡±

    ¡°Well¡­¡± Shippai attempted to avoid the question. ¡°In any case, I think it¡¯ll help Shitto out if you go down and tell the police what happened as well.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I probably should.¡±

    Yami rubbed his left forearm.

    ¡°How are you doing, Shippai? Were you hurt?¡±

    Shippai shook her head.

    ¡°Nothing serious, just a few scrapes and bruises.¡±

    Yami nervously chuckled.

    ¡°Good.¡±

    Yami looked at the clock on the wall.

    ¡°Well, I guess I¡¯ll be off, then.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Take it easy, Yami.¡±

    Yami walked down the stairs and through the door.

    Shippai sighed.

    ¡°That kid is hopeless.¡±

    <hr>

    Yami stepped into a conference room. Shutting the door and opening it once more led Yami into the entrance of the police department. Walking up to the front desk, he began to speak with the secretary.

    ¡°Hello. I¡¯m here to see Shitto Yuutsu?¡±

    ¡°One moment.¡±

    The secretary began to peck away at the keyboard in front of her.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but it seems like he is in holding, and is not permitted to have any visitors.¡±

    ¡°Would it help to say I¡¯m friends with Mr. Frank Posche?¡±

    The secretary paused for a moment.

    ¡°One second.¡±

    The secretary picked up her phone and dialed in a number.

    ¡°Hi. There is a visitor for Shitto. Yes, I saw, but he says that he is a friend of yours? His name is¡­¡±

    The secretary looked to Yami for an answer.

    ¡°Yami Shinpai.¡±

    ¡°Yami Shinpai? Alright.¡±

    The secretary set her phone down.

    ¡°You can go in. Mr. Posche said you should know where he is?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Thank you.¡±

    ¡°No problem.¡±

    Yami walked through a few sets of doors until he found himself in front of a female police officer, the same one that was in charge of letting visitors see himself. She smiled at him.

    ¡°Long time no see. I assume you¡¯re not being put back in?¡±

    ¡°Afraid not. I¡¯m here to see Shitto.¡±

    ¡°Follow me, please. Also, keep in mind that you are not permitted to give him anything.¡±

    ¡°Right.¡±

    Yami followed the officer into the metal interrogation room where he found Shitto, who was asleep in the metal chair.

    ¡°Hey, Shitto. It¡¯s me.¡±

    Shitto slowly opened his eyes.

    ¡°Hey¡­ Yami¡­¡±

    Yami let out a small chuckle.

    ¡°What¡¯s up with you? Frank can¡¯t be giving you too hard of a time, right?¡±

    Yami noticed that Shitto¡¯s right hand was cuffed to the leg of the table.

    ¡°Woah. What¡¯s going on?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s¡­ relentless¡­ I haven¡¯t had anything to eat¡­ Nothing to drink¡­¡±

    ¡°What the hell? This is illegal! What the hell is he doing? What does he want from you?¡±

    ¡°Yami, do you not know?¡±

    ¡°Know what?¡±

    ¡°Po-¡±

    The door to the cell slammed against the wall as it was pushed open. Frank stood in the doorway holding a Mossberg shotgun.

    ¡°Woah, Frank. What¡¯re you doing?¡±

    ¡°What do you know you little shit?¡±

    ¡°What do you mean? I just got here!¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t play with me! Why? Why did my son die?¡±

    Time seemed to freeze as the words slid out of Frank¡¯s mouth and hit Yami¡¯s ears. Yami caught a shiver.

    ¡°What¡­ What do you mean?¡±

    ¡°Phil died, and I want to know why, god dammit!¡±

    Shitto sat up.

    ¡°Leave Yami out of this. He doesn¡¯t know anyth-¡±

    BOOM

    Chunks of metal flew from the ceiling as Frank fired his shotgun at it. Pumping the shotgun, the freshly fired shell popped out of the chamber, allowing a new one to be inserted.

    ¡°TELL ME WHY!¡±

    Yami¡¯s heart began to beat rapidly. From around the corner, the police officer ran up to the cell.

    ¡°Sir, what happened?¡±

    Frank raised his shotgun and aligned the beads with the officer¡¯s head.

    ¡°Si-¡±

    BOOM

    In a flash, Yami darted next to Frank and pulled the barrel of the shotgun to the ground, causing the BB¡¯s to spray off of the floor, some hitting Yami and Frank. Yami looked at the officer.

    ¡°Run. Find some backup.¡±

    The officer nodded and darted off.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you listen to him! I¡¯m your superior officer! Not this little runt!¡±

    Yami punched Frank in the stomach and ripped the shotgun from his hands.

    ¡°None of your juniors will follow you if you lead them to death, Frank. As for your son, he died a far more noble death than you will. He died not protecting just me, or the other failures like Shitto, but protecting the entire school. All of the futures, all of the pasts, all of the stories. He saved them all. Meanwhile, in your anger of loss, you are insulting his efforts by trying to end those stories.¡±

    Yami walked up to Shitto and pointed the barrel of the shotgun at the cuffs on the table.

    BOOM

    The cuffs blew off of the table. Yami helped up Shitto and unloaded the shotgun. Only one more shell came out.

    ¡°Wow, you¡¯re pretty cocky, Frank. Only four shells? So were they for the three of us, plus the one you shot at the ceiling? Or was that fourth one really for your poor junior?¡±

    Yami held the barrel of the shotgun up to Frank¡¯s face.

    ¡°If you want someone to hate, hate me.¡±

    Click

    As Yami pulled the trigger, Frank¡¯s pants became wet, and a yellow liquid spilled onto the floor. Yami threw down the shotgun and began to guide Shitto out of the interrogation room. Yami laughed.

    ¡°Looks like you¡¯re gonna have to spend some more time here, Shitto. Sorry.¡±

    Shitto kept his blank face. Yami carried Shitto past the front desk and saw a horde of officers dash past him. He looked at the secretary.

    ¡°My friend and I will be in that conference room over there, okay?¡±

    ¡°S-Sure.¡±

    Helping Shitto sit in a chair, Yami shut the door and let out a sigh.

    ¡°Man. What¡¯s with that guy?¡±

    Shitto gritted his teeth.

    ¡°What¡¯s with you?¡±

    Yami turned to face Shitto.

    ¡°What was that?¡±

    Shitto looked up from the ground and glared at Yami.

    ¡°What the hell is wrong with you?¡±

    Yami wore a stern face.

    ¡°Care to elaborate? I might have an answer.¡±

    Shitto threw himself at Yami and grabbed him by the collar. Using his momentum, Shitto flung Yami to the ground and kneed him in the chest. Shitto then cocked his right fist back into the air and released a blow across Yami¡¯s face, causing him to spit out blood onto the floor. Shitto began to pant and sweat poured down his face. Yami turned his face back to look Shitto in the eyes and wiped his mouth with his right wrist.

    ¡°You feel better now?¡±

    Shitto screamed and swung at Yami again, and once again, Yami did not react.

    ¡°We killed so many people¡­ our friends¡­ our family¡­ People we knew are dead, Yami! And you¡¯re gonna sit here and pretend that everything¡¯s okay?! Fuck you! Just because we think you¡¯re the Jinsei no Hogo doesn¡¯t mean you can parade over everyone¡¯s feelings!¡±

    Yami looked Shitto in the eyes with an expressionless face.

    ¡°If you honestly feel that way, you can leave me alone. But I need to know. Did you kill people you loved?¡±

    A tear ran down Shitto¡¯s face.

    ¡°Of course! I killed my uncle, and you slaughtered my entire cousin¡¯s family! You fucking monster!¡±

    Yami shut his eyes.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Shitto.¡±

    Yami opened his eyes and locked pupils with Shitto. Shitto¡¯s angered face became calmer for a moment, then became even more angered than before.

    ¡°No¡­ What am I saying?! YOU KILLED EVERYONE! AND I HAD TO WATCH!¡±

    Yami shut his eyes once again.

    ¡°Shitto, get off of me.¡±

    Shitto¡¯s face twitched angrily.

    ¡°What did you just say?¡±

    ¡°I said ¡®Get off of me.¡¯¡±

    Shitto swung his fist again, but before it could connect with Yami¡¯s face, Yami blocked it with the palm of his hand.

    ¡°Do you want to go see your dead family? Get off.¡±

    Shitto screamed and jumped off of Yami, bolting into the main room of the police department. Yami rubbed his right eye.

    ¡°To think I¡¯d have to use this again¡­¡±

    Yami walked through the door, leaving the police department.

    <hr>

    Rikai finished making her bed and doing the dishes. Walking into the living room, she saw the couch. The dried blood had made the blankets crusty and a metallic smell radiated from it.

    ¡°No wonder Yami wanted to sleep in my bed.¡±

    Rikai took the blankets and threw them in the washer, than began on washing the actual couch. Wiping the sweat off of her forehead, Rikai laid down onto the couch. Looking at the table, she saw the laptop that she had lent to Yami.

    ¡°I wonder what he wrote. I shouldn¡¯t pry, but¡­¡±

    Rikai opened the laptop.

    <hr>

    Yami walked out of a storm door into someone¡¯s back yard. Hopping the fence, Yami landed onto the sidewalk leading to his house. Hearing familiar voices, Yami slowly crept up to the house. In front of the smoldering remains stood Reikoku and Ai. Ai noticed Yami on the sidewalk.

    ¡°Hey, Yami. Good to see you.¡±

    Reikoku looked over after hearing Ai and immediately began to yell at Yami.

    ¡°Where the hell have you been, you worthless shit? We¡¯ve had to sort all of this out on our own, meanwhile you¡¯re off doing god knows what!¡±

    Ai held up his hand.

    ¡°Seriously? He¡¯s worse off than us, so shut the hell up.¡±

    Yami walked up to Ai.

    ¡°What do you mean by ¡®worse off¡¯?¡±

    Reikoku smirked.

    ¡°Seems like your endless acts of being a disobedient little shit are catching up to you. The cops think you burned down the house with Dad trapped inside.¡±

    Yami shook his head.

    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, I¡¯ll figure something out. Who knows, maybe I¡¯ll use the evidence I¡¯ve gathered over the years of the shit you¡¯ve done to me and it¡¯ll be word against word. That is all the proof the have, I assume? Because I was at school during the time this house burned down.¡±

    Reikoku bit her lip.

    ¡°Why don¡¯t you just go and die already?¡±

    Ai shook his head.

    ¡°Seriously, what is with you two?¡±

    Yami put his hands in his pockets and began to walk back from where he came.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±

    Ai took a step towards Yami.

    ¡°Hey, where are you going?¡±

    Yami stood still.

    ¡°Anywhere but here. I¡¯ll be honest with you, Ai. The cops are looking for me, but not because of this house fire. I did something far, far worse, and I won¡¯t get you two involved.¡±

    ¡°But where will you stay?¡±

    Yami sighed.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be okay, Ai. Take care of yourself. I hope we meet again.¡±

    Yami continued walking down the road, and Ai didn¡¯t chase.

    <hr>

    Yami walked into the main hall of Rikai¡¯s house,

    ¡°Hey! Rikai! You here?¡±

    Yami walked into the kitchen to see a note on the table.

    Yami~

    Went to get some food for tonight. Be back in a few hours.

    Rikai

    Yami rubbed his neck and sat himself on the couch, which was now cleaned. Sinking into its cushions, Yami looked over to see that the laptop wasn¡¯t on the table.

    ¡°Rikai¡­¡±

    On queue, Rikai walked in through the front door holding a plastic grocery bag. Yami looked up from over the back of the couch.

    ¡°Hey, Rikai.¡±

    Rikai looked up from the ground to see Yami, then immediately looked back down, showing an expression of sorrow. Yami picked himself up off of the couch and walked into the kitchen. Rikai sat the bag onto the counter and took off her winter jacket. Yami leaned against the wall with his arms crossed.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Rikai?¡±

    Rikai walked over to a set of cupboards and pulled out a cutting board.

    ¡°Nothing, really. Just cold is all.¡±

    Rikai pulled out a knife and retrieved an item from the bag, an onion.

    ¡°How are you cold? It¡¯s so hot in here.¡±

    Rikai began to peel the dry skin off of the onion.

    ¡°It¡¯s because I just came in from outside, silly.¡±

    Rikai began to slice the onion with the knife.

    ¡°Is that why you¡¯re crying, too?¡±

    Rikai¡¯s tears streamed down her cheeks as if they were rivers flowing down mountains.

    ¡°It¡¯s because I¡¯m slicing this onion¡­¡±

    Yami unfolded his arms and walked over to Rikai, and put his hand on the hand that was holding the knife, setting it against the cutting board.

    ¡°Yami¡­ What happened to you in those ten seconds?¡±

    Yami closed his eyes.

    ¡°So you did read it.¡±

    Rikai hid her eyes with her hands.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry¡­ I just wanted to know what made you so emotional¡­ Yami¡­ I¡¯m so sorry¡­¡±

    Yami wrapped his arms around Rikai and embraced her.

    ¡°Did you hear about Mr. Posche?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°And you lost your father.¡±

    Yami nodded.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you sad?¡±

    Yami nervously chuckled.

    ¡°Rikai, I¡¯m telling you, I¡¯m okay.¡±

    ¡°No you¡¯re not!¡±

    Rikai pushed Yami off of her.

    ¡°How could you say that? You¡¯re just being cruel to yourself! Mr. Posche was your friend! As for Alexis, she was your everything! And you act as if nothing happened? Yami, you¡¯re hurting inside! Don¡¯t try to hide it!¡±

    Yami opened his eyes, which were becoming teary.

    ¡°I¡¯m not hiding it.¡±

    Rikai pulled out her phone and handed it to Yami.

    ¡°Look here. I did some research. It seems as though that high school is real! You might be able to find Alexis here!¡±

    Yami wiped his eyes.

    ¡°There¡¯s no way that she exists, though.¡±

    Rikai put her hands on Yami¡¯s shoulders and looked into his eyes.

    ¡°Yami, you owe it to yourself to try.¡±

    Yami closed his eyes.

    ¡°I¡¯ll think about it.¡±

    Rikai hugged Yami.

    <hr>

    Rikai and Yami sat at the table and at their meal.

    ¡°Man, you¡¯re gonna make a great wife someday, Rikai! Everything I¡¯ve had is amazing!¡±

    Rikai blushed.

    ¡°T-Thanks.¡±

    Yami grabbed their plates and put them into the dishwasher. He walked into the living room and laid down onto the couch, closing his eyes. Rikai stood over him.

    ¡°Scooch.¡±

    Yami, who was already relaxed shook his head.

    ¡°No. I¡¯m comfy.¡±

    ¡°My house, my rules. You don¡¯t move, and I¡¯ll lay on you.¡±

    ¡°Fine by me, so long as I don¡¯t have to move.¡±

    Rikai blushed.

    ¡°You leave me no choice.¡±

    Yami felt his body be pushed farther into the couch cushions as Rikai¡¯s body rested itself on his.

    ¡°You¡¯re squishing me, Rikai!¡±

    ¡°Too bad. I told you I would!¡±

    Rikai rested her head next to Yami¡¯s and stared at the ceiling.

    ¡°Hey Yami, did you two¡­ You know¡­.¡±

    Yami sighed.

    ¡°Does it really matter? You¡¯re smart, figure it out. We were married and knew each other since childhood.¡±

    ¡°R-Right¡­¡±

    A few minutes passed as Yami¡¯s leg started to fall asleep.

    ¡°Hey, Rikai? Can I get up for a second?¡±

    Rikai snored in response.

    Yami smirked.

    ¡°Guess I¡¯ll follow in her footsteps.¡±

    Yamim drifted into slumber with a smile on his face.

    ¡°You know what? I¡¯ll pay Yume High a visit tomorrow.¡±

 Chapter 27 - Retribution

    ¡°Station 16 is now departing.¡±

    Yami boarded a long, blue bus. Handing the driver a voucher, Yami walked to an empty seat and sat in it. Once the bus began to move, and there was still no one sitting next to him, Yami laid back. Closing his eyes, Yami  began to drift into sleep.

    Yami¡¯s hand rubbed Alexis¡¯ back as she threw up into a trashcan. As she stopped puking, she walked over to a sink and washed out her mouth. As she wiped her lips, she looked Yami in the eyes.

    ¡°How am I? How are you? I¡¯m not the person who owns these memories, and even I¡¯m traumatised by them.¡±

    ¡°Station 16 is now unboarding.¡±

    Yami¡¯s eyes fluttered open as he regained consciousness. Picking himself off of the seat, Yami stepped off of the bus and took a deep breath.

    ¡°Yeah, this is Yume.¡±

    Walking from the bus depot, Yami looked at a map on his phone.

    ¡°It looks like my house doesn¡¯t exist, as one should figure, but Alexis¡¯ house and the school still exists. I guess it¡¯d be easier to meet Alexis at school than at her house, so I¡¯ll head there.¡±

    Yami turned off his phone and continued walking. Finally arriving at the school, Yami noticed almost no changes to the building. It looked exactly as it had before the shooting. Not allowing himself to reminisce about his student life, Yami walked to the back of the building where he jiggled the handle of a door, letting himself in.

    ¡°This building really is the same.¡±

    Yami walked through the halls and found himself passing the locker room.

    ¡°I could use a piss, I guess.¡±

    Opening the door and walking to the urinal, Yami began to relieve himself. Not long after, a loud group of boys walked into the locker room.

    ¡°Guys, I¡¯m being serious. I can¡¯t take it anymore! We really did this, or we¡¯re going to!¡±

    ¡°No, there¡¯s no way! Besides, from what I remember, we did it because of that one guy, Sei!¡±

    Yami zipped up his pants and crept over to the sink, being careful to not make a sound.

    ¡°Listen, all I know is that we did this, and we¡¯re probably bound to do it again! I don¡¯t want to die like that! I was a mess!¡±

    Yami let out a sigh and turned on the sink to wash his hands.

    ¡°Hey! Who¡¯s there?!¡±

    ¡°Sei.¡±

    The group gasped. The group emerged from around the corner. It was the group of boys that conducted the attack.

    ¡°Fuck¡­ It really is him¡­¡±

    ¡°See? I told you! We¡¯re going to do it again!¡±

    As Yami finished washing his hands, he split the group to get to the hand dryer.

    ¡°What if we kill him now? We didn¡¯t before, but we can now!¡±

    Yami patted his hands on his pants and turned to face the group.

    ¡°If you wanna try, now¡¯s your chance, because after this, I plan on leaving. But don¡¯t expect me to hold back. Oh, and by the way, Sei was far weaker than I am.¡±

    One of the boys stepped forward. It was the leader.

    ¡°Sei, I don¡¯t want to fight you. I want to understand how we can stop this.¡±

    Yami rubbed the back of his neck.

    ¡°That¡¯s a tough one. But before I can try to help you, I need to understand how you know about your future.¡±

    ¡°A couple nights ago, these thoughts just started pouring into my head. At first I thought I was dreaming, but then I realized that these were memories, not dreams. The same goes for all of these guys.¡±

    ¡°I see. Well, here¡¯s how I see it: You guys are completely different from the ones that you think you¡¯ll become. I¡¯m sure it¡¯s a detail that was skipp over in your memories, but you guys were failures as students AND as people. You bullied myself and my best friend to the point we were scared to come to school. I beat your asses, and, from what I gather, drove you guys to commit mass murder. You guys were truly worthless individuals, but you aren¡¯t right now. Don¡¯t let these thoughts haunt you.¡±

    The leader held out his hand.

    ¡°Thank you, Sei.¡±

    Yami grinned and locked his hand into a firm handshake.

    ¡°No problem.¡±

    As they released hands, Yami continued to talk to the group.

    ¡°Now that I¡¯ve helped explain some things, I need your help, too.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, what is it?¡±

    ¡°Do you know where Alex-, er, Shukumei Shin is?¡±

    The group of boys scratched their heads at the question.

    ¡°Sorry man. The name rings a bell, but I have no idea who that is.¡±

    ¡°No problem. Take care.¡±

    Yami walked out of the locker room and put his hands in his pockets.

    ¡°I guess this¡¯ll be harder than I thought. Even the bullies are different.¡±

    Yami looked at a clock, realizing that it was time for lunch. Excitedly, Yami walked into the library, but recognized no one.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. We didn¡¯t start coming here until we started to research what happened.¡±

    Yami walked into the hallway and out of the school. As he began down the sidewalk, a faculty member stepped out of the door and began to yell at him.This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work.

    ¡°What do you think you¡¯re doing?! Get back in here right now!¡±

    Yami waved his hand, but didn¡¯t stop walking.

    ¡°I don¡¯t go here. By the way, you need to fix your south entrance.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m calling the police if you don¡¯t stop!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m already wanted. One more call won¡¯t do anything.¡±

    As Yami disappeared into a nearby woods, he pulled up a map on his phone again.

    ¡°I guess I¡¯ll start heading over there now.¡±

    <hr>

    Knock knock knock

    Yami stood on the front porch of the old house.

    ¡°This is her house, but it looks like it wasn¡¯t kept up as well.¡±

    Locks made loud noises as they were undone. After the final click of a lock, the door opened to reveal a 50 year old woman.

    ¡°What do you want?¡±

    ¡°Mrs. Shin? I¡¯m Yami Shinpai, a friend of your daughter¡¯s. I was hoping I could see her?¡±

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you a little old? Besides, she¡¯s at her father¡¯s for the week.¡±

    ¡°Ah, I see. Well, let Alexis know I stopped by. I¡¯ll leave no-¡±

    The woman grabbed Yami¡¯s arm and stared into his eyes.

    ¡°What did you just say? How do you know her?¡±

    ¡°I-I¡¯m her friend.¡±

    The woman loosened her grip.

    ¡°Please, come in.¡±

    Yami walked into the house and was prompted to sit on their couch, which he politely accepted.

    ¡°How long has it been since you spoke with Alexis?¡±

    ¡°Far too long.¡±

    ¡°I see. What is she like?¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s really nice, always worries about others, and I owe her a lot.¡±

    ¡°Sammy was it?¡±

    ¡°Yami.¡±

    ¡°Right, Yami. I have some bad news about Alexis. I¡¯m afraid we lost her before she turned 8 years old.¡±

    Yami couldn¡¯t respond. He sat and listened.

    ¡°We lost her to a form of brain disease. There¡¯s still no cure, from what we understand, but I miss her everyday.¡±

    Yami stood up from the couch.

    ¡°Thank you for telling me.¡±

    Yami walked over to the door. As he put his hand on the handle, the woman¡¯s voice stopped him.

    ¡°Why did you come today?¡±

    Yami clenched his left fist.

    ¡°Ma¡¯am, it may not be my place to say this, but Alexis was the sweetest woman I ever knew. I know it doesn¡¯t make any sense, but had she lived, she would¡¯ve grown up to be the most beautiful woman you can imagine, with a heart that was far greater than her looks. You should be proud.¡±

    ¡°For some reason, I can tell you aren¡¯t lying. Thank you, Yami.¡±

    Yami¡¯s response was opening the door and leaving.

    <hr>

    Yami waddled onto the bus and sat himself into a seat. Feeling the bus begin to move along, Yami attempted to stretch out, but felt another person sitting next to him. Opening his eyes, Yami saw that it was the leader of the group of boys.

    ¡°What are you doing on this bus?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure. I¡¯m going anywhere. I need time to think.¡±

    Yami shut his eyes and leaned against the window, falling asleep once again.

    ¡°How are your grades looking, Yami?¡±

    ¡°Well, I¡¯ve accepted a while ago that I will be stuck here forever, so I began to actually attempt to learn in my classes. Since freshman year, I¡¯ve had a 5.0 GPA. When I¡¯m not spending time on this, I¡¯m spending it on school. My intentions are to carry these memories back to my world so I can be successful. I mean, this is a whole life we¡¯re talking about. You normally only get one, but I¡¯ve gotten three. May as well put them to good use. What about you?¡±

    Alexis chuckled.

    ¡°I¡¯m at a 4.0.¡±

    Yami raised his left hand in the air, but continued to write in his right.

    ¡°Nice job! Keep up the good work!¡±

    ¡°Yeah!¡±

    As their hands clapped together, five gunshots were heard from outside.

    Yami¡¯s eyes quickly opened as screams filled the air. The bus began to slide sideways, then hit a wall. Yami looked out of the window to see that the bus was on a bridge.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?!¡±

    The leader was covering his head.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know! There was a pop and the bus started to slide on the ice! We just hit the side of the bridge!¡±

    Yami felt the bus slowly start to fall backwards.

    ¡°Listen to me. We¡¯re about to go under. The water¡¯s gonna be cold as hell, so take a deep breath before we hit it, then try to calm yourself. It¡¯ll be hard to breathe.¡±

    ¡°This can¡¯t be happening¡­¡±

    The bus continued to slide off of the bridge until the weight forced itself to completely fall 15 feet into the icy water below. The crash caused all of the passengers to scream, but the freezing water quickly made them become quiet as it forced them underwater. Yami shook the leader and nodded to him. Yami swam to the front of the bus and punched the windshield, shattering it, but causing his fist to bleed profusely. Shaking the leader again, Yami pushed him towards the front of the bus, along with other passengers, who swam to the surface. Yami took a deep breath of air and looked down at the bus.

    ¡°I¡¯m going back down to get some more.¡±

    ¡°Wait, I¡¯ll go too.¡±

    Yami saw determination in his eyes.

    ¡°Okay. Let¡¯s go.¡±

    The two swam back down to the bus, which was sitting on the floor of the river now. Reaching it, Yami saw people who were unconscious from the crash, and children who couldn¡¯t swim. Yami pointed to the kids as he grabbed a few adults. As Yami swam back up, he waited for the leader. Fearing he wasn¡¯t okay, Yami prepared for another dive as he popped up with a group of kids.

    ¡°There¡¯s still one more person trapped underneath a seat. I¡¯ll go get him.¡±

    Yami grabbed his shoulder.

    ¡°It¡¯s almost been a minute now. He¡¯s too far gone.¡±

    The leader threw Yami¡¯s hand off of him.

    ¡°I killed how many innocent children? Saving one person is the least I can do.¡±

    Before Yami could say anything else, he dove underwater once again. Hearing a loud tearing noise, Yami looked up at the bridge to see the cables snapping.

    ¡°Everyone! Swim to the shore, and be careful of the bridge!¡±

    Yami led the charge, making sure to break any large ice chunks that may be in the group¡¯s way. Just as Yami reached the shore, the bridge made one final creak and it collapsed into the river. Most of it landed on the bus.

    Yami jumped back into the water and dove to swim to the bus. Dirt from the bottom of the river was stirred up from the collapse, making it hard to see in front of him, but Yami finally saw the bus. It was completely flattened underneath the debris.

    ¡°I told you to not go back.¡±

    Yami shook his head and swam back to the surface. The passengers were violently shaking from how cold they were. Yami guided them up to the side of the road and walked back into the woods. Forming spheres in his left hand, Yami broke apart trees into small logs. Bringing them back to the group, which now had a few blankets from passing drivers, Yami laid the logs into a couple campfires, then ignited them with small flames he shot from his finger tip.

    Within a half hour, a flurry of police and ambulances appeared. The police held up shotguns and pistols at Yami.

    ¡°You have a warrant out for your arrest! Freeze and we won¡¯t shoot!¡±

    Yami sighed.

    ¡°Guess it¡¯s time for me to leave.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll be leaving now. There are two bodies still in the bus. Everyone else is here. Bye.¡±

    Yami propelled himself off of his toes into the forest. Sprinting through the woods, Yami looked at a map on his phone. Finding the nearest building, which was four miles away, Yami walked to a back door and slid his hand down it, finding himself in Rikai¡¯s hallway. Rikai poked her head up from over the couch.

    ¡°Hey! How¡¯d it go?¡±

    Yami took a knee and began to catch his breath. Rikai ran up to him.

    ¡°Hey, you alrigh-¡±

    As Rikai put her hand on his shoulder, she quickly threw it off.

    ¡°Yami, you¡¯re freezing cold and sopping wet! Go get in the shower and warm up!¡±

    Rikai put Yami¡¯s arm over her shoulder and guided him up the staircase to the bathroom.

    ¡°Once you¡¯re done getting in the shower, let me know and I¡¯ll grab your clothes.¡±

    Yami nodded and began to strip in front of her.

    ¡°Hey! I¡¯m still in here!¡±

    Rikai walked out of the bathroom and shut the door behind her. Hearing the water turn on for a moment, then hearing Yami¡¯s call, she walked back in. His clothes sat in a damp pile on the floor. As Rikai picked them up, she saw Yami¡¯s silhouette standing still underneath the water.

    ¡°Yami, everything alright?¡±

    Yami kept staring at the ground.

    ¡°Alexis died when she was 7. She doesn¡¯t exist in this world.¡±

    Rikai dropped the clothes onto the ground and opened the curtains, embracing Yami, who was still freezing cold.

    <hr>

    Yami stepped out of the shower with a towel wrapped around his waist. Getting food from the kitchen, Yami began to satiate his hunger. Rikai sat a pile of clean, dry clothes next to him. Her hair was still wet.

    ¡°There you go!¡±

    ¡°Thanks.¡±

    Rikai laid on the couch as she heard Yami wash the bowl he was eating out of.

    ¡°Hey Yami, can I go to the meadow?¡±

    Yami walked out of the kitchen with his sweatpants on and his shirt still over his head.

    ¡°What for?¡±

    ¡°I wanna see it. It sounds beautiful.¡±

    Yami rubbed the back of his neck.

    ¡°I don¡¯t see why not. I was planning on training today, anyways. Let¡¯s go.¡±

    Rikai stood behind Yami in the hallway as he opened the door into the meadow. Stepping into through the door, the warm summer breeze hit Rikai. As she looked into the sky, the gentleness of the blue sky, light grey clouds, and warm sun soothed her.

    ¡°It¡¯s really beautiful here. I could live here!¡±

    Yami shrugged.

    ¡°All I¡¯ve ever done here is train, but I guess I can see what you¡¯re saying.¡±

    Yami cracked his knuckles.

    ¡°Well, I guess I¡¯m gonna go for a jog. I¡¯ll be back in a few.¡±

    ¡°How far are you going? I¡¯ll join you!¡±

    ¡°I was planning on going to check something out, so maybe 10 miles?¡±

    Rikai nerviously chuckled.

    ¡°Yeah, nevermind. I¡¯ll be here.¡±

    ¡°Right. Be right back.¡±

    As Yami jogged through the woods, he finally approached what he had wanted to find. A mossy cave entrance greeted him. Slowly creeping down it, he did not hear Akahishi¡¯s voice. Finally reaching the bottom, Yami turned on his flashlight and found the entrance to the blue room. He didn¡¯t have to crawl, he simply walked through as if it were a doorway. Passing through, he reached the pedestal room. Walking up the spiral staircase, Yami found himself standing in front of the box. Opening it revealed a note written in a foreign language.

