Intro Song: / We’re in this Together - Nine Inch Nails
"SOMEBODY GIVE ME A STATUS REPORT!"
Several men flooded the remnants of what even remained...
Of the...
Financial centre...
The rubble covered most of the collapsed former skyscraper:
Multiple bodies were found to be the enemy-
As multiple medics rushed in to examine the bodies to find whoever it was they fought-
If they were even to be found here at all...
Battle-hardened and tired...
They moved with both a sort of restrained and calm manner but also with a hint of-
Proper military procedure-
Each movement wasn't wasted with every action done with a clear purpose and goal-
With each step closer and closer to finding...
The actual situation that transpired here...
With the lot of them finding-
Amongst nothing but rubble and more of the enemy-
A peculiar sight...
A clear aura barrier...
Whose potency was flickering-
But protecting whoever it was under still...
From the falling debris of the...
Aftermath...
A body was found...
Unsacathed from the rubble...
But clearly...
...
With wounds and bruises all over her body...
With many obscured...
Since most of the abrasions were...
On her back...
...
"Sir!"
"Reporting on the current situation!"
"Go ahead private, what is it?"
"Umm sir, they are only insurgents to be found around this entire area of the Osaka station!"
"And?"
"Well..."
The soldier just stood there in complete silence, almost with a clear apprehension of trying to convey the next pieces of information"
"Well?"
"Faint traces of aura signatures were found of..."
"Both the Scar-Giver... and her subordinate..."
The superior officer was left astounded, a rare moment of human genuinity flashed before the private-
It's as if...
Flashes of memories of...
Her...
Flooded his mind...
"Umm sir?"
"Oh yes!"
"Well..."
"Have you found any of them? Are they KIA? Or are they currently alive?"
The private was instantly interrupted by another, the whispering in the ear clearly the very information the superior was looking for-
"Corporal!"
The private assumed a saluting stance once more-
"As you were private"
"As you were..."
The corporal's eyes showed a sort of...
Quiet stillness...
Upon hearing information that pertained to...
The Scar-Giver...
"Sir!"
"We have found her body-! Err... We have found her! Still alive but unresponsive!"
"It's unclear whether she is in a coma the medics said, or if she is just unconscious at the moment..."
"I see..."
"What about her subordinate...?"
"I heard she had a formidable Grade A agent with her as a support-"
"About that sir..."
"Hmm?"
"This... subordinate of hers..."
"Grade A ranked, Kokko Yanou..."
"She is..."
...
"MIA..."
...
It was the next day...
With the sun rising on the plains once more...
The warm orange hue and the cool wind-
Will never be felt by them both...
And in their sacrifices...
Who would ever feel it?
Upon the thousands and thousands of seemingly overwhelming numbers-
They might as well just be two little dots of dust on what encompassed-
A gigantic vast of incomprehensible (to the human mind) space of reality...
Just two more lives lost...
To the ever-growing and ever-starving depths and innnards of unending conflict and...
War...
And yet...
One's legacy will forever more be felt-
Even if she is just another one of those lost...
Her title and actions still stand...
But what about the other...?
Too young to make a name for herself...
The young are always the greatest pain-
Youth taken away too soon...
And yet...
And yet...
She isn't really gone now...
Is she...?
But whatever will stand for her...
In all reality...
She was...
...
Dead...
From the very moment she saw...
Omoi...
Leave this mortal realm...
And with her lack of presence and guidance...
Who's to tell...?
If that...
Thing...
Is even a person...?
Or something else entirely...
...
Is it really her...?
Or is it...
Somebody else...?
...
To begin with...?
...
In the first place?
/ Luca - Brand New
"Mom!!!!!!"
A young little girl rushed to the arms of her loving and caring-
"Mother"
The young woman barely in her 20s couldn't help but to smile...
Ever so sweetly...
Her heart melting at the sight before her...
Their embrace is felt for ages...
An impact almost like as if...
They really were...
Family...
"Himura-chan!!!!!!"
