Hidden In Darkness: Kusanagi Part 1

Chapter 7: The Things that Never Change

The android rushed towards using her jets. We quickly evaded the attack and rolled to safety.
"Sky Rip!"
I swung my kusanagi with both hands and launched a wind projectile at the android. However, one of her rail guns shot a large beam that completely eradicated my attack. I quickly reacted and dodged again. The beam destroyed anything in its path as part of the ground and trees were turned into black ash. If I was hit by that, it would certainly be the end of me. I noticed the rail gun she used was glowing red. It seemed to be overheating and from what I learnt from video games, it would take a while before she could use it again. Yuzuki quickly summoned her butterflies to start a barrage of attacks on the android. Suddenly, machine guns appeared on the androids's arms and began to fire seemingly endless rounds of lead that destroyed the butterflies. It was in actuality, a diversion for the real attack as Shizuka, who had placed Miya by a tree near her to avoid her getting caught in the fray, used Ginkotsu to shoot arrows behind the android, embued with her newly acquired lighting ability. However, the large rail gun that was overheating was used as a shield and automatically protect her from the arrows. However, lightning raced through the rail gun and it fell motionless on the ground.
"It seems that lightning can short circuit the gun mechanisms. Shoot her again!" Yuzuki ordered.
Before Shizuka could fire another lightning arrow, the other rail gun that the android had fired another beam. Shizuka quickly ceased her attack and dodged the beam in the nick of time. While the android was distracted, I swung my blade at her back. The android quickly dashed away, but she did not escape unscathed as her back now had a large cut on it. Suddenly, wings materialized on the android's back and began to fly around us.
"Activating missile launcher: Sylph."
A large missile mechanism appeared behind her and missiles were launched at us. Yuzuki stood in the way and pulled out her katana.
"Kotetsu no Cho! Second blade: Plum Judy!"
Yuzuki pulled out a glowing red blade and had her butterflies converged in the blade. The blade and the butterflies combined together and formed a giant blade made of red aura. Yuzuki slashed the missiles that came right at us before they could come close. The missiles exploded in mid air as they were struck by the giant blade. As the missiles were being destroyed, I found the deactivated rail gun on the ground. It was then, a stroke of inspiration appeared in mind.
"Shizuka-san, are you thinking what I'm thinking?" I asked her.
Shizuka nodded and I was qued to retrieve the rail gun. Shizuka followed me and we initiated our plan. I held the rail gun and pointed it at the andiord. Shizuka sent jolts of electricity into the gun using her power.
"Take this!" I yelled at the android as the rail gun fired.
The beam attack destroyed the missiles that were in the way and headed straight at the android. Unprepared, the android tried to evade but her wing was shot down. She flew out of control and crashed at the opposite side of the park. The android got back up off the ground. Her body seemed to be dented and electricity was seen circuiting through her body.
"Body functioning at 65%. Hostile level increased to B level threat." The android stated in her robotic voice.
"Now activating overdrive mode."
Titania then began to glow hot red. She dashed towards us at a great speed. All of us quickly used range attacks to hinder the android. However, they did not even slow her down and seemed completely unaffected. We quickly moved away and Shizuka grabbed Miya and retreated with us. Titania then summoned a giant cannon which size equal to a large van. The cannon then charged energy and was aimed at us.
"Watch out!" Yuzuki warned us.
"Ultimate Arms Weapon: Cait Sith. Fir..."
Suddenly, out of nowhere a giant white cat appeared from the dark bushes. The cat growled menacingly and gripped the android using its teeth. The cat flung the android around like a toy and threw it like a rag doll. I was shocked by the sudden appearance of the cat. After the android laid motionless on the ground from the repeated mauling, the giant cat approached us. Slowly, it began to transform into a smaller form. It was then I knew who it was.
"It was good that I came to aid you, unreliable humans." The youkai said in an unappreciative tone.
"Byyako? It was nice to tell me you could do that..." I stated.
"Like I would ever use such a powerful ability to your unrefined marbles that you call eyes." Byakko said.
"Cait... Sith..."
All of us turned to the direction of the sound and found that the android was still functional. She was standing up and had the giant cannon aimed at all of us.
"Fire."
