Help from the Shadows (Open Novella Contest)

21 (Final Battle, Natsume)

Mister Movien sent off pen attacks that went straight for them, but Jorogumo shot them away with Shimanouchi-sensei's help, while Ayame-chan sent off her own attacks. Sakami-kun didn't show any signs of holding back as he mirrored Ayame-chan. Neither did Rasen, who was trying to get close to Mister Movien. 

On the other hand, Chenhua-san and Choiseung-san were dealing with the Ungaikyou, who was trying to get them to yield by calling out spirits. However, they were not deterred, and only shot at them to make them disappear. 

It was really a battlefield all right.

And the 4 of us were sitting ducks. 

Believe me, the 4 of us, even Keisuke, were tense. Why aren't we allowed to fight?! 

"Why won't you let us fight, Akino-san?!" Akinori demanded. 

"You guys were just rescued, and your powers have been severely weakened! We can't risk any problems during the fight! Plus, our players have already been maxed out!" Akino-san replied back. 

"Akino's right! This is a delicate situation! Mister Movien is standing on a thin line! One wrong move, and we could end up losing him!" Rau nodded. 

"But why save him?" Komasan asked, his face tilted a bit. 

"そう、だぜ〜 (Sou, daze~ = I agree)" Junior nodded. "He's only caused pain for us since you got here, right, daze~? So why help him?" 

At that, they both went silent. 

"...It's a complex story. It's actually Rau who has to tell the story," Akino-san admitted. 

We blinked, and looked at said person, who was silent as he looked up from the monitor.

Rau-san then sighed, "I used to be a detective, you see. I worked for this company called Alibi back in Hawaii, which mainly focused on breaking down fake alibis. I was a great one, to be fair, but I eventually chose to retire and go into scriptwriting. The reason for that was because of this one case that really struck at my heart."

"What case?" Akinori looked confused.

"One where his dad was one of the victims," Akino-san replied.

Our eyes widened in shock. W-What?

"It was a serial kidnapping case. When the motive was finally found, it was unbelievable," Rau-san whispered.

Akino-san then turned back to the gaming panel and continued fighting while manning two panels at the same time. It looked like he was giving Rau-san time to tell us the story. Rau-san looked grateful, so he turned back to us.

"The Mastermind, who was revealed to be a millionaire, just wanted true friends who didn't want money or riches or anything," he admitted. "When I heard that, my heart ached. I couldn't help but feel sad for him. I then promised to be his first friend, and he was so happy. We made a promise on the spot to keep being friends, despite everything."

"After that case, I realised that everyone in this world needed a gentle push to the right direction, so I went back to university to study. Luckily, at that time, I was still 17, so I could go there. However, I lacked the motivation."

"It was then that I found Youkai Watch, or, more specifically, Mister Movien. Despite his unorthodox methods, I could sense that he truly wanted to make viewers happy. His determination rekindled the fire in my heart, so, re-energised, I managed to get it done in a year, and I was invited to Singapore, where I met Akino and the rest."

"Oh..." Komasan nodded. "I understand now."

"Great to know! Ready to fight again, Rau?" Akino-san looked back.

Rau-san nodded, looking at us once again before he got back to the panel.

Soon, the battle was turning in our favor. Ungaikyou was almost done for, and Mister Movien was beginning to show signs of tiring. 

Chenhua-san and Choiseung-san looked back at Akino-san.

"Akino! What should we do now?!" Choiseung-san shouted out. Akino-san looked at Rau-san. 

"We're doing a combo then!" Rau-san declared as he used his index finger to move both of them back. 

Then they began charging up their attacks. Choiseung-san shot bullet after bullet, while Chenhua-san shot his arrows.

The 4 of us watched with awe as their continuous shoots gradually became a huge energy sphere. 

"You ready Choiseung?!" Chenhua-san yelled. 

"Yeah! Let's do this!" Choiseung-san shouted back before they kicked the sphere together and sent it Ungaikyou's way. 

Upon making contact with him, we heard him scream in pain as the sphere sent him flying to the wall and knocking him out instantly. 

"Great job, Choi-nii, Chen-nii!" Ayame-chan shouted to them as she finished sending off yet another attack, causing Mister Movien to screech out in pain. 

"Thanks, Yame-chan!" They chorused together. 

"Come on, everyone, one last attack to Mister Movien!" Akino-san shouted as he had Mitsue-baa go on Jorogumo piggyback-style. 

"OH!" They all cheered back. 

"Sticky Web Spirals!" Jorogumo summoned mini-tornados which combined to form a huge one which spun in front of her. 

"Fiery Ribbons!" Douketsu shot lines of fire to the tornado, making it become a fire tornado of some sort. 

"Earthquake Tremors!" Shutendouji made the ground shake like waves to him, making Mister Movien lose his balance. 

"Oni Rain!" Rasen called down a blood red rain, which joined the tornado to make it stronger. 

"Thundering Spirits!" Choiseung-san shot lightning spirits out and they joined the tornado. 

"Multi-Punch Attack!" Chenhua-san shot punch attacks at the tornado. 

"Water Maze!" Mitsue-baa summoned waves. 

"And finally, PURIFICATION ATTACK!" Ayame-chan shouted as she added her heart attack to the tornado. 

"FEEL THE WRATH OF OUR UNITY!!!!!!" They all chorused. 

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Mister Movien screamed as he was hit by the attack. 

A bright light made all of us cover our eyes.