CALAMITY CORE : FREE THE WORLD

CH.80 'COLOR OF NATURE'

As the raiding party carved a path through the woods, they slowly encountered more signs of its habitants. The Tenryu-ji left stone statues in the deepest neck of the woods, each a carving of what seemed to be a different chimera. It wasn't long before they encountered ambushers just as Inoshishi and Dove had. What monks hadn't remained behind were thrust into battle alongside their leaders in Kouriki and Stitch.

It was not long until the string of ambushes had forced the raiding party into a field of sunflowers, where what appeared to be a man, masked by a white ceramic full-face covering painted to show a single red eye, awaited the warriors. Okuri, the head of the fighters still, threw out his arm to keep his soldiers in order. He barked an order for them to remain on the path they intended to take, to return to the trail Andrei and Vivian had forged, and Kouriki took charge alongside Stitch to keep their fighters safe on the way there.

Only three remained. The masked figure, Okuri, and the masked cat burglar. Suzuko stepped up beside Okuri, her daggers swiftly weaving between each of her fingers and into a combat-ready position as her mask seemed to frown alongside her. The field of sunflowers was about as tall as she, but he knew that would not matter for this masked figure.

That instant, he began to tense up, unleashing his ch'i aura to shield Suzuko and himself from an equally powerful aura. This man, whoever he was, erupted with a burning passion manifested into red ch'i. Okuri's fangs bared, and he lowered himself to a combat position, holding his sword with an inverted grip. His protective blue created a calming blanket which blotted out the dangers of the world, for the moment. The masked man lifted his robed head, and unfolded his arms, hands invisible beneath his thick sleeves.

"Oh? Who is this who has come to challenge me?" The man took the stance of a trained martial artist, his weight perfectly balanced as he lifted his hands to finally see the sun, his skin glowing in the sun. "... You've got quite the aura to you. I suppose you deserve to know who I am, whoever you are."

Suzuko tightened her grip on her knives and looked up to Okuri. Here, he could feel her motions, and he assumed that a warrior with a ch'i similar to his own would have the same ability. If he really was blind... he didn't know about Suzuko, yet. He nodded to her, and she took a low stance, tucking into the sunflowers, but not bolting into a fight. The duo looked towards the masked man, whose eye was unseeing as Okuri answered his question.

"I am Okuri of Clan Inu. I am here for my students, my... family. They've come under threat by your organization's hands. I will not stand for it, and you will not stand in my way." The wolf-man spoke adamantly, not deterred by the thought of a warrior equal to him, or even more terrifying, stronger than him. He would do whatever he needed to, to protect Suzuko. To keep his family safe. Taking his own stance, Okuri was ready, his tail swishing with anticipation as he prepared to fight.

The masked man dipped his head, and let out a slight "Ah," before continuing. "I am Yaksha, and I'll remember your name, that motive. But why... Why would you fight for them? They must be Chimera, yes?"

Suzuko bit her lip to keep her mouth closed. She wanted to shout, to tell this idiot opposing them that family came before all else. Okuri mirrored her sentiments though, and that caused her to glance up beneath her mask, a thoughtful look crossing her face. Okuri's conviction only grew, and so too did his power, beginning to encroach on Yaksha's own aura. "That is the only reason. They are family, Chimera or not. I once thought they needed to fight their own wars, but..." He trailed off and gained a faint glimmer of respect in his eyes. "A man better than I, in more ways than one, he taught me to redirect the fates for them. To fight for a world better than our own."

Reds and blues clashed as Yaksha got his answer. The martial artist shifted his stance, and in an instant, pushed off his toes, his light shoes making little sound as he lifted into the air. Okuri raised his blade as he watched Yaksha's aura condense into a personal body shield as opposed to a large bubble. Okuri did the same, honing his aura, condensing it around his fist, his sword. He was shocked when the man struck dead center on the flat portion of his blade, his fingers like steel on their own. Being forced to step back, Suzuko carefully evaded detection as the auras began to expand, clashing once more, this time even more violently, two opposing waves of all-encompassing souls.