A giant beam was fired at us. It was so big that it was impossible for any of us to dodge. Suddenly, Masakado, who still wore a paper bag on his head, appeared before us and stood in between us and the beam. He summoned his yasakani jewels and they suddenly converged and fused into his skin. When the beam came into contact to him, the beam did not penetrate through. Instead, Masakado was blocking the attack with ease. The man was also now clad in an intimidating looking samurai armor. It seemed that it was part of his regaila's ability.
"Magatama armor, activated!" Masakado announced as approached the android, ignoring the beam like it was nothing. Masakado grabbed the android by the head and pulled his own. He then smash his head into the android's, causing her to lose unconscious, or perhaps stand-by mode.
"Phew, you saved us back here..." Yuzuki thanked Masakado.
"Oh just doing my usual thing, being awesome..." Masakado said as he stood there in a prideful manner.
I must admit, despite his ridiculous looking appearance, he was amazingly strong.
"Where's Miyamaru-sama!? "Byyako demanded an explanation.
"She's here." Shizuka said as she brought and held Miya in her arms.
"Miyamaru-sama! Are you alright?" Byyako asked.
"Mmmm.... I want peropero candy...mm" Miya uttered in a sleeplish manner.
"She's alright." Shizuka stated.
It was a relief that Miya was finally safe again, but the deactivated android deserved our utmost attention. We looked upon the android and wondered what we should do.
"I'll bring it to the Kibishi Group to see what we could do with it." Yuzuki suggested as she picked up the android.
"In the meantime, we should all head back home. And get Miya-chan back to the your house..."
All of us agreed with the plan. Yuzuki used her guardian butterflies as a sort of levitation, with the andriod with her, she flew away. Meanwhile, Masakado held Miya in his arms and climbed into Byyako in his giant cat form. The two ran off into the distance. Now, Shizuka and I were the last one left. Shizuka walked over to where Deigura was shot and killed. His blood still stained the ground and she stared at it for a while.
"I'm glad he's gone."Shizuka stated.
"However, there are still things that aren't clear as of yet. Why was he working with that man and the android? Why did they need Miya-chan for? So far, I can't think of anything." Shizuka elaborated.
"I'm sure we can get more information soon..." I assured to her.
"I suppose so. I'll see you tomorrow. Good night...and thank you." Shizuka said to me.
I waved back to her as we went our seperate ways. I already learnt how to return back to the human world on my own, so if nothing went wrong, I should be fine. We spent so much time that it was already night time. probably around seven. I needed to return home quick before I get a scolding from my sister.
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Next day
It was a Tuesday and school had ended without anything extraordinary happening. However, the class did finally decide what to do for the school festival and by the vote of the majority, our class would be doing a cafe. Normally, I would be hanging out with my friends at the fast food restaurant. However, I had other things planned out.
"Sorry about this, Kurou-kun..." Kikuri apologized as lifted a large package from the van.
"Don't worry about it." I assured to her.
The rest of Kikuri's things were still being brought into her new home. I decided to help move her things for the day. It was shocking to see how many things she brought back with her, there were plush toys, clothing, and many other things. I supposed with a salary of an idol, she would be able to afford all of those things. With a large package in my hands, I walked into the house. It was like how I remembered it. The wooden floors and the old, but comfortable furniture. I remembered travelling up and down these stairs while playing with Kikuri and Shiro. I found Kikuri's grandparents in the living room as I was walking into the house.
"Thank you again, Kurou-chan.." Kikuri's grandmother thanked me.
"It's no problem, m'am" I assured to her.
I continued my way up the stairs wit Kikuri, who was carrying another package. We then came to the corridor. We walked to the second door. Kikuri opened the door and I found a few of the packages we already placed.
"Where should I put this?" I asked Kikuri.
"How about over there?" Kikuri said as she motioned her head to the left, next to her bed.
After I placed the package carefully on the ground, I looked at Kikuri and found her struggling. She had her eyes closed and her arms on the verge of giving way.
"Umm... Kikuri-chan. Do you need any help?" I asked, concerned about her endeavor as I walked over to her to see if I could help.
"It's...huff...alright... Yrrgh! I...got..."
Before Kikuri could finish, her arms could take it no longer. The box fell out of her arms and crashed onto the floor beneath it. My eyes widened immediately in resonance with the sound of the box's contents landing on the floor. It was not because Kikuri suddenly dropped the box, it was because the box landed on my...
"ARRRRGGH!!! My foot!" I screamed in pain.
Kikuri glanced at me in shock and fear. Unsure what to do, she began asking me the obvious.
"Kurou-kun! Oh my god! I'm sorry, are you okay?"
