[September 14, 2418 - Friday, 9:00 AM]
Onaka sighed as she looked at each of us, noticing everyone except Aisha was battle worn and exhausted. Her weasel hopped off her lap and over to Otsuki and sniffed her feet then began squeaking, her gaze shifting over to Onaka as if to tell on Otsuki.
"Eee..? You used your Weasel Skip? On who? Who were you fighting?" Onaka asked in terror, hurrying over to Otsuki and began checking her for any wounds. She turned to Heido and began pulling his ear. "What did you get your sister into?"
"Yeouch!! Okaasan, you're pulling too hard..!" Heido whined and hissed in pain. "She was with Oto, and you know he'll protect her..!"
"It's true, Mama! Please let Niisan go!" Otsuki said, trying to save her brother from maternal wrath. "You should be angry at Ojisan Nagai!"
"Huh?" Noda asked, opening one eye as he was cleaning his hear then froze as he sensed a fiery fury growing in the room.
Onaka glared at Noda with fire in her eyes and began charging toward him with ferocious intensity. Noda quickly began running off with a bit of nervous laughter, avoiding each of his sister's attempts to grab him then vaulted over the couch to create distance.
"What did you get my daughter into? You know I don't approve of her getting into your mess! I should awaken Ohirume and rain fire upon you!" Onaka bellowed, summoning her Ark into her hand.
"Whoa, whoa, no need for all of that. It was just a simple treason that needed to be handled. I initially called Heido and my men to handle it, but I guess he invoked some old agreement my father and Okaasan had," Noda said, holding his hands up as he didn't want to encounter the fury of a mother.
"Let the record be known, I did volunteer to help Niisan Hei! It's not like he forced me to, even though it felt like such..." Otsuki said, wanting to set the record straight before anything else happened.
Onaka hummed then her Ark dissolved into small embers before vanishing. She looked over at me and Aisha, seeing Aisha's cheerful smile and a sky blue silhouette hovering behind her. Her gaze shifted back over to me, recognizing my mother's cloak and gauntlet.
"Motosaki, Aisha. It's been some time since I've last seen you two. Thank you for keeping my children out of too much danger," Onaka said with a warm smile.
"Of course, even though I didn't even get a chance to try out my wind powers! If I was in there, I would've summoned an entire tornado!" Aisha beamed, pumping her fists with excitement.
"No, you wouldn't. And even if you could, you would have killed an entire complex worth of people and city damage. That's at least 8 years in prison," I said, shaking my head and sighed.
"Yeah..." Aisha sighed, lowering her head.
Onaka noticed Nanako giggling at the two of us then hummed with a grin on her face. She looked over at Kyoto, noticing she was avoiding eye contact with her then exhaled softly. "Kyo..."
Kyoto kept her hands in her pockets with her unlit cigarette hanging from the corner of her mouth. "I hear you never asked about me since the day you banished me. Now, you call me by a name you haven't said in years..."
Onaka exhaled softly and closed her eyes, overlapping her hands in front of her. "I understand...and I still regret the decision. It was unfair of me to have banished you—"
"Cut the perfect words bullshit. I couldn't care less about what apology you're about to say. You've made your choice 30 years ago before even having to hear what I had to say...now I've made mine," Kyoto said, glancing down at her sheathed katana.
"I will kill Jeht...for what he did to Nanako. That way, she can finally start being remembered for who she was," Kyoto stated, lifting her gaze over to Onaka.
I crossed my arms and hummed softly, hissing lightly and tilting my head. "I don't think Jeht is the main problem here anymore. It's just something doesn't make sense here. Taka wanted to betray you because you repented, Taka wanted to join with the Womato-gumi..."
"Yeah, I've been thinking about that too since you've said it. The Womato-gumi hate the Nagai-kai even when Jichan Nobu was alive according to records," Aisha began and looked at Heido. "Why would Taka want to join forces with Jeht's Yakuza if it didn't benefit him."