She hummed and sung her words as she giggled at the little girl's attempts to hug her, only able to reach her stomach-
"Your not so little anymore y'know?"
"But mom!!!!! I don't care about that!"
She pouted with her cheeks warming up, she shakes her body in frustration, showing her minuscule tongue and beady eyes as if to say-
"Blehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh"
"I love you mom!"
"More than anything!"
"I don't care if I'm... all grown up!"
"And am a big girl now!"
"As long..."
Kokko squatted meet her gaze-
Himura was so small and fragile compared to even her-
Her slant figure always leaning and depending-
On her beloved mom...
"As we're forever together!"
Kokko giggled some more at this-
"Isn't it supposed to be together forever?"
Himura spaces out at this comment, and upon realizing-
"Hmmph!!!!!"
"You're being mean to me again!!!!! Mom!!!!!!"
She raises her voice slightly in a teasing and playful manner-
Kokko can't help but to just-
Laugh so hard and giggle, she carries Himura by her little legs and hugs her tightly-
"Oh Himura-chan~"
"You're right~"
"You'll always be my little girl, won't you?"
Himura's face shifts so fast, her joy is both too infectious and potent-
Kokko gleefully smiles the most she has ever had in her life...
"Of course mom!"
"Forever and ever!"
"Don't you forget it!"
"Hihihihihi!!!!!!! Of course not!"
"My beloved little Himura-chan!"
...
Oh how...
You've grown up...!
Himura-chan...
You and Rushiko-chan...
Always the mischievous little pair!
And I know...
How much of a crush you've got on him!
Hihihihi...
Man!
You're too precious!
...
If only...
I could see you again...
You...
Rushiko-chan...
Suzushii-san...
Kuroke-kun...
...
And you...
...
Omoi-san...
...
Man!
I can't just keep being down all the time!
I'm going to see you soon anyways...!
Omoi-san...
...
I guess before that...
I deserve...
A little bit of rest...
...
That's right...
A bit of rest...
Before...
Before...
Leaving you all alone...
...
WHY...
WHY...
WHY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
...
Himura-chan...
God!
...
Will I miss you...
So much...
And I know you will miss me too...
...
Your beloved...
Mother...
Will always love y-you...
So please be...
A good girl...
Like always!
And someday...
We'll meet again!!!!
I know it...!
I know it...
...
Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
I-I...
...
I know it...
…
/ The National Anthem - Radiohead
"Live in the now..."
"Live in the present..."
...
"For years..."
"Hell...!"
"For the past two decades since..."
"We..."
"We have been THIS close to winning..."
"THIS close..."
"We..."
The figure stood out in front of the darkened and single-lit by the centre-
Round table...
One...
That looked familiar...
"We have been sabatoged! By one of our own!"
He raised his arms and hands upwards, spreading them and with the wave of the hand-
He formed a pulsating fist, and lifted a single finger outwards-
Towards...
A certain someone snickering at hearing all of this unveil before them all-
"Yeah yeah! That's enough flattery now!"
He stood up as well, grinning madly at the recognition-
Dare you say-
Frothing at every opportunity...
His eyes shone brightly, his aura being spread all across the round table-
Slight projections of those two-
They called family...
Flashed before their eyes...
Some just looked on with pangs forming-
Whereas some...
Held out the sudden urge...
To stranggle the ever living daylights out of these two...
A tension was rising, and this...
He...
Used this to his advantage...
"I can clearly see..."
"After all these years... decades even..."
"We have lost the opportunities given to us that fateful day-"
"We have grown ever so weaker..."
"Ever so outnumbered..."
...
"WELL NO LONGER!!!!!!!!!!!"
He pointed his sharp finger ever so impactful-
Towards a lean looking man, an unassuming one at that...
But he...
Was the catalyst...
For all their predicaments...
"And all because of this- to be frank with you-"
"HELL WHO FUCKING CARES?!?!?!"
"WHO DOESN'T WANT TO OBLITERATE THIS BASTARD OF A TRAITOR!!!!!!!!!"