    ¡°What¡¯s this?¡±

    Yami flipped the note over to see a picture of a hand on the bottom of the box. Yami turned the box over to see a strange symbol on the box. Placing his left hand on it, Yami sent life essence into it, causing the symbol on the box to glow, which cause more symbols on the box to appear, all glowing a bright blue. Yami set the box back onto the pedestal, and a hole in the wall of the chamber suddenly began to form. From it emerged a man who appeared to be in his early twenties. He wore short, spiky hair and tattered robes. He looked up to Yami and waved.

    ¡°Hey, Jinsei no Hogo!¡±

 Chapter 28 - Departure

    ¡°A-Are you Akahishi?¡±

    The man rubbed the back of his neck and laughed.

    ¡°Me? That ugly bastard? Hell no!¡±

    The man cracked his knuckles.

    ¡°Well, since I¡¯m out, I may as well work on resuming time here.¡±

    As the man walked away, Yami followed behind him.

    ¡°Hey! What¡¯re you doing?!¡±

    As the man walked through the blue room and into the mouth of the cave, stairs began to form underneath his feet. As Yami climbed the stairs behind him, he spoke.

    ¡°How many Sirushi Inochi are you in control of?¡±

    Yami thought for a moment, then replied.

    ¡°I have five, but I wouldn¡¯t say I¡¯ve mastered any of them.¡±

    ¡°I see.¡±

    Reaching the entrance of the cave, Yami and the man walked into the sunlight.

    ¡°Hey kid, do you happen to know where Sylphera is?¡±

    Yami shook his head.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know who you¡¯re talking about.¡±

    ¡°Not who, what.¡±

    The man raised his hand and a yellow-tinted translucent stream of life essence poured out of his hand and split into separate strands in the air shortly before expelling.

    ¡°Ah, it¡¯s over this way. Tag along with me, Jinsei no Hogo?¡±

    ¡°Sure, but first, who are you?¡±

    The man sighed.

    ¡°You mean you haven¡¯t figured it out yet? I took all the others far shorter than you.¡±

    The man held his thumb up to his chest.

    ¡°I¡¯m the original Jinsei no Hogo, Jitsubutsu!¡±

    Yami¡¯s eyes widened.

    <hr>

    Yami trailed behind Jitsubutsu as they walked to an area of the meadow that Yami had never explored before.

    ¡°So where are we headed?¡±

    Jitsubutsu sighed.

    ¡°As I already said, we¡¯re going to Sylphera. How long have you been in this world?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve only come here to train before.¡±

    ¡°Then why were you in the cave?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure.¡±

    Jitsubutsu stopped and turned to Yami.

    ¡°I need to know how you knew of that cave, Jinsei no Hogo.¡±

    ¡°I guess I was just in search of more power.¡±

    ¡°How would you get any power from that musty old area?¡±

    ¡°I thought I might find out more about Akahishi.¡±

    Jitsubutsu glared at Yami.

    ¡°Do you intend to follow in his footsteps? If you choose to, I¡¯ll lock you up just like him.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    Jitsubutsu sighed.

    ¡°Yeah, you''re definitely not like the others. Come on, we need to resume time sometime this year.¡±

    <hr>

    Rikai sat in the grass, sunbathing.You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

    ¡°This world is really peaceful. I could lay here and sleep forever¡­¡±

    Rikai¡¯s peaceful thoughts were interrupted by the opening of the door behind her. Shippai walked through the entrance and shut the door behind her.

    ¡°Shippai? Why¡¯re you here?¡±

    Shippai looked over at Rikai.

    ¡°I could ask you the same thing. I assume Yami dragged you here?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    Shippai walked over to Rikai and sat beside her.

    ¡°Say, Rikai, you aren¡¯t one of us, right?¡±

    ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    Shippai got in Rikai¡¯s face.

    ¡°You haven¡¯t met The Creator, have you?¡±

    Rikai nervously shook her head.

    ¡°I don¡¯t even know what you¡¯re talking about!¡±

    Shippai got out of her face.

    ¡°Good. Where¡¯s Yami?¡±

    ¡°No clue. He said he was going for a quick jog, but it¡¯s already been a half an hour¡­¡±

    <hr>

    After walking another mile, Jitsubutsu and Yami reached a river.

    ¡°Alright, Jinsei no Hogo. Time for your first lesson. Walk across that river.¡±

    ¡°Seriously?¡±

    Jitsubutsu pointed to his feet.

    ¡°It¡¯s like Body Alterations. Just focus on the soles of your feet and create a barrier between you and the water. It¡¯s that simple.¡±

    Yami took off his shoes.

    ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll try it.¡±

    Yami walked to the riverbank and began to amass life essence under his feet, then tried to step on the water. Upon making contact, the life essence splashed the water up Yami¡¯s leg.

    ¡°Too much. Thin it down some.¡±

    Yami heeded Jitsubutsu¡¯s advice and amassed less life essence. This time, his foot sunk into the water.

    ¡°Come on, Goldilocks. Find the perfect medium.¡±

    Yami put in a little more life essence, and placed his foot onto the top of the river.

    ¡°Good job. Now walk across.¡±

    Yami placed his other foot onto the water and started to slide on it like ice, causing him to tumble into the water, drenching himself.

    ¡°You were close, but just because you¡¯re on it doesn¡¯t mean it isn¡¯t moving! You¡¯ll get the hang of it. Let¡¯s keep moving for now.¡±

    Jitsubutsu flicked his hand away from the river, causing a bridge to appear from thin air. Yami looked up in anger.

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you just do that from the start?!¡±

    ¡°Because you won¡¯t always have a bridge in life. You¡¯ll have to make your own. Now get out of there and keep moving. Sylphera is just up ahead.¡±

    Yami clambered out of the river, his clothes soaking wet. Catching up to Jitsubutsu, Yami followed behind him.

    ¡°Jitsubutsu, when I said I went to that cave to learn more about Akahishi, you acted like I was committing a crime. I¡¯ve been to the library, and I¡¯ve read a few books, but I never found anything about him. Who is he?¡±

    Jitsubutsu¡¯s face became serious.

    ¡°Akahishi is no more than an alias. The person you are chasing after has long since been sealed for the murder of many people in an attempt for power. The third Jinsei no Hogo fought him, but in a last ditch effort sealed him into a small crystal.¡±

    Yami¡¯s face showed shock.

    ¡°But.. that sounds exactly like¡­¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s Haisen. I can sense it coming from your right palm. For some reason, you have the crystal in you. Did you find that crystal and implant it within yourself?¡±

    Yami looked down at his palm as if it were a monster.

    ¡°No. It just sort of manifested.¡±

    ¡°Have you communicated with him?¡±

    ¡°More or less. When I¡¯m in desperate times, like when I have no more strength in a fight, he sort of takes over for me. He¡¯s taken me down the cave in my dreams before, too, which is why I went down there today.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s your name, Jinsei no Hogo?¡±

    ¡°Yami Shinpai.¡±

    ¡°Yami, don¡¯t listen to Haisen. I don¡¯t know if he tempts you, but his goal is to take over your entire body.¡±

    Yami remained silent.

    ¡°Chin up. Here¡¯s Sylphera.¡±

    Yami looked up from his palm to see a city that looked as though it were built in the renaissance. As they walked through the city, the vacant streets seemed unwelcoming.

    ¡°Over here, Yami.¡±

    Yami and Jitsubutsu approached a fountain in a town square. Jitsubutsu held his hand against a plaque on the fountain. Yami felt trembling under his feet as a chamber began to open in the sidewalk.

    ¡°Welcome to my hometown, Yami!¡±

    A crowd of villagers poured out of the opening.

    ¡°Yami, I¡¯d like for you to stay here for a few months. As I see it right now, you were either blessed or cursed with that crystal, and you are the most unfit Jinsei no Hogo I¡¯ve seen. The fact that all of this is happening is that there will be a calamity that you¡¯re not prepared for. Will you stay here?¡±

    Yami looked down at the palm of his right hand.

    ¡°Is there anyone else here from my world?¡±

    ¡°Only the people who has that Sirushi Inochi can come here.¡±

    Yami clenched his fist.

    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ll stay here. But first, I need to see off some friends.¡±

    ¡°Okay. I¡¯ll be here. You can use a door here, too.¡±

    ¡°Right.¡±

    Yami walked to a nearby house and slid his hand down the door.

    ¡°And Yami?¡±

    Yami turned to face Jitsubutsu.

    ¡°Yeah?¡±

    ¡°Stop by the library and grab the first volume of my memoir.¡±

    ¡°Got it.¡±

    Yami opened the door and walked into the meadow. Rikai and Shippai turned to greet him.

    ¡°Hey Yami!¡±

    ¡°Shippai? How¡¯d you get here?¡±

    ¡°Posche left a door near me to get here when I needed to, so I figured I¡¯d stop by and relax. Why¡¯d you come here?¡±

    ¡°As you might expect, the cops are after me, so I decided to hide out here for a bit. Which is actually why I came back.¡±

    Yami walked up to Rikai and held out his hand.

    ¡°I need to talk to you, Rikai.¡±

    Rikai nodded and took his hand, allowing herself to be pulled up.

    ¡°I can¡¯t explain it fully, but I¡¯m going to stay here for a while.¡±

    Rikai looked into his eyes.

    ¡°I really don¡¯t want to say it, but he¡¯s already made up his mind.¡±

    ¡°Okay. Just promise you¡¯ll visit, deal?¡±

    Yami smiled.

    ¡°Deal.¡±

    Shippai walked up to interrupt the intimacy.

    ¡°What¡¯s to do here?¡±

    ¡°Like I said, I can¡¯t explain it.¡±

    Yami hugged Rikai.

    ¡°Stay safe, alright?¡±

    Rikai embraced Yami.

    ¡°I should be the one saying that.¡±

    Yami let go of Rikai and opened the door into her hallway. Rikai waved good bye as she walked out. Yami shut the door.

    ¡°You want out too?¡±

    Shippai looked away towards the woods.

    ¡°Not yet.¡±

    Yami stood in silence.

    ¡°This place reminds you of him too, right?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    Yami reached into his pocket and pulled out an ink cartridge.

    ¡°Catch.¡±

    Shippai turned and caught the flying object in her hand.

    ¡°Smear that on the door and it should take you to Posche¡¯s basement. I''m heading out.¡±

    Yami opened the door into the library. As he walked in, Shippai¡¯s hand reached into the room and grabbed his arn.

    ¡°Yami, if something happens, you can''t abandon us.¡±

    Yami grabbed her hand and peeled it off of his arm.

    ¡°Yeah, it''s a promise.¡±

    Yami shut the door.

    Shippai smirked.

    <hr>

    Yami walked through a door into the town square holding a thick book. Jitsubutsu was tied to a wooden chair and the villagers were forcing food into his mouth. With his mouth full, Jitsubutsu forced a muffled voice.

    ¡°Hey Yami! You ready?¡±

    Yami looked down at his right palm, then clenched it into a fist. Yami looked at Jitsubutsu with fire in his eyes.

    ¡°Yeah, let''s do this!¡±

 Chapter 29 - Custom Made

    ¡°One more time.¡±

    Another sphere formed in Yami¡¯s hand as he panted. Drilling it into a tree, Jitsubutsu rubbed his chin.

    ¡°I have a theory about how to complete it, but I¡¯d like to spend some time double checking my sources.¡±

    Yami sat down in the grass next to a long country road and took a breather. Jitsubutsu opened a large book and flipped forward a few pages. Placing his finger on a dot.

    ¡°This is our next destination. I have an old friend there who might be able to help us with your training.¡±

    ¡°An old friend?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Back in the day, when I was just becoming a ¡®hero¡¯, most people considered me to be a demon - I was taboo to speak about. This person helped me cultivate my skill set and even invented some tools, such as the special notes I left behind in my memoirs.¡±

    ¡°I see. Was this person a P¨³bi¨¤n F¨£nxi¨£ng as well?¡±

    ¡°No, which seems to drive their curiosity about us. C¡¯mon, let¡¯s get going.¡±

    <hr>

    After walking miles down the dirt road, dusk was finally upon Yami and Jitsubutsu.

    ¡°I almost forgot that night existed. Yami, go grab some sticks.¡±

    Yami nodded and looked around. Travelling a half a mile to a forest, Yami came back to Jitsubutsu with a bundle of wood in his arms. Jitsubutsu had already laid rocks in a circle to form a fire pit.

    ¡°Alright, Yami. Set them in.¡±

    Yami dropped some wood into the pit, and placed the rest next to it.

    ¡°Light it.¡±

    Yami looked at Jitsubutsu inquisitively.

    ¡°Do you have a lighter?¡±

    Jitsubutsu scratched his head.

    ¡°What is that?¡±

    Yami sighed.

    ¡°Matches? Flint? Anything?¡±

    Jitsubutsu grinned.

    ¡°Why would we need any of that when we have our Sirushi Inochi?¡±

    Yami shook his head.

    ¡°I don¡¯t have anything like that in my arsenal. If I were Mr. P, I could form a room with fire supplies in it, but regardless, there¡¯s no door around here. The only person I know who has the capability of creating fire is the mayor, but he¡¯s gone.¡±

    Jitsubutsu raised his left hand and pointed at his palm.

    ¡°You can form a variation of those spheres that contains fire, correct?¡±

    ¡°You want me to hit this with my Sirushi Inochi?¡±

    Jitsubutsu waved his arms.

    ¡°No, no! That would just shoot them everywhere!¡±

    ¡°What do you propose then?¡±

    Jitsubutsu looked Yami in the eyes.

    ¡°You¡¯re the Jinsei no Hogo. You don¡¯t need to copy everyone else¡¯s work. You already have access to every Sirushi Inochi that could be created, so why not try to invent one?¡±

    Yami grinned and threw off his jacket.

    ¡°I like where your head is. Let¡¯s do this.¡±

    Yami pulled an ink cartridge from his pocket.

    ¡°Wait, how do I know where to put the ink if I didn¡¯t have a vision?¡±

    Jitsubutsu laid back into the grass and closed his eyes.

    ¡°Like I said, you have access to every Sirushi Inochi that can exist. If you mess up on where the ink goes, it won¡¯t kill you, you just won¡¯t have control over it as a Sirushi Inochi. You can still somewhat manipulate the life essence, however.¡±

    Yami drilled the ink cartridge into his left forearm. Jitsubutsu raised an eyebrow.You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

    ¡°You¡¯re using it all at once?¡±

    Yami panted from the pain.

    ¡°Like you said, I have access to every Sirushi Inochi, so I can just move the ink to where I need it.¡±

    Jitsubutsu closed his eyes again.

    ¡°Don¡¯t go too overboard, Yami.¡±

    Yami rubbed his left forearm, then placed his hands on the bundle of sticks.

    ¡°Let¡¯s do this!¡±

    <hr>

    Jitsubutsu rubbed his eyes and sat up. The sound of a crackling fire penetrated his ears. But a far more powerful force acting on him was the bright sunshine. Sitting up and yawning, Jitsubutsu saw Yami snoring next to the sticks, which were unscathed by any fire.

    ¡°Man, he¡¯s not doing well for being a Jinsei no Hogo.¡±

    As Jitsubutsu reached to wake Yami up, he paused.

    ¡°What¡¯s this?¡±

    The cuff of Yami¡¯s left sleeve was slightly glowing. Upon closer inspection, Jitsubutsu found that a small cluster of embers had laid themselves upon Yami¡¯s sleeve.

    ¡°It seems like he almost had it.¡±

    Having his leg lightly kicked, Yami woke up. Sitting up, Yami yawned and stretched his arms.

    ¡°You didn¡¯t create a Sirushi Inochi?¡±

    Yami shook his head.

    ¡°I feel like I almost have it, though.¡±

    Yami¡¯s arm began to sizzle, causing him to pat out his arm.

    ¡°Let¡¯s keep moving.¡±

    <hr>

    Nearing an old mud house, Jitsubutsu smiled.

    ¡°We¡¯re here. Don¡¯t be afraid to answer any questions. She¡¯s one of my most trusted friends.¡±

    Jitsubutsu pounded on the door.

    ¡°Hey! Make! Get out here!¡±

    The door to the house swung open and hit Jitsubutsu in the face. A woman who appeared to be the same age as Jitsubutsu peeked out the door. Wearing her dirty blonde hair in a ponytail, her blue eyes glistened as the saw Jitsubutsu.

    ¡°Jitsu!¡±

    Make dived and landed on top of Jitsubutsu, who was now being crushed.

    ¡°Hey, Make! Long time no see!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s been too long! Why don¡¯t you visit me more often?¡±

    ¡°Because you always react the same way!¡±

    ¡°So what makes today a special occasion?¡±

    ¡°If you¡¯d stop smothering me to look around, you¡¯d see I brought a friend.¡±

    Make picked herself up off of Jitsubutsu¡¯s chest and locked eyes with Yami. Standing up and brushing herself off, she extended her hand.

    ¡°Hi! I¡¯m Make Masigai! Pleased to make your acquaintance!¡±

    Yami reached his hand out and shook hers.

    ¡°Yami Shinpai. Nice to meet you.¡±

    Make¡¯s eyes widened.

    ¡°This life essence¡­ It¡¯s familiar¡­¡±

    Jitsubutsu stood up.

    ¡°Make, I¡¯d like to ask you for a favor.¡±

    Make turned and grabbed Jitsubutsu¡¯s cheek.

    ¡°All you ever do is ask me for favors! Why don¡¯t you do something nice for me?¡±

    ¡°Sorry, sorry! Let go!¡±

    Make let go of his cheek and crossed her arms, sighing.

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    Jitsubutsu rubbed Yami¡¯s hair.

    ¡°This little guy needs some new gear. You think  you can help us out?¡±

    ¡°Sure thing! I¡¯ll just need to take some measurements.¡±

    Jitsubutsu pushed Yami towards Make.

    ¡°You heard the lady.¡±

    Make held the door open.

    ¡°Please, come inside. You can stay for dinner as well.¡±

    ¡°Thanks, Make.¡±

    <hr>

    Yami followed Make into a dusty back room.

    ¡°Sorry the workshop is a little messy right now, I haven¡¯t been doing as much research as of recent, but I can still operate just as well.¡±

    Make sat down in a chair.

    ¡°So, what kind of gear do you need?¡±

    Yami shrugged.

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure. This is the first I¡¯m hearing of it too.¡±

    Make reached out to Yami and rubbed the fabric of his shirt against her fingers.

    ¡°I see. You don¡¯t have anything specially made for life essence?¡±

    Yami shook his head.

    ¡°Do you use anything other than your fists?¡±

    Yami reached behind him and retrieved his two knives. Make inspected them in her hands.

    ¡°They¡¯re a little too worn to save these¡­ Would you mind if I used these knives as the design, but made them from scratch?¡±

    ¡°Sure, whatever works.¡±

    ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll take some measurements for your clothes now.¡±

    As Make held a measuring tape up to Yami, she would occasionally say turn, which Yami would do.

    ¡°It seems like she¡¯s taking a lot of unnecessary measurements, but I¡¯ll listen to Jitsubutsu.¡±

    ¡°Pants off.¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    Yami took off his pants and tried to ignore the woman.

    ¡°She¡¯s just doing her job. It¡¯s not like she¡¯s going t-¡±

    Yami jumped out of his skin as he felt Make¡¯s fingertips slide into the elastic band that held his underwear to his waist.

    ¡°Wait are you doing!¡±

    ¡°I need to measure your genitals if you want me to make you special underwear.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s okay, I don¡¯t need them!¡±

    Make threw Yami¡¯s pants back at him.

    ¡°Then we¡¯re done here. I¡¯ll get to work putting all of this together. Go ahead and rest up for now. It should be done by tomorrow.¡±

    ¡°Thanks.¡±

    <hr>

    As the sunshine of a new day shone on Yami¡¯s face, his eyes fluttered opened. Wiping his eyes, Yami got out of bed and stretched. Walking outside to a nearby river, Yami washed his face.

    ¡°Hey, Yami!¡±

    Yami turned around to see Make holding a fresh set of clothes with two blades on top.

    ¡°Hey, Make. Are they all done?¡±

    ¡°Yup! Custom fit and ready to go!¡±

    Yami slid off his clothes and placed the new set on. His jeans were replaced with black track pants, and his jacket was replaced with a black, white, and orange jacket. His undershirt remained white. Gripping his blades, Yami noticed that they were heavier, yet appeared to be the same.

    ¡°So what¡¯s special about these new threads?¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re custom made. Infuse some life essence into them, and you¡¯ll see the effects.¡±

    Yami emitted some life essence into the fabric. In return, he felt as though the air around him was being reflected off of him.

    ¡°The jacket and pants offer superb defense from most attacks, and your undershirt acts as a disperse mechanism to help mitigate any attacks that make it through the barrier. They also have great durability, traps heat well, but also allows you to remain cool, and are relatively waterproof.¡±

    Yami gripped his rainbow throwing knife, which although it felt heavier, it seemed as though it had the same center of balance. Transferring some life essence into it made the knife seem to float in the air. As Yami threw the knife at a tree, it slide right through as if it were butter. As it landed into the river, Yami felt it tugging at him, and tugging it back towards him brought the knife into the palm of his hand.

    ¡°I made your throwing knife with a richer material than you had, but made sure to give it the same feel. Depending on how much essence you feed it, you can make it heavier, but it will still feel light. It can become so sharp that it cuts through everything, and you can pull it back to you, given there¡¯s nothing in the way.¡±

    Finally, Yami gripped his pocket knife. It seemed the same, but pouring life essence into it proved Yami wrong. The blade grew to an astonishing length, and the handle transformed into a hilt.

    ¡°Your knife is, for the most part, the same until you give it some essence. It transforms into this sword, which, just like your throwing knife, make sharper using more life essence.¡±

    As Yami felt the sword slowly absorb life essence from the palm of his hands, his eyes widened.

    ¡°Make, can I give this whatever form of life essence I want?¡±

    ¡°So long as it is your own. I created it with the idea that only you or I could wield it.¡±

    Yami gripped the hilt tightly. Imagining the flames protruding from his hand, Yami poured an abundance of life essence into the sword.

    ¡°What¡¯s all of this noise?¡±

    Jitsubutsu turned the corner of the house to see Yami wielding the sword.

    The blade was covered in flames.

 Chapter 30 - The Blade Master

    The orange flames radiated heat onto Yami¡¯s hands. Despite the intensity of the flames, the heat was gentle and didn¡¯t burn his hands. Jitsubutsu appeared from around the corner.

    ¡°So, you figured out a way to wield flames?¡±

    Yami nodded.

    ¡°Pretty much. I feel like with a little more training, I won¡¯t need to use this blade as a conduit either.¡±

    ¡°Very good.¡±

    As Yami continued to inspect his new gear, Jitsubutsu approached Make and leaned against a tree next to her.

    ¡°Thanks for all of this. I appreciate it.¡±

    ¡°Not a problem. I always enjoy more company.¡±

    Make smiled as she watched Yami practice throwing his knife.

    ¡°He reminds of him, doesn¡¯t he Jitsu?¡±

    Jitsubutsu nodded.

    ¡°That¡¯s part of the reason I brought him here. You¡¯ve always been better at recognizing life essence than me. But it doesn''t stop there. They both have the same fire in their eyes and compassion in their hearts.¡±

    <hr>

    Yami swung the large sword downward, stopping it just before it hit the ground.

    ¡°It seems as though I can adjust the physical weight of the blade as well. Her craftsmanship is amazing! I should have her teach me sometime.¡±

    ¡°Hey Yami! It¡¯s time to go!¡±

    The blade shrunk back into a pocket knife as Yami placed it in his back pocket.

    ¡°Where are we off to now?¡±

    ¡°You got a sword now, right? We¡¯re gonna get you some professional training so you don¡¯t just flail it around.¡±

    Jitsubutsu began walking down the road as he waved behind him.

    ¡°See ya, Make! I¡¯ll see you once I¡¯m done with this brat!¡±

    Yami walked up to Make and extended his hand for a handshake.

    ¡°Thank you, Make. I¡¯ll be back so you can show me how you made thi-¡±

    Make wrapped her arms around Yami, embracing deeply in a motherly hug.

    ¡°Come back anytime.¡±

    As Yami ran to catch up with Jitsubutsu, Make walked back inside her house. Entering her room, she walked to her dresser and lit two candles, then put her hands together.

    ¡°Some visitors just left. It¡¯s been pretty lonely recently, hasn¡¯t it? I hope you¡¯re doing well - I suppose you are, though. He didn¡¯t really look like you, but you two are so similar it was hard to not notice it.¡±

    Looking up, Make looked at a picture of a boy about the same age as Yami. He had shaggy brown hair and a stern face. Make brushed a small tear from her eye.

    ¡°Saying bye to you again was hard, but I¡¯m sure that our paths will meet again. After all, I¡¯m your big sister, so I have to keep looking out for you, right? I love you, Kyu.¡±

    <hr>

    Yami and Jitsubutsu clomped through snow as they scaled the side of a mountain on an icy road.

    ¡°Make wasn¡¯t kidding! This material is keeping me warmer than any snow jacket I¡¯ve ever worn, but I¡¯m not hot either!¡±

    ¡°Yami, we¡¯re almost at the top, so I think I should warn you about this guy.¡±

    ¡°Warn me of what?¡±

    ¡°The person who I¡¯m going to ask to train you is not like Make at all.¡±

    This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

    ¡°Yeah, Make is pretty weird.¡±

    ¡°Yami, no joking around right now. You ever wondered why he lives up in the mountains?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s killed every person who asked to be his pupil with his vigorous exercises.¡±

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t they just drop out?¡±

    ¡°If you try to leave before he deems you worthy, he¡¯ll kill you.¡±

    Yami gulped.

    ¡°Whatever he tells you to do, do it. If he says ¡®Jump¡¯, you say ¡®How high?¡¯ You understand?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    ¡°Good, because we¡¯re here.¡±

    Jitsubutsu and Yami approached a large wooden door. Jitsubutsu raised his fist and pounded on the door several times. Chains and locks rattled behind the door and slowly opened, pushing the thick layer of snow with it. A bear of a man stood to greet Yami and Jitsubutsu. He was 6¡¯ 7¡± and  pure muscle. Despite not wearing a shirt, his thick hair was enough to keep him warm. The man looked down at them as if they were insects.

    ¡°Who the hell are you?¡±

    Jitsubutsu extended his hand.

    ¡°Nice to meet you. I am Jitsubutsu, the Jinsei no Hogo.¡±

    The man didn¡¯t accept his handshake.

    ¡°Ah, so you¡¯re the demon. I hoped that I¡¯d never meet you, but I suppose I¡¯ll start putting salt at the door.¡±

    The man spit at Jitsubutsu. As he began to shut the door, Jitsubutsu put the front of his foot against it, stopping the man.

    ¡°I¡¯m afraid I didn¡¯t come here to tell you my name. I have a new pupil for you.¡±

    The man opened the door again.

    ¡°You? I would never take you as a pupil.¡±

    ¡°Not me.¡±

    Jitsubutsu pointed behind him at Yami.

    ¡°Him.¡±

    The man stared at Yami.

    ¡°So? What¡¯re you? Let me guess. You¡¯ve come hundreds of miles from your little village where you¡¯re the best swordsman in town.¡±

    Yami looked the man in the eyes, unwavered.

    ¡°No. I¡¯ve never trained with a sword before. Will that be a problem?¡±

    The man stepped aside from the door.

    ¡°Come in. We¡¯ll discuss this inside.¡±

    As Jitsubutsu attempted to enter, the man put a hand on his chest,

    ¡°Not you. I won¡¯t allow a demon into my house.¡±

    Yami looked at Jitsubutsu who nodded.

    ¡°Go ahead.¡±

    As Yami walked into the courtyard, the man shut the door behind them.

    ¡°Follow me.¡±

    As Yami followed the man, they walked into a large dojo. The man sat behind a wooden table, and Yami followed suit.

    ¡°What do you plan on learning here?¡±

    ¡°How to wield a sword, sir.¡±

    ¡°Then perhaps you should go to a blacksmith and have them teach you. That¡¯s not what we do here.¡±

    ¡°Then what may I learn here?¡±

    ¡°How to become a blade. You will not learn how to use a sword here. Instead, you will learn how it is to be a sword.¡±

    ¡°Then I¡¯m even more interested.¡±

    The man looked down on Yami.

    ¡°The name is Muhai. You will address me as ¡®Sir¡¯ unless told otherwise, got it?¡±

    ¡°Yes, Sir.¡±

    ¡°Good. I have a zero-tolerance policy for failure, punishable by death.¡±

    Muhai picked up a wooden rod and inspected it.

    ¡°Since you¡¯ll be learning what it means to become a blade, don¡¯t waiver when I treat you like one!¡±

    Muhai threw the wooden rod at Yami, who blocked it with the palm of his hand. Muhai shook his head.

    ¡°Looks like we¡¯ll have another failure.¡±

    Muhai stood up and walked to a door that led into a hallway.

    ¡°I¡¯ll show you where you¡¯ll be staying.¡±

    Yami quickly caught up with Muhai. Walking down the hallway, Yami passed many beautiful bedrooms that were fully furnished.

    ¡°Ah, here we are.¡±

    Muhai opened a wooden door that led into what could be simply described as a prison. The floor, ceiling, and walls were concrete, and there was a window with metal bars, allowing the freezing breeze to flow into the room.

    ¡°This room is all yours. Feel free to use anything you have on you to furnish it, but don¡¯t take anything from the other rooms or stay in them. That¡¯d be rude to your host.¡±

    Yami gulped.

    ¡°What did I get myself into?¡±

    ¡°Alright, you¡¯ll start right away. Go get two cedar trees, leaves and all, and bring them to the courtyard. You have one hour starting now.¡±

    Yami nodded and took off down the hall.

    Running through the dojo and through the courtyard, Yami passed Jitsubutsu who was leaning against the wall outside.

    ¡°Hey! Yami!¡±

    Yami didn¡¯t stop running down the mountain as Jitsubutsu caught up to him.

    ¡°Well? Did he let you in?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, which is why I¡¯m running! I have to get two cedar trees to him within an hour, so I don¡¯t really have time to stay and chat!¡±

    ¡°I see, so he really does have no control¡­ Well, it seems as though I shouldn¡¯t hang around because he¡¯ll certainly kill me otherwise, so I¡¯ll head back to Sylphera. When you complete his training, come find me. We¡¯ll go from there.¡±

    ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll be back soon!¡±

    As Yami and Jitsubutsu hit the base of the mountain, they went in different directions.

    ¡°Good luck, Yami. You¡¯ll need it.¡±

    <hr>

    After 50 minutes elapsed, Yami entered the courtyard with a tree in either hand. Muhai didn¡¯t acknowledge Yami¡¯s accomplishment.