"Arrgh!.... It's... It's alright... The pain is subsiding...." I assured to her.
The pain was nearly unbearable. However, I should be fine after a while. My eyes averted to the box and its contents.
"What's in that box anyway?" I asked
Instinctively, I crouched on the floor and took a look of what was in the box. It was actually a bunch of picture books and a small snowflake-shaped plastic attached onto a necklace. I immediately recognized that plastic snowflake. It was something that was precious to Kikuri
"You still kept this thing, huh? Wasn't it suppose to be a hair pin?" I asked as I lifted up the necklace
"The plastic fell off, but it is still sentimental to me, so I made a necklace out of it..." Kikuri stated
The small piece of plastic in my hand brought back some memories. I recalled how Kikuri was. She was such a small, weak and shy girl. No one would have believed that Kikuri-hime, the popular teen idol, was such a person before.
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7 years ago...
The way out was already in my sight. I finally got to return home. The nine year old me was more than happy to leave the elementary school building. All I wanted to do when I get back home was to lie on my bed and play my portable playstation. However, I needed to postpone my plans when I heard a cry for help.
"Give it back!" A meek voice suddenly cried out.
It was not exactly a 'cry for help', but it was basically the same thing. I was not the person to ignore such things, so I checked what was with the commotion. The voice came from a nearby classroom, so I changed my course and headed to the classroom. When I got there, I found a couple of girls bullying someone. It was a girl. She was smaller in structure and seemed weaker than them. One of the bullies was holding something above the girl's head as she desperately tried to get it. The bullies were laughing in glee as they passed the object between each other and driving the girl to near tears. I was only there for five seconds, but I already had enough of it. I came in to intervene.
"Hey! Stop this at once!" I yelled at the bullies.
The bullies responded to tht and ceased whatever they were doing. Caught by surprise, they dropped the object as they were throwing it to each other. The bullies quickly ran off before I got a clear view of their faces. Instead of chasing after them, I checked up on the girl. She had short black hair that covered her eyes. She continued looking for whatever the object was. The girl desperately searched around on the floor for the object. I crouched down to help her.
"So..sorry for all the trouble I'm causing you." The girl apologized as she saw me aiding her.
"There's no need to apologize. I'm doing this because I want to. What is it that you dropped?" I asked.
"My...hair pin. My mother gave it to me for my birthday. I need to find it." The girl explained in her meek voice.
"What does it look like?" I asked.
"It's a snowflake. It also kind of looks like a white shuriken. If there were ninjas in Hokkaido, maybe their shurikens would look like snowflakes as well..." The girl said out loud.
"What?"
"....huh? Oh, sorry. I got carried away with my thoughts..." The girl apologized.
She was certainly a strange person, but she seemed alright. I continued to search for the snowflake hairpin. My hands swept the floor until the tip of my fingers touched something. I picked it up and found the hairpin she wanted.
"Thank you." She said as I gave her the item.
"No problem. Who were those girls?" I asked.
"Sayaka-san and her friends. They thought my hair pin looked silly on me, so they went and tease me for it.... B...but it's alright! I'm used to it. After all, I'm just an unpopular, weak person who has no friends. So there's no need to tell the teachers on them or worry about me." The girl claimed.
She really had low self esteem issues. Even though she was telling me not to worry, what she said only made me more concerned for her.
"Come on. I'm sure it's not that bad. First, you should get back up."
I pulled out my hand to help her up. She accepted it and stood up. The hairpin placed her front hair on the side, revealing her face. She had large bright azure eyes that made her look unexpectedly cute. I supposed it was her own self esteem that was the problem.
"You look a lot better with that hairpin." I commented to her.
The girl immediately blushed and averted her eyes in embarrassment. She did not seem to be used tot being complimented.
"My name is Narukami Kurou. It's nice to meet you." I greeted myself.
"I'm... Shimada Kikuri." The girl said in return.
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Present
Both Kikuri and I carried on bringing in and carrying boxes into the room. We eventually finished with the tedious chore after a while and I planned on returning home for dinner, until...
"Are you going home already... Kurou-chan?" Kikuri's grandma asked as I was walking out.
"Yes, m'am" I answered her.
"It's already about 5. Why not eat with us?" Kikuri's grandma invited me.
"Huh? Are you sure it's alright?" I asked.