"Because it isn't Jeht we have to worry about. Aisha, do you remember that skyscraper we encountered with Lotus? The Daimo-kai?" I asked.
Noda paused for a moment after hearing the Daimo-kai, his gaze shifting back with a sense of seriousness. "You saw the Daimo-kai..?"
{Chapter 42: White Wolves}
Amon huffed as he ran down an alleyway and looked back, seeing no one was following him nor Koshin then he stopped. He leaned down with heavy pants then laughed, standing up straight and looking over at Koshin.
"Man...that was crazy," Amon said, stretching his arms then grunted as Koshin struck his jaw with a southpaw hook, nearly taking Amon's head off.
Koshin clenched his fist and walked toward Amon as he stumbled backwards then landed a straight kick to Amon's chest, sending him into a dumpster. "You selfish bastard...I told you this was a set up and look at us. Look at me!"
Amon coughed heavily and stood up with the assistance of the dumpster behind him, looking at Koshin with anger and spit out some excess saliva from his mouth. "Did you lose your damn mind, Koshin?! What the hell do you think you're doing?!"
"Did you lose yours? First, you got our captain arrested and put in prison. Second, you had us try and sell in Hajima City. Now, we are at strike three...I don't even give a shit anymore!" Koshin yelled, rushing forward and driving his knee into Amon's stomach.
Amon groaned heavily and coughed while his body slid down against the dumpster. He looked up and noticed Koshin going for a stop then caught his foot before it could land upon him. Amon grit his teeth and began manipulation the shadow upon the wall to protude dark spikes toward Koshin.
Koshin retreated from his attack to avoid the spikes then thrusted his arm down, embers flaring around his arm as he took on a muay thai stance. "I should've betrayed you the moment Motosaki and his girlfriend showed up. Maybe then...the Burning Bulls could be free from this shit."
Amon laughed as he stood up on his feet and wiped his mouth, shadow energy flowing around his feet while Shinsosa began shining in his pocket. "Oh, you wouldn't last five minutes against me now that I'm aware of your BS!"
Koshin ran forward with a leaping superman punch, but Amon moved his head to the side and caused Koshin to strike the wall. Amon torqued his body to the right and shifted his weight, landing a powerful body hook upon Koshin's kidney and launched him backwards.
Koshin groaned as he hit the wall and staggered a bit, his eye opening to see Amom rushing toward him. He tried to move away, but Amon stepped on his shadow to trap him then grabbed Koshin's neck to pin him against the wall.
Amon formed a dagger out of his shadow then lifted it up to stab Koshin in his chest. "You will learn who is actually in control!"
Koshin held his hands down, his palms facing the wall behind him. His hands began to spark violently then he flexed them, releasing a massive blast of fire against the wall to blow Amon away. Amon rolled backwards into one knee then looked up, noticing Koshin standing in front of the crumbling hole in the wall.
Koshin took his turban off his head then unwrapped the cloth to wrap it around his arm, spiritual energy flowing around his arm and setting ablaze. "You no longer control me, Amon Mato... I'm tired of following someone I know is truly rotten. I'm taking the Izuna's offer."
Amon looked at Koshin with disbelief, but his lips curled into a wicked smirk as he noticed a gray pawn lingering over Koshin. The gray pawn moved his wing from over his eyes, a consuming fire circling under the foot of the pawn.
'So, you think switching sides is going to save you? Well, this Friday has become interesting,' Amon thought to himself.
Koshin noticed a tepid butterfly fluttering in front of him, its wings releasing a passionate energy which began rejuvenating Koshin's spirit. He closed his eyes and smirked with a chuckle. 'I've seen what You have done for the Izuna, so how about I give this a try...'
Amon studied Koshin for a split second before rushing in and launching a jab, but Koshin weaved to took an outside angle to land a wheel kick to Amon's stomach. Amon grunted, but stood strong and swung Koshin around to throw him down the alley.