    ¡°Cut them up into logs. You have 10 minutes.¡±

    Yami looked around. There was no axe. Pulling out his knife, he prepared to transform it into a sword when Muhai grabbed his wrist and plucked the knife from his hand.

    ¡°And from here on out, no tools.¡±

    Yami looked at the tree.

    ¡°How am I supposed to chop this? He keeps saying I need to become a blade, but what does he mean?¡±

    Yami pictured himself wielding a sword and slicing through the trees with ease.

    ¡°If I had one of my blades, I could easily hack this tree up, but with just my hands, I have no edge.¡±

    Yami looked down at his hands. Staring at them, he suddenly gasped. Muhai kept watching intently. Yami picked up his right hand and straightened his hand, then swung at the tree using a knifehand strike. As the edge of his hand hit the tree, Yami infused a small amount of life essence into the edge he was hitting with to successfully cut through the tree. After a few minutes, Yami had finished chopping the trees up. Panting, yami looked down at his hand to see that it was bleeding from the scraping it had endured.

    ¡°Do you understand now,¡± Muhai yelled?!

    Yami turned to see the wooden rod being thrown at him once again. Slicing his hand through the air as the rod approached him, the road was cut straight down the middle and split in half.

    ¡°Now you know a little about being a blade. You¡¯ll continue tomorrow. I¡¯m going to get some rest.¡±

    Yami watched as Muhai walked into the dojo. Wiping the sweat off of his forehead, Yami looked around.

    ¡°I¡¯m so hungry, but I better not ask for food¡­¡±

    Yami reached down and got a large handful of snow and ate a small portion, then put the rest in his pant pockets. He then ripped some bark off of the tree and began to gnaw on it.

    ¡°This training is gonna be rough¡­¡±

    As Yami walked through the door, he saw that Muhai had laid a line of salt at the entrance.

    ¡°And maybe it¡¯s best that I don¡¯t show I¡¯m the Jinsei no Hogo¡­¡±

 Chapter 31 - Sheathed

    As the warm sun began to rise, the gentle sunlight poured through the bars into Yami¡¯s room. Yami rolled over and tried to sleep a little longer, but was soon interrupted by Muhai¡¯s pounding.

    ¡°Get up! You have training to do!¡±

    Yami jolted up and tried to open the door, but felt Muhai¡¯s body blocking the door.

    ¡°C¡¯mon! You have 30 seconds!¡±

    Yami pushed against the door, but felt no slack.

    ¡°I¡¯ll have to get some speed if I don¡¯t want to raise suspicion.¡±

    Yami walked to the opposite side of the room and placed one foot against the wall. Taking a deep breath, Yami kicked himself off of the wall at the door, slamming it open and breaking the chains that had held him in. Muhai was nowhere to be seen. Rubbing his shoulder, Yami walked to the dojo where Muhai seemed to spend most of his time. As Yami suspected, Muhai sat polishing a sword and did not look up to speak with Yami.

    ¡°Go bring me one ton of stone from the top of the mountain. You have three hours.¡±

    Yami¡¯s stomach grumbled as if in protest from not having breakfast, yet Yami ignored it and ran out of the room. Trodding in the snow towards the summit of the mountain, Yami reached the end of the trail. As he looked up towards the top, Yami noticed he still had at least 100 feet to go. Taking a deep breath, Yami began to climb up the steep incline, having to paw himself through the snow, occasionally causing him to slip and nearly fall. As Yami pulled himself up one last time, he saw that he had finally reached the summit. Despite the mountains appearance from farther down, the mountain had no point. Instead, it had a plateau at the top, which had many jagged rocks sticking up from the ground like stalagmites. Yami walked up to one and broke off a chunk from the tip of the odd rock.

    ¡°It¡¯s¡­ very light! I¡¯ll need hundreds of these, if not thousands!¡±

    Tossing the tip of the rock towards the dojo also showed Yami how far he would have to carry everything. Gulping, Yami looked down at his watch to see that he had already lost a half an hour scaling the mountain.

    ¡°There¡¯s no way I¡¯ll be able to carry that many rocks down and come back up for me within that much time¡­ What am I supposed to do here?¡±

    Yami continued to break apart the rock in front of him by ripping it with his hands.

    ¡°What¡¯s worse, if I can¡¯t do this¡­ I¡¯ll have to fight for my life against that guy?!¡±

    Yami clenched his hand tightly in frustration. As he did so, the rock in his palm seemingly disappeared. As Yami realized this, he opened his palm to see a fine, gray powder scatter into the wind. Yami clenched his fists once again.

    ¡°I really have my back against the wall on this one, so this better work!¡±

    <hr>

    Muhai walked out of the dojo rubbing the back of his neck.

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s been three hours. I wonder how I should kill this little twerp¡­ What¡¯s this?¡±

    Through the dense blizzard, a silhouette appeared within the snowfall. It was Yami.

    ¡°Well? Where¡¯s the stone?¡±

    Yami grinned and raised his arms in the air.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you see it? It¡¯s all right here! If you want some, it¡¯ll be all over the ground, soon enough.¡±

    Muhai sternly stared at Yami.

    ¡°It seems you¡¯ve come one step closer to understanding the sword. What approach did you take to do this?¡±

    Yami held up his fist, which was covered by a blood-stained grey powder at the knuckles.

    ¡°I pulverized the rocks with my punches, then spread the powder with the palm of my hand.¡±

    Muhai walked to the chopped tree that Yami had brought the day prior and picked up a log with one hand.

    ¡°Alright. The next lesson starts now.¡±

    Muhai launched the log at Yami as if he were throwing a javelin. Remembering yesterday, Yami flattened his hand and attempted to slice through the log, but the force was too great, causing his arm to fling back and send Yami flying backwards to the ground. Picking himself up, Yami glanced up to see another log already making its way towards him. Yami swing his fist at it, but this time he broke his index and middle fingers. Hardly having any time to recover from the pain, Yami prepared for the next log, which as he had anticipated, had already began to target him.

    ¡°My punch seemed to work better the my slice, but my fingers don¡¯t have the shock absorbance to withstand the blow¡­¡±

    As the log neared Yami, he took a deep breath and followed it with his eyes. As it fell within a foot of hitting his chest, Yami pushed the bottom of it upwards with the palm of his right hand, allowing him to successfully evade it by having it go over his head. Gasping for air, Yami saw the next one coming.Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    ¡°You aren¡¯t allowed to run away!¡±

    Yami knew full well what Muhai meant - he was not permitted to evade. Slowing his breathing down, Yami got in the same stance he was in for his punch, but this time flattened his palm as if he were slicing as well. As the log approached him, he drove the bottom part of his palm into the log, successfully splitting it in two.

    ¡°There we go!¡±

    Muhai gave Yami no time for success as another log flew. Yami repeated the palm strikes as he split every log into two seperate pieces. As Yami prepared for another log, he gasped in relief as he saw there was no more left to be thrown at him. Falling onto a knee in exhaustion, Yami panted for air as he alligined his broken fingers and tied them together with twine he had collected from a tree. Muhai approached Yami.

    ¡°Come in. You can get some food.¡±

    Yami followed Muhai into the warmth. Sitting himself on a mat in the dojo, Yami inspected his hands. They were bleeding and were also frostbitten. Yami paused as he heard Muhai enter the room. Muhai set a tray in front of Yami that had a bowl of steaming water with a single piece of pork in it, as well as rubbing alcohol and bandages on the side of the tray.

    ¡°Eat up, and patch yourself up while you¡¯re at it.¡±

    Yami did not have to be told twice. Yami seemingly shoved the soup into his stomach. As the soup nourished Yami, he began to wash his wounds and bandage them accordingly. As Yami set the supplies back onto the tray, Muhai stood up and too it from him.

    ¡°That¡¯s all for today. Go straight to bed.¡±

    Yami followed his orders and sat himself in the concrete chamber. Hearing chains click behind him, he knew that there was no way for him to escape for the remainder of the night.

    ¡°I gotta piss¡­¡±

    <hr>

    ¡°Put her out Yami!¡±

    Yami sat up in a cold sweat as Muhai pounded on the door.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡±

    Yami performed the same feat as the day before, practically bursting out of the door. Muhai grabbed Yami by the arm and pulled him into the dojo and threw him across the room. Picking himself up, Yami dusted himself off. Muhai withdrew a large wooden rod, similar to that of the one Yami had sliced.

    ¡°Block.¡±

    Muhai seemingly appeared from the other side of the room to directly in front of Yami and swung the large rod directly at Yami. Unprepared, Yami took a direct blow to the shoulder, then the side, then his stomach.

    ¡°If you don¡¯t block, you will fail.¡±

    Yami held his stomach in pain and looked up to see the rod come down on him again. Yami swung his left arm up and deflected the blow with the side of his forearm. Trying to recover still, Yami swung his right arm up to block yet another blow from Muhai. Yami kicked himself up off the ground and shook his arms to get circulation going through them. Muhai continued his flurry of blows, which Yami successfully fended off one at a time. Beginning to feel overwhelmed, Yami looked for the perfect opportunity to strike. As Muhai thrust the rod at Yami once more, Yami struck the tip with the bottom of his palm, causing the rod to split in half. Panting, Yami fell backwards onto the ground. Muhai threw the rod to the side of the room and spun around to walk out of the room.

    ¡°You have one day to rest. Your final test begins tomorrow. Be thankful I¡¯m being lenient with you.¡±

    Yami looked down at his arms.

    ¡°Shit, I¡¯m pretty sure the bones are shattered. I have no idea how to fix this within a day!¡±

    Gasping after a quick thought, Yami ran into the hallway, chasing down Muhai.

    ¡°Sir!¡±

    Muhai stopped in the middle of the hallway, but did not turn around. After a moment, he finally responded.

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    ¡°May I go somewhere, Sir?¡±

    ¡°Yes, but if you attempt to run away, you better hope you¡¯re faster than me.¡±

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    Yami bolted out of the dojo and down the mountain. As he ran, sharp stabs of pain struck him throughout his arms. After miles of running, Yami sighed in relief as he reached his destination. Knocking on the door with his forehead, Make opened it.

    ¡°Yami? What¡¯re you doing here already?¡±

    Yami raised his limp arm.

    ¡°Do you have anything that can heal me in one night?¡±

    <hr>

    ¡°Seriously... You leave only three days ago, and you come back like this?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, sorry. On the bright side, the gear you made for me is doing great! It is probably the only thing keeping me sane right now.¡±

    ¡°Speaking of which, where are your blades?¡±

    ¡°My teacher confiscated them for the time being.¡±

    As Make inspected his arms, she sighed.

    ¡°I do know of one remedy that could work, but the plants needed for it are out of season, so that¡¯s out of the window. I only know of one other that could work, but for that¡­¡±

    Yami looked at Make with intrigue.

    ¡°Well?¡±

    ¡°To do it, I¡¯d need to put it directly on your bones, and I don¡¯t have anything to knock you out.¡±

    Yami gulped.

    ¡°Are you sure it will work?¡±

    She nodded.

    ¡°In that case¡­¡±

    Yami reached across the table and pulled out a large knife.

    ¡°I¡¯m ready when you are.¡±

    <hr>

    Yami laid on top of the kitchen table with his shirt off. Make entered the room and sat a bowl of green paste next to him.

    ¡°Yami, this is your last chance to back off¡­¡±

    Yami shook his head.

    ¡°No, I¡¯ve come to far. Let¡¯s do this.¡±

    Make placed a wooden piece in Yami¡¯s mouth and withdrew the knife. Laying his arm flat on the table, Make quickly yet carefully made the first incision down Yami¡¯s arm. Yami bit down on the wood in pain, and allowed a few screams to slip. Digging through his muscles, Make found his shattered bones and seemed to glue them back together with the green paste. After a few minutes of digging and glueing, Make withdrew her hands from Yami¡¯s arm and washed out the wound with boiling water, causing Yami to tremble in even more pain. After confirming that the wound was clean, Make sewed Yami¡¯s arm with a string presumably made at her house. She patted Yami on the chest.

    ¡°You want a break, or should I get started on the next arm?¡±

    Yami shook his head. Make took the wood out of his mouth to allow him to speak. Gasping for breath, Yami tried to form a sentence.

    ¡°Just¡­ finish¡­ it!¡±

    Placing the wood back in his mouth, Make cracked her knuckle and began to repeat the process on Yami¡¯s other arm.

    <hr>

    Yami drank from a glass bottle as Make cleaned up the blood from the table and floor.

    ¡°Thanks, Make. I appreciate it.¡±

    ¡°No problem. Be careful, though, because you don¡¯t want to have to do that again.¡±

    ¡°Right.¡±

    Looking outside, Yami saw that the moon was nearing the horizon.

    ¡°Sorry Make, but I have to go. Once I¡¯m done training, you¡¯ll be the first person I see, alright?¡±

    Make nodded.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be here!¡±

    Yami slipped on his shirt and bolted out of the house. Sprinting towards the mountain, Yami raced against the sun. Ass he clambered up the trail and bolted into the dojo, Muhai greeted him.

    ¡°So, you finally came back. You¡¯ve been gone quite a while, haven¡¯t you?¡±

    ¡°Yes, but I¡¯m ready for my final test.¡±

    Muhai pulled out a cigarette and lit it.

    ¡°You know, something about you has put me off ever since you and that demon came here, and last night I figured it out. You came here to learn how to wield a sword, yet didn¡¯t bring one? Then I recalled that you only had a couple of knives.¡±

    Muhai tossed Yami¡¯s knives at him.

    ¡°Looking at them, I discovered that the way they were created indicates that they were made by none other than the witch. So that leads me to believe that you are a demon yourself.¡±

    ¡°And what if I am?¡±

    ¡°Show me your sword.¡±

    Yami gripped his pocket knife and it grew into his sword.

    ¡°As I thought. Give me it.¡±

    Yami handed his sword to Muhai. Muhai inspected it, then, without warning, charged at Yami.

    ¡°What the hell are you doing?!¡±

    ¡°This is your final test, Yami. Kill me, or I will kill you.¡±

 Chapter 32 - The New Blade

    Muhai charged at Yami with his own sword in hand. Yami flung himself out of the path of the rampaging bull, but Muhai was much faster than Yami, slicing his right quadricep. Catching himself, Yami put his hand on his wound and saw blood begin to soak into his clothes. Using his left hand, Yami sent a shot of flames into his wound, searing it shut.

    ¡°He really means it! If I don¡¯t attack him with intent to kill, he¡¯ll kill me for sure! Despite putting a load of life essence into my pants, he still sliced through and made a cut this deep. If I had been wearing my normal clothes, I¡¯d have lost that leg!¡±

    Muhai rushed Yami once again. Yami formed a sphere in his left hand, but before he could parry Muhai, he jerked still. His eyes met Muhai¡¯s, who had no apparent emotion. Yami coughed up blood.

    ¡°You think you could kill me with that? You¡¯re throwing away all of your training right now, boy.¡±

    As Muhai¡¯s arms began to feel resistance, he looked down. The tip of the sword was stuck into Yami¡¯s abdomen, which was pouring out blood in response. What caught Muhai¡¯s eyes, however, was Yami¡¯s right hand clutching the blade, holding it in place as it sawed into his fingers.

    ¡°My training¡­ My training won¡¯t ever be thrown away! Don¡¯t you dare underestimate my teachers!¡±

    Yami gripped the blade with his left hand, then slowly pulled the sword as well as Muhai out of his abdomen, then launched them across the room with a swift kick to the stomach. Muhai slammed against the opposite wall, causing rubble to collapse on him. As Yami sat on the ground and tried to catch his breath, he looked at his stomach, which was far beyond his medical knowledge. Muhai pulled himself out of the rubble as if it were dust.

    ¡°You say that, yet you¡¯re failing me right now...¡±

    Muhai flipped the tip of the blade at Yami.

    ¡°And you are well aware of the price you pay for failing!¡±

    Muhai lept at Yami.

    ¡°Shit, I have no time to evade, and he can just counter my Sirushi Inochi¡­.¡±

    Taking a deep breath, Yami prepared for the impact. As the sword connected with Yami, blood sprayed and bones crunched. Muhai let out a little smirk. Yami had blocked the sword with his right forearm.

    ¡°You dare fight back, you worthless trash?!¡±

    Yami braced his right arm with his left as the blade cut deeper into arm, and it began to slice into his bone. Yami placed life essence on the edge of his left hand and sliced it at Muhai, who dodged the brunt of the attack, but Yami¡¯s hand still caught some of his right bicep. Withdrawing the sword from Yami¡¯s arm, Muhai backed off and licked some blood off of the tip of the blade.

    ¡°It¡¯s been awhile since something fought back!¡±

    Yami stood up, blood now pooling around him.

    ¡°I have to end this fast¡­ It¡¯s taking everything I have just to stay conscious¡­¡±

    Yami¡¯s right arm hung against his side limply.

    ¡°I shouldn¡¯t use my right arm anymore, either. Anymore stress and it¡¯ll break off.¡±

    Muhai sent Yami¡¯s sword flying into the roof, causing brick and cinder block to fall. Muhai caught these in mid air, then chucked them at Yami. Yami countered the onslaught of bricks with a flurry of punches, destroying dozens of bricks a second. A large cloud of dust filled the room. As Yami took a deep breath through the sleeve of his shirt to avoid breathing in dust, he looked around, but saw nothing in the haze. Within moments, Yami felt the floor tremble beneath him, and Yami reached below him. Muhai leapt through the smokescreen and prepared to slash Yami in half. Yami swung his arm up from the ground, pulling the pulverised remains of the brick with the palm of his hand, causing the fine powder to go into Muhai¡¯s eyes. Muhai quickly vanished back into the dust cloud, allowing Yami some time to inspect his arm. The cut had made it about halfway through his bone, and the amount of blood he was losing was far more than life threatening, let alone the dust settling into his wounds. As the dust cloud settled, Yami looked around and located Muhai, who wielded two swords, one in each hand. Yami¡¯s sword sat upon a pedestal.

    ¡°Come get your blade, if you think you can!¡±

    Yami attempted to take a step forward, but nearly fell over as he stumbled. Shaking his head, Muhai sighed.

    ¡°I thought you¡¯d be more promising, but I suppose I¡¯ve thought that about a lot of other students.¡±

    Muhai ran at Yami with both swords in hand. As reached a meter within Yami, he raised his right sword as if to skewer Yami¡¯s head. Yami swung his left hand up and attempted to do a palm strike, but Muhai¡¯s physical might was far greater than Yami¡¯s durability. The blade pierced through the bottom of Yami¡¯s palm and out the top of his wrist. Muhai had emotionless eyes as he prepared to slash with the sword in his left hand. Yami raised his right arm, which was now slowly splitting apart. As Muhai swung his blade down, he made sure to hit the same cut as he had made before. The edge of the blade connected with Yami¡¯s bone. Yami poured all of his life essence into his arm, which was slowing the cut, but not stopping it. As the blade slowly sawed through the bone, Yami¡¯s heart began to beat more and more rapidly, and his vision became blurry. A mark slowly began to appear on Yami¡¯s right palm, and his right eye slowly became much darker. Yami shut his eyes as the blade made its way through another quarter of the bone.

    ¡°Without this arm, I¡¯m afraid you¡¯ll never pass.¡±

    The blade hit the final millimeter of Yami¡¯s bone. Yami¡¯s breathing slowed as he became calmer. As Yami spoke, it caused the air to condense.

    ¡°We¡¯ll see about that.¡±Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

    The mark on Yami¡¯s palm completed itself. The mark was a thick ring that had been connected to a much thinner ring that surrounded it with smooth curves. Yami opened his eyes. His right eye was black with a jagged red line running down the middle. Muhai¡¯s eyes widened.

    ¡°W-What the hell?!¡±

    Steam rose from Yami¡¯s wound as it healed at an accelerated rate. First the skin fused together, then the muscle, then the bone. As the bone healed around the blade, Muhai attempted to pull it out, but it was stuck in it. Successfully pulling the sword out of Yami¡¯s left hand, Muhai lept back and readied himself. With his left hand, Yami gripped the blade of the sword sticking out of his right forearm and withdrew it with a sawing noise. Yami tossed the sword into the air, catching it with his right hand and flicking the tip towards the ground, causing blood to splatter on the floor. Within a flash, Yami appeared behind Muhai and drove his sword at him. Muhai flicked his arm back and blocked the attack. Yami followed up with a knife hand strike with his left hand, but Muhai swiftly turned and grabbed Yami by the wrist, then flung him across the room. Yami caught himself and slid about another 10 feet before completely stopping.

    ¡°Are you Haisen?¡±

    Yami grinned and let out a small yet excited chuckle. As Yami sprinted at Muhai, Muhai copied his movements. As Yami prepared to slash at Muhai, Muhai increased his speed even more and prepared to skewer Yami. The tip of the blade connected with the bottom of Yami¡¯s palm, causing the blade to shatter. As the shrapnel sprayed about the room, some hitting Yami and Muhai, Muhai grabbed the edge of the blade and attempted to fling Yami off of it, but to no avail. Yami held onto the hilt, and as he was flung haphazardly behind Muhai, he used his momentum to swing right back into Muhai, landing a kick straight into his side, sending Muhai flying. As Muhai crashed, he picked himself up next to the pedestal which he had set Yami¡¯s sword on.

    ¡°I thought I wouldn¡¯t need to use this anymore, but I suppose not¡­¡±

    Muhai unsheathed the blade and was simultaneously met with Yami¡¯s blade clashing against it. In a struggle to overpower one another, their arms shook and their blade began to creak under the enormous stress. Muhai¡¯s eyes followed as Yami let go of the hilt with his left hand and slowly reached over and gripped the hilt of his own sword. Muhai looked into Yami¡¯s eyes, which were sinister, as Yami tightened his grip on the sword. A stinging pain immediately began to flood Muhai¡¯s body, and out of desperation, he let go of the sword. Gasping for air, Muhai looked up at Yami, who now wielded both swords.

    ¡°Now who¡¯s worthless trash?¡±

    Yami raised his swords in the air in preparation for the killing blow. Muhai raised his right arm to block the blow. Yami grinned.

    ¡°Damn it¡­ he caught my bluff. This block won¡¯t do anything... ¡°

    As Yami flung the swords down at Muhai, he closed his eyes and prepared for the impact. An explosion was heard. As the edges of the blades lodged themselves into Muhai¡¯s arm, Muhai still braced for more, but realized that he may had been saved. Slowly opening his eyes, Muhai confirmed that the two blades were lodged deep inside of his arm. Looking in the sound of the explosion, Muhai noticed a large hole in the wall. Looking in the opposite direction, he saw Jitsubutsu on top of Yami, who was struggling to push Jitsubutsu off of him.

    ¡°Muhai! I have him pinned down for now, but I need you to help! Try to keep his feet from kicking anything!¡±

    Muhai flew into action, gripping Yami¡¯s legs with his left arm as if his life depended on it, which it very well did. As Yami continued to struggle, Jitsubutsu gripped his wrists and pinned them to the ground.

    ¡°Sorry Yami, but I¡¯m gonna have to drain you.¡±

    Yami continued to struggle, shouting curses and flailing his legs about, but after a few moments, he became unconscious. Wiping the sweat off of his forehead, Jitsubutsu got off of Yami and sat himself on the floor.

    ¡°Looks like I made it just in time. For once, it looked like a student was gonna kill you!¡±

    Muhai let go of Yami¡¯s legs and pulled the swords out of his arm. He walked across the room as he spoke to Jitsubutsu.

    ¡°I never did care for you demons. You always find a way to mess up my peaceful life.¡±

    Reaching into some rubble, Muhai withdrew the sheath to Yami¡¯s sword, which he properly slid onto the blade. As he started across the room once again, he spoke.

    ¡°If there¡¯s something I haven¡¯t wanted to kill more than ever, it¡¯s this kid. Not only is he a demon, he holds the worst one in existence within himself?¡±

    As Muhai finally reached Yami¡¯s sleeping body, he knelt next to him.

    ¡°But, he is definitely the best pupil I¡¯ve made. He was treated like a sword, learned to act like a sword, and even beat his master.¡±

    Muhai rested the large sword onto Yami¡¯s chest.

    ¡°He is the finest blade ever created.¡±

    <hr>

    The warming sunlight awoke Yami. Slowly fluttering his eyelids open, Yami felt the comfort of sheets covering him. Lifting his head, he realized he was laying in one of Muhai¡¯s rooms that was forbidden from staying in. Pushing the sheets off of him and standing up, Yami nearly fell over due to exhaustion. His muscles had never ached as much in their life as they had now, and he was very dehydrated as well. Limping to the door, he noticed that his sword was leaning against the wall. As he grabbed it, Yami shrunk it back to a pocket knife and put it in his clothes behind him. Opening the door, Yami slowly made his way down the hall to the dojo, where he saw Muhai sitting next to a large hole in the wall. Yami walked over to him, but didn¡¯t know what to say. Noticing he was behind him, Muhai patted his hand on the floor next to him. Yami sat.

    ¡°You did well, kid. Don¡¯t take that praise lightly.¡±

    Yami sat and stared at the flurries. The gentle playfulness of the snow calmed him.

    ¡°Here.¡±

    Yami looked over and saw Muhai handing him a bowl of soup.

    ¡°Well? Eat it.¡±

    Yami reached over without hesitation and quickly scarfed down the warming liquid.

    ¡°You¡¯re the first person to pass my lessons. Most couldn¡¯t even make it past the first task, many others failed when they tried to sleep the first night. You should now understand how to use a sword, which you clearly demonstrated in our match.¡±

    ¡°About that¡­¡±

    Muhai patted Yami on the back.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. That was the first exciting life I¡¯ve had in ages.¡±

    ¡°So now what?¡±

    Muhai looked off into the sky.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to retire. I¡¯ve fought many battles, and now I¡¯ve had my second loss. I don¡¯t intend on having anymore.¡±

    ¡°I guess I¡¯ll keep travelling with Jitsubutsu then¡­¡±

    ¡°Yami, you¡¯re one demon I can respect.¡±

    ¡°Thanks?¡±

    <hr>

    As Yami walked out of the door into the compound, he looked around.

    ¡°Sir, where is Jitsubutsu?¡±

    ¡°He left already, said he had to head back.¡±

    ¡°I see¡­ I guess I¡¯ll be off then. Thank you, Sir!¡±

    As Yami walked through the snow down to the mountain trail, Muhai leaned against a wall and folded his arms. As Yami waved just before going out of view, Muhai responded with a nod.

    ¡°Yami Shinpai¡­ You are one respectable young man.¡±

    <hr>

    Jitsubutsu and Muhai carried an unconscious Yami down the hall. Sliding open a door, Muhai led Jitsubutsu into the room, and the two sat Yami on the bed. Leaning Yami¡¯s sword against the wall, Muhai and Jitsubutsu walked out and shut the door.

    ¡°Hey demon, does that kid have Haisen in him?¡±

    Jitsubutsu spoke with serious tone in his voice.

    ¡°Yes. That¡¯s what you say when you fought him. It seems you pushed him to the limit, which allowed him to become possessed.¡±

    Muhai looked down at his right arm, which was still bleeding profusely.

    ¡°That kid¡­ I¡¯ve only been this beat up when I fought Haisen with Kyukyoku. He even stole some of my lifespan and added it to his own¡­¡±

    Jitsubutsu looked at him with intrigue.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    ¡°I was wielding his blade, and reached over and sucked life out of me using the blade as a catalyst.¡±

    ¡°I see¡­¡±

    <hr>

    Muhai stood up from the wall and rubbed the back of his neck.

    ¡°I guess I¡¯ll call it a day.¡±

    <hr>

    Knock knock knock

    A wooden door swung open, revealing Make¡¯s face. It brightly lit up as she saw her visitor, Yami.

    ¡°Yami! You¡¯re done with your training?!¡±

    ¡°Yeah, but I kinda ripped my clothes in the process...¡±

    ¡°If you put some life essence into the tear, it¡¯ll mend itself.¡±

    ¡°Oh. I guess I¡¯ll be off the-¡±

    ¡°Come in!¡±

    Yami followed Make inside and enjoyed a delicious dinner, sat and talked with her, and as night fell, he walked to the room he had been staying in. Laying himself on the bed, he nearly shuddered in comfort as he rested in the soft warmth. A muffled voice travelled through the door.

    ¡°Goodnight, Yami!¡±

    ¡°Goodnight,¡± Yami replied!

    As Yami shut his eyelids, he drifted into a deep sleep.

 Chapter 33 - Restitution

    Knock knock knock

    ¡°Come on in!¡±

    Jitsubutsu walked through the front of Make¡¯s house and greeted her.

    ¡°Hey! How are you?¡±

    ¡°Great! Yami¡¯s upstairs, he hasn¡¯t gotten up yet though.¡±

    ¡°No worries.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll start making some breakfast. Go ahead and wake him up.¡±

    Jitsubutsu proceeded up the stairs, making his way towards Yami¡¯s room. As he neared his door, Jitsubutsu did not hear any snores, nor did he hear the rustling of Yami getting ready.

    ¡°Hey,¡± Jitsubutsu said as he knocked on the door. ¡°Get up. We should take off soon.¡±

    Jitsubutsu didn¡¯t hear Yami stir at all.

    ¡°Hey!¡±

    After pounding once more, this time with more force, Jitsubutsu opened the door to see Yami laying still on the bed. Walking up to Yami, Jitsubutsu quickly reassured he was still alive.

    ¡°Yami, c¡¯mon.¡±

    Yami did not budge.

    ¡°Damn it¡­ This kid¡­¡±

    Jitsubutsu turned as he heard the pattering of footsteps behind him. In the doorway stood Make, who dropped a bowl she was carrying when she saw Yami. An egg-based mixture spilled over the floor as Make fell to her knees.

    ¡°No¡­ no¡­ Ky¨±¡­¡±

    Jitsubutsu got down next to Make and put his hands on her shoulders.

    ¡°It¡¯s alright, he¡¯s still alive. Make, go get some rest. I¡¯ll help out Yami.¡±

    Make¡¯s eyes became dulled as she nodded. Jitsubutsu helped Make stand and led her to her room, where he lied her down.

    ¡°I¡¯m heading out. I¡¯ll be back soon.¡±

    As Jitsubutsu walked towards the door, Make opened her mouth.

    ¡°Jitsu¡­ Help Ky¨±¡­.¡±

    Jitsubutsu nodded and walked back to Yami¡¯s room.

    ¡°There¡¯s only thing that I think can save him.¡±

    ¡°This is your last chance, Yami.¡±

    Yami still laid stiffly on the bed.

    ¡°Okay. Don¡¯t blame me when you wake up. Now let¡¯s see where you put that¡­¡±

    Jitsubutsu dug around in Yami¡¯s bag until he found a piece of paper with a strange marking made out of ink on it.

    ¡°There we are.¡±

    Jitsubutsu grabbed Yami¡¯s arms and flung him over his shoulder.