When I was younger, Shiro and I were usually offered to eat at Kikuri's place. I did not know how to explain it, but it felt cosy when eating at her place. It might be because the small room made it feel like there were more people than there actually were.
"It's been quite a while, of course you can eat here if you want..." Kikuri's grandma stated.
I would like to accept the offer. However, I needed to consult with my elder sister. I told Kikuri's grandma what I needed to do before pulling out my cellphone. Searching through th contact list on my phone, I found the contact that was titled 'home'. I called home and after about a few seconds, my sister called.
"Hello?" My sister asked.
"One-san, it's me, Kurou. I'm going to eat at Kikuri's place. Is that alright?"
"My! Eating at a girl's place? You're quite the casanova, aren't you?" My sister said in a sarcastic manner.
"Com...come on. Do you really have to keep doing that?" I asked as my face blushed from my sister's statement.
"Alright, alright, good luck on your date!" My sister said as she swiftly hung up the phone call.
I grunted at my sister's last statement before turning back to Kikuri's grandma to affirm to her that I was staying for dinner. She was delighted that I could join in for dinner and immediately went to the kitchen to prepare. I turned back to Kikuri's house and went into the living room. Kikuri's grandad began asking me how my life was doing. I told him that there were a lot of changes that happened, but everything was just fine. Kikuri's grandparents were really nice and kind people. I remembered how they always treated Shiro and I like their own grandchildren. It was good to see their personality had yet to mellow down over the years. As we continued our leisure conversation, Kikuri, wearing a pink apron with a cute design of a duck on it, came out of the kitchen.
"Dinner's ready!" Kikuri announced to everyone in the living room.
She carried a small wooden table and placed it on the floor. A few seat cushions were also placed around it. As we all sat, seeing the childish looking apron reminded me of something,
"Kikuri-chan, did you help with the cooking?" I asked.
"Yes. I did" Kikuri stated with a smile on her face.
I remembered that Kikuri, even though she liked cooking, she was terrible at it. When it comes to cooking skills, Shizuka was her polar opposite. When we were eleven, she made cookies that tasted like a sponge soaked in dish water (I'm not even sure how that was possible). I did not want to make her feel bad, so I had to eat the entire thing. My stomach was never the same for the entire week. When I heard Kikuri made dinner, I started to regret staying here. Suddenly, as though he knew what I was thinking, Kikuri's grandad whispered to me,
"Don't worry, we're just having sukiyaki. Plus, my wife was with her, I'm sure it would be fine."
"Hmm? Did you say something, grandad?" Kikuri asked,
"No. It's nothing." Both of us replied in unison.
Finally, Kikuri's grandma came in with a large hot pot and placed it on the table. The smoke from the dish rose an within it was a variety of ingredients. Sliced beef, vegetables, shirataki noodles, shiitake mushrooms, tofu, I could taste it just by smelling it. Once everything was prepared, we commenced the feast.
"Itadakimasu!"
However, as I picked up my chopsticks, I saw a change within Kikuri and her grandparents. Their eyes sparkled and their kind, generous look became more vicious. It was then I remembered a fact about eating sukiyaki with the Shimada family. When eating, they become predators. Almost immediately, chopsticks started dashing in and out of the hot pot, stealing away the delicious ingredients. I knew that if I did not act quick, everything would be gone.
"Here I... Woah!"
As I tried to retrieve some beef into my bowl, my chopsticks got deflected and were thrown to the edge of the table. Truly, they were more viscous than I remembered. They continued stealing away the food, mainly the meat. I attempted in taking some of the food, however, my chopsticks always ended up being deflected. Forget about them becoming wolves, they became tigers. In the end, I only managed to get two pieces, with tofu and some vegetables, much to my disappointment. I planned on eating out again as I was still hungry. However, a hand holding a small bowl reached towards me across the table. The bowl contained a lot of the delicious meat. I looked up and discovered it was Kikuri.
"I remembered that we always ended up eating everything and leave nothing else, so I thought I should save some for you..."Kikuri explained.
It was really thoughtful of her to do such a thing. It was definitely something that Kikuri would do. Without much thought, I accepted it.
"Thanks, Kikuri-chan!"
"Heheh, you really make a good spouse for Kurou-chan, won't you?" Kikuri's grandad teased.
"Don't just say that!" Kikuri exclaimed in embrassment.
After all of us finished eating the sukiyaki, the pot was empty and all of us were bloated. I thanked all of them for the meal and headed out.