"RIGHT NOWWW?!?!?!?"
He reveled in their rage, in the minorities whose voice outgrew those who grew apprehensive for this kind of situations...
And with this-
His smirk glowed white-
His eyes almost inviting those...
Who doubted him...
In the first place...
"Give me ALL of your hatred!!!!!"
"And let us finally strike! At those who have humiliated us!"
"Of those! Who have undermined the true strength of the rightful bloodline of the true Ishiins!!!!!!"
"GLORY TO BE THE GREAT EMPIRE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Every soldier who was outside the room started to cheer upon hearing his voice blast out such...
'inspiring words'
And with such roaring applause-
"AS OF RECENT EVENTS!!!! THE ICA HAVE SHOT THEMSELVES EVER SO GLADLY-!!!!!!"
"RIGHT IN THEIR WORTHLESS FOOT!!!!!!!!!"
"AND NOW..."
"THEIR HEADS ARE RIGHT FOR THE TAKING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
"THIS OSAKA CONFLICT HAS INCITED PARANOIA AND DISCORD AMONGST THE GENERAL POPULACE!!!!!!!!!"
"Amongst their insignificant and FUCKING USELESS ORGANIZATION!!!!!!!!!"
The soldiers kept on cheering and chanting in the background right outside:
"FINAL WAR!!!!!!!!!!"
"FINAL WAR!!!!!!!! FINAL WAR!!!!!!!!"
"FINAL WAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Two of the most superior officers present could only look at awe at such energy palpitating from the room and beyond-
"Y'know... your highness..."
"He sure is something else..."
He turned his head to the one who sees all, the one wearing the...
Demon-mask...
The mask adorning figure could only nod slightly, his presence and lack of words enough to be be consituted as a...
Compliment...
Even...
To the one behind it all, the man behind the rage and chaos-
And so:
The soldiers chanted his name over and over again:
"MIKOTO!!!!!!!! MIKOTO!!!!!!!!! MIKOTO!!!!!!!!!!!! MIKOTO!!!!!!!!!!!"
"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!"
HE LAUGHED HYSTERICALLY RIGHT BEFORE THE EVER-GROWING AND BUILDING CROWDS THAT AMASSED BEYOND HIS EYE SIGHTS COULD RENDER-
"TODAY..."
"WE WILL TAKE BACK WHAT IS OURS!!!!!!!!!"
"AND FOR THOSE WHO HAVE BETRAYED US..."
...
"WE WILL PARADE THEIR DECAPITATED HEADS FOR THE ENTIRE WORLD TO SEE!!!!!"
"TO NEVER MESS WITH THE GREAT EMPIRE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
"EVER AGAIN..."
SOLDIERS KEPT ON SCREAMING, THEIR BLOOD-CURDLED NOISES KEPT ON GROWING AND GROWING AND GROWING-
And Mikoto just stood in front of the chaos...
Reveling in it...
Drinking in the rush...
He...
Right at this very moment...
...
IS A GOD...
…
/ Stop Crying Your Heart Out - Oasis
"Hey..."
"Rushi..."
"Hmm?"
Two figures stood at their usual spot-
By the balcony...
Looking out and...
Pondering about...
So much more...
The wind kept on blowing, howling...
Its whispers kept on brushing her ears...
Rushiko notices her gaze...
Ever so to the distance...
Ever so filled with a sort of hidden pangs...
That he feels...
That he shouldn't pry over...
The sun's orange hue filled their sights, the city lights were beginning to only open up one by one-
The city billboards, the car's headlights, the lights from each of the rooms from the multiple buildings that surrounded them...
It was...
Oddly calming...
And...
Weirdly enough...
...
Alienating...
He got closer to her, a warmth ever approaching...
But...
When he thought he'd be brushed off...
Her arm...
Wrapped around his neck and spread towards his shoulder...
The wind was getting colder and colder-
The atmosphere was suffocating..
And yet...