    <hr>

    ¡°Alright everyone, have a safe break.¡±

    Rikai shoved her things into her backpack and walked out of the small classroom trailer. She paused for a moment as someone called out to her. Shitto ran up to her and they resumed walking together.

    A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    ¡°So it¡¯s already summer break, huh.¡±

    Rikai nodded.

    ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s been a long year, hasn¡¯t it?¡±

    Shitto balled his fist.

    ¡°Too long¡­¡±

    Rikai patted Shitto¡¯s back.

    ¡°Don¡¯t be like that, you¡¯ll make them sad, too.¡±

    Shitto tightened his grip.

    ¡°I won¡¯t forget nor forgive who did it to them, though¡­¡±

    As Rikai and Shitto continued down the sidewalk towards their houses, Rikai thought to herself.

    ¡°It¡¯s been six months since Yami left. It seems like he did something to Shitto, because Shitto appears to remember everything differently than how Yami told it. Regardless, the school is still being rebuilt, and everyone has appeared to have moved on. Mr. Posche was mourned by students and colleagues alike, and is also supposed to have a monument built in honor of his memory. His father, on the other hand, had been sentenced jail time for crimes which were not disclosed, but based on Shitto¡¯s words, he had attacked his own officers. As for the attack on the school, nothing was found out about Shinkiya Acuta. Despite all of that, Yami Shinpai is still being hunted for by the police for multiple accounts of murder, and a handful of individuals have tried to steal his identity, some even going as far as pretending to be him while robbing stores. These aren¡¯t commonly thought of when his name is thrown out into conversation, though.¡±

    Rikai began to walk in a different direction from Shitto.

    ¡°I¡¯ll call you sometime. Be safe, Shitto!¡±

    ¡°You too!¡±

    As Rikai walked down the sidewalk, she began to hear car horns.

    ¡°What in the world is going on¡­?¡±

    As she neared her house, she saw a man in odd clothes standing in the middle of the street. Wanting to not get involved, Rikai tried to not make eye contact with the strange man, but as she tried to pass, he seemingly appeared in front of her.

    ¡°Would you happen to be Rikai?¡±

    Rikai nodded.

    ¡°Yes? How may I help you?¡±

    ¡°I need to use your house for a while.¡±

    Rikai looked at him with offense.

    ¡°Who are you?!¡±

    ¡°My apologies, I should¡¯ve introduced myself sooner. I am Jitsubutsu. I¡¯ve already left my things in your house, I¡¯ll be heading off now.¡±

    Ass Jitsubutsu walked away, Rikai called out to him.

    ¡°Hey! What do you mean?!¡±

    Jitsubutsu had already disappeared down the road.

    Rikai hesitantly approached her house. As she turned the knob, it easily gave in. Slowly pushing the door open, Rikai was prepared to run away if there was a trap laid for her. In opening the door, she didn¡¯t see anything laid about. Setting her backpack next to the door, Rikai walked slowly down the hallway. Looking to her left, there was only a few water bottles laying empty on the counter in the kitchen. Continuing down the hallway, she saw nothing to her right in the laundry room. As she approached the living room, she heard a faint breathing.

    ¡°Who¡¯s here?!¡±

    No response came from the living room. Slowly approaching the couch, Rikai prepared to fight off an intruder. As she looked over the couch, she didn¡¯t see an intruder. Instead, she saw Yami.

    <hr>

    ¡°Hmmm¡­. Fine work indeed. Posche appeared to have been a fine teacher.¡±

    Jitsubutsu had immersed himself into a collection of books in Posche¡¯s house.

    ¡°Ah, so you¡¯re here as well.¡±

    Shippai emerged from behind a corner.

    ¡°Who are you?¡±

    Jitsubutsu turned to face her.

    ¡°I could ask you the same question. I sense darkness with you.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m Posche¡¯s daughter, Alice.¡±

    ¡°Oh? I wasn¡¯t aware he had a daughter. A friend of mine had told me that his wife died. Before they beared a child.¡±

    ¡°Yes, my mother had died when I was very young. I don¡¯t remember her at all, but my father always spoke the world of her.¡±

    ¡°I see. Well, I¡¯ll be off then.¡±

    As Jitsubutsu began to walk through the door, Shippai grabbed his sleeve.

    ¡°Your ¡®friend¡¯ is Yami, isn¡¯t it? Won¡¯t you take me to him?¡±

    ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s been so long, and I¡¯m not sure if he¡¯s heard the news about his sister¡­ I¡¯d like to tell him.¡±

    ¡°Sorry, but Yami is kind of busy at the moment. I¡¯ll tell him later.¡±

    Jitsubutsu walked away as Shippai shut herself back into the house.

    ¡°I¡¯ve already done it¡­¡±

    <hr>

    As Jitsubutsu walked back into Rikai¡¯s household, he saw her sitting in the living room with Yami.

    ¡°I see you¡¯ve found my luggage!¡±

    Rikai nodded.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with him?¡±

    ¡°It seems as though his living in a world other than the one he was raised in didn¡¯t allow him to regain his strength. As such, he¡¯s been running on the same life essence as when he entered. I¡¯m a fool for not realizing this sooner¡­¡±

    ¡°So what happens now?¡±

    ¡°We need to let him rest.¡±

    ¡°Alright. How did you find this place?¡±

    ¡°During some of our training, he had told me about this place as well as you, then created a piece of paper that would lead me right here through one of those doors.¡±

    ¡°I see.¡±

    Jitsubutsu sighed.

    ¡°Is that also how you got here?¡±

    Shippai appeared from behind a corner.

    ¡°Shippai? What are you doing here?!¡±

    ¡°Shippai?¡±

    ¡°Is Yami here? I need to see him.¡±

    Rikai stood up from her chair.

    ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s about his sister¡­¡±

    ¡°His sister? What¡¯re you talking about?¡±

    Jitsubutsu turned to face Shippai.

    ¡°I knew it. This is why he has Haisen within him¡­¡±

    Rikai glanced between Jitsubutsu and Shippai.

    ¡°Haisen¡­?¡±

    ¡°Rikai, get ba-¡±

    Shippai lunged at Jitsubutsu. In retaliation, he grabbed her arm and attempted to break it, but she proved to be faster than him, sweeping her leg at his, tripping him. Catching himself on his palm, he pushed himself back up, but was immediately sent flying into a wall. Trying to pick himself up from the rubble, Jitsubutsu tried to find where Shippai was, but before he realized it, she was right before him. As she raised her right hand in the air, she reached into a newly formed void and pulled a large knife out of it.

    ¡°I wonder what happens when I kill two Jinsei no Hogo!¡±

    As she drove the knife toward Jitsubutsu¡¯s face, Jitsubutsu prepared to receive the blow.

    ¡°We¡¯ll see just how powerful I become with just one!¡±

    A hand reached out and gripped Shippai¡¯s right wrist tightly, stopping her hand from moving and causing her to drop the knife.

    ¡°You better keep on dreaming.¡±

    Rikai looked up.

    Yami stood stronger than ever.

 Chapter 34 - The Innocent Girl

    Shippai kicked Yami¡¯s shin, causing him to fall to one knee. Shippai swung her free hand towards the arm that held her wrist, but was unsuccessful as Yami caught that one as well. In a last-ditch effort, Shippai raised her knee in an attempt to hit Yami¡¯s chin, but was quickly caught off guard when Yami flipped her entire body over his head. Her back hit the hardwood floor with a loud smack, and within a moment, Yami had already flipped her onto her back and restrained her wrists.

    ¡°What the hell were you trying to do, Shippai? We¡¯re your friends!¡±

    Shippai¡¯s face of struggle subsided along with her squirms that tried to give her freedom and was replaced by a grin.

    ¡°Friends? You all?¡±

    As Yami stared at her, he began to feel immense pain in the hands he was using to restrain Shippai. As the pain grew, it proved to be too intense for Yami to handle, causing hi to release Shippai, who in turn tried to slash him with a knife. Yami blocked the knife the edge of his forearm, then tried to palm strike her stomach, but to no avail as she slipped out from under him. Attempting to flee, Shippai darted towards the window. Yami tried to stand, but stumbled as he felt immense fatigue once again. Unable to think of any other action that would suffice, Yami reached behind himself and grabbed his throwing knife. Shippai leapt out of the window and sprinted through Rikai¡¯s backyard. Yami hurled the knife, which, at breakneck speeds, cut through Shippai¡¯s abdomen and continued through her body until it came out the other side, crashing through a fence and hitting the side of a house before stopping. Breathing heavily, Yami wiped the sweat off of his forehead.

    ¡°I think I got her.¡±

    Jitsubutsu slowly picked himself up out of the rubble.

    ¡°That girl¡­¡±

    Rikai ran up to Yami.

    ¡°Are you alright? Did she get you anywhere?¡±

    Yami shook his head.

    ¡°I think I¡¯m fine for now.¡±

    Holding up his hand, Yami sent life essence out towards his throwing knife, which flew back towards him. Catching the handle, Yami noticed the knife felt heavier.

    ¡°It¡¯s a trap,¡± Jitsubutsu yelled!

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t seem to respond to my life essence, so it¡¯s unlikely I can throw it¡­ Jitsubutsu and I could survive, but Rikai¡­¡±

    Yami pushed Rikai away from him as he gallantly rose to his feet and crashed through a window. As Rikai tried to look out of the window, she was greeted by a bright flash, then a deafening explosion. The force of the blast took out the wall behind Yami, as well as form a crater nearly 3 feet deep. Yami was propelled away from the blastr, crashing into a fence. Coughing blood, Yami hazily attempted to assess the situation.

    ¡°It looks like my clothes took most of the blast for me, but it still did this much¡­¡±

    The last thing Yami saw was Jitsubutsu and Rikai running towards him as he blacked out¡­This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.

    <hr>

    BOOM

    ¡°Sounds like it worked.¡±

    Shippai limped through some alleys, blood pouring from the hole she was covering with her hands. Leaning herself against a wall, green life essence crept down Shippai¡¯s arm and engulfed the afflicted area. The impact the knife had on Shippai¡¯s body was staggering, creating an effect similar to a bullet. As the green life essence seemingly pulsated around the wound, Shippai continued to maintain focus, and after a few moments, she moved her hands to reveal a completely healed wound, set aside a small scar. Taking a few deep breaths to collect herself once again, Shippai regained her anger, kicking a nearby trash can in blind fury.

    ¡°I should¡¯ve just killed him! If it weren¡¯t for Yami waking up now of all times¡­ That damn boy!¡±

    Shoving a nearby door open, Shippai walked into a suite. Laying herself on the soft bed, she reached her hand out, creating a void that it slipped through. Out of the void she withdrew a bag with a yellow ¡®W¡¯ on it. Inside the bag was two hamburgers and some french fries which she seemingly swallowed whole.

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. In time, he¡¯ll fall along with everyone else¡­¡±

    <hr>

    ¡°Don¡¯t do it, Yami! We can change this ourselves!¡±

    Yami clapped his hands firmly together.

    Yami¡¯s eyes slowly opened.

    ¡°What the hell was that?¡±

    As Yami placed his hands behind him in an attempt to sit himself up, he quickly refrained from doing so. Looking at his hands, he saw that the were blistered and raw. Using his elbows this time, Yami slowly got himself up from the bed he was in. Looking around, he noticed that he was in Rikai¡¯s room, a sight that put him at ease. His entire body ached from the encounter with Shippai, but that was something to worry about after he had ensured that everyone was safe. As he reached for the doorknob, the door swung open and hit him in the face, making him crash to the floor. On the other side, Rikai stood with a towel covering her body and another wrapped around her hair.

    ¡°Yami? You¡¯re awake?¡±

    Yami rubbed his face.

    ¡°Yeah, I just woke up. Is everyone okay?¡±

    ¡°Of course! You¡¯re the only one who took the blast! If you weren¡¯t already beat up enough, I¡¯d hit you right now.¡±

    ¡°Silver linings.¡±

    ¡°Why don¡¯t you wait downstairs. I¡¯ll get you some food.¡±

    ¡°Sounds good.¡±

    Yami walked out of the room and down the staircase to see that it was dusk. Amazed that he had been out longer than he thought, he noticed that Jitsubutsu was examining Yami¡¯s throwing knife on the edge of the floor where the wall once stood. Yami approached him cautiously as if not to disrupt his work.

    ¡°Hey, Jitsubutsu.¡±

    Jitsubutsu continued to work.

    ¡°Finally woke up?¡±

    ¡°What the hell happened yesterday? The last thing I remember is going to sleep at Make¡¯s place.¡±

    ¡°It seems as though your body can only recover its lost life essence in this world. As you depleted it all in your training with Muhai and myself, you finally ran out and had to return.¡±

    ¡°I see. Thanks for bringing me here.¡±

    Jitsubutsu sat the knife down.

    ¡°That aside, who was the girl, Yami?¡±

    Yami sat next to Jitsubutsu.

    ¡°She¡¯s¡­ she was an old friend. She was one of my teachers when I was learning how to use Sirushi Inochi.¡±

    ¡°Do you know what her Sirushi Inochi is?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, she has one that heals people.¡±

    ¡°Then how did she use multiple other Sirushi Inochi?¡±

    ¡°I-I don¡¯t know¡­¡±

    ¡°Yami, before I began mentoring you, I told you that the most likely reason you have Haisen within you is because there is a calamity waiting to happen. This girl is connected to it.¡±

    ¡°Does she have the same power as us?¡±

    ¡°No, it¡¯s not like that. She still wants us dead to obtain our power, so there must be something more to the story.¡±

    Yami clenched his fists.

    ¡°Yami, you must continue to train to control Haisen. You¡¯ve done well thus far, but you mustn¡¯t become arrogant.¡±

    Jitsubutsu stood up and began to walk towards the front door.

    ¡°Hey! Where¡¯re you going?!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m going to go kill her.¡±

    As the front door swung open, Jitsubutsu looked back.

    ¡°It¡¯s likely I won¡¯t be coming back, Yami. If you get into any tight situations, remember that Make, Muhai, even Sylphera will help you.¡±

    Yami stood up and walked over to Jitsubutsu. He extended his hand.

    ¡°Thank you for all your dedication to my training. I swear I won¡¯t put it to waste.¡±

    ¡°The honor is mine. I feel you¡¯ll become a far greater Jinsei no Hogo than your predecessors.¡±

    Jitsubutsu and Yami made eye contact as they gave each other a respectfully firm handshake. Jitsubutsu walked out of the house, shutting the door behind him.

 Chapter 35 - The Little Brother

    Rain pattered on the sidewalk, causing large puddles to form and streams to flow into nearby storm drains. As feet trailed along this sidewalk, their owner soon saw that the water turned red. The red led Jitsubutsu into a dark alley. Seeing a final bloodstain on the face of the door, Jitsubutsu sighed and slumped down next to a dumpster.

    ¡°Looks like I¡¯ll be sitting here for a moment¡­¡±

    <hr>

    ¡°Do it!¡±

    Two teenagers held a younger girl by her hair, whom was screaming in pain. A small boy, about 7 years old, laid in the mud, curled up in agony.

    ¡°Do it and we¡¯ll let her go.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t do it! They¡¯ll just hit you harder!¡±

    One of the teenagers smacked the girl and grabbed her face, pointing her towards him.

    ¡°You¡¯re lucky you¡¯re not old enough, or we¡¯d be doing a whole lot worse, so shut your whore mouth!¡±

    ¡°You swear you¡¯ll let her go?¡±

    The teenagers looked down at the small boy, who had stopped shaking. One of them chuckled and approached him.

    ¡°Yeah, I swear.¡±

    The boy got on his hands and knees and crawled towards the teen. Lowering his head, the boy stuck out his tongue and tried to lick the teens boot. The teen swung his leg up, causing the boy to bite his tongue, as well as go flying backwards into the mud.

    ¡°Stop it! Let him go!¡±

    One of the boys punched her in the liver, making her fall limp as she was sent into shock.

    ¡°Sorry, I said I¡¯d let her go, but my friends don¡¯t think she should. Maybe if you, I¡¯m not sure, held your breath in the river for 3 minutes?¡±

    Throughout the group, mumbles were heard in agreeance. The girl quietly attempted to mumble something.

    ¡°You¡¯ll... Drown¡­¡±

    The boy stood up from the puddle of mud and wiped his mouth.

    ¡°You all must agree to let her go.¡±

    Everyone nodded. The boy took off his muddy shirt, pants, shoes, and socks. As he took a deep breath to prepare for the long amount of time he¡¯d spend underwater, one of the teens punched him in the stomach, causing him let out all of his air.

    ¡°No cheating! No get to it! We¡¯ll time you.¡±

    The teen shoved him into the river. Tumbling down the edge of the bank into the water, the boy made sure to grab the root of a tree to prevent himself from flowing downstream.

    ¡°I have to do this¡­ For sis¡¯ sake.¡±

    As the water tumbled around him, he stand attempted to not move his body at all, only focusing on the root of the tree. Without warning, rocks began to pelt him from the surface. The teens laughed as they found larger and larger rocks to throw at the young boy.

    ¡°C¡¯mon! It¡¯s only been ten seconds!¡±

    Beginning to lose consciousness, the boy drifted into a dark slumber.

    The overwhelming darkness was soon replaced by a blinding white. Ass the boy opened his eyes, he looked around.

    ¡°Is this¡­ heaven? Or is this purgatory?¡±

    ¡°Neither, my child.¡±

    The boy turned to face the voice. A blank figure of a masculine man stood before him.

    ¡°Young Kyukyoku, what brings you here? Why must you intrude my domain?¡±

    Kyukyoku slowly began to step away, but the figure didn¡¯t allow him to, grabbing him by the wrist.

    ¡°Have you come here to steal from me?¡±

    ¡°N-No, Sir¡­¡±

    The figure released Kyukyoku.

    ¡°I sense that you are honest. I¡¯m sorry for the abrasive actions I partook in earlier. May I give you a gift in the hopes we move past said incident?¡±The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    ¡°What the hell is wrong with this guy?¡±

    ¡°S-Sure.¡±

    The figure grabbed Kyukyoku¡¯s right arm. Almost immediately, Kyukyoku began to shout in pain.

    ¡°Congratulations on becoming this centuries Jinsei no Hogo!¡±

    <hr>

    As the rapids engulfed Kyukyoku, a large log hit him in the stomach, sending him out of the water onto the shore. As he coughed for air, the group of teens ran up to him.

    ¡°That wasn¡¯t even thirty seconds! Get back in there!¡±

    Kyukyoku¡¯s pupils dilated as he saw his sister laying in a puddle of blood and mud.

    ¡°You sons of bitches¡­¡±

    ¡°What was that? I don¡¯t think I heard you right!¡±

    A teen swung his leg at Kyukyoku. Grabbing his ankle, Kyukyoku held the teen¡¯s leg straight, then drove his elbow into the teen¡¯s knee, causing his leg to bend in an unnatural way. The teen sscreamed in agony as the boy stood above him.

    ¡°You¡¯ll all die here.¡±

    <hr>

    As rain splashed on Make¡¯s face, her eyes slowly opened. She heard something splashing in the mud. As she saw a figure, she opened her eyes more.

    ¡°Kyu¡­¡±

    Kyukyoku was punching the face of one of the boys repeatedly. As blood splattered onto his face with each punch, Kyukyoku¡¯s eyes dulled.

    ¡°Kyu! Stop it!¡±

    Kyukyoku froze and looked at his sister, who was now standing next to him.

    ¡°I¡¯m fine, so stop it already!¡±

    Kyukyoku¡¯s pupils contracted back to their normal state.

    ¡°Make¡­¡±

    As Kyukyoku looked back down at the bloody mess, he screamed in horror.

    <hr>

    ¡°So what you¡¯re telling me is that upon receiving this ¡®gift,¡¯ you immediately harnessed an unnatural power to save your sister?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    An old man rubbed his chin as he sat at a small table with Kyukyoku.

    ¡°If you are telling the truth, then you are the Jinsei no Hogo - no, beyond that, you have already shown your potential as a Pubi¨¤n Fanxiang. I will take you under my wing immediately to begin your training.¡±

    <hr>

    As Kyukyoku packed his bags to leave, Make walked into the one room shack.

    ¡°So¡­ you¡¯re really leaving, huh¡­¡±

    Kyukyoku gave his big sister a warming hug.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Make. I¡¯ll be back soon. After I finish my training, I should be able to take up jobs so we won¡¯t be so poor anymore.¡±

    Kyukyoku looked down at himself.

    ¡°I¡¯m tired of always wearing these rags¡­¡±

    As Kyukyoku looked up at his sister, he saw she was crying.

    ¡°Sis¡­¡±

    Through her sniffling, Make formed a sentence.

    ¡°I-I¡¯m so sorry! I-I tried my b-best, but it¡¯s s-so hard to make money!¡±

    Kyukyoku embraced his sister once more.

    ¡°No, Make. You¡¯ve done more than enough for me. I¡¯m grateful for everything you did, so¡­¡±

    Tears began to drip onto Make¡¯s neck.

    ¡°...so I swear I¡¯ll pay you back for all of your hard work!¡±

    <hr>

    ¡°Yaburu Hagane!¡±

    An older Kyukyoku drove his fist into an armored swordsmen, completely shattering his armor and sending him flying into the dirt behind him. Kyukyoku stood above him as he tried to collect himself.

    ¡°You¡¯re under arrest.¡±

    As his arms were placed into wooden blocks behind his back, and elder patted Kyukyoku¡¯s back.

    ¡°Job well done, young Kyukyoku. The fruits of your labor bear themselves today.¡±

    ¡°Master?¡±

    ¡°Come,¡± the elder said as he batted his hand toward himself.

    The elder sat on a bench, patting next to him.

    ¡°Please, take a seat.¡±

    Kyukyoku did as he was told and sat next to the elder.

    ¡°What is it, Master?¡±

    ¡°How long has it been since we first met, Kyukyoku?¡±

    Kyukyoku had to think for a moment, but then answered him.

    ¡°About 8 years, Master.¡±

    The elder let out a chuckle.

    ¡°So it¡¯s only been 8 years since I saw a dirty little brat that protected his sister from a group of bullies¡­¡±

    Kyukyoku thought back on his childhood and smiled.

    ¡°Yeah, things were tough back then, but my sister and I always looked out for one another.¡±

    ¡°Have you kept in touch with your sister?¡±

    ¡°We send letters occasionally, but seeing as how we¡¯re always on the move, it¡¯s mainly one-way transactions.¡±

    ¡°I see. Why don¡¯t you go pay her a visit?¡±

    Kyukyoku looked stunned.

    ¡°But, Master, my traini-¡±

    ¡°Young Kyukyoku, do you not understand what I mean?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Master, but I do not.¡±

    ¡°Young Kyukyoku, just now you defeated the leader of a strong faction with one move. He has evaded capture for years and killed many innocent people, and despite everyone¡¯s best efforts, he had gotten away with it. Many of my colleagues suffered the same fate as many of his victims. You stoo-, no, stand above the rest, young Kyukyoku.¡±

    ¡°Master¡­¡±

    ¡°You have learned everything I have to offer. My teachings come directly from the first Jinsei no Hogo, Jitsubutsu. I hope that you use the knowledge and wisdom I have given you to further yourself and humanity.¡±

    Kyukyoku stood up from the bench and bowed before the elder.

    ¡°Thank you so much for you time and dedication, Master!¡±

    The elder waved his hand.

    ¡°There¡¯s no need for that. You have saved my skin many times already. Think of your debt as paid off.¡±

    Kyukyoku looked up once more.

    ¡°Actually, Master, I have one more request.¡±

    ¡°Hmm?¡±

    <hr>

    Make,

    I¡¯ve done it. I¡¯ve completed training. The journey I started so long ago has finally come to an end, but I now face another. I¡¯m apologize, but I won¡¯t be returning home quite yet. I¡¯ve put in a request with Master, and it seems that I¡¯ll be joining the organization. I do this not only as my duty as the Jinsei no Hogo, but also to help monetarily. Enclosed in this letter is my office address, so when I return from missions, I can read all of your letters.

    Love you,

    Kyukyoku

    <hr>

    Kyukyoku sat behind a table with other people, all of them older than him by a few decades. As Kyukyoku rested his eyes waiting for a presentation to start, he heard the adults snickering.

    ¡°Seriously? They¡¯re putting a child on this task force? What kind of mockery is this?¡±

    ¡°Surely there was a mistake and he¡¯ll be removed immediately¡­¡±

    As a man walked to the front of the stage, silence overwhelmed the room. Kyukyoku opened his eyes and focused on the man.

    ¡°Today, we¡¯ll be investigating a small cult located just outside of Sylphera. Reports have it that they are experimenting with souls.¡±

    ¡°Sylphera? That¡¯s where Make is¡­¡±

    An adult in the back spoke up.

    ¡°Sir, what kind of experiments?¡±

    ¡°To put it frankly, they are killing people and trying to capture their souls. The reason behind this is unknown for now, but it likely increases their strength tenfold per soul.¡±

    Whispers were beginning to fill the void of sound.

    ¡°Quiet down. The task at hand is to find their base of operations, capture any of the cult members, and obtain all of their research.¡±

    One of the snickering adults raised his hand.

    ¡°Yes?¡±

    ¡°Sir, are you sure that everybody can participate in this mission? As you said, their power could be leagues above some.¡±

    ¡°I assure you that everyone in this room has been trained and tested enough to participate.¡±

    The adult clicked his tongue and crossed his arms in disapproval.

    ¡°Alright everyone, let¡¯s go!¡±

 Chapter 36 - The Failure

    The dirt road crunched underneath the group of men as they marched. In the distance, the town of Sylphera slowly came into view. Kyukyoku grinned in familiarity.

    ¡°This place really hasn¡¯t changed, huh.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s no wonder this cult is way out here. Who would want to protect this shithole?¡±

    Kyukyoku¡¯s eyebrows slightly furrowed at this remark. The squad leader turned to face the man who said this.

    ¡°Unfortunately for you, we¡¯re going to defend this shithole.¡±

    The leader turned back.

    ¡°We¡¯re almost there, so don¡¯t let the townspeople here you saying that.¡±

    ¡°Whatever¡­¡±

    As they walked into town, the heads of the people living there along with their whispers followed the men.

    ¡°Heh, they¡¯re probably freaking out about how people as high up as we are are visiting their little village.¡±

    ¡°I said to stop those comments! One more peep out of you, and you can kiss your seat goodbye!¡±

    The group approached an elderly man.

    ¡°Hello, Sir. As discussed, we have a place to stay?¡±

    ¡°Yes, yes, of course. Please come with me, we¡¯ll discuss housing inside.¡±

    ¡°You guys stay out here. Don¡¯t cause any problems.¡±

    As the leader and the elder walked inside of a large building, the group of men talked amongst themselves. Kyukyoku sat down and began to meditate. The typical men snickered.

    ¡°Look at that brat. Why is he always so nonchalant about everything?¡±

    ¡°Make is still here¡­ Maybe I¡¯ll be able to pay her a visit after this¡­¡±

    Kyukyoku felt a tap on his shoulder. Behind him was a girl that was his age.

    ¡°Kyukyoku? Is that you?¡±

    Kyukyoku nodded.

    ¡°I¡¯m Ayako. We were in the same class before you left?¡±

    Kyukyoku stood up.

    ¡°Yeah, I remember you. How¡¯ve you been?¡±

    ¡°Fine, I¡¯ve just been studying. Despite how it looks, our little town has grown a lot, and with it developed.¡±

    The leader walked out the building. Kyukyoku faced him.

    ¡°Alright everyone, I have the keys to where we¡¯ll be staying. Fortunately, we¡¯ve all been given our own rooms. Come get your keys. We¡¯ll meet back here tomorrow morning at sunrise. Before then, you¡¯re free to rest or go sightseeing, just don¡¯t spur up any trouble. Dismissed.¡±

    Kyukyoku grabbed his key then walked back to Ayako.

    ¡°If you don¡¯t mind, we can go get some lunch?¡±

    Kyukyoku nodded.

    ¡°Sure, I¡¯m not doing anything else.¡±

    <hr>

    Kyukyoku and Ayako sat themselves outside of a decent looking building and a waitress handed them two menus.

    ¡°Please, take your time deciding.¡±

    As the waitress walked away, Ayako stared deeply at the menu. Kyukyoku looked at the building.

    ¡°This is similar to another restaurant I¡¯ve been to. Is this new?¡±

    Ayako nodded.

    ¡°Yeah. I¡¯ve never been here before, but all of it sounds so good¡­¡±

    ¡°But look at the price! I could buy so much produce for a grilled fish! Wait, these ¡®appetizers¡¯ are a decent price. I guess I¡¯ll have one of those.¡±

    As the waitress came back around, she pulled out a notepad and a pencil.

    ¡°You guys ready?¡±

    Kyukyoku looked at Ayako, who nodded.

    ¡°I¡¯ll have the potato slices with grated cheese, please.¡±

    ¡°What the hell did she order?¡±

    ¡°Great choice! I¡¯ll bring them out!¡±

    The waitress walked away, and Ayako looked nearly as confused as Kyukyoku.

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t she take your order?¡±

    ¡°Because you got an appetizer. Were you not ready to order?¡±

    ¡°That was my order¡­¡±

    ¡°You didn¡¯t want something else?¡±

    ¡°Everything was so expensive, though¡­¡±

    ¡°Have you ever been to a restaurant?¡±

    ¡°No, this is my first time.¡±

    Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

    ¡°Get whatever you want, I¡¯m paying.¡±

    Ayako¡¯s eyes widened with joy. As the waitress brought out the potatoes, the two teens placed their orders. As Ayako began to stuff her mouth to the brim with the potatoes, Kyukyoku leaned in slightly.

    ¡°So why is it you wanted to see me?¡±

    Ayako tried to speak, but after realising her mouth was still full, she tried to swallow everything at once, causing her to choke. Kyukyoku slid over his water and she graciously sipped on it. Taking a deep breath, she wiped her mouth with a cloth napkin.

    ¡°I wanted to catch up with you and thank you.¡±

    ¡°Thank me?¡±

    Ayako looked down.

    ¡°I know a lot of people shunned you for what you did, but you saved far more. Those kids were relentless. It seems like they only targeted those beneath them, and you showed them that they were the powerless ones. Saving yourself and your sister when you were that young¡­¡± Ayako looked up into Kyukyoku¡¯s eyes with a smile. ¡°It¡¯s pretty inspirational!¡±

    Kyukyoku leaned back in his chair and looked up at the sky.

    ¡°I guess it is, but looking back on it, there¡¯s so many different ways I could¡¯ve gone about it. They didn¡¯t have to die.¡±

    Ayako slammed her hands on the table as she jumped up from the table. Kyukyoku looked down from the sky to see her face. Her pupils contracted immensely.

    ¡°No! They needed to die! They drove countless people before them to die themselves, so what suits them best is that they have the same fate!¡±

    Kyukyoku frowned slightly.