Koshin recovered and looked up to see Amon missing, his eyes darting everywhere to find him. While distracted, Amon emerged from Koshin's shadow with an uppercut to launch him off the ground then followed with a spinning kick to spike him back down.
"You see the differences between us?! I was only playing around with the Izuna because I need a challenge! With you, I'll make you quick work!" Amon called out as he propelled himself toward Koshin.
The Tepid Butterfly fluttered toward Koshin and landed on his chest, releasing a pulse of warm energy toward Amon. Amon grunted as the energy singed a bit of his aura flow, weakening his punch to Koshin's chest and only causing Koshin to stagger backwards.
Amon scoffed at Koshin's butterfly then looked at his hand, wondering what disruption ability his butterfly contained. "So there are other Butterfly Abilities... I don't have to worry about him Warping then. Good..."
Koshin gripped his chest and chuckled, his flames growing hotter around his body as he began to grow more ambitious about his choice. "Amon... You might have my friends and my mother right now, but I swear to you that this charade won't last."
"Ha! This guy gets a butterfly from the Heavens and now thinks he's set! You do realize you still dealt drugs, harmed people, and extorted many? You think God wants anything to do with you?" Amon laughed and mocked, shrugging his shoulders.
"Obviously He does if He's willing to grant me a butterfly, albeit a weak one. It feels lukewarm, but in this moment a beggars can't be a chooser," Koshin said, taking on his Muay Thai stance again then lightly planted his toes against the ground for nimbleness.
Amon grunted in shock as Koshin rushed forward at high speeds with a roundhouse kick to his head, but he ducked in time and felt the lukewarm wind rushing over him. He shrouded his arm in shadow energy and launched a body hook, but Koshin's butterfly released another pulse of energy, scorching his shadow energy and weakening his strike.
Koshin tanked Amon's punch then countered with a knee strike reinforced with fire, the force of Koshin's strike knocking Amon to the side. Amon stood back up and barely put up his guard to block Koshin's right hook, his forearm barely handling the weight of Koshin's attack.
"...Lower..."
Koshin heard a soft whisper directing him lower and spotted an opening on Amon's midsection. He used his arm arm to launch a telegraphed forearm strike which Amon easily blocked while loading up his own left straight.
Koshin dodged Amon's straight and put enormous power into his body shot, a pulse of fiery energy bursting from Amon's side as he staggered to the right. Koshin's eyes flashed as he swiftly moved to Amon's right and strike him with a shoveling right hook to his jaw then blasted him through an alley wall into a basement.
"Woo! That felt therapeutic! Let's fucking go!" Koshin yelled, pumping his fist to the ground with pure energy.
Amon grunted as his back rested against a support pillar then he stood up slowly with a light groan. He stretched his back and cracked it back in place with a heavy sigh. "What the hell..? What is that butterfly's ability. Every time I reinforced my attack it makes me weaker..."
Koshin hopped up and down, loosening his body then took on his stance once again, watching Amon walk out of the basement. Amon smirked at Koshin before his body became a shadow silhouette and dropping to the ground.
Koshin looked around for Amon, but didn't detect the shadowy right to his jaw. He staggered a bit then another Shadow Silhouette landed a kick to his head into the third silhouette's power straight to his chest, sending him flying backwards.
Koshin rolled backwards onto his feet and sensed Amon behind him and pivoted around to block his straight with his elbow. Amon rose an eyebrow then grunted as Koshin parried his arm down with his elbow, destabilizing his balance so he could land a rear left hook to his jaw.
"What is all this commotion going on over there?" Kyoto asked, leaping from building to building seeing the smoke cloud coming from an alleyway.
I ran through the city on the ground with Otsuki and Aisha, noticing the smoke leaking into the city and knew the battle was changing directions. "We can't even investigate Taka's phone without having to deal with bullcrap. Sometimes, I hate being a detective bro."
"Well, don't hate it too much because you've got two Valkyria Trainees with you! We're gonna solve this and finally party at Matsugaya!" Aisha said with excitement as she kept my pace using her wind abilities.