And yet...
Her lips parted and-
"When do you think she'll be back..."
"I miss her... so much..."
She turned her face towards his-
A face filled with as much anguish...
That he...
Couldn't ever fathom...
And yet...
He knew the feeling... all too well...
"Y'know... every time she goes out for her missions..."
"This feeling is always with me..."
"I hate it Rushi... I hate it so much!"
Her lips quivered and her body trembled-
Rushiko knew what he needed to do...
At moments like these...
They...
Only had each other...
...
He wrapped his arms around her, a smile playing on his lips-
A face...
That exuded the calm ocean waves that she...
Longed for...
So for long now...
"Rushi..."
She, in turn...
Smiled...
But it wasn't without pain...
A smile that was a result of his presence...
And yet...
It was also due to a lack of presence...
Of her...
"She'll be back Himura..."
He let go of her and faced her so close-
Their noses were practically touching each other-
"Just like always..."
Himura could only smile with such a fleeting sadness, it was just like soundwaves-
Up and down would her emotions fluctuate-
She...
Didn't know how to feel about all of this...
Exactly...
But...
She definitely knew one thing...
"No matter what... Rushi-kun..."
"You'll always be here with me?"
"Won't you?"
She proceeded to smile with such glee and gladness-
Rushiko could only stare as his chest...
Would accumulate butterflies...
Or was it his stomach? he thought
He just laughed at this, with such hearty chuckle
Himura could curl up and twist her body, wondering
"H-hey!"
"What's so funny?"
"Hmmmm?!?!?!"
She got flustered and punched him by the arm lightly multiple times
And as the night befell on them
The stars shone ever so brightly
Even though they were so far away...
Out of reach...
Rushiko just kept on laughing-
"Here I am pouring my heart out!!!! And you're just laughing at me!!!!!"
"N-no!!!!! It was j-just..."
Suddenly he just stopped laughing...
His face instantly turned into...
One of...
Himura notices this and with such concern, she nears his face, only exacerbating...
The situation...
His face...
Was redder than even hers...
"Oh jeez! What did I do this time?"
"Did I break you again?"
Rushiko couldn't help but to shake his head and gain a bit of distance from her-
All the while, covering his face-
Her lips couldn't help but to-
Curl at this...
"Man! Stop being such a cutie!!!!!!"
"AHAHAHAHAH"
"Shut up!!!!!!"
"Just shut up already!!!!!!"
With Rushiko at the very end of the side of the balcony's railing-
He crouched and sat by the floor, still covering his face-
As if to protect himself-
Himura could only shake her head-
"Man I was just teasing you!"
"You easily get too excited, don't you?"
Rushiko doesn't answer-
Letting the silence fill the air...
And as the city lights shone ever so brighter than before-
She got closer to him-
Rushiko...
Finds himself...
...
Cornered...
...
"That was fun...!"
"Thanks Rushi-kun!"
She giggled and gave him a peck on his cheeks, with him only whimpering at this-
"Himura!!!!!!"
"Hehe, you really know how to cheer me up don't you?"
And with the sigh of her breath-
She grabs his hand to raise upwards-
Rushiko lets go of his hands from his face, just to find-
Himura's face shining with even more glamour than before-
He just gulps and puts on a serious face...
"That's right Rushi!!!!"
"We've... got work to do..."
She turns her back towards him, and they both leave their hangout promptly-
Knowing...
What they had to do...
...
Just another day's work...
Or should he say...
...
Just another night's work...
…
/ Oily Water - Blur
And just as they passed by the familiar hallways of their apartment-
The warm orange lights that he loved blurred together-
His mind running with thoughts-
But they felt fleeting, they felt like...
Fishes that swam up a clear stream-
Ever so out of reach-
Too hard to grasp...
Too slippery to...
Catch...
And with this, he starts to discern voices that he knew of...
The feeling came back...
He...
"Kuroke!"
"Not like that!"
"Spread out your hands and let your aura fill whatever your mind sets out..."