    ¡°Sit down, you¡¯re causing a scene.¡±

    Ayako looked around to see passerby¡¯s and customers alike staring at her. She reluctantly closed her eyes and sat back in her chair. Within a few moments, the waitress arrived with two meals.

    <hr>

    As Kyukyoku and Ayako walked away from the restaurant, Ayako was rubbing her stomach.

    ¡°That was so good! Thanks, Kyukyoku!¡±

    ¡°Yeah, no problem.¡±

    ¡°Say, Kyukyoku. Have you gone to see your sister yet?¡±

    Kyukyoku shook his head.

    ¡°No, but I was planning on making my rounds soon.¡±

    ¡°You should. We¡¯re not the best of friends, but she does talk about you a lot.¡±

    ¡°Right. I guess I¡¯ll head over there now then.¡±

    As Kyukyoku parted ways from Ayako with a wave, he walked down a dirt path. Walking through a shanty town of sorts, he finally reached the outskirts of town. A grassy field met him. Walking through the field, he listened to his bodies muscle memory to find his house. Sure enough, within ten minutes, he found the old house that used to shelter him. Opening the door, Kyukyoku peeked inside.

    ¡°Make?¡±

    Silence greeted him.

    ¡°I wonder where she¡¯s at?¡±

    After a few hours of waiting at the table, Kyukyoku realised she wouldn¡¯t be home for the night for whatever reason. Kyukyoku reluctantly scribbled on a piece of paper the words:

    Make,

    Stopped by earlier, but you weren¡¯t home. I¡¯ll see you after my mission here.

    ~Kyukyoku

    Leaving the note on the table, Kyukyoku left the old house for his hotel.

    <hr>

    ¡°Alright! Let¡¯s get this over with!¡±

    The morning sun glared in Kyukyoku¡¯s face as he walked with his troop. Crossing a bridge, they wandered through a forest. The squad leader held up his fist. Everyone stopped.

    ¡°We¡¯re very close. Remember, try to detain anyone you find, but lethal force is authorized if they attempt to fight back. Back each other up. Lives are always more important than the mission. Let¡¯s go.¡±

    The squad quietly rushed up the forest to a large cliff. In the face of the cliff was a cave.

    ¡°Now!¡±

    The squad rushed down the cave. They were soon greeted by cult members who were caught off guard. The squad hastily captured a handful, but the cult members soon began to retaliate. Kyukyoku became swarmed. After using his Sirushi Inochi, which killed the people surrounding him, he looked around to see if anyone needed help. Thankfully, everyone was still alive. One woman was wounded, but was still alive. A medic quickly began to heal her.

    ¡°Come on! We must keep moving before they destroy any research!¡±

    As the squad pushed farther down the cave, the light was gradually disappearing, soon making things too dark to see. The only lights present were the glow of Sirushi Inochi¡¯s. As bodies began to pile on the floor, exhaustion also became prevalent in the squad.

    ¡°They¡¯re coming out of the woodwork!¡±

    ¡°We need to keep pushing!¡±

    The squad eventually found themselves in a small room with tables and papers. In the walls were blue orbs that emitted light. After clearing the room of the cult members, the squad leader began to sift through the papers scattered on the desk.

    ¡°We have what we¡¯re looking for!¡±

    ¡°But Sir, the cave goes farther!¡±

    The squad leader looked at the papers, then at the tunnel that led farther down.

    ¡°Someone start compiling those notes, then seal them onto me! The rest of us will push forward!¡±

    Rushing down the tunnel led to a large room. A staircase led up to a pedestal with a box on it.

    ¡°Everyone hold. I¡¯ll check this out. Be prepared for anything.¡±

    As the leader walked up the staircase, he took a deep breath. As his hands trembled, he slowly opened the box to find there was nothing inside.

    ¡°Alright everyone, let¡¯s go!¡±

    <hr>

    After climbing back up the tunnel, the squad was collectively fatigued.

    ¡°Good work everyone. Unfortunately, once you guys wash yourselves and grab a bite to eat, we need to head back. Once we reach HQ, you can all rest.¡±

    Although the squad was still breathing heavily, it was clear that the group wanted to sigh.

    <hr>

    As they reached their hotels, one of the members ran up to him.

    ¡°Sir, I¡¯ve finished compiling the notes!¡±

    ¡°Great. Come in my room and you can seal them onto me.¡±

    Kyukyoku walked into his hotel and bathed himself. Meeting his comrades in the cafeteria for lunch, they began to satisfy their hunger. As Kyukyoku ate, he felt a hand place itself firmly on his shoulder. It was a couple of the snickering men.

    ¡°Hey, Kyukyoku. I wanted to apologize for how I was acting. You were more prepared than us, and even saved a few of the other guys, so thank you.¡±

    Kyukyoku waved awkwardly.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine, and I was just doing my part.¡±

    One of the men shook Kyukyoku¡¯s hand.

    ¡°It was an honor working with you, and I hope to collaborate more in the future!¡±

    Kyukyoku nervously laughed.

    <hr>

    As the group marched down a very familiar path, the large compound that housed its members was in view.

    ¡°Everyone, come with me to meet with the director.¡±

    As the group walked down countless corridors, they found themselves at the director¡¯s office. After the leader knocked, the squad heard a faint ¡®come in.¡¯ Walking into the large office, the squad kneeled before the director.

    ¡°What news have you brought me, Takuchi?¡±

    The squad leader stood up.

    ¡°Upon entering the hideout, we were met with a strong resistance. We successfully managed to capture a few cult members, but they later took their own lives using what we assume was poison hidden in their teeth. We found their research and compiled it. Here are the original documents.¡±

    A squad member gently set a large case on the director¡¯s desk, then kneeled back with the squad. The director opened the case and began to skim over the papers.

    ¡°Very interesting.¡±

    ¡°We ventured further into the hideout and found this box on a pedestal. We are currently unsure of what it does, but we do not think it is safe to assume that it is harmless.¡±

    Another member walked to the director¡¯s desk and sat the box down, then returned.

    ¡°Great work, Takuchi. You and your comrades deserve a good rest. I will gather everyone in the courtyard tonight at dusk, so until then feel free to rest.¡±

    ¡°Thank you, Director Akahishi.¡±

    ¡°Dismissed.¡±

    As the squad shut the doors behind them, they seemingly sighed and cheered at the same time in relief.

    ¡°We did it! Let¡¯s all celebrate with some drinks!¡±

    As the group began to walk away, Kyukyoku turned to walk towards his room. The squad leader grabbed his shoulder.

    ¡°You don¡¯t wanna get a drink?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not old enough. Besides, I need to look into some stuff.¡±

    As Kyukyoku began to walk away, Takuchi stopped him once more.

    ¡°Hey, Kyukyoku?¡±

    Kyukyoku turned around.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know if you knew some of the people down there, but you did very well. I know that people were looking down on you, but I allowed it so you could learn from it. You are a great comrade, and I think we¡¯ll soon be peers.¡±

    ¡°Thank you, Sir.¡±

    <hr>

    As night began to fall upon the compound, a horn was played to signal that everyone meet in the courtyard. As they did so, everyone was greeted with a stage with the box on it. Someone hit Kyukyoku¡¯s shoulder. It was Takuchi.

    ¡°Hey, Kyukyoku. Do you think he discovered something?¡±

    ¡°Not sure, but it must be important if he called us all here.¡±

    From the front of the stage, some shouted ¡®Quiet!¡¯ Once all sound was killed, the director walked onto the stage. As he waved to everyone that had gathered, people began to cheer.

    ¡°Hello everyone! Tonight, we have some very important news. Thanks to the work of Takuchi¡¯s team earlier this morning, we have successfully destroyed the cult that was experimenting with souls! We have carefully examined their research, and as we speak, we are determining if there is any way to save more souls in the future.¡±

    Cheers echoed throughout the courtyard.

    ¡°What?¡±

    Kyukyoku looked over to Takuchi, who was rubbing his chin.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Sir?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve gone over the notes several times, but it only speaks of destroying the soul to empower another. It¡¯s like adding wood to a fire, essentially. So what is the director talking about?¡±

    As the director held up his hand, silence once again overcame the crowd.

    ¡°More importantly is this box that sits before you. This previously unknown artifact was also brought back by Takuchi¡¯s team. We have discovered what it can do, and let me tell you, it is magnificent!¡±

    ¡°I should¡¯ve been notified if anything was found out, so what was it?¡±

    ¡°Tonight, we will put the cult¡¯s research to good use, and we will all become stronger!¡±

    ¡°Kyukyoku, we need to go.¡±

    The director put his hand on the box, then opened the lid. A purple ring pulsed out, and swept the floor. Immediately after, a sphere began to form itself around the box, then it slowly engulfed the stage. Murmurs were heard throughout the courtyard.

    ¡°Kyukyoku, come on!¡±

    As the sphere began to touch the people in the courtyard, they fell over dead. Screams began to echo throughout the compound and people began to try to run away, but they were locked in.

    ¡°Kyukyoku!¡±

    Kyukyoku hurriedly followed Takuchi to a window. As they attempted to force it open, Takuchi shook his head and grabbed Kyukyoku.

    ¡°I¡¯m giving you the seal with all of the research. You need to go and stop this madness!¡±

    Before Kyukyoku could respond, Takuchi was already burning something into Kyukyoku¡¯s arm. Without a moment¡¯s notice, Takuchi slid his arm down the window and swung it open. The sphere was meters away. Grabbing Kyukyoku by the face, Takuchi threw him into the room he had made, then shut the window behind him.

    ¡°Good luck, Jinsei no Hogo.¡±

 Chapter 37 - The Ultimate

    Kyukyoku landed on his back with an oof. As he sat up, the window he fell through slammed shut.

    ¡°What the hell just happened?¡±

    After attempting to open the window with no success, Kyukyoku turned around. He was in a large white room, and in the middle was a chair. Next to the chair was a cart with a cover over it. Kyukyoku grabbed one end of the cover and pulled it off, revealing a bowl of ink and a needle.

    ¡°What the¡­¡±

    Underneath the needle was a paper. Upon inspecting the paper, Kyukyoku noticed that it was a drawing of a right forearm with a spring-like tattoo.

    ¡°This is¡­¡±

    Kyukyoku dipped his hand into the ink, then grabbed the needle. Sitting himself in the chair, Kyukyoku began to fiercely stab himself with the needle.

    <hr>

    After a few hours, Kyukyoku stood up from the chair.

    ¡°That¡¯s a lot harder to do yourself.¡±

    Wrapping the cloth that had covered the cart around his bleeding arm, Kyukyoku walked to the window and placed his right hand against it.

    ¡°You¡¯re mine, Director!¡±

    Falling through the window, Kyukyoku landed into a field of grass. Picking himself up off of the ground, Kyukyoku scanned his surroundings to find he was standing in front of his old house. After taking a deep breath, Kyukyoku tried to open the door again, but this time he found himself in his hotel room. A lady walked into the room with only a towel. Once she saw the apparent criminal in her room, she screamed and began to throw nearby objects at him.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry! I¡¯m sorry!¡±

    Kyukyoku quickly opened the door again. This time, he found himself in Akahishi¡¯s office.

    ¡°Finally¡­ It¡¯s time I kill that bastard.¡±

    Creeping to the courtyard, Kyukyoku stepped over the bodies of a few people. As he stepped over another body, he noticed that it was the man who apologized to him. He was clutching a picture of him, a beautiful woman, and a small child. Closing his fallen comrade¡¯s eyelids, Kyukyoku carried on. Finally reaching the entrance of the courtyard, Kyukyoku peeked around the corner. Hundreds of bodies cluttered the ground, all of them faces Kyukyoku knew. Fists clenched, Kyukyoku walked into the courtyard. Nothing greeted him except silence. A tear rolled down his face. Kyukyoku wiped his face and walked to the stage. On it still sat the box. Looking inside of it, Kyukyoku saw it was still empty.

    ¡°Guess this really wasn¡¯t part of the big picture¡­¡±

    Looking down at his left forearm, Kyukyoku remembered about the research that Takuchi had given him. Sliding his right two fingers down the seal, his mind became flooded with information.

    ¡°Hmm¡­ I see...  So that¡¯s what he was planning! I need to get back to the cave before it¡¯s too late!¡±

    Sliding his hand down the nearest window, Kyukyoku leapt through.

    <hr>

    Kyukyoku found himself in the middle of a meadow. In the distance, Sylphera¡¯s cityscape blended in with the starry sky.

    ¡°I think the cave is in this direction!¡±

    Blindly running into the forest, Kyukyoku finally found himself standing in front of mouth of the cave. Gulping, Kyukyoku darted down. The deeper he went, the darker it got. Eventually, he found himself in a room that glowed with a blue light. Gritting his teeth, Kyukyoku walked into the large room. Akahishi was meditating on top of the pedestal.

    ¡°Ah, Kyukyoku! How nice of you to finally show up.¡±

    ¡°Director¡­ Why?¡±

    ¡°Why? But I thought Takuchi gave you all of our notes. Why don¡¯t you tell me why you think I did this, hm?¡±

    ¡°You collected the most powerful souls and stored them all inside of your own, amplifying your own power.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right! Now all that¡¯s left¡­¡±

    Akahishi turned to face Kyukyoku. His eyes were both black with jagged red lines running down them in place of pupils.

    ¡°...is to take your soul, Jinsei no Hogo!¡±

    Akahishi seemed to disappear instantly, and before Kyukyoku could realize what was happening, Akahishi punched him from behind, sending him forward into the opposite wall. Before Kyukyoku could stand up, Akahishi had already grabbed the back of his head and slammed it back into the ground.

    ¡°You know what? I may as well just kill you. That way I get to murder you and I get your gift.¡±

    ¡°Director!¡±

    Akahishi turned to the doorway. Red hair flowed as Ayako stood in the doorway.

    ¡°You try to kill him, and I¡¯ll destroy your soul!¡±

    ¡°Right, I¡¯m sorry, Mistress.¡±

    ¡°If you were truly sorry, you would¡¯ve listened to my commands in the first place! Now knock him out!¡±

    Kyukyoku spit out blood.The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    ¡°Ayako? What¡¯s the meaning of this?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t you see? I¡¯m the leader of the cult.¡±

    Kyukyoku¡¯s vision darkened as something hit the back of his head.

    <hr>

    Slowly opening his eyes, Kyukyoku tried to move his hands and feet, but they were restrained to something. As his surroundings became clearer, Kyukyoku realized that he was tied to a pole. Next to him was Make, who was also tied to a pole.

    ¡°Make! Make, wake up!¡±

    Make remained unconscious on the pole. Ayako and Akahishi walked up the hill.

    ¡°Ah, you¡¯re awake? Great! Now you¡¯ll get to see us kill your sister!¡±

    ¡°What did you say?!¡±

    Ayako walked up to Make and placed her hand on Make¡¯s face.

    ¡°Yes¡­ This is a great body to inhabit.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll fucking kill you! Leave your hands off her!¡±

    Akahishi grabbed Kyukyoku¡¯s face and slammed his head against the pole. Feeling disoriented, Kyukyoku barely clung onto consciousness.

    ¡°First, I trade my body for my soul to enter this one¡­¡±

    Ayako¡¯s body suddenly collapsed to the ground. Make¡¯s head suddenly jerked up and her eyes fluttered open.

    ¡°Akahishi, cut these ropes off of me.¡±

    ¡°Right away, Mistress!¡±

    ¡°Ma...ke¡­.¡±

    After Akahishi cut the ropes off of Make¡¯s wrists, she rubbed them.

    ¡°Nice work tying that, it really hurt her. Now, for the main event!¡±

    Make placed her hand onto Akahishi¡¯s face.

    ¡°Thank you for your dedication, Akahishi. I¡¯ll be sure to leave your soul untampered.

    ¡°Bless you, Mistr-¡±

    Akahishi fell to the ground. Make rubbed her right hand.

    ¡°Your sister¡¯s soul for his¡­ What a great trade, don¡¯t you think?¡±

    Make placed her hand on Kyukyoku¡¯s face.

    ¡°Now, it¡¯s time for you to fall as well. Farewell, Kyukyoku.¡±

    Kyukyoku felt his soul begin to be tugged out of his body. Suddenly, Make¡¯s hand jerked up, breaking the ropes that bound Kyukyoku.

    ¡°What the hell?!¡±

    Kyukyoku chuckled.

    ¡°It seems as though your souls are protesting against it.¡±

    Kyukyoku grabbed the needle that he had used earlier and stabbed himself in the hand. Ink pooled around his palm, and formed a thick ring that was connected by smooth curves to a surrounding thin ring. As Make lunged at Kyukyoku, Kyukyoku grabbed her wrist and twisted her arm behind her back. Grabbing the back of her head, Kyukyoku grabbed at the souls in her.

    ¡°Fortunately, I can leave your soul alone. As for Akahishi, he has to be sealed away.¡±

    Sweating, Kyukyoku poured life essence into Make, and in response, a red crystal forced itself out her palm, bouncing off the ground with a low ringing noise.

    ¡°Now to save Make!¡±

    ¡°You¡­ you can¡¯t!¡±

    ¡°My soul and body to remove you and put her back!¡±

    Kyukyoku¡¯s body fell onto the red crystal, absorbing it into his skin. Make¡¯s body collapsed as well.

    <hr>

    A blinding white fog filled Kyukyoku¡¯s vision.

    ¡°Shit¡­ Did I die again?¡±

    ¡°Not necessarily.¡±

    Kyukyoku turned around to see The Creator standing before him.

    ¡°What do you mean? I gave up my body and soul to save my sister!¡±

    ¡°Yes, but you also stole the souls of hundreds of people. Would you like to use those to save your sister?¡±

    Kyukyoku gritted his teeth.

    ¡°As much as I¡¯d like to, I can¡¯t do that. They¡¯re still people, and if my duty is to protect them, that includes their souls.¡±

    The Creator smiled.

    ¡°Good answer. For completing your duty as Jinsei no Hogo, I will gift you something. But this gift, much like your previous one, does not come without cost. Will you accept it?¡±

    Kyukyoku nodded.

    ¡°Great. The soul of your sister will return to her body, and she will have no recollection of what occurred in the past few hours. The soul of Akahishi, which includes all of the souls he had absorbed, will remain sealed within your body. As for the bodies of you and Ayako, they will be sent to drift into time. The souls of you and Ayako will also drift into time.¡±

    ¡°What does all of that mean? Our souls and bodies will drift into time?¡±

    ¡°Yes. I am afraid I cannot make it anymore simple.¡±

    ¡°May I ask to alter my sister¡¯s memories?¡±

    ¡°Hmm?¡±

    ¡°If I¡¯m destined to float throughout time, there¡¯s no reason to have her worry about me. I¡¯d like to replace all of her memories of my letters to those of someone else.¡±

    ¡°To do this, I must take something more from you.¡±

    ¡°Whatever it is, take it.¡±

    ¡°Very well. Goodbye, Jinsei no Hogo.¡±

    ¡°Goodbye. Thank you for allowing me to visit.¡±

    <hr>

    Opening his eyes, Kyukyoku sat up in a bed. Wiping his face, he took a deep breath.

    ¡°Seems like my soul finally found a body.¡±

    Shoving the covers of his blanket off of him, he walked to a mirror and examined his face.

    ¡°Not too shabby, guy. Gotta hand it to ya, this is a nice body. Now let¡¯s see if we can¡¯t find a calendar¡­¡±

    Walking through his new house, Kyukyoku found a paper hanging on his wall.

    ¡°There¡¯s no way¡­¡±

    Kyukyoku slid on his shoes and ran out of the door.

    After miles of running, he finally saw Sylphera.

    ¡°It really is the same time period!¡±

    Running even faster than before, followed another dirt road out of Sylphera. Running along it for some time, he saw a large house being constructed. Approaching it, he saw Make walk outside of an uncompleted room. Taking off her hard hat, she withdrew a canteen of water and drank from it. She turned and looked at Kyukyoku. Eyes widening, Make smiled and dropped her canteen to run towards Kyukyoku.

    ¡°Make!¡±

    Embracing each other in a tight hug, Make clutched onto Kyukyoku dearly.

    ¡°Jitsu! It¡¯s been far too long!¡±

    Kyukyoku pushed Make off of him for a moment.

    ¡°¡®Jitsu¡¯?¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Jitsubutsu? I thought you were okay with me calling you that.¡±

    ¡°I guess I did ask him to alter her memories¡­¡±

    Kyukyoku embraced his sister once more.

    ¡°Right, Jitsu¡¯s fine.¡±

    Sniff

    ¡°Jitsu, why¡¯re you crying?¡±

    <hr>

    Jitsubutsu wiped the tears from his face. As the door in the alleyway creaked open, Jitsubutsu jumped up. Red hair flowed through the doorway. Shippai turned to face him.

    ¡°Ah, Jitsubutsu! So you finally came to die?¡±

    Jitsubutsu¡¯s eyebrows furrowed.

    ¡°You¡¯re Ayako, aren¡¯t you.¡±

    Shippai grinned.

    ¡°Ayako¡­ You¡¯ll die. If not with me, then with Yami.¡±

    Shippai formed a portal and reached her hand into it, withdrawing a knife.

    ¡°We¡¯ll see about that.¡±

    Shippai flung the knife at Jitsubutsu, who dodged it. Before he could react again, Shippai was already next to him. Sending life essence into his muscles, Jitsubutsu began to engage Shippai. Fists connected with one another as they swung at one another. Blood splattered against the wall. As Shippai swung, Jitsubutsu knocked her arms away from him.

    ¡°Gotcha!¡±

    Slamming his elbow towards her temple, Shippai grinned.

    ¡°Why is she¡­¡±

    ¡°Yaberu¡­¡±

    ¡°It can¡¯t be!¡±

    ¡°...Hagane!¡±

    Rikai drove her palms into Jitsubutsu in a flurry of rapid attacks. Blood began to pour out of every orifice in Jitsubutsu¡¯s body. Jitsubutsu¡¯s bones cracked as he tried to get up, making him fall over again. Shippai reached into a portal and withdrew a katana. Unable to move, Jitsubutsu laid on the ground as the katana drove itself through his chest.

    ¡°You were a fool for coming alone, Kyukyoku! Now I have killed the Jinsei no Hogo!¡±

    Shippai¡¯s grin slowly began to fade.

    ¡°Why aren¡¯t I getting stronger?!¡±

    Jitsubutsu coughed a little blood.

    ¡°I¡¯m no longer the Jinsei no Hogo. I lost that privilege when I took this body. All you¡¯ll get is that horrid soul removal Sirushi Inochi which you already have.¡±

    Shippai began to tremble in anger.

    ¡°No¡­ no¡­ this can¡¯t be¡­¡±

    Hands violently shaking, Shippai¡¯s face began to contort in frustration.

    ¡°No, it¡¯s because you aren¡¯t dead!¡±

    Shippai drew the katana from his chest and plunged it in and out several times.

    ¡°Good luck, Yami. It seems her mental state has weakened a little bit at least¡­¡±

    <hr>

    It was now night. Sloshing was heard as the blade went in and out of Jitsubutsu¡¯s chest. His eyes were drained of any life, leaving dried, dulled pupils. Shippai was sweating and shaking out of anger.

    ¡°You¡­ you¡­¡±

    Shippai screamed into the sky in agony.

    ¡°YOU WORTHLESS SON OF A BITCH!!!¡±

 Chapter 38 - The Beginning of the End

    As the door closed, Rikai walked down the staircase to see Yami staring at the door.

    ¡°What¡¯s up Yami? Where¡¯s Jitsubutsu at?¡±

    ¡°He said he was going to fight Shippai,¡± Yami turned to face Rikai. He wore a bittersweet smile. ¡°He said he¡¯s probably going to die.¡±

    ¡°And you let him go?! He¡¯s a Jinsei no Hogo! If she kills him, doesn¡¯t she become stronger?!¡±

    Yami shook his head.

    ¡°No, he wouldn¡¯t do something like that. There are two things that make me think he isn¡¯t the Jinsei no Hogo: One thing is that he has only used Phys. Mods..¡±

    ¡°...and the other?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m alive. There can only be one Jinsei no Hogo at a time, so he can¡¯t possibly be one.¡±

    ¡°I see. Well, let¡¯s hope he comes back and explains everything to us.¡±

    Yami looked down at the palm of his right hand, then back at Rikai.

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    Rikai¡¯s smile lit up.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get you some food now, ¡®kay?¡±

    <hr>

    As her cheeks began to get hot from the sunshine slipping through her blinds, Rikai opened her eyes. He long hair covered half of her face, and and she sat up, she brushed it aside with her hand. She looked over to the left side of the bed, but no one was there.

    ¡°Where is he?¡±

    Walking to the bathroom wearing only a long t-shirt, Rikai brushed her teeth and brushed her hair. As she opened the bathroom door once again, she heard the thumping of hammers. Walking down the stairs, she saw wood piled throughout the backyard.

    ¡°Yami?¡±

    As she finally reached the bottom of her stairs, she saw Ai, who greeted her with a smile and a wave.

    ¡°Good morning, Ms. Ikko!¡±

    As her face became redder than a ripe tomato, Rikai pulled her shirt down and ran back up the stairs. Yami peeked his head around the corner.

    ¡°Was that Rikai just now?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I think she had to go do something.¡±

    <hr>

    A few moments later, Rikai returned back down the stairs, this time wearing jeans and a better fitting shirt. As her eyes met Ai¡¯s once again, she quickly became embarrassed again and looked away.

    ¡°Hey, Rikai!¡±

    Rikai leaned outside and saw Yami cutting wood.

    ¡°Good morning. Who is he?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s my brother, Ai. I ran into him on my way to the park.¡±

    ¡°To the park?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I went and cut down some trees. You don¡¯t want a draft, do you?¡±

    Rikai facepalmed.

    ¡°Why couldn¡¯t you just go to the hardware store?¡±

    ¡°Well, this was free and it helped me train.¡±

    Yami became more serious.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

    ¡°Plus, you can¡¯t forget that I¡¯m still wanted by the police.¡±

    With a heave, Yami carried an enormous amount of wood over to Ai and dropped it next to him.

    ¡°And that¡¯s why I¡¯ll be leaving after I fix this up.¡±

    Rikai¡¯s eyes widened.

    ¡°What do you mean?! You just came back!¡±

    ¡°And look at what¡¯s happened! I was asleep for one day, and you almost died! If I¡¯m gonna be active, there¡¯ll only be more attacks! Not to mention the police will be wondering why you were harboring a criminal for seemingly seven months. What¡¯ll you do then?¡±

    ¡°But you haven¡¯t been here for seven months!¡±

    ¡°Then where was I? Another world? Come on, Rikai, you¡¯re too smart for this.¡±

    With a frown, Rikai walked into the kitchen. Ai looked over at Yami.

    ¡°Yami, that was a little harsh, don¡¯t you think?¡±

    Yami bit his lip, then walked into the house.

    ¡°That¡¯s the rest of the wood you should need. Can you finish up here, Ai?¡±

    ¡°Of course.¡±

    ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll go grab the money.¡±

    ¡°Yami, you really don¡¯t have to. We¡¯re family. Besides, I have your insurance money.¡±

    ¡°If that¡¯s fine with you then. I¡¯m gonna go run some errands. I¡¯ll be back in a couple hours.¡±

    ¡°Be safe!¡±

    <hr>

    Rocks flew threw the air as Shitto flung his shovel. In a hardhat and an orange vest, he dug a hole by the side of a road.

    ¡°Hey.¡±

    Hearing the familiar voice, Shitto turned to see Yami with his hands in his pockets. Anger filled his face.

    ¡°You¡­¡±

    Shitto gripped his shovel menacingly and approached Yami.

    ¡°Shitto, I¡¯m not here to fight. I¡¯m here to warn you.¡±

    ¡°I DON¡¯T WANT TO HEAR YOUR EXCUSES!¡±

    Pulling the shovel over his head, Shitto swung at Yami. As it came down, Yami shattered the wooden handle with ease and pushed Shitto to the ground in one fluid motion.

    ¡°Shippai is the enemy. She¡¯s planning something massive, and she¡¯s specifically after the Jinsei no Hogo.¡±

    ¡°So what?¡±

    ¡°It seems as though she has another power that is very similar to mine. She can learn other Sirushi Inochi by killing their users. This means you¡¯re at risk, too.¡±

    Shitto lunged at Yami with a screwdriver in hand. Yami caught his hand.

    ¡°Why¡¯re you telling me all of this?!¡±

    ¡°Because, you have to protect Rikai, too.¡±

    ¡°I knew it! You two have been fucking around behind my back! I¡¯ll never protect someone you love, Yami Shinpai!¡±

    Yami lightly gripped Shitto¡¯s wrist, but Shitto felt a near bone crushing pressure. Yami looked into his eyes and smiled.

    ¡°If you don¡¯t, I¡¯ll kill you before she can. That¡¯s a promise.¡±

    Shitto spit on Yami.

    ¡°Fuck. You.¡±

    ¡°C¡¯mon, pinky swear!¡±

    Yami gripped Shitto¡¯s pinky finger with his other hand and began to pull it towards the outside of his arm. Shitto began to scream in pain.

    ¡°Okay! Okay! I¡¯ll do it! But know it¡¯s because she¡¯s my friend!¡±

    Yami shoved Shitto back into the dirt.

    ¡°Don¡¯t bother calling the cops either, Shitto. I¡¯ll already be long gone.¡±

    As Yami disappeared down the road, Shitto clenched his fists and pounded at the ground in agony.

    ¡°YOU SON OF A BITCH!¡±

    <hr>

    Feeling his phone buzzing, Ai set down his hammer and reached into his pocket, withdrawing his phone.

    ¡°Hello?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s Reikoku. Where are you?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m at Ms. Ikko¡¯s house right now.¡±

    ¡°Ikko? You mean Yami¡¯s friend? Why?¡±

    ¡°Her house was damaged and I¡¯m doing repairs.¡±

    ¡°How did you find out about this?¡±

    ¡°I ran into Yami on my jog.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m calling the police right now.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t, he already left, and it¡¯ll be harder on Ms. Ikko.¡±

    ¡°Whatever you say, Ai. I¡¯m still going to call the-¡±

    Windows shattered in the background.

    ¡°Reikoku?! Are you alright?!¡±

    Reikoku let out a bloodcurdling scream.

    ¡°REIKOKU!!!¡±

    Ai heard Reikoku¡¯s phone drop onto the ground. Moments later, he heard her whimpering and pleading for her life, then a gurgling sound. The silence.

    ¡­

    After 30 seconds, the phone was rustled. It was Shippai¡¯s chilling voice.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be over soon, Ai.¡±

    As the dial tone was heard, Ai began to tremble. Rikai walked outside with a sandwich on a plate and a glass of water.

    ¡°Hey, I made you some lunch, so why don¡¯t you take a brea- Ai? What¡¯s wrong?¡±

    Setting down the food, Rikai ran up to Ai.