"See you tomorrow!" Kikuri said as she bidded farewell.
I waved back at her as I walked back home. The streets were filled with colourful lights and people. The curfew made by the police was finally lifted as the incidents had completely ceased. I also noticed that the nights had gotten significantly cooler. It was the sign that winter was coming soon.
"Brrrrng! Brrrrng!" My cell phone suddenly rang.
"Hmm? Is it onee-san?" I wondered to myself.
I pulled out my cell phone as I continued walking down the pavement.
"Hello?"
"Yo! Kurou! It's me, Shiro." The familiar voice stated.
"Sorry again for not being able to help. My cold is killing me. So, how was helping out Kikuri-chan?" Shiro asked.
I began telling him about what happened back at Kikuri's place, especially the intense battle I had during dinner.
"...that's it? She didn't say anything to you?" Shiro asked in a suspicious tone.
"Umm... I don't think so."
"Really?... Huh, and I thought I set everything up for you two well."
"What?"
"Nothing. Nothing man. Bye"
Shiro immediately cut off the phone call. I did not understand what he meant by 'set everything up', but it did not seem important. I placed my phone back in my pocket and continued my way back home.
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I walked the familiar pavements on the way to school. Usually, I would meet Shiro and Chihiro walking down the pavements in front of me by then. However, both of them were not in sight. I supposed Chihiro's time schedule differed when Shiro was not around. Instead, I met up with Kikuri.
"Morning Kurou-kun!" Kikuri yelled to me as she waved her hand.
Shizuka seemed to have accompanied Kikuri. Although I appreciated Kikuri greeting me, I felt it was attracting too much attention. My schoolmates turned their eyes at me. They were filled with hostility and jealously. Their eyes were saying, "who is this guy? Why is he so popular with Kikuri-hime?". It appeared that Kikuri was completely oblivious from the stares of the people around us, so I tried my best to ignore them.
"Hey, Kikuri-chan." I greeted her back.
Both of us walked together into the school. I tried my best to ignore the angered stares of Kikuri's fans as we head towards the classrooms. Their stares were like invisible weighs pushing down on me. Kikuri and I walked across the courtyard filled with students and entered the school building. We walked up the long flight of stairs to level 2, where our classroom was.
"There it is." Kikuri said as she pointed out at the classroom ahead of us.
"BOOM!"
An explosion was heard from close by, the entire ground shook violently and everyone on the corridor, shrieked in shock as they fell onto their knees. Kikuri was about to fall, but I managed to catch her in my arms.
"Kikuri-chan! Are you alright?" I asked.
"I'm fine." She answered back.
I looked over to where the explosion came from. The rooftop of the west wing of the school was in smoke. However, I looked closer and saw electrical surges within it. I sensed the energy there to be sure. What I feared was true, it was Shizuka. It seemed that she was fight in a powerful opponent. I needed to help her.
"Umm. Kurou-kun? You can let go now." Kikuri said, interrupting my thoughts.
I turned my attention back and I found Kikuri still in my arms. She looked at me with sparkling bright eyes and her face was red in embrassment. I quickly let her go before things got even more awkward. Suddenly, an announcement began to air through the school's audio systems.
"Attention students. This is the principal. The explosion from earlier was due to an accident in the chemistry lab of the west wing. Please approach the school courtyard in an orderly fashion..."
As the announcement continued on, the students began following the instructions of the announcements and approached the schoolyard. Everyone left the classrooms and brisk walked towards the stairwell. However, I sensed that Shizuka was where the smoke was, and she was in trouble. I instinctively turned the other way and made my way towards the west wing.
"Kurou-kun? Where are you going? Isn't that where the fire is?" Kikuri stopped me.
"There's something I have to do. Go on without me."
With that said, I quickly ran off before she could say anything else. It was not a good excuse, but it was the best I could come up with. As I ran, I looked back and Kikuri did not seem to have followed me. It also seemed that everyone had already evacuated from the building. Since there was no one I needed to be wary off, I picked up the pace and reached the rooftops. When I opened the door, smoke immediately gushed in through the open door and I quickly got myself to the middle of the rooftop, where the smoke engulfed the least. It was there I found Shizuka battling a demon. It was as though the smoke intentionally covered the sides of the rooftops to conceal our appearance. The demon was familiar. I recognized it's bat like appearance and glowing red eyes. It was Kudlak.
"Kurou-kun. You came in the nick of time." Shizuka said as she back away from demon.