"To burn..."
"I'm trying here!!!!!!!"
"Well try harder!!!!!!!!!!"
"ARGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH"
Rushiko could only pass by and with the weight of his heart...
He glances at the enormous training space that was a former ballroom...
He...
Spies on them both...
With his eyes...
Slanting...
And his lips?
Curling downwards...
He sees the person he wanted to be with the most...
Other than Himura...
The one who took him in...
The one who gave him shelter...
The one...
Who...
Gave him life...
He was right beside a younger-looking boy, his curls and fiery nature only captivating his mentor-
Rushiko just stood there-
As if the spotlight was shifting from him...
To...
Them...
And in the darkness he revelled in...
Not by choice...
Not by want...
But by...
Circumstance...
Just like what his life had been...
And just as he wanted to be with...
His dad...
He just had to be there...
To hog up all his attention...!
"Tch...!"
Rushiko bit his lip and started to scratch the wall's paint with his fingernails-
Failing to even chip out anything...
He bit even harder at this...
Getting more and more frustrated by the minute...
The boy was holding a black katana that was longer than even his whole height-
"S-senpai!!"
"It won't work!!!!!!"
Suzushii could only grit his teeth at this, the slight sigh that calmed his nerves-
"It WILL..."
"Just think about what you want most..."
"To protect..."
His eyes started to look deep into Kuroke's eyes, and what he notices...
Was a bit off-putting...
"ARRRGHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
HE LET OUT SO MUCH AURA, HIS NORMALLY ORANGE FLAMES SUDDENLY FLICKERED RED AND EVER SO SLOWLY-
It turned...
Black...
He filled the blade with his flames, wrapping it and coating it
His eyes...
Had this different sort of feel to it...
It wasn't one that Suzushii saw around here...
It was...
One of...
...
Them...
"DON'T YOU MEAN?!?!?!?"
"TO DESTROY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Kuroke screamed so loud, you could feel his aura starting to chip at the ceilings and the walls around them-
As if the training area couldn't be even more damaged...
Than it already is...
Suzushii could only look in horror...
Just standing there...
In awe...
And...
Confusion...
He snaps out of this-
And with the flick of the wrist-
He grabbed Kuroke's own-
"And that's enough..."
"B-BUT!"
"I said..."
Suzushii's cold eyes only dug deep into Kuroke's spirit-
Kuroke's rage...
Was the least to say...
Quelled...
"That's enough..."
Suzushii only proceeds to shake his head even more and sighs even louder-
"Y'know..."
"It's not good to give in to your rage like that..."
Kuroke only looks at this hand's dissipating aura-
As it flickers from red to black...
Ever so slightly...
"You'll go berserk..."
"And hell..."
"You're more insurgent than ishiin if you keep this up..."
"But senpai!!!!"
Kuroke faces Suzushii with a clear resolve, that look in his eyes-
Was more something Suzushii had come across before with...
This...
Still doesn't impress him...
"They have done nothing but destroy the very people they are striving to so-called: "Enlighten""
"WHAT A BUNCH OF COWARDS!!!!!!!!"
"TERRORIZING CIVILIANS AND INNOCENTS!!!!"
"What is wrong with them..."
Suzushii's look shifts-
He gets closer...
Nodding his head-
Kuroke lifts his in turn to look at his mentor-
"Y'know..."
"I once was like you..."
"That's how I was able to desert from them..."
"But you shouldn't ever..."
"Fall into the mind games... they trick you into playing..."
"You got that?"
Kuroke could only look away, nodding hesitantly...
"Yes sir..."
"Good!"
"Now let's get something to eat!"
"I'm starving!"
"Hehe thanks for the treat senpai!"
"I never said I was paying!!!!!!!!!"
"H-hey!!!!!"
"Get back here!!!!!! You little rascal!!!!!!!!"
Kuroke starts to run towards Rushiko's position-
Laughing so hard, his body jumping subtly with joy-
In which case...