    ¡°Hey, what happened?¡±

    Trying to set her hand on his shoulder, she was swatted away by Ai.

    ¡°Ai?¡±

    ¡°Rikai, I¡¯m so sorry. You need to get out of here, now!¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°She coming! You need to go before she gets here!¡±

    ¡°Shippai?!¡±

    ¡°Yes! Go! Now!¡±

    Before Rikai could turn to run, she felt a chill behind her. As she slowly turned around, she saw Shippai¡¯s red hair, then the blade of a knife penetrate her abdomen. Looking down, she saw her shirt become darker around the wound. As she touched it, she felt the warm, wet sensation that was her blood. Looking up again, she saw Shippai¡¯s bloodthirsty grin.

    ¡°You bastard!¡±

    Ai swung his hammer at Shippai, but Shippai sidestepped, then drove another knife into the side of his neck. As Ai fell to the ground and clenched his neck, he silently cursed himself for not saving Rikai.

    ¡°Now all that¡¯s left is Shitto. After that, everyone Yami loves will be dead.¡±

    Trembling in pain and fear, Rikai put bother of her hands on the knife that stuck out of her. Falling to her knees, she began to pull it out.

    ¡°Oh, you¡¯re still alive, Rikai?¡±

    Tears ran down her face in anger and pain.

    ¡°You bitch¡­ Yami loved you, too!¡±

    Shippai looked at Rikai with disgust.

    ¡°Say, Rikai, you¡¯re not a Pubi¨¤n Fanxiang, are you?¡±

    Rikai¡¯s face contorted in anger.

    ¡°You know, when you become a Pubi¨¤n Fanxiang, you become stronger. Who knows, you may even find the power to beat me! You know what, I¡¯m feeling generous today. I¡¯ll give you one shot to become a Pubi¨¤n Fanxiang.¡±

    Rikai completely withdrew the knife from herself, causing her to cough up blood.

    ¡°You know what you have to do, right?¡±

    Tears mixing with her blood, Rikai took the knife and drove it towards herself.

    ¡°RIKAI!!!¡±

 Chapter 39 - Amnesia

    ¡­

    ¡°What is this?¡±

    Looking around, Rikai saw nothing but a sheet of white fog.

    ¡°You are the friend of the Jinsei no Hogo, correct?¡±

    Rikai spun around and saw the silhouette of a man.

    <hr>

    ¡°RIKAI!!¡±

    A purple axe shattered the knife that Rikai held moments before she would¡¯ve stabbed herself.

    ¡°S-Shitto¡­¡±

    Rikai collapsed as she continued to bleed. Shitto rolled Rikai onto her back. Rikai was breathing heavily and blood constantly spilled onto the ground. Shitto¡¯s arms tensed up as he stood up to face Shippai.

    ¡°You bitch¡­ what do you think you¡¯re doing?! We¡¯re a team!¡±

    Shippai¡¯s face was expressionless.

    ¡°Shitto, from the very beginning I told Posche I wasn¡¯t your guys¡¯ friend or teammate. You should¡¯ve saw the look on his face when I killed him!¡±

    Shitto¡¯s eyes contracted and his legs began to quiver.

    ¡°You¡­ killed him?¡±

    Shippai continued to laugh hysterically.

    ¡°At first, he was shocked, but then when he remembered what I said, he allowed me to finish him! He was worthless!¡±

    Shitto¡¯s eyes twitched as he began to remember the fight.

    ¡°No.. no, they broke through the glass! We barely made it out!¡±

    Shippai stopped laughing.

    ¡°What¡¯re you on about?¡±

    ¡°We were all watching Yami! He killed them all!¡±

    ¡°Did you hit your head? How do you think you ended up in the hospital afterwards?¡±

    Shitto saw his sword cutting through people. Then as he laid on the hospital bed, Rikai walked away. He clawed at his face as snot and tears began to ooze.

    ¡°No¡­ I killed them! I killed my family! Yami didn¡¯t do anything¡­¡±

    Shippai walked up to Shitto.

    ¡°You really aren¡¯t part of this anymore. Be gone.¡±

    Shippai drove the knife in her hand towards Shitto¡¯s stomach. Shitto grabbed her arm. HIs eyes became determined.

    ¡°I made a promise to my best friend, and I sure as hell won¡¯t let him down now when it matters most!¡±

    Shippai swung at him with the other hand, slicing his cheek.

    ¡°You sure talk big, but you don¡¯t understand how far behind you are!¡±

    As Shippai continued to deal blow after blow, Shitto consistently blocked each attack. After receiving a few cuts to his arms and legs, Shitto sent life essence into all of his limbs, launching an all out offensive. As he sent a flurry of axe swings, Shippai continued to block them. Her grin grew wider.

    ¡°She¡¯s too fast¡­ I need to give it everything I got right now!¡±

    Shitto sent one more axe swing downward, forcing Shippai to make a temporary retreat. Shitto¡¯s breathing became shallow as life essence crawled down his other hand, forming a sword. With a scream, Shitto rushed Shippai. His speed increased tenfold. As Shippai attempted to block an attack, the life essence that formed his sword hardened, shattering the blade that Shippai held. As Shitto finished his onslaught, his blades crashed into the ground, stirring up a cloud of dust.

    ¡°I used up all of my life essence¡­ No one could¡¯ve survived that¡­¡±

    Shippai¡¯s hand reached through the dust, grabbing Shitto¡¯s collar. He hurriedly swung at it with his sword, but she withdrew her hand. Before Shitto even stopped his first attack, she was already behind him.

    ¡°Her speed! She was holding back that much?!¡±

    As she withdrew a knife from a void, Shitto prepared for his death.

    ¡°Shitto! Jump!¡±

    Shitto followed the voice¡¯s instructions. As he jumped, however, he flew higher than the roof of Rikai¡¯s house.Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

    ¡°My Phys. Mods are enhanced!¡±

    As he began to fall back down, he saw Yami. Shippai smiled.

    ¡°How nice of you to join us, Yami. We were just saying our goodbyes.¡±

    ¡°Ayako.¡±

    Shippai¡¯s smile faded, and her pupils contracted.

    ¡°What did you just say?¡±

    ¡°Your name is Ayako, not Shippai.¡±

    Shippai¡¯s eyes twitched in fury.

    ¡°Don¡¯t call me by that name!¡±

    Shippai lunged at Yami, who blocked her attack with his arm. Yami gripped his knife, and it grew as he slashed at Shippai, who avoided the attack by jumping into the house.

    ¡°Who¡¯d have thought your body and soul would both be reconnected!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m Shippai!¡±

    Shippai threw three knives at Yami, but as he blocked them, they exploded, sending Yami backwards into the fence.

    ¡°Ayako, you bitch!¡±

    As the cloud from the explosion dissipated, it was clear that Shippai had left. Shitto slid off of the roof and pointed into the house.

    ¡°C¡¯mon! We need to find her!¡±

    ¡°Where¡¯s Rikai?!¡±

    Shitto pointed to the ground where Rikai laid. Her breathing was irregular and spaced apart.

    ¡°What the hell happened?!¡±

    ¡°She fucking stabbed her! Then she was telling Rikai that she should become a Pubi¨¤n Fanxiang, and Rikai was trying to stab herself!¡±

    Yami picked up Rikai.

    ¡°Did she do it?!¡±

    ¡°No, I think I stopped her in time¡­ Hey, where are you going?!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m taking her to a friend! She¡¯s the only one that can help her!¡±

    Yami walked over the corpse of his brother, then kicked in a door in Rikai¡¯s house, opening into Make¡¯s house.

    ¡°Make! Are you here?!¡±

    The vacant house echoed Yami¡¯s shouts. Yami nodded towards a table.

    ¡°Hey, make space!¡±

    Shitto cleared off the table, after which Yami set Rikai down.

    ¡°Where is it¡­¡±

    Yami began to rummage through drawers until he found a large, green book. Opening it, he searched around until he found some strange purple leaves, which he handed to Shitto.

    ¡°Crush them and make a tea out of them.¡±

    As Shitto made the tea, Yami went to work on Rikai¡¯s body, rubbing a strange yellow paste on some damaged organs, then stitching her skin.

    ¡°Is that tea done?!¡±

    Shitto hurriedly gave Yami the tea, who tilted Rikai¡¯s head up and slowly poured the warm liquid into her mouth, which she graciously swallowed. With each gulp, more color returned to her face. Once the tea was finished, Yami gently laid Rikai¡¯s head back down, then wiped the sweat off of his forehead.

    ¡°Watch her, and make sure she¡¯s alright. I have to find Make.¡±

    ¡°O-Okay¡­¡±

    Yami bolted out of the door towards Sylphera.

    <hr>

    About 20 minutes later, the door swung wide open. Make entered the room, and behind her was Yami.

    ¡°This is the girl you were talking about?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Shitto walked away from the table the Rikai laid on, allowing Make to properly assess the situation.

    ¡°Nice thinking with the tea, that should¡¯ve replaced any blood lost, but why did you only glue her organs together?¡±

    ¡°I couldn¡¯t think of anything else¡­¡±

    ¡°They¡¯ll be separated soon. Cut some stalk off of the orange plant behind the house and powder it.¡±

    Yami followed Make¡¯s orders and left the house. Working fiercely, Make opened Rikai¡¯s wound and assured that was all that needed to be done. She looked at Shitto, who was standing in the corner of the room.

    ¡°Nice to meet you! I¡¯m Make!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m Shitto¡­¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll properly introduce ourselves once she is taken care of.¡±

    Yami handed Make the powder.

    ¡°Thanks. Go rest for now, I¡¯m sure you need it.¡±

    ¡°No, I¡¯ll stay in case you need something else.¡±

    Make looked at Yami for a moment, then shook her head and continued the operation. After applying the powder and stitching Rikai up again, Make washed her hands and grabbed a wet washcloth. After a moment, she waved her hand.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to wash her, so you two leave.¡±

    Yami and Shitto walked towards the river behind Make¡¯s house. Looking at it, Yami had shivers sent down his spine.

    ¡°So this is where this body was born¡­¡±

    ¡°Yami, my memories came back.¡±

    Yami continued to look at the river, which peacefully flowed.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for what I said to you, but why did you do that?¡±

    ¡°Do what? Put all the blame on myself?¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡±

    Yami turned to face Shitto.

    ¡°What do you want me to say?¡±

    ¡°Yami, we¡¯re brothers. Don¡¯t pull that shit again.¡±

    ¡°Shitto, once Rikai¡¯s better, I need you two to go anywhere but back there. Until I deal with Shippai, it¡¯ll be too dangerous for you guys.¡±

    ¡°What did I just say?!¡±

    ¡°This isn¡¯t a matter of our bond, it¡¯s a matter of she¡¯s too strong for the two of us! Besides, we don¡¯t have a teacher now.¡±

    Shitto looked Yami in the eyes.

    ¡°Yami, Shippai was the one.¡±

    ¡±What?¡±

    ¡°Shippai killed Posche.¡±

    Yami closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

    ¡°I had figured out that much once I realized she was using his Sirushi Inochi.¡±

    ¡°Wait¡­ now that I think about it, how is she able to do that?¡±

    ¡°Long story short, she¡¯s like me, but flipped around. Instead of saving people, she kills them. If she kills someone, she instantly gains mastery over their Sirushi Inochi, hence her large arsenal.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s crazy! How are we supposed to beat that?!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m trying to figure out!¡± Yami¡¯s scream tore through the air.

    Make approached Shitto and Yami.

    ¡°I¡¯m done. If you guys could move her into my bed upstairs, that¡¯d be a big help.¡±

    ¡°She can stay in mine.¡±

    After carrying Rikai up the stairs and into the bedroom that Yami slept in, they shut the door behind them. Make pointed to a door down the hall.

    ¡°Shitto, you can sleep in there.¡±

    ¡°Alright, I¡¯m going to bed. See you guys in the morning!¡±

    Make turned to Yami.

    ¡°Yami, where do you plan on sleeping?¡±

    ¡°Make, I need to talk with you.¡±

    Make raised an eyebrow.

    ¡°Okay, c¡¯mon.¡±

    Yami followed Make into her room, shutting the door. Make sat on her bed, and Yami pulled up a chair from her desk.

    ¡°Is it okay if we talk about your little brother?¡±

    Make closed her eyes and smiled.

    ¡°He was so sweet. If it weren¡¯t for him, I don¡¯t think I¡¯d be here.¡±

    Yami pulled a picture off of her desk.

    ¡°Is this him?¡±

    Make gently took the picture from Yami¡¯s hand and caressed the picture with one hand.

    ¡°He¡¯s so adorable, isn¡¯t he?¡±

    ¡°Make, where did you meet Jitsubutsu?¡±

    ¡°Shortly after my brother passed, he stopped by the house, offering his condolences and helped to ease the pain.¡±

    Yami reached out his hand and held Make¡¯s.

    ¡°Make, Jitsubutsu was Kyukyoku.¡±

    Make¡¯s eyes widened.

    ¡°W-What do you mean?¡±

    ¡°When Kyukyoku gave his life to save yours, his soul was ripped from his body and placed into someone who had recently died. He wasn¡¯t the first Jinsei no Hogo, he was your little brother.¡±

    Tears dripped onto Yami¡¯s hands as Make sniffled.

    ¡°Where..sniff...is he?¡±

    ¡°He¡­ was killed¡­¡±

    Make began to sob, wrapping her arms around Yami, who let her cry into his shoulder.

 Chapter 40 - Nightmares

    ¡°One more time¡­¡±

    Yami¡¯s eyes jutted open as he felt a tug on his arm. Rikai¡¯s hand was tugging at his sleeves. Uncrossing his arms, Yami stood up from the wooden chair he was sleeping in and walked close to Rikai.

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    ¡°Wa.. wat¡­¡±

    ¡°Water?¡±

    Rikai nodded her head and Yami patted her hand back onto her bed.

    ¡°Be right back.¡±

    Yami exited her room and walked down the dark hallway and down the stairs, finding himself in the kitchen. Grabbing a glass from one of the cabinets, Yami filled it about halfway from the sink. Walking back up the stairs, he noticed that Make¡¯s door was cracked open.

    ¡°I wonder what she¡¯s doing this time of night?¡±

    Yami continued down the hall to find that Rikai¡¯s door was open, and the girl in question was missing.

    ¡°What the hell? Rikai?¡±

    Setting the water onto the night table next to her bed, he walked back into the hallway towards Make¡¯s room. He lightly knocked on the door.

    ¡°Make, you in there?¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°I¡¯m coming in¡­¡±

    Yami slowly opened the door. Make¡¯s bed was empty.

    ¡°Make?¡±

    As Yami walked in, he heard the floor on the other side of the bed creak.

    ¡°Hey, you alright?!¡±

    Yami walked around to the other side of the bed. He suddenly froze and his breathing slowed yet became more shaky alongside his body.

    ¡°What.. what¡¯re you doing, Rikai?¡±

    Rikai laid on the floor with her hands on a knife that was lodged in her stomach.

    ¡°Hey! This isn¡¯t funny!¡±

    Yami crouched down and rolled Rikai onto her back and began to examine her. Her eyes were lifeless and her body was cold.

    ¡°How did this happen,¡± Yami whispered to himself? As Yami shook his head in desperation, he snuck a glance under Make¡¯s bed. His eyes widened in horror and he threw up onto Rikai¡¯s corpse. Wiping his mouth, Yami reluctantly reached underneath the bed and gripped something fleshy. Dragging it out with his eyes closed, a sloshing sound reverberated throughout the room. Feeling the object bump into him, Yami opened his eyes and choked on his own screams. Make had multiple stab wounds all over her body.

    ¡°W-wha¡­¡±

    Blood came out of Yami¡¯s mouth and he tumbled over.

    A tear rolled down his cheek as he saw Rikai walk out of the room with a knife in her hand.

    <hr>

    Yami¡¯s eyes jutted open as he felt a tug on his arm. Rikai¡¯s hand was tugging at his sleeves. Throwing her hand off of him, Yami knocked over the chair as he quickly stood up.

    ¡°Wa¡­ water¡­¡±

    Yami¡¯s eye twitched, but he soon shook his head.

    ¡°It was all just a dream after all¡­¡±

    ¡°Yeah, one second.¡±

    Yami began down the hallway, but quickly paused.

    ¡°Just in case¡­¡±

    Yami turned around and locked Rikai¡¯s room, then carefully opened Make¡¯s room. Yami immediately let out a sigh of relief as he saw Make calmly sleeping in her bed. As he locked the door, Yami turned around to see Rikai¡¯s face less than an inch away from his.

    ¡°Rikai?¡±

    ¡°But I locked her room! I should¡¯ve heard it!¡±

    As Yami attempted to look down for an attack, he was distracted by Rikai¡¯s kiss. As her tongue entered his mouth, he tried to push her off, but Rikai only pushed herself onto him harder. Her saliva was starting to fill his mouth.

    ¡°She¡¯s never like this¡­ what the hell is going on?¡±

    Suddenly, Yami began to feel weak.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on? My arms are feeling so heavy¡­¡±

    As Rikai let herself off of Yami, her tongue erotically remained outside of her mouth. This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

    ¡°Wait, this¡­ isn¡¯t her¡­ spit¡­¡±

    Yami fell onto the ground limply as foam poured out his mouth.

    <hr>

    Yami¡¯s eyes jutted open as he felt a tug on his arm. Rikai¡¯s hand was tugging at his sleeves. Yami began to breathe irregularly.

    ¡°Wa¡­ water¡­¡±

    Yami grabbed Rikai¡¯s hand and pulled her up from the bed. She could hardly stand.

    ¡°Ya...mi?¡±

    ¡°No more chances. You¡¯re coming with me.¡±

    Practically dragging Rikai down the hall, she pawed at him with her free hand in an attempt to get loose. As they reached the stairs, Rikai cautiously stepped down them, but Yami did not slow, causing her to tumble down the stairs. Letting out a high pitch squeal similar to that of a dog being kicked, Yami ran over to the cabinet and grabbed a glass. Filling it with water, he ran over to Rikai who was silently crying on the floor.

    ¡°Rikai, quick! Drink this!¡±

    Rikai shakingly reached for the glass, but as Yami let go, she dropped it to the floor, shattering it.

    ¡°Damn it!¡±

    Rikai cowered in fear as Yami yelled. Yami raced to the cabinets once again, and within a moment was back with Rikai. Using his free hand, he held her back upright, then placed the glass against her lips.

    ¡°Here we go.¡±

    Rikai opened her mouth and as Yami poured the water into her mouth, she graciously swallowed every drop. Once the glass was empty, Yami set it beside him and wrapped his arms around Rikai.

    ¡°Are you alright now? Please, tell me you¡¯re okay!¡±

    Rikai whimpered into his shoulder.

    ¡°Yami¡­ I¡¯m scared¡­ Help me¡­¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s alright now. We can stay just like this until you get better.¡±

    ¡°Yami! Help me!¡±

    Yami spit blood onto Rikai¡¯s back. In Yami¡¯s shoulder blade was a long fragment of the glass that had shattered held by Rikai¡¯s hand.

    ¡°I¡¯ll hold you here so you can¡¯t kill anyone else.¡±

    ¡°Yami¡­ It¡¯s too late¡­¡±

    Rikai began to stab him repeatedly while sobbing.

    ¡°Rikai, listen to me carefully. I might not be able to be delicate with you for now, but I promise I¡¯ll do everything I can to end this.¡±

    ¡°Why is this happening?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know, but we¡¯ll find a way out of it¡­¡±

    ¡°Yami¡­ I love you..¡±

    Yami¡¯s arms fell limp as he tumbled onto the floor. Rikai whimpered as she walked up the stairs with the glass shard in hand.

    <hr>

    Yami¡¯s eyes jutted open as he felt a tug on his arm. Rikai¡¯s hand was tugging at his sleeves. Yami stood up from his chair.

    ¡°Ya...mi¡­¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s alright, I¡¯ll find a way out of this.¡±

    Yami looked out of the window into the moonlight for a moment to think.

    ¡°We have about 2 minutes until she can¡¯t control herself anymore, but past that¡­¡±

    ¡°Rikai, what happens when you lose control?¡±

    ¡°Dry¡­ throat¡­¡±

    Yami slid his hand down the door and withdrew a bottle of water and uncapped it, then helped Rikai drink it. After half a bottle of water and a deep breath, Rikai began to explain through gasps for air.

    ¡°I kill all of you guys... then I jump into the river... and when I drown... I see a bright flash of light... then I wake back up...¡±

    ¡°A flash of light? Like white light?¡±

    Rikai nodded her head.

    ¡°I have an idea.¡±

    Yami slid his hand down the door once more, then helped Rikai stand up.

    ¡°C¡¯mon.¡±

    Yami led Rikai into a room with a bed and a fridge full of food.

    ¡°Sorry, but you¡¯ll have to stay here for a bit while I research this.¡±

    Rikai nodded her head understandably. Yami slid his hand down the door and walked into the library, making sure to lock the door behind him.

    ¡°Let¡¯s see what I have on this¡­¡±

    <hr>

    Yami¡¯s eyes jutted open as he felt a tug on his arm. Rikai¡¯s hand was tugging at his sleeves. Looking around wildly, Yami looked down at himself, then back to Rikai, who was crying uncontrollably.

    ¡°Rikai!¡±

    Yami grabbed a water from the door and helped her drink once more.

    ¡°What happened?¡±

    ¡°I¡­ I slammed my head against the wall until I... saw the light¡­¡±

    Yami gritted his teeth.

    ¡°Damn it¡­ I have no time to research this either?¡±

    ¡°Rikai, I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    ¡°W-What?¡±

    Yami led Rikai into the same room once again, but this time stood behind a reinforced window.

    ¡°Rikai, I need to see how you do it. I¡¯m sorry, but I swear this is the last time.¡±

    Rikai bawled as she realized what she had to endure once again.

    ¡°Yami¡­ please! Don¡¯t make me do this again! Just kill me now!¡±

    Yami wiped his eyes.

    ¡°I love you, Rikai. I swear I¡¯ll protect you!¡±

    ¡°What if I die for real this time?!?!¡±

    Yami clenched his fists.

    ¡°You won¡¯t. If you do, I¡¯ll save you.¡±

    Rikai approached the glass and wound up her fist with tears streaming down her face.

    ¡°Yami¡­¡±

    Rikai punched the glass as hard as she could, even startling Yami. Seeing as how no apparent damage was done to the glass, Rikai wound up again, and as she punched the glass repeatedly, she screamed from the pain. After minutes of punching the glass, Rikai¡¯s hands were torn and clearly broken. Rikai¡¯s face twitched from the pain. Rikai then got closer to the glass and stared into Yami¡¯s eyes, which were overcome with fear.

    ¡°Yami¡­¡±

    Rikai tilted her head back, then slammed it as hard as she could into the glass, painting it with blood.

    ¡°RIKAI!¡±

    Rikai continuously slammed her face into the glass, creating crunching noises and coating the glass with a fresh color. After one final slam, Rikai¡¯s blood slumped onto the ground, and from her stomach, a brilliantly bright light began to flood the room.

    ¡°RIKAI!¡±

    <hr>

    Yami¡¯s eyes jutted open as he felt a tug on his arm. Rikai¡¯s hand was tugging at his sleeves. Yami threw his arms around Rikai.

    ¡°I¡¯m so sorry!¡±

    Rikai clenched Yami tightly. Yami tried to let go off Rikai, but she only held tighter.

    ¡°Rikai, I¡¯m going to end this. Trust me.¡±

    Rikai silently nodded as she loosened her grip on Yami.

    ¡°Bear with me for a second.¡±

    Yami lifted up Rikai¡¯s shirt, helping her take it off, despite the situation, Rikai was blushing.

    ¡°This might hurt, but it should end this.¡±

    Yami placed his right hand onto her stomach, then reached for her hand. She clutched it tightly.

    ¡°Here we go!¡±

    Yami¡¯s right hand strained as he injected life essence into her. Rikai jolted up from the shock, but Yami placed his shoulder onto her chest to keep her still.

    ¡°There!¡±

    Yami slowly lifted his hand from Rikai, pulling a mixture of blue and pink life essence with it. Rikai began to scream in pain as he did so, but Yami continued. After a moment of tugging, the long strand of pink life essence that was connected to Rikai snapped, allowing a small amount to fly back into her, and the remainder began to mix with the blue life essence in Yami¡¯s palm. Freeing his hand from Rikai¡¯s grip, Yami lifted up his shirt and slammed his palm into his stomach, causing him to fall over in pain as a hiss came from the scene of the fusion. Rikai pulled herself off of the bed to Yami¡¯s side.

    ¡°Ya...mi!¡±

    Yami coughed and gasped for air, but then checked his watch. He smiled in relief.

    ¡°Rikai¡­ It¡¯s been three minutes since we woke up¡­¡±

    Rikai cheerfully cried onto Yami as he patted her head.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay now.¡±

    After a while, the sun began to rise, making Yami yawn.

    ¡°How about that water, Rikai?¡±

    To his surprise, Rikai had already fallen asleep again.

    <hr>

    Rikai opened her groggy eyes to the gentle sunshine warming her room. After wiping her eyes, she looked to the night table which had a glass of water prepared for her. Grabbing the glass, she walked down the stairs to see Make and Shitto eating a porridge. After seeing her, Make quickly wiped her mouth and stood up from the table.

    ¡°Good morning! How are you feeling?¡±

    Rikaio rubbed her stomach.

    ¡°I¡¯m still a little sore, and tired, but mainly hungry.¡±

    Make smiled.

    ¡°Good thing we made extra! Have a seat!¡±

    Rikai sat down at the table as Make began to scoop some porridge into a bowl. Shitto looked over and waved to her.

    ¡°Hey! How¡¯d you sleep?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve had better nights¡­ you?¡±

    ¡°Like a baby! Crazy to think after everything that had happened I¡¯d be able to sleep well, but I don¡¯t even remember getting into bed I was so tired!¡±

    Make sat the bowl and a spoon in front of Rikai. Rikai looked around the room.

    ¡°Where¡¯s Yami?¡±

    Make shrugged and shook her head.

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure exactly. He said something about checking out the old organizations headquarters.¡±

    ¡°The old organization?¡±

    <hr>

    Yami walked around an empty courtyard, remembering what had occurred there in Jitsubutsu¡¯s memories. Backtracking from the courtyard, he eventually found a large door labelled ¡®Director¡¯s Office¡¯.

    ¡°Let¡¯s see what you left for me, Haisen.¡±

 Chapter 41 - Soul Power

    Yami rummaged through a large wooden desk, throwing papers about. Yami paused as he found the large stack of papers that he had seen in Jitsubutsu¡¯s past.

    ¡°Now I have everything. No more gaps.¡±

    Walking through the exit, Yami walked into an empty dining room.

    ¡°Make? Shitto?¡±

    A yell was heard from the back room.

    ¡°We¡¯re back here!¡±

    Yami set the papers on the table and walked into the back room. Shitto was asleep on the bench.

    ¡°Make?¡±

    ¡°One sec.¡±

    The door to the changing room opened, and from it emerged Make, who wiped sweat off of her forehead.

    ¡°What were you doing back there?¡±

    ¡°Well, I figured since Shitto would likely be fighting with you, it¡¯d be best for me to make him some better clothing as well.¡±

    ¡°Where is it?¡±

    Make pursed her lips and tapped her cheek.

    ¡°Well, he fell asleep when I started taking measurements¡­¡±

    ¡°Ah. In any case, how¡¯s Rikai doing?¡±

    ¡°See for yourself!¡±

    Yami¡¯s eyes widened. Rikai walked out from the changing room wearing nearly identical clothing to Yami¡¯s, but the orange was replaced by a bright purple, and the fabric clung more tightly to her, shaping her figure.

    ¡°Well? What do you think?¡±

    Yami furrowed his eyebrows and turned to Make.

    ¡°What¡¯s the meaning of this?¡±

    Make was taken back by Yami¡¯s comment.

    ¡°What do you mean? I figured since she¡¯d be helping you guys, she should be outfitted as well.¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s not going to fight with us, Make!¡±

    ¡°But Yami, I want to help¡­¡±

    ¡°See Yami? She wants to.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t give a damn. She just barely made it out of the last attack, and know you¡¯re encouraging her to fight? Are you delusional?¡±

    ¡°Stop acting as if I¡¯m not here!¡±

    Yami turned to face Rikai.

    ¡°I want to help you and Shitto! You two have always been fighting without me, and for once I want to help!¡±

    ¡°Rikai, you can¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°How about you two spar? That¡¯ll show you if she¡¯s ready or not.¡±

    ¡°Fine.¡±

    <hr>

    Yami and Rikai stood twenty meters away from one another next to the river.

    ¡°Alright, Rikai. Give me everything you got, no holding back.¡±

    Rikai nodded, then charged at Yami. Cocking her fist back as far as she could, she swung at Yami¡¯s jaw, who blocked it with the palm of his hand. Rikai gritted her teeth, then swung with her left. Once again, it was blocked. Rikai began to breathe heavily.

    ¡°Are you sure you¡¯re healed?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°Then you might want to speed up. I¡¯ll start fighting back soon.¡±

    Rikai swung with her right fist once again, which Yami grabbed. Rikai then attempted to kick Yami¡¯s side with her right leg, but Yami dodged. The momentum swung Rikai¡¯s body around, allowing Yami to kick her back, forcing her into the ground.

    ¡°I already told you, you can¡¯t help fight Shippai.¡±

    This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    Rikai picked herself up, then charged at Yami once again. Yami evaded Rikai¡¯s punch, then landed his own on her stomach. Rikai fell over while clenching her stomach.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go inside before you get hurt anymore than you already are.¡±

    As Yami began to walk away, Rikai stood up.

    ¡°No... ¡°

    Yami turned around.

    ¡°Not until I hit you just once!¡±

    Yami frowned.

    ¡°Rikai, let¡¯s g-¡±

    Rikai ran at Yami. Sighing, Yami watched Rikai sprint towards him. While screaming, Rikai swung her right fist at Yami. Yami¡¯s face turned and spit flew from his mouth. Rikai panted as she finished her blow. She looked up at Yami¡¯s face. His jaw was heard from where her knuckles had connected. Yami looked down at Rikai.

    ¡°Good job, you hit me. Now what?¡±

    Yami raised his fist and started to swing at Rikai, who braced for impact.

    Yami fist unfolded and landed softly onto Rikai¡¯s head.

    ¡°Rikai, you can¡¯t fight.¡±

    Rikai looked up at Yami.

    ¡°You don¡¯t have any life essence. Beyond that, you¡¯re too kind for that. Instead of fighting, you¡¯re always trying to support others. That¡¯s what Shitto and I need.¡±

    Rikai looked up at Yami.

    ¡°Do you understand?¡±

    She nodded.

    ¡°Good.¡±

    Shitto walked up to them wearing a similar outfit, despite the blue.