"What happened?"
"I came early to the school because Yuzuki-nesan detected an abnormal mana reading. When I got here, Kudlak attacked me." Shizuka explained.
The demon simply stared at us with malicious intent. It levitated in the air and sat in a menacing posture.
"You've just saved me the trouble of finding you, Regalia User. After I'm done with you, I'll take care of that paper bag wearing eccentric." Kudlak stated.
"How did you find us?" Shizuka questioned the demon.
"How did I find you? I was already aware of where you all were! Doesn't matter how though. What matters is what I'm going to do to both of you! Get ready, pesky mages!" Kudlak threatened us.
His wings began to expand exponentially into an ennormous size. Kudlak flapped his wings and the surrounding smoke moved in to camouflage himself. Only his shadow was somewhat visible and it was still hard to determine where he was. Kudlak moved through the smoke in a fast and unfixed motion. I could barely keep up with the demon's movement.
"Behind you!" Shizuka yelled to me.
I turned around and found the demon charging at me through the smoke. I lifted my Kusanagi and attempted to block the attack. My action was only semi-successful as I was not injured from the hit, but I was pinned down by the dark spirt instead. It lifted it's claw and was about to strike. Fortunately, Shizuka stopped Kudlak by intercepting the attack using one of her daggers. Shizuka sent electricity through the dagger and into the Kudlak's body. Electrocuted, Kudlak quickly retreated back into the smoke to make him less vulnerable.
"Thanks, Shizuka-san." I said to her as I pulled myself up.
"Tch! So you learnt a new trick? Doesn't matter, I'll still kill both of you!" Kudlak taunted once more.
Kudlak began began to zoomed in and out of the smoke arena, attempting to dash into us. We evaded the attacks by pre-determining where he came from.
"Origin: Raiden!" Shizuka exclaimed.
She summoned forth her new origin power. Electricity surged through her body. It seemed that the electricity was not meant to attack the enemy, but to enhance herself. The electricity in her body was supercharging her body and forcing it to perform at its utmost potential. With her enhanced reaction speed, she caught a high speeding Kudlak by the hand and sent electric shocks into him. Kudlak howled She then threw the stunned Kudlak away several metres away and out of the smoke. We both walked out of it to finish off the demon, I took a look outside and it seemed that the students had either been dismissed or assembled elsewhere. Either way, it made it easier for us. Kudlak slowly picked himself up, still numb from the electricity in his body.
"Alright. It's time to end this."
Shizuka ran straight at the demon first, and I followed suit. However...
"Argh!" I cried out suddenly,
I felt a sharp, painful sensation coming from the left side of my lower torso. I turned to find what it was. It was a knife! Stabbed straight into my body, blood was already escaping from wound, forcing me to fall into my knees. I turned around and found a person, cloaked in black. It was then I remembered something important. Kudlak needed to have a medium, or host, near him at all times. I should had remembered it, but somehow it slipped past my mind.
"Kurou-kun!" Shizuka yelled out to me in shock,
Kudlak found it as an opportunity to strike and attacked Shizuka. Kudlak uses his razor sharp claws to combat Shizuka's, who reacted in time, daggers. However, with Shizuka's occupied, I was at the mercy of Kudlak's host. The cloaked man pulled out the knife from my body and kicked me onto the ground.
"Rrrgghh!" I grunted in agony as I sprawled on the floor
The man lifted the knife and was about to plunge it into me. It did not seem that I would be miraculously saved. My injury was too great for me to move in time and it seemed that my fate was sealed
"Is this...the end?" I wondered to myself.
Time seemed to slow down as the knife slowly reached me. It wasn't due to some supernatural power or a hidden ability of mine or anyone else's, it was because I was about to die. I closed my eyes and accepted what would come.
"Kurou-kun!" A familiar voice was heard.
"Who is that?" I asked myself.
I opened my eyes gently to see who it was, only for them to widen from surprise. It was someone rushing towards my side, someone who was not supposed to be there. Time resumed once more and the person pushed my assailant to the side before he could strike me down. The knife fell on the floor as the two figures fell as well. I looked up and confirmed who it was. I wanted to thank her for rescuing me. However, those words did not came out next,
"Kikuri-chan! What are you doing here!? Get out of here now!"
With all the chaos that was going on, Kikuri must had hidden herself and saw what was happening. What I feared came to life, someone close to me was now involved with this madness.
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