Rushiko could only flash out of there and next to Himura's ever-moving position-
Which was already down on the sidewalks below their building...
And so Rushiko could only look upwards at the ballroom's windows...
Gritting his teeth harder...
...
"If only..."
"You were like that with me..."
"D-dad..."
His shifted his view below to the pavement-
Himura turns her head to check up on Rushiko-
"Hey!"
"You alright Rushi?"
He holds back his feelings and promptly...
His tears as well...
"Uhhhh Y-yeah!"
"Just starting to get hungry..."
"Oh!!!!"
"I didn't know you were hungry just yet!"
"Well come on then!"
"Let's grab a bite to eat beforehand, we've got some time left!"
Rushiko lifts his head up and joins Himura's side-
His mind was set on other things-
But his heart...
Never really forgetting...
...
His pain...
That he hid so well...
Until...
He knew...
Someday...
It would erupt...
...
One way or another...
…
/ TEARS - HEALTH
The blue skies stretched out to the unknowns of those who have met...
Four figures each staked their steps slowly but surely above the horizons...
The wind flowing and the calmness-
Right before them...
Intoxicating...
Right for the taking...
As all four of them surveyed the expanses of their...
"Crucial Mission"
One of them lifted their foot up-
Time slowing down to showcase the impact of his-
Presence...
The clouds all around them-
Swaying and dissipating due to their movements-
"This is it..."
"How we have been waiting for this moment..."
"For so long now..."
"Haven't we all...?"
One of them snickered and sniffled, lifting his thumb up to rub his nose-
"Heh... right..."
"Y'know all of this was only possible because I knew of the "Osaka Conflict""
"And I had to do..."
"What was needed..."
"Am I right or am I right...?"
"Yeah yeah!!!!"
"We know!!!!!! Ugh!!!!!!!! As if you couldn't remind us with your smug self over and over again!"
The other one retorted, rolling her eyes with her arms to her chest-
"AHAHAHAHAHAHAH MAN HAVE YOU GONE UPTIGHT!!!!"
"ARE YOU TRYING TO BE LIKE AKARI OR WHAT?!?!?!?! CAUSE-"
She just grabbed and muffled his mouth, his spit covering her mouth, disgusted by this-
She ignores it as she looks to her shoulder towards-
Aoki...
His eyes...
So slanted...
Ever since that day...
He hasn't been the same...
Even if he's with Yukki...
His eyes...
Have changed...
Ever since...
"Oh right... sorry about that..."
Mikoto's face suddenly warped into something-
Unrecognizable...
"And stay shut! God! Are you insensitive!!!!!"
Mikoto can only zip his trap shut as Tei rubbed his spit on his face, sticking out her tongue, making revolted faces-
Mikoto...
For the first time...
...
He takes this seriously, ignoring Tei's "advances" on him...
To get on his nerves...
Y'know...
AS USUAL
He just stands there with his hands on his pockets, with his spit still fresh on his face-
The chills this induces upon him is massive...
Tei catches on this as she eventually stops...
And on her tracks...
Her shoulder is grasped slowly but deliberately by the...
'Overlooked one'
"What is it Shion?"
"You alright?"
She just nods slowly, her cold demeanor never changing-
Even as they stood atop of the world-
Her mist is-
Everpresent...
And never-changing...
She can only rub both her hands together, trying to simulate "heat"
As if to mock their situation...
But with an unaware tinge...
Of course...
...
And as the four of them let the silence take them-
Their thoughts were only running and ever pre-occupied on one thing...
And one thing alone...
"And so..."
"Today..."
All of them stood menacingly, as if their entire figures ruled all of the land, the seas...
And the skies...
The buildings and the cars and the people like little ants along with their little itty bitty ant colonies-
Were eyed upon...
With want...
A desire...
That is ever-taking...
That is...
Ever encompassing...
...
"Revenge is ours..."
...
"The Final War..."
"Commences..."
...
-To Be Continued-
...
Ending Song: / The Day the World Went Away - Nine Inch Nails