    ¡°What¡¯re you guys doing?¡±

    ¡°We were training just now.¡±

    ¡°Really? You and Rikai?¡±

    Yami nodded.

    ¡°Wow, I didn¡¯t know you had it in you, Rikai.¡±

    Rikai nervously giggled.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t either.¡±

    ¡°Anyways, I¡¯ll need your guys¡¯ help for my own training.¡±

    ¡°What do you need?¡±

    Yami looked down at his palm.

    ¡°At HQ, I found research papers that belonged to a cult from a long time ago. Apparently my power is Haisen, someone who stole the souls from many Pubi¨¤n Fanxiang to make himself stronger. Long story short, his soul is sealed within my body. His immense power seeps through when I have none to protect myself, which you¡¯ve seen before, Shitto.¡±

    Shitto nodded.

    ¡°These papers describe a more immense power, though. Like I said, you can think of him as sealed. But if I am careful, I can merge his soul with mine.¡±

    ¡°Why would you ever do that?!¡±

    Yami clenched his fists.

    ¡°If one absorbs another soul, their own power is increased substantially. Shippai has become too strong for us to defeat as we are right now. Plus, I can¡¯t rely on Haisen¡¯s power as it is because I can¡¯t control myself, and Haisen is loyal to Shippai. If I can learn to mix his soul with mine, I may be strong enough.¡±

    ¡°How do you even plan on doing this?¡±

    Yami held up his right palm.

    ¡°In those papers, it describes how I can unlock this seal. I think if I slowly unlock it, I should be able to control the entirety of his power.¡±

    Shitto shook his head, and rikai screamed at Yami.

    ¡°You can¡¯t be serious, can you? You¡¯ll be just as evil as Shippai!¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t think I want to do this! I can¡¯t free the souls of the people Haisen captured, and Haisen alone is too dangerous!¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t like this,¡± Shitto said. ¡°But if you think this is the only way, I can¡¯t disagree¡­¡±

    ¡°Thanks, Shitto.¡±

    Yami looked to Rikai.

    ¡°Can you go to Make and ask how you can help? Tell her we¡¯ll need medical supplies for when we go back.¡±

    ¡°Right. Be careful, you two.¡±

    As Rikai ran off, Shitto cracked his knuckles.

    ¡°Alright, Yami! What do you need me to do?¡±

    ¡°I need you to store some of your soul into some place that¡¯s cut off from your life essence. I¡¯m going to practice absorbing your soul.¡±

    Shitto¡¯s eyes widened.

    ¡°Whoa whoa whoa! I¡¯m not gonna let you eat my soul!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not eating your soul! Besides, I¡¯m going to give it back to you.¡±

    Shitto raised an eyebrow.

    ¡°You can give it back?¡±

    Yeah. I essentially cut off the piece that¡¯s yours and give it back. The problem with doing that with the souls Haisen absorbed is that they¡¯ve been a part of his body for so long that his soul has completely devoured theirs.¡±

    ¡°I see. Well, I guess we can do this then.¡±

    ¡°Great, let¡¯s get started.¡±

    <hr>

    ¡°Hey guys, it¡¯s time for dinner!¡±

    Yami helped Shitto off of the ground.

    Rikai had a confused look on her face.

    ¡°What¡¯d you guys do? Shitto looks beat up!¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s just really tired right now. He¡¯s gonna go back home tomorrow.¡±

    ¡°Already?!?!¡±

    <hr>

    Make nodded.

    ¡°So the same thing is happening to him.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, his body can¡¯t recover here. I¡¯ll drop him off tomorrow, then resume my training here with Muhai. Rikai, what¡¯ll you do?¡±

    Rikai looked to Make.

    ¡°Would you mind if I stayed here to study with you?¡±

    Make smiled.

    ¡°Of course not! It¡¯d be my pleasure! Since you have no life essence, you shouldn¡¯t have any trouble staying here for long periods of time either!¡±

    ¡°You really should tell your parents though, Rikai. You left them a destroyed house splattered with blood.¡±

    Rikai looked down.

    ¡°I guess you¡¯re right.¡±

    ¡°Great! I¡¯ll go drop off Shitto right now. Rikai, you wanna come with us to say goodbye to your parents?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Let¡¯s go.¡±

    ¡°See ya, Make. We¡¯ll be back tomorrow.¡±

    ¡°See ya tomorrow!¡±

    Yami lifted up Shitto and, with Rikai, walked out of Make¡¯s house into Shitto¡¯s apartment. Rikai wiped her finger on a shelf and saw the amount of dust that had collected.

    ¡°He hasn¡¯t cleaned this for months!¡±

    Yami set Shitto onto his couch, then began to sketch something onto a pad of paper.

    ¡°What are you doing?¡±

    ¡°Making him a warp tag¡­ If he places this on his door, he¡¯ll open into Make¡¯s house.¡±

    ¡°Good thinking!¡±

    Yami left the piece of paper on the coffee table, then walked towards the door.

    ¡°Now we need to find your parents.¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re probably at the police station.¡±

    ¡°Then let¡¯s try there!¡±

    Yami and Rikai walked into the police department and approached the front desk.

    ¡°Hello. Is Mr. or Mrs. Ikko here?¡±

    The lady at the front desk looked up. It was the same officer that Frank nearly shot.

    ¡°Mr. Shinpai? Is that you?!¡±

    ¡°Yes, but I¡¯m not looking for trouble.¡±

    The officer shook her head.

    ¡°No, no, that¡¯s not what I was implying. I just wanted to thank you for saving me that day! I recently got engaged, and I was thinking about what would¡¯ve happened if it weren¡¯t for you! Thank you!¡±

    Yami rubbed the back of his neck and smiled.

    ¡°No problem!¡±

    ¡°Anyways, Mr. Ikko is here. He¡¯s in the waiting room to your left.¡±

    ¡°Thank you. Have a good day!¡±

    ¡°You too, Mr. Shinpai!¡±

    As Yami and Rikai walked away from the desk, Rikai tapped on Yami¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°What was that all about?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, worry about what you¡¯re going to say to your parents. We¡¯re here.¡±

    Yami leaned against the wall next to the door. Rikai paused in the hallway.

    ¡°What¡¯re you waiting for, Rikai?¡±

    ¡°Huh? Aren¡¯t you going in with me?¡±

    ¡°This is your fight. If they see a wanted criminal, you think that¡¯ll help your case? When you¡¯re ready to leave, I¡¯ll take you.¡±

    Rikai took a deep breath, then grabbed the doorknob.

    ¡°Just a simple goodbye¡­¡±

    Rikai opened the door to see blood coated walls.

 Chapter 42 - Imminent Threat

    ¡°Mom? Dad?¡±

    Rikai stepped into the room. As her foot hit the ground, the carpet made a squish similar to a wet sponge. The door shut behind her. Rikai spun around to see Shippai standing in the corner, staring at the ground and covered in blood.

    ¡°Rikai¡­¡±

    Shippai raised her head, grinning ear to ear and with contracted pupils.

    ¡°You¡¯ve made this far too easy!¡±

    Shippai lunged at Rikai, but stopped at the last second, causing Rikai to fall backwards. Rikai turned her head as she heard a rattle in the closet next to her head. Shippai put her hand on her forehead.

    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s right. You wanted to see your parents! Sorry, I almost forgot! Well, here they are!¡±

    Shippai slid the closet doors open. Out of the darkness rolled out two oblong spheres. With just one glance of the color hair, Rikai knew it was her parents, but as the faces stopped less than a foot away from Rikai, she threw up onto the floor. Shippai held Rikai¡¯s hair in a ponytail and patted her back gently.

    ¡°Now now¡­ be careful not to get any on your parents!¡±

    Shippai pulled back on Rikai¡¯s ponytail and slammed her hand into her back, straining her neck, then leaving her to lay in her own vomit.

    ¡°It was boring, really. They didn¡¯t even know why they were being killed. Your father just kept saying ¡®Don¡¯t hurt my wife, don¡¯t hurt my wife¡¯, and your mother was just crying in the corner. It¡¯s a pity, really. I spent so much time skinning your father, she may have been able to escape. No matter, though, because now I have you!¡±

    Shippai reached her hand into a void, and Rikai laid emotionless in her vomit, staring at her parents¡¯ heads. Yami burst through the door and slammed a sphere into Shippai¡¯s back, sending her through the window onto the street. Cars honked as the swerved to miss her, yet Shippai still landed on the hood of a car. Yami picked up Rikai and put her over his shoulder. As he started to run back to the lobby, Rikai begna to claw at his back.

    ¡°My mom! My dad! Turn around, Yami!¡±

    Yami only tightened his grip on her and ran faster. With Rikai still attacking his back, Yami slid his hand onto a door, then ran through it, making sure to slam it behind him. Yami sat Rikai in a chair, then turned to get something, but Rikai grabbed his wrist and stood defiantly out of the chair.

    ¡°Yami, those were my parents! And you left them!¡±

    Rikai wound her fist back, then hit Yami in the face. Then in the stomach, and on the third punch, Yami caught her hand and spun her around, then grabbed her by the waist.

    ¡°Yami! Put me down! I¡¯ll fucking kill you!¡±

    Yami sat her in a bathtub.

    ¡°Rikai, shower now. We¡¯ll talk later.¡±

    As Yami started to walk out of the room, Rikai stood up once again.

    ¡°No! Where the hell are you going?!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m going to kill Shippai.¡±

    Rikai stopped herself from hitting him.

    ¡°Yami¡­ What do you mean? You said it yourself, you¡¯re not strong enough!¡±

    Yami clenched his fists.

    ¡°I know, but I have to try. She¡¯ll just keep killing more innocent people.¡±

    This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.

    ¡°She¡¯s just trying to get to you!¡±

    ¡°Yeah, and it¡¯s working. On top of that, she¡¯s likely absorbing all of their souls, so she¡¯s just getting stronger. If I don¡¯t stop her soon, I¡¯ll be in a lot more trouble than otherwise.¡±

    As Yami attempted to leave the bathroom, Rikai grabbed his wrist.

    ¡°Yami¡­ please¡­¡±

    Yami broke his wrist free of Rikai¡¯s grasp and shut the bathroom door behind him.

    <hr>

    Shippai blew through wall after all at the police headquarters.

    ¡°Mr. Shinpai?! Where are you!?¡±

    Blowing through another wall, Shippai stood in front of two parents shielding their small child.

    ¡°Leave us alone, we don¡¯t know who you want! Please!¡±

    Shippai looked at the kid.

    ¡°Give me your child''s life, and I¡¯ll let you two go.¡±

    ¡°We could never!¡±

    ¡°Then you¡¯ll all die!¡±

    Rikai pulled a large blade out of her void and raised it in the air. The two parents hugged their child tightly.

    ¡°Mommy and Daddy love you very much!¡±

    The child¡¯s eyes stared at the massive blade looming over him. As it began to swing downward, an explosion occurred, causing Rikai to be thrown through the wall of the room. Yami grabbed the shoulder of the father.

    ¡°Get out of here!¡±

    The man nodded.

    ¡°Thank you so much!¡±

    As the family ran out of the room, Yami dodged a knife thrown at him. Anticipating the explosion that soon followed, Yami slammed his hands on the ground. As the explosion engulfed the room, Shippai threw more knifes. One after another, there was continuous explosions for almost twenty seconds. Once the debris settled, and the ceiling had collapsed, Shippai entered the room. In the center of the room was a giant ball made out of concrete.

    ¡°What the..?¡±

    Yami slammed a sphere through the sphere and hit Shippai¡¯s shoulder, who swung her legs at Yami¡¯s heel, making him fall backwards. Shippai then sent her foot into his back, shooting him up to the fifth floor of the building. Coughing up blood, Yami wiped his mouth. Before he could ready himself, Shippai had already jumped up to him and grabbed his collar.

    ¡°Now give me your power!¡±

    Shippai put her hand onto Yami¡¯s head. Yami felt her life essence tug at his as she attempted to steal his soul.

    Yami closed his eyes.

    ¡°If you think that¡¯s all it takes for you to steal my soul, you have another thing coming!¡±

    Yami opened his eyes. The color of his pupil and iris was that of a dark red, but his eyes were still white. Without a moment to react, Shippai felt her wrist be grabbed, then crushed by Yami¡¯s grip. As her bones shattered, she quickly pulled her arm back, but Yami didn¡¯t let go.

    ¡°You¡¯re not running away this time!¡±

    Yami flung Shippai over his head, then threw her back down to the bottom floor the same way they had came up. Crashing through the ground floor, Shippai made a large dent in the concrete floor of the basement. Beginning to heal her arm, her eyes widened and she rolled out of the crater, narrowly doding Yami¡¯s initial impact, but still being hit with bits of concrete that was expelled from underneath his strike. As she healed her arm, Shippai chuckled and wiped her mouth.

    ¡°So, you¡¯re finally getting serious?¡±

    Yami began to form a sphere in his left palm.

    ¡°Besides, what was that move you did earlier? I don¡¯t recall you being able to do that before.¡±

    ¡°I went to the old HQ...¡±

    The sphere in his palm began to grow even larger.

    ¡°Believe it or not, I found some pretty interesting texts that described training techniques and certain Sirushi Inochi¡­¡±

    After the sphere reached two feet in diameter, Yami engulfed it in flames.

    ¡°Including the ones I need to defeat you!¡±

    Shippai grinned.

    ¡°That¡¯s funny. I¡¯ve also been studying in the library of the Jinsei no Hogo, and I¡¯ve learned how I can take the souls from the entire city at once!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s in vain! I¡¯ll take you down right now!¡±

    ¡°Then I won¡¯t hold back! Let¡¯s see what you got, Jinsei no Hogo!¡±

    Yami kicked off of his right foot at 500 mph, leading with his left palm. Shippai placed her palms together and slide them against the air in opposite directions, forming a purple barrier. As the sphere slammed into it, Shippai¡¯s feet dug themselves into the concrete due to the force exerted by the sphere. Yami continued to push with a scream, causing the sphere to explode, engulfing the basement in flames. Falling back, Yami began to pant.

    ¡°I¡¯m still not used to this enhanced power¡­ I need to end this fast or I may not stay awake to see the end of it!¡±

    Out of the smoke shot out Shippai. Yami struggled to block her punches at she moved so quickly.

    ¡°What, having trouble keeping up? Let me go a little faster!¡±

    Shippai sped up exponentially, landing three blows simultaneously that sent Yami crashing into the concrete wall behind him. Rubble tumbled onto his head. As he opened his eyes, he managed to dodge Shippai¡¯s next punch, which lodged itself into the wall.

    ¡°If I want to keep up, I¡¯ll have to try to use more than I have before!¡±

    Yami darted to the other side of the room and began to strain his palm. The seal began to open itself. Yami¡¯s eyes began to turn gray.

    ¡°I¡¯m already losing myself, but I need more!¡±

    Shippai broke her fist out of the wall, then turned around. Launching herself through the smoke and flames, she prepared to strike Yami, but Yami appeared behind her near instantaneously.

    ¡°So fast!¡±

    Yami slammed his fist into her back, making her tumble forward. Speeding up  once again, SHippai matched Yami¡¯s speed as the exchanged blow after blow. Yami sent a palm strike into her ribs, while Shippai sent a blind sided kick into Yami¡¯s temple. As Shippai crashed into the wall, the building shaked above them.

    ¡°It¡¯s about to collapse!¡±

    Pushing herself out of the wall, Shippai nearly fell over from the pain of her injuries.

    ¡°Hate to leave you, Yami, but I¡¯m afraid I¡¯m done raising the roof!¡±

    Shippai made her way up the stairs and out of the basement. Yami tried to stand up to give chase, but from the blow he just received, as well as the smoke constantly smothering him, Yami fell back onto the ground. The building rattled above him as it lost its stability.

    ¡°No¡­ not like this!¡±

    Yami reached for the stairs as the buildings creaked one last time, then caved in on itself.

 Chapter 43 - Collapsed

    Emergency workers surrounded a large area of rubble. As they sifted through the crushed bricks, one worker, the secretary of the police department, noticed a stream of smoke rising from underneath.

    ¡°Guys! There¡¯s still a fire over here!¡±

    A horde of workers swarmed the area and began to excavate the site. The once small stream of smoke was now beginning to plume out of the cracks. As the final layer of bricks were uncovered, it seemed as though a seal were broken as the entire room caved in. The workers began to plummet into the depths of the smoke, but as they neared the ground, something grabbed them and set them down safely. The secretary was set next to a dome made of the bricks and cement.

    ¡°What¡¯s this¡­?¡±

    As she laid her hand on the dome, it caved in. Beginning to dig at it, she uncovered Yami, who was on his knees with his palms against the floor. Blood and dirt pooled around him, and his breathing was scratchy from choking on smoke.

    ¡°Mr. Shinpai!¡±

    Yami was shaking as she laid her hand on his back.

    ¡°Is¡­ everyone safe,¡± Yami managed to stutter?

    ¡°I think so. Assuming you were the one who caught us, that was everyone.¡±

    Yami tried to let out a relieving sigh, but the stress made him fall over and pass out.

    <hr>

    Rikai walked into a hospital room with Shitto¡¯s arm over her shoulder. Yami laid on the bed. In the room were about five police officers. The secretary rose from her seat.

    ¡°You¡¯re Ms. Ikko, I presume?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll go get the doctor. In the meantime, take a seat, and try to not wake Mr. Shinpai.¡±

    Rikai nodded. Sitting next to Yami¡¯s bed, Rikai saw that the majority of his body was bandaged, and there was significant padding on his temple. Aside from that, he was also connected to a respirator.

    After a few moments, the doctor entered the room.

    ¡°Hello, are you Ms. Ikko?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    The doctor set his clipboard onto a nearby ledge.

    ¡°How many times are you guys going to come in here?¡±

    Rikai nervously chuckled.

    ¡°At least with Mr. Shinpai he recovers quickly -  he has remarkable stamina. If this would¡¯ve happened to Mr. Yuutsu, this surely would have been far worse. As you can tell, it¡¯s hard for him to breath on his own, so we¡¯ll keep him on the respirator for the night. He sustained a pretty serious head injury, and he may have a concussion, but he was already knocked out before we could ask him anything. It also appears that his bones are fractured from impacts at nearly supersonic speeds. Aside from that, he has abrasions and lacerations, some mild, some very serious. If we can get him breathing on his own by tomorrow, he has the potential to leave in about a week, but that would require him to be in bed for another two weeks.¡±

    ¡°I understand. Thank you.¡±

    As the doctor exited the room, the secretary motioned for the officers to leave as well.

    ¡°We¡¯ll be outside. We can work in shifts until he wakes up.¡±If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    Rikai nodded.

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    As the officers exited, Rikai placed her hand on Yami¡¯s.

    ¡°Rikai?¡±

    Rikai looked around.

    ¡°Yami? Was that you?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m talking with you through my life essence. I heard what the doctor said, and we don¡¯t have that much time.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean?!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m a little fuzzy on the details, but I think when I was fighting Shippai she said something like¡­¡±

    ¡°Like?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t remember, I got hit in the head pretty hard. On the plus side, I think I learned something from her: How to heal.¡±

    ¡°Really?! Try to heal yourself then!¡±

    ¡°I need you to draw the Sirushi Inochi on me first.¡±

    ¡°O-okay. Where?¡±

    ¡°My back. You¡¯re gonna have to take me off of the respirator.¡±

    ¡°No! If I do that, you¡¯ll die!¡±

    ¡°If you don¡¯t, everyone will. I¡¯ve come this far, I won¡¯t let this be the end of me.¡±

    Rikai gripped Yami¡¯s hand more firmly.

    ¡°Rikai, I¡¯m going to implant an image in your head. Please trace it onto my back.¡±

    ¡°Right.¡±

    <hr>

    As Shitto continued to sleep in a chair, Rikai grabbed one of Yami¡¯s pens from his clothes. She placed her hand on his.

    ¡°Yami? You ready?¡±

    ¡°Yes. Remember, be careful, but don¡¯t take too long.¡±

    Rikai began to undo the binding around Yami¡¯s mouth.

    ¡°Here we go, Yami.¡±

    Rikai began to extract the breathing tube from Yami¡¯s throat. With each pull came more tube. After about twenty seconds of pulling out the tube, it seemed that it was successfully removed. Yami began to breath in strange patterns, seemingly gasping for air each time.

    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s do this!¡±

    Rikai held up Yami¡¯s back and began to scribble on it. As she tattooed him, his words resonated inside of her head.

    ¡°Yami, before any of us knew it, you had already grown to be more mature than anyone. I seemingly blinked, and that little boy who sat alone in class became the man in front of me.¡±

    Wiping sweat off of her forehead, Rikai checked the clock for how much time had elapsed.

    ¡°I just wonder if you feel the same about me¡­¡±

    ¡°Of course I do.¡±

    Rikai¡¯s face was overcome with shock, then embarrassment.

    ¡°Rikai, I need you to focus. It¡¯s getting hard for me to remain even this conscious.¡±

    ¡°Right!¡±

    Rikai quickly finished the tracing, then wiped off any blood with a nearby towel.

    ¡°All done!¡±

    In the middle of Yami¡¯s shoulder blades was a line with two other lines wrapping around it.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to put you back on the respirator now.¡±

    Rikai carefully directed the breathing tube into Yami¡¯s throat, making sure it felt the same way it had before removing it. After Yami began to breathe in pace with the machine, Rikai put the straps back into place. Taking a deep breath, Rikai sat back in her chair.

    ¡°Yami, I hope that worked. Sorry for this, but I¡¯m going to take a quick nap. I¡¯ll wake up in 15 minutes.¡±

    Rikai stood up from the chair and walked outside of the room. The secretary approached her.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to nap for a little bit. Would you mind taking over?¡±

    ¡°No problem. Take as long as you need.¡±

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    Rikai walked down the hall and found a bench. As she laid her head on it, she quickly drifted into a deep sleep.

    <hr>

    ¡°Miss?¡±

    A gentle hand rubbed Rikai¡¯s shoulder, waking her up. Wiping her eyes in the new dusk, Rikai sat up.

    ¡°Yes?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve been asleep on this bench for a while, I just wanted to make sure you were feeling alright?¡±

    Rikai looked at her phone. She had slept for ten hours.

    ¡°Yes, I¡¯m fine, thanks.¡±

    Rikai quickly gathered her things and ran to Yami¡¯s room. Shitto laid asleep, and the secretary watched over Yami.

    ¡°You¡¯re back, Ms. Ikko?¡±

    ¡°Yes, I¡¯m sorry for taking so long, I overslept.¡±

    ¡°No problem! This is my job, after all.¡±

    The officer walked out of the room, but Rikai stopped her.

    ¡°Um, Miss?¡±

    ¡°Hmm?¡±

    ¡°Has he made any progress?¡±

    The officer smiled.

    ¡°The doctor said he¡¯s making excellent progress, and should be able to get off the respirator tomorrow evening!¡±

    Rikai bit her lip.

    ¡°Thanks.¡±

    Rikai shut the door as the officer walked out of the room. Sitting next to Yami, she placed her hand on his.

    ¡°Yami? You awake?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Is the officer out of the room?¡±

    ¡°Yes, she just left.¡±

    Yami moved his hand out from underneath Rikai¡¯s. Yami reached behind his head and undid the straps that held his respirator in place, then removed the breathing tube. Yami coughed slightly, then took a deep breath.

    ¡°Thanks, Rikai. Let¡¯s get the hell out of here.¡±

 Chapter 44 - Solidarity

    As Yami, Rikai, and Shitto walked down the sidewalk away from the hospital, Shitto withdrew the paper that Yami had left with him.

    ¡°I don¡¯t get it, Yami. Why don¡¯t we just go back to Make¡¯s?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re hardly able to stay awake right now. If we went back, you wouldn¡¯t have any strength.¡±

    ¡°Where are we going to stay then?¡±

    Yami continued to look onward toward the horizon.

    ¡°I know of one place that she doesn¡¯t.¡±

    <hr>

    Knock knock knock

    A bustle of locks were undone, and the door to the old, tattered house revealed a 50 year old woman.

    ¡°Who is i-¡±

    Mrs. Shin stopped her sentence as she realized that Yami stood before her.

    ¡°Y-you¡¯re that kid that knew Alexis!¡±

    Yami extended his hand.

    ¡°Yami Shinpai. Nice to see you are doing well, Mrs. Shi-¡±

    Mrs. Shin greeted Yami with a hug, and despite her fragility, she was choking Yami.

    ¡°How have you been, dear?¡±

    Freeing himself from her grasp, Yami took a deep breath.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be honest, not well. May I speak with you inside?¡±

    ¡°Sure, come in!¡±

    <hr>

    Shitto snored as the bus shook with each bump on the road. Rikai poured over a book that Make had lent her, learning as much as she could about healing using the foreign plants. With a sigh, Rikai shut the book and leaned back in her seat.

    ¡°I hope Yami finds us a place. Otherwise, we may as well just kill ourselves now.¡±

    Rikai drifted into a deep sleep.

    <hr>

    ¡°I see. Well, I can¡¯t say I don¡¯t understand your situation, but I don¡¯t think I can let you stay here. If it were just you, maybe, but even then I don¡¯t know you or your friends well enough.¡±

    Yami nodded his head in agreement.

    ¡°Fair enough. I¡¯ll be on my way then.¡±

    Closing the door behind him, Yami rubbed his neck.

    ¡°I guess we¡¯ll just stay at a hotel.¡±

    Walking down the road, Yami saw where his house should¡¯ve stood. Instead, there was a run down apartment complex.

    ¡°Good enough.¡±

    Cracking his fingers, Yami rubbed his palms together, then slammed them onto the ground. The complex became reinforced with the concrete around it. Yami hit a tree standing near him, causing it to fall over. Yami made quick work of the tree, transforming it into a door. As he replaced the broken plywood door previously attached to the frame, Yami rubbed his arm.

    ¡°Looks like I¡¯m still not fully healed yet.¡±

    Yami slid his hand down the door and opened into a luggage compartment on the bus. Sliding into the aisle, passengers looked at him with confusion. Yami shook Rikai awake.

    ¡°Hey, I got a place. Let¡¯s go.¡±

    Rikai nodded and shook Shitto.

    ¡°C¡¯mon. We¡¯re going.¡±

    Yami walked to the front of the bus and tapped the driver on the shoulder.Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

    ¡°We¡¯ll be stopping here.¡±

    The driver threw Yami¡¯s hand off of his shoulder.

    ¡°Take your seat.¡±

    Yami gripped the handle that opened the door and swung it open.

    ¡°I¡¯d appreciate it if you¡¯d stop.¡±

    ¡°Hey! What¡¯re you doing?!¡±

    Rikai and Shitto met Yami at the front of the bus.

    ¡°He isn¡¯t stopping?¡±

    ¡°No. Come here, Rikai.¡±

    Yami put one hand around Rikai¡¯s shoulder and lept out of the bus. The driver¡¯s jaw dropped.

    ¡°Jesus christ! The guy just killed himself!¡±

    As Yami¡¯s feet hit the pavement, he molded the asphalt underneath him to pad his landing, allowing him to safely stop and let go of Rikai. After letting go of Rikai, Yami quickly ran up to the bus and walked back onto the front steps.

    ¡°What the hell?! We¡¯re going 65 mph!¡±

    Yami grabbed Shitto and dragged him off the bus. Landing on his back, Yami performed the same stunt, then picked himself up.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go back and grab Rikai.¡±

    <hr>

    Shippai stood up from a dark alley.

    ¡°That¡¯s all of them. Now I just need to wait.¡±

    Walking out of the alley, a piece of paper flew and stuck itself to a wall. Rikai turned her head, then smiled in devious approval.

    ¡°That should be enough people.¡±

    <hr>

    ¡°Yami, what the hell is this?¡±

    The alley was only lit by the moon and a distant streetlamp as Yami opened the door to their current home.

    ¡°It¡¯s my house. It¡¯s the best we got for now.¡±

    Shitto looked around.

    ¡°There¡¯s not even a couch! Where are we supposed to sleep?!¡±

    Yami leaned himself up against a wall and took shallow breaths.

    ¡°We can¡­ go to Mr. P¡¯s and.. snag some stuff there.¡±

    Rikai walked up to Yami.

    ¡°Hey, if you¡¯re not feeling well, you shouldn''t keep pushing onwards. Take a break.¡±

    Yami collected himself with a large, deep breath.

    ¡°No, Shitto¡¯s right. We need to something to sleep on.¡±

    Yami evaded Rikai¡¯s grasp as he opened the door into Posche¡¯s house. He waved for Shitto.

    ¡°C¡¯mon. We¡¯ll grab his bed and couch.¡±

    After a few trips, the vacant complex now had some basic furnishings. Shitto threw himself onto the bed.

    ¡°Yes! I¡¯m gonna get some sleep now.¡±

    Rikai smacked the back of Shitto¡¯s head.

    ¡°What the hell¡¯s gotten into you recently? You¡¯re acting like a brat!¡±

    Shitto rubbed his the part of his head that had come into contact with Rikai¡¯s hand.

    ¡°What¡¯re you talking about?¡±

    Rikai pointed to Yami, who was sprawled out on the couch.

    ¡°While you¡¯ve been sleeping, Yami¡¯s been trying to hone his skills to defeat a mass murderer!¡±

    ¡°Rikai, he is a mass murderer! Don¡¯t let his righteousness blind you! He does whatever he needs to in order to achieve his own goals, even if it means sacrificing his closest friends!¡±

    Rikai was taken back.

    ¡°What¡¯re you talking about?! You¡¯re delusional!¡±

    ¡°So what if I am?! He¡¯s the one who manipulated me, altered my memories, and let me take the piss when things didn¡¯t work in his favor!¡±

    ¡°Shitto¡­¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s no excuse for what he¡¯s done, and once Shippai is gone, I¡¯ll be the one killing him. Maybe then I can find my true memories.¡±

    Rikai began to tear up.

    ¡°Shitto, please! Stop talking like his! You two are best friends!¡±

    ¡°Has he altered your memories too?¡±

    Rikai looked down at the floor.

    ¡°You can¡¯t even tell, can you? Everytime your eyes meet his, you have a chance of becoming manipulated. That¡¯s why I¡¯m acting like a brat. That¡¯s why I¡¯m going to kill him. The way I see it, he¡¯s no better than Shipp-¡±

    Rikai smacked Shitto¡¯s face.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you ever say shit like that again.¡±

    Shitto¡¯s eyebrows furrowed. He pushed Rikai back.

    ¡°Hey! Stop that!¡±

    ¡°You were talking all big a second ago! Why don¡¯t you fight me then?¡±

    Yami stood up from the couch.

    ¡°If you two are going to fight anyone, it¡¯ll be me.¡±

    Shitto walked up to Yami.

    ¡°Kill me, Shitto.¡±

    Shitto formed an axe in his palm, but quickly collapsed from fatigue. Out like a light, Yami picked him up and set him on the bed.

    ¡°You¡¯ll be fine with the couch for a night, right Rikai?¡±

    Rikai nodded her head.

    ¡°Thanks. I¡¯m going to go to Muhai¡¯s place for the night.¡±

    ¡°What?! Your crazy sword teacher?! You¡¯ve barely made it through the day!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s exactly why I need to go. I¡¯ll spend my days here resting and ensuring our safety, and I¡¯ll spend my nights training with Muhai.¡±

    ¡°When will you rest?¡±

    Yami took a deep breath.

    ¡°When I die.¡±

    <hr>

    Yami opened into a familiar hallway. Following it into the dojo, he found Muhai drinking tea and smoking a cigarette.

    ¡°Sir?¡±

    Muhai ushered Yami to take a seat with him. Yami did so, and as he sat, Muhai pushed a cup of tea to him, which Yami graciously enjoyed.

    ¡°Why¡¯re you here?¡±

    Setting down his cup of tea, Yami wiped his mouth with his arm.

    ¡°I need your instruction again, Sir.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯d you mean? I¡¯ve taught you everything I can.¡±

    Yami shook his head.

    ¡°I need to master Haisen¡¯s power. If I remember correctly, I used it against you during my graduation.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, and if it weren¡¯t for that Jitsubutsu, I¡¯d be dead.¡±

    ¡°Sorry once again. While I was using it, you may have noticed I wasn¡¯t myself. While it gives me great power, I lose myself as I become overwhelmed by Haisen¡¯s power. I¡¯ve been training to master it, and I can use about 20% of his power until I lose myself entirely.¡±

    ¡°Why don¡¯t you have Jitsubutsu help you?¡±

    Yami clenched his fists.

    ¡°He¡¯s gone.¡±

    Muhai closed his eyes and put out his cigarette.

    ¡°What do you propose our training regiment will be? I have no clue how your guys¡¯ powers work.¡±

    ¡°I need you to fight me until I have no strength left. At that point, I¡¯ll start to tap into Haisen¡¯s power. If I begin to lose myself, I¡¯ve prepared tags that you can place on me to put me out for the day. I¡¯d hope you don¡¯t need to use them, though.¡±

    Muhai nodded his head.

    ¡°How much time do we have?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure, but not long.¡±

    Muhai stood up from the table and withdrew his sword.

    ¡°Then let¡¯s get started.¡±

 Chapter 45 - Merging

    ¡°Rikai!¡±

    Yami dove onto Rikai, feeling the wrath of ten knives.

    ¡°Hey, we¡¯re not done yet.¡±

    Muhai tapped Yami with the tip of his foot, waking Yami up. Wiping his mouth, Yami picked himself up.

    ¡°Sorry, I guess I just felt too tired.¡±

    Muhai stuck his sword into the floor and lit a cigarette.

    ¡°We¡¯ve been doing this for three days now. How close are you?¡±

    Yami looked at his right palm.

    ¡°I feel like I¡¯m getting nowhere. It¡¯s like I hit a barrier.¡±

    Muhai sat behind his table and continued to smoke.

    ¡°Maybe you¡¯re just not in the right place of mind.¡±

    Yami clenched his fist, then began to walk towards the door.

    ¡°Where¡¯re you off to?¡±

    Yami opened the door. The dampness of a dark, quiet cave poured into the dojo.

    ¡°I know where I need to be. Will you follow me, Sir?¡±

    Muhai sighed and stood up from his table.

    ¡°If you think this¡¯ll get you out of my hair sooner.¡±

    Yami walked into the main chamber where the pedestal once resided. Once inside, Yami stretched his arms. Muhai threw his cigarette on the ground, then smothered it with his foot.

    ¡°Ready?¡±

    Yami cracked his neck.

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    Instantaneously, Yami¡¯s eye became red, and he collided with Muhai.

    ¡°Muhai was right¡­ I think this is helping.¡±

    As Yami¡¯s onslaught continued, Muhai countered every attack.

    ¡°I¡¯m letting a little more juice out!¡±

    ¡°Go ahead!¡±

    Yami¡¯s pupils became slightly jagged, and the white became slightly gray. Yami''s speed and force increased substantially, forcing Muhai to be more defensive.

    ¡°I¡¯m at 40%! I¡¯m going to 50!¡±

    Muhai tightened his focus.

    ¡°Do it!¡±

    The marking on Yami¡¯s palm brought the two circles closer together, nearly touching one another.

    ¡°I overdid it¡­.¡±

    As Yami¡¯s consciousness blacked out, his body did as well. Muhai stuck his sword into the ground and approached Yami.

    ¡°Hey! Are you okay?¡±

    Yami¡¯s right eye was black with a jagged red line, but his left eye was normal, with a light blue iris and normal pupil and white.

    <hr>

    Yami opened his eyes. A fog of black seemed to drown his vision in darkness. Standing up, Yami looked around.

    ¡°Am I dead again? No¡­ The Creator¡¯s world is way too bright for this¡­¡±

    ¡°Hello.¡±

    Yami turned around to see Haisen standing before him. Yami furrowed his eyebrows.

    ¡°What¡¯re you doing here, Akahishi?¡±

    ¡°I could ask you the same thing.¡±

    Akahishi raised his hands.

    ¡°Right now, you¡¯re in the oh-so glorious Jinsei no Hogo¡¯s seal - the one that I¡¯ve been trapped in for all this time.¡±

    Yami looked at his right palm, but the seal wasn¡¯t present.

    ¡°What am I doing here?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure, but while you¡¯re here¡­¡±

    Haisen¡¯s kick hit Yami at a speed incomprehensible to him. Yami flew through the mist, but was pushed back to the ground by Haisen¡¯s hand.

    ¡°...why don¡¯t we have some fun?¡±

    Yami tried to form a sphere in his hand, but failed.

    ¡°My life essence¡­!¡±

    Haisen lifted Yami off the ground by his head, then set him on his feet.

    ¡°You¡¯re so weak you can¡¯t even block me?! How the hell was I trapped in you?!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure¡­ but what I do know is that you can¡¯t leave¡­¡±

    If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    Yami was thrown to the ground.

    ¡°Maybe if I kill you I¡¯ll be set free!¡±

    Yami started to pick himself up, spitting blood on the ground.

    ¡°Maybe¡­ or maybe I¡¯ll beat your ass and we¡¯ll come to understand one another!¡±

    Haisen sent another blow into the back of Yami¡¯s head.

    ¡°I can do this for all eternity, kid. It¡¯s not like you¡¯ll be able to defend yourself anyways.¡±

    Yami stood up once again.

    ¡°You¡¯ll come to find out I have a lot of stamina¡­ Let¡¯s see what lasts longer: Your attacks, or my body!¡±

    <hr>

    Muhai kicked open Make¡¯s door.

    ¡°What the hell?!¡±

    Make ran out from her workshop to see that Yami was slung over Muhai¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°Muhai¡­ what the hell do you want?¡±

    Muhai dropped Yami onto the floor. Make ran to him to make sure he was okay.

    ¡°His sword said it was from here. Do you know him?¡±

    ¡°Of course I do! Why is he in this condition?!¡±

    Make noticed Yami¡¯s eye was transformed.

    ¡°Did he use that power again?!¡±

    ¡°Yes. We were training to master it, but after the third day, he suddenly collapsed like this.¡±

    ¡°Three days?! He can¡¯t last one in that state!¡±

    ¡°Can you fix him up, or do we wait?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure¡­¡±

    Muhai walked out of Make¡¯s house.

    ¡°Well, he¡¯s your problem now. Tell he can come back when he¡¯s ready to continue.¡±

    ¡°Muhai, you bastard! You killed so many people in our town, and you do this too?!¡±

    Muhai scratched the back of his head.

    ¡°Lady, I don¡¯t know you. Just get Yami feeling better.¡±

    As Muhai headed back towards the mountains, Make searched through her cabinets.

    ¡°Last time he got like this, Jitsu had to return him to his world¡­¡±

    ¡°Ah!¡±

    Make withdrew a warp tag.

    ¡°I just place it on a door and¡­¡±

    Make opened the door to Rikai¡¯s house.

    ¡°Hello? Rikai!¡±

    There was no answer, only the howling of wind from the hole in the wall.

    ¡°I can¡¯t believe she lives in this house!¡±

    Make dragged Yami into the house, taking him upstairs. Opening a room, she noticed it was rather feminine.

    ¡°This must be Rikai¡¯s room¡­¡±

    Make set Yami on her bed, then sat next to it.

    ¡°I hope she comes back soon¡­¡±

    <hr>

    As the bright sun shone into the apartment complex, Rikai and Shitto sat around.

    ¡°When is Yami gonna come back? It¡¯s been almost three hours now¡­¡±

    Shitto stood up from the couch.

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure if he¡¯ll ever come back. I¡¯m gonna train.¡±

    Shitto started doing pushups, and Rikai began to doze off on the couch.

    ¡°He¡¯s been working tirelessly, but from what I¡¯ve heard he¡¯s gotten nowhere¡­ I hope he¡¯s doing alright¡­¡±

    <hr>

    Splat

    Blood hit the ground as Haisen continued to pummel Yami at Mach 2.

    ¡°You had enough?¡±

    Yami spit out the blood and wiped his mouth.

    ¡°As if. I¡¯m getting used to your speed, you know.¡±

    Haisen laughed.

    ¡°You think you can match my speed? Then block this!¡±

    At Mach 5, Haisen swung his fist at Yami.

    Crunch

    ¡°What the-¡±

    Yami¡¯s hand was wrapped around Haisen¡¯s.

    ¡°I¡¯ve been here long enough to learn a thing or two¡­ Like I said, I¡¯m not going down without a fight!¡±

    A blindsided kick drilled into Yami¡¯s temple.

    ¡°That was just a fluke. There¡¯s no way the little bastard can keep up...¡±

    <hr>

    ¡°I¡¯m tired of this shit.¡±

    Shitto withdrew a warp tag from his pocket.

    ¡°What¡¯re you doing Shitto?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m going back home. If Yami¡¯s not gonna check out when Shippai¡¯ll strike, I will.¡±

    Rikai stood up from the couch.

    ¡°We should wait for him. If she comes, we¡¯ll die!¡±

    ¡°Tch. Yami¡¯s just weak against her. He¡¯s still in love with her.¡±

    Rikai shook her head.

    ¡°There¡¯s no way he is! She¡¯s killed so many people!¡±

    ¡°I never said he wants to let her live. Besides, why does it matter to you who he likes?¡±

    Rikai angrily pushed Shitto through the door.

    ¡°Let¡¯s just go and hurry back!¡±

    The pair walked into Shitto¡¯s apartment. On the floor was a collection of mail addressed to Shitto, who began to inspect it.

    ¡°Shit, I¡¯m behind on my water bill now¡­¡±

    As Shitto threw certain pieces of mail into the garbage, Rikai silently watched.

    ¡°Oh yeah, the festival is coming soon, huh.¡±

    Shitto dropped a colored light purple piece of paper into the garbage can.

    Rikai leaned against the wall.

    ¡°The festival¡­ I hope all of my friends and I can go again, it was a lot of fun last year¡­ wait!¡±

    Rikai shoved Shitto out of the way and rummaged through the garbage can.

    ¡°What are you doing in my trash?¡±

    Rikai withdrew the light purple flyer, then gasped.

    ¡°June 25th! That¡¯s tomorrow!¡±

    ¡°So?¡±

    ¡°Shitto, there¡¯s going to be a lot of people at the festival!¡±

    ¡°...and?¡±

    ¡°Shippai¡¯s gonna steal everyone¡¯s souls at the festival!¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re right! It¡¯d be the perfect time, not to mention she¡¯ll blend in with the crowd.¡±

    ¡°We need to warn Yami.¡±

    ¡°But how do we get to him?¡±

    Rikai withdrew four warp tags.

    ¡°What are those?¡±

    ¡°These are warp tags that Yami gave me. They go to his master¡¯s house, Make¡¯s house, the apartments, and my house. He should be at his master¡¯s house, so we¡¯ll go there.¡±

    ¡°Right.¡±

    Walking through the door, Rikai and Shitto entered the dojo. Muhai sat behind his table sipping tea.

    Rikai slowly approached Muhai.

    ¡°Um, excuse me? We were looking for Yami¡­¡±

    Muhai ignored Rikai and continued to enjoy his tea.

    ¡°Uh, Sir?¡±

    Shitto arrogantly passed Rikai and spoke sternly to Muhai.

    ¡°Oi! Where¡¯s Yami at?¡±

    Muhai set down his cup for a moment.

    ¡°You should act more politely, like your friend. You¡¯re in my house, if you don¡¯t remember.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but we don¡¯t have any time to waste. We need to know where Yami is NOW.¡±

    Muhai withdrew his sword.

    ¡°Yami¡¯s resting up a bit. How about we spar in the meantime?¡±

    Shitto snickered.

    ¡°As if I¡¯d fight you. Go get Yami and tell him we know when she¡¯ll strike.¡±

    Muhai kicked his table across the room, shattering it.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think you understood me, boy. I said we¡¯re going to spar.¡±

    ¡°Alright then, let¡¯s do this!¡±

    Shitto charged at Muhai.

    ¡°Really? This all the fast you are?¡±

    Shitto gritted his teeth, then formed an axe in his hand. As he saw Shitto lunge at him with his axe, Muhai planted his sword into the floor, then blocked with his arm.

    ¡°Compared to Yami, you¡¯re nothing.¡±

    As Muhai¡¯s words boiled inside of Shitto, he manifested an even greater axe, then increased his speed.

    ¡°I¡¯ll make you eat those words!¡±

    With each attack the Shitto unleashed, Muhai would manipulate his own attacks against him, making Shitto tire and harm himself. After a long offensive, Shitto withdrew, panting.

    ¡°You bastard¡­ Why don¡¯t you draw your sword?¡±

    ¡°Because I¡¯d kill you, and if you¡¯re truly Yami¡¯s friend, then I would rather not cause my disciple any grief right now.¡±

    ¡°Draw your damn sword!¡±

    Muhai walked to where his table lay in shambles and withdrew a leg of it.

    ¡°This¡¯ll be more than I need to kill you.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s see it!¡±

    Shitto darted at Muhai. As he dashed across the floor, he changed his axe into a rapier. Leading with the fine point, Shitto prepared to pierce into Muhai¡¯s flesh. Muhai knocked Shitto¡¯s arm, leading his rapier towards the way he came from. Then Muhai grabbed Shitto¡¯s throat and slammed him into the ground. As Muhai raised the table leg into the air above Shitto¡¯s head in preparation for a strike, Shitto¡¯s face scrunched up and angered tears formed on his eyes. Muhai swung at full force, but just before it hit Shitto, he reduced it to a soft strike, however it still left a bruise.

    ¡°Like I said, I won¡¯t kill y-¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t touch him!¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    Muhai turned to see Rikai mid-slash with Muhai¡¯s sword.

    Muhai gripped the blade with his bare hand and pulled it away from Rikai.

    ¡°You would¡¯ve hurt your friend more than I have!¡±

    <hr>

    Shitto and Rikai bowed their heads in front of Muhai. They apologized in unison.

    ¡°We¡¯re sorry we were disrespectful, Sir.¡±

    ¡°Good. Now, as for Yami, he passed out during some training. I dropped him off at some blacksmith¡¯s place.¡±

    ¡°Make?¡±

    ¡°Hell if I know. It¡¯s where he got his sword.¡±

    Shitto nodded at Rikai.

    ¡°Thank you, Sir. We¡¯ll be going now.¡±

    ¡°Damn disrespectful brats. I thought that Yami was a kid¡­¡±

    <hr>

    Walking into Make¡¯s house, the pair were greeted by a vacant home. Shitto turned to Rikai.

    ¡°Do you think he went back to the apartments?¡±

    Rikai shook her head.

    ¡°He may have, but if he passed out, wouldn¡¯t that be from fatigue? He¡¯d have no life essence to warp back home¡­ wait, didn¡¯t Make have a warp tag to our world?¡±

    ¡°I think so. Where did it go to?¡±

    ¡°My house. And thanks to our little excursion, we¡¯ve wasted more time than needed.¡±

    ¡°Well let¡¯s get going! We have no time to waste!¡±

 Chapter 46 - Ayakos Father

    ¡°Hey! I was wondering if I could come with your group to the festival? Mine bailed on me¡­ Really? Cool! I¡¯ll see you in a few hours then!¡±

    Shippai shut her phone, then grinned.

    ¡°If I¡¯m in the middle of the festival, I should get the maximum amount, not to mention it¡¯ll be harder for Yami to pinpoint me¡­¡±

    Shippai stood up from her bed and stood in front of a void that acted as a mirror.

    ¡°Maybe I¡¯ll go classy¡­¡±

    <hr>

    Rikai burst into her hallway with Shitto close behind her.

    ¡°Make? Yami?¡±

    As they looked around, they heard a creak upstairs. Shitto looked to Rikai, then nodded. As they ran up the stairs, they saw that the bathroom light was on. Rikai approached the door and knocked.

    ¡°Uh¡­ hello?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re here!¡±

    Make came bursting out of the bathroom half naked and dripping with water. She wrapped her arms around Rikai with glee.

    ¡°I¡¯m so glad you found us! Yami¡¯s been out could for hours now!¡±

    Make looked past Rikai and noticed that Shitto was looking the other way.

    ¡°Shitto¡¯s here too?¡±

    Make¡¯s arms surrounded Shitto from behind. Shitto jumped in shock, and Make noticed he was blushing.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Shitto?¡±

    Shitto shut his eyes and blushed even more.

    ¡°You should have some decency! I love half naked girls as much as the next guy, but you¡¯re clinging way too much!¡±

    Make pouted.

    ¡°Do you not have a sister?¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    ¡°I thought I was like your big sister, but I guess I¡¯m just some other girl¡­¡±

    ¡°Hey, not to ruin your guys¡¯ moment, but where¡¯s Yami?¡±

    Make pointed towards Rikai¡¯s room.

    ¡°He¡¯s in there. He¡¯s sleeping on the bed.¡±

    ¡°Thanks.¡±This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    As Rikai walked towards the room, she heard Make begin to play with Shitto again.

    ¡°C¡¯mon, little guy. How about we get some food?¡±

    ¡°Who¡¯re you calling little?! I¡¯m taller than you!¡±

    Rikai slowly opened the door. The faint moonlight lit up Yami¡¯s left side. Rikai approached him.

    ¡°Yami? You awake?¡±

    As Rikai finally reached his side, she saw that half of his body was transformed.

    ¡°It¡¯s like when he went berserk¡­¡±

    <hr>

    Yami wiped blood from the corner of his mouth, all the while breathing heavily. Haisen cracked his knuckles.

    ¡°You really aren¡¯t giving up, are you?¡±

    Yami grinned and prepared to engage in combat again.

    ¡°Of course not.¡±

    Haisen kicked off of his left foot, nearing Mach 10. Landing a blow, Haisen smirked.

    ¡°Got you.¡±

    Yami gripped Haisen¡¯s forearms and pulled him towards himself, then drove his knee into his stomach. As Haisen fell to the floor, Yami rubbed his ribs.

    ¡°Hey, Akahishi, let¡¯s take a break.¡±

    ¡°As if.¡±

    Haisen tried to launch a sneak attack, but considering it was barely Mach 1, Yami made quick work of it.

    ¡°We¡¯re both out of energy for right now. We¡¯ve been fighting for days. Let¡¯s just take a breather and resume.¡±

    ¡°What do you think this is? Training?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. This is really helping me. I¡¯ll definitely be able to keep up with Shippai now, but if we continue, I may be able to even outspeed her.¡±

    Haisen sat down, facing his back towards Yami¡¯s.

    ¡°Akahishi, why did you do all of this?¡±

    ¡°What specifically?¡±

    Yami shook his head towards the ground.

    ¡°Sacrificing so many people, people who trusted you, people who helped everyone!¡±

    Haisen shut his eyes.

    ¡°To be one step closer to saving everyone¡­¡±

    ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re all thieves of The Creator in his eyes, right? What would happen if someone collected everything that was stolen, then returned them to him?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure¡­¡±

    ¡°It would remove this pointless struggle between everyone. People who tried to commit suicide would die, and people who didn¡¯t would live.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure I follow your train of thought¡­¡±

    ¡°Many innocent people, people who have never met The Creator, were killed by Pubi¨¤n Fanxiang. I doubt that our worlds are different in that aspect.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re not wrong, but that¡¯s why I have to stop those people.¡±

    Haisen opened his eyes and furrowed his eyebrows.

    ¡°But how can you? Think about it, Yami. You live in one area, and you only have one life. There is an entire planet that you must protect, and with each day, a new Pubi¨¤n Fanxiang is born. You may even encounter Pubi¨¤n Fanxiang who are stronger than you. What then?¡±

    Yami looked to the ground.

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure¡­ I guess I¡¯d have to be the strongest I could be.¡±

    ¡°That is my answer.¡±

    Yami shook his head.

    ¡°But what still doesn¡¯t make sense is why you¡¯d collect souls, then give it to Ayako? She¡¯s insane!¡±

    ¡°Because I owe her.¡±

    ¡°Owe her what?¡±

    ¡°A better life.¡±

    Yami began to get frustrated.

    ¡°Just be straightforward!¡±

    ¡°When I was young, I fell in love with a woman. We were both peasants who lived in the scums, so our lives were ruled by people who were above us. Unfortunately, they also dictated when and to who one may wed. We ignored their rules, and within months, we had a child on the way. However, when we finished the birthing process, the rulers decided the best punishment would be to have one of us perish for the others sake. Obviously, the child was not an option, but we did not want to choose between us either, so while my love looked away, I leapt from a nearby roof. However, in my descent, I saw my wife be killed by the ruler¡¯s men. Just before hitting the ground, I met The Creator. I was surprised when I landed in a  moving carriage filled with straw, but my surprise was immediately overcome by sorrow. I murdered everyone in sight except for my child. Knowing she would never see the light of day if I left her, I took her to a faraway place and left her in front of a temple. Before I knew it, she had already met The Creator, and in turn, I met her.¡±

    ¡°So Ayako¡¯s your daughter, huh?¡±

    ¡°Yes, and I am going to give her my soul so that she can continue to live with The Creator.¡±

    ¡°Akahishi, I¡¯m sorry, but Ayako isn¡¯t the same person anymore. She¡¯s going to kill us for her own benefit. She could care less about the survival of humanity.¡±

    Haisen kicked Yami in the back of the head.

    ¡°I¡¯m done with your nonsense! How dare you disrespect her?!¡±

    Yami picked himself up from the ground.

    ¡°I¡¯ll take you down, then deal with her!¡±

    <hr>

    As sunlight filled Rikai¡¯s room, she groggily woke up and wiped her eyes. Seeing that Yami was still unconscious, Rikai exited her room and worked her way to the kitchen. As she began making food, she heard Shitto and Make shuffle into the kitchen.

    ¡°Hey guys, want some eggs?¡±

    ¡°Sure.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t you mean ¡®yes please¡¯, Shitto?¡±

    ¡°Make, I swear if you don¡¯t leave me alone¡­¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t lie to yourself, you love me annoying you!¡±

    ¡°Shitto, what time does the festival start?¡±

    ¡°It officially opens at 1 p.m., but everyone I know isn¡¯t going until 6.¡±

    ¡°That means we only have around eight hours¡­ I hope Yami wakes up before then.¡±

 1 Year Anniversary

    Hey guys! It''s officially 1 year since I released the first chapter. It''s been a crazy year for me personally, and this story isn''t something I''ll forget. I had been working on the first few chapters in October of 2016, but was uneasy about posting it online as a lot of details are comparable to my life as well. After months of dwadling, I posted it to RRL. I''m not sure how I really came about this site anymore, but I''ve had such a great time on it. I remember after a month or two I got my first follower, and during finals I got my first review. It was such an exciting aspect of my life that I wouldn''t trade for anything else. A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    Thank you all for the support. Whether you are a follower, or jusst a casual reader, I love and appreciate all of you. I hope to see continued support in this exhilerating adventure of ours as we near Jinsei no Hogo''s completion, as well as throughout other works. As always, I hope you have a great day!

 Chapter 47 - The Festival

    ¡°Ready Shitto?¡±

    Rikai began putting on her shoes.

    ¡°Yeah. I wanna go to the deep fried foods first.¡±

    ¡°After we find and take care of Shippai. If we can do that, I¡¯ll even pay for your food.¡±

    ¡°You got yourself a deal!¡±

    <hr>

    A bustling crowd worked its way down narrow alleys towards Shoturo River with stalls and tents set up along the paths.

    ¡°Shippai! We¡¯re over here!¡±

    Shippai turned to her right and saw a group of four girls standing underneath a tree.

    ¡°Sorry I¡¯m late, I had to do some stuff.¡±

    ¡°No prob.¡±

    Shippai awkwardly stood with the group of girls.

    ¡°So what¡¯re we gonna do?¡±

    ¡°We already went through and saw the festival, so we were gonna stay here until the fireworks start.¡±

    Shippai looked at the sky, which was quickly turning dusk.

    ¡°I guess I¡¯ll go look around, then. I¡¯ll meet you guys back here?¡±

    ¡°Sure!¡±

    Shippai waved goodbye, then merged into the crowd once more, this time walking parallel to the river.

    ¡°It¡¯s almost time¡­ I need to make sure Yami isn¡¯t here.¡±

    Shippai broke away from the crowd and hid away in a nearby tent. Focusing her life essence into her head, she tried to sense if there were any other echoes nearby.

    ¡°Hmm¡­ Looks like there¡¯s only one runt. It¡¯s probably Shitto. I¡¯ll just take him out with the rest of the crowd.¡±

    <hr>

    ¡°You picking up anything Shitto?¡±

    Shitto strained his muscles.

    ¡°I sense her, alright. She isn¡¯t even trying to hide! It¡¯s as if she¡¯s taunting us!¡±

    ¡°Let her. We need to go get Yami.¡±

    ¡°And do what? He¡¯s out, Rikai! You know how long it took for me to recover, think about Yami! Not to mention he¡¯s got that whole ¡®Haisen¡¯ thing going on¡­¡±You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

    Shitto continued to follow the crowd into the festival.

    ¡°What exactly is that ¡®Haisen thing¡¯?¡±

    ¡°Too little time to explain. All you need to know is Yami has a very bad, very powerful monster trapped in himself.¡±

    ¡°Is that why he goes crazy sometimes?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s the thought.¡±

    Rikai was bumped into Shitto by a rambunctious member of the crowd.

    ¡°Sorr-¡±

    ¡°Rikai?! You¡¯re going out with Shitto now?!¡±

    Rikai and Shitto turned to see the same group of girls who greeted Shippai. Rikai quickly got away from Shitto.

    ¡°No, no, no, no, no, it¡¯s not like that! We just came as friends, and someone bumped me into him!¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t blame you! He¡¯s definitely hotter than Yami!¡±

    ¡°Plus he¡¯s not a criminal!¡±

    ¡°Or a scumbag!¡±

    ¡°C¡¯mon Shitto, we¡¯re leaving.¡±

    As Rikai began to walk away, Shitto grabbed her arm.

    ¡°Have you guys seen Shippai?¡±

    ¡°Oh, so you really aren¡¯t going out with Rikai, huh. Yeah, she went over that way. Said she was gonna check out the festival before the fireworks started.¡±

    ¡°Thanks!¡±

    Shitto let go of Rikai and started walking in the direction the group had pointed.

    ¡°Why¡¯d you even ask? You said she isn¡¯t hiding!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s the problem: She has so much pressure that I can¡¯t pinpoint her location.¡±

    ¡°Are we that out of her league?¡±

    Shitto shook his head.

    ¡°No. We can take her down if we act fast.¡±

    Rikai was put at ease with Shitto¡¯s response, but she still felt uneasy.

    ¡°How are we gonna go about taking her on? It¡¯ll be too dangerous to put everyone in harm''s way.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll have to. Plus, if we can¡¯t end up beating her, it¡¯ll give people time to get out of the festival. That way, we¡¯d at least still be saving people.¡±

    Rikai nodded in approval.

    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s find her and stop her!¡±

    <hr>

    Haisen fell to one knee. Out of breath, he closed his strained eyes.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Akahishi, but we need to end this. I need to get back to my friends. It¡¯s been months since I¡¯ve been trapped here, hasn¡¯t it?¡±

    Haisen shook his head.

    ¡°No. Although it may feel like an eternity, it has only been a day or two. For some reason, time is distorted in this seal.¡±

    ¡°I see. Maybe there¡¯s a way to manipulate the seal¡¯s time to go faster or slower¡­¡±

    ¡°Are you going to torture me more?¡±

    Yami laughed.

    ¡°No, but that¡¯s a good idea. I¡¯m thinking about coming to train here with you more often. I feel like I¡¯m leagues above where I was a couple wee- I mean, days ago.¡±

    ¡°Keep in mind your body hasn¡¯t been doing this, only your mind has. Your body may tire too quickly if you fight like this in the real world.¡±

    ¡°Never thought about that¡­ thanks, Akahishi!¡±

    Haisen shook his head.

    ¡°I¡¯m not trying to be helpful, I just don¡¯t want to go down with you! Either way, there¡¯s no use talking about what happens when you wake up if you don¡¯t know how to. I¡¯m fine with kicking your ass for eternity, but your body is probably malnourished, and you¡¯ll die soon.¡±

    Yami jumped up in shock.

    ¡°You¡¯re right! You have any idea how I get out?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure, you¡¯re the one who opened the seal.¡±

    Yami looked down at his right hand. Despite the seal not being visible, he felt its presence.

    ¡°Hey, I have an idea.¡±

    Haisen looked at Yami with disgust.

    ¡°What the hell is this?¡±

    ¡°C¡¯mon. I think this is the only way to do this.¡±

    ¡°This better work¡­¡±

    Haisen stood up and shook Yami¡¯s hand.

    <hr>

    Shitto and Rikai followed the crowd to one of the two bridges that crossed over the river. As they walked along it, they felt it shift constantly from side to side as if it were shaking.

    ¡°I can¡¯t believe that this bridge still feels the same after all this time! I remember when I was little it shook me around just like this!¡±

    ¡°Yeah, it never gets old, does it?¡±

    As they finished crossing the bridge, the neared a small temple-esque building. Shitto and Rikai both froze as they saw locks of red hair flowing in the breeze.

    ¡°So, you guys finally made it? I was sad that you didn¡¯t bring Yami, but I¡¯ll have fun with him later.¡±

    Rikai stepped forward.

    ¡°It¡¯s over, Shippai. Just give it up now.¡±

    Shippai began to laugh maniacally at them.

    ¡°You two think you can stop me?¡±

    Shippai turned to face Shitto and Rikai. Her blue eyes were now blindingly white.

    ¡°I¡¯ll show you just how much you pale in comparison to me.¡±