Otsuki hummed softly and noticed someone flying from the alleyway into incoming traffic which forced a jam in the middle of the road. She came to a halt and noticed Amon walking out of the alley with Shinsosa shining brightly in his pocket.
I stopped as well and locked onto Amon with Nachah then adjusted my gauntlet. "I thought he would've left by now. Who the heck is he bullying now..?"
Kyoto stopped on the rooftop nearest to the commotion then looked down, her eyes slightly widening as she noticed a battered Koshin rising up to his feet. She glanced over at Amon, wondering why the two had begun to fight.
"Not even your Butterfly Ability is allowing you to keep up! Just call it quits here, and maybe I'll let this defection slide!" Amon said, forming a handgun with his shadows.
Koshin chuckled softly at Amon and held his arm, grunting lightly and huffed. "Like hell... I made my choice, and I am not backing down."
"Wrong answer," Amon said, firing his gun at Koshin with zero remorse.
Koshin watched as the bullet flew toward him then a light blue silhouette appeared in front of him. I warped in front of Koshin and sliced the shadow bullet in half with my fusion sword. Koshin's eyes widened in shock noticing me coming to his rescue.
I looked back and grunted softly, realizing it was Koshin then looked ahead at Amon. "So, I guess you did take the offer. After everything you just told me an hour ago?"
"Hmph...Just know, I don't take the safest option because it's safe. I'm tired of following this clown, and if the Burning Bulls and my mother's freedom requires me to risk it all...then screw it, I'm taking that chance," Koshin said, wincing lightly from his injured arm.
I hummed softly then took on my stance, my cloak flowing within the wind as I locked onto Amon. "You won't have to risk it all here. My spiritual aunt is on a rooftop as we speak. Go over there and retreat with her, the girls and I have Amon."
Koshin looked over at Otsuki and Aisha, watching as they came over to me to assist me against Amon. He glanced up at the rooftops, seeing Kyoto watching from above. He looked back at me then nodded before running off to Kyoto.
Amon watched as Koshin ran off then glanced at me with an arrogant smirk, holding his hands out with a wicked grin. "You've stopped me from a deal of a lifetime. You've stopped the growth of the Womato-gumi, so now...I really have to get rid of you."
I scoffed at Amon then shifted my leg forward while leaving my back foot planted firmly against the ground. "The Womato-gumi doesn't need a Nagai-kai member... It seems to me that funds are running low. Daddy isn't supporting anymore..? Or is it that he's blown through it all?"
Amon chuckled with annoyance at my taunt then his shadow energy surged around his body. "You won't be so cocky after I get done with you!"
I watched as Amon vanished into the shadow of a parked car then the shadow extended over to me swiftly. I stomped my foot down then fired an energy blast at the ground, forcing Amon to emerge from his shadow into the air.
Amon grinned at me in the air then formed a large wrecking ball with his shadow energy then dropped it toward me and the girls. Otsuki quickly acted by forming a ball of light in the air to collide with the wrecking ball, but grunted as the weight of the wrecking ball began pushing her ball of light downward.
"I refuse to keep having my plans foiled by a nobody like you!" Amon roared, firing a shadow blast at the wrecking ball to add more weight.
Nanako glared at Amon then looked down at Aisha, holding her hands out to her to influence her energy flow. Aisha noticed her Galeis Æ shining brightly in her pocket then took it out, seeing high winds flowing around her Ark.
"Aisha! Blow it away!" I called out, giving her full permission to unleash her winds.
Aisha gasped then nodded, looking up at the shadow wrecking ball then held her Ark in the air, a powerful tornado generating under the wrecking ball to push it away. "I'll make an opening! You just go in!"
I watched as Aisha's tornado pushed the wrecking ball into the air then I looked up at Amon, my Holy Fire surging from my chest. Once the wrecking ball was blown into the sky, my body immediately became a light blue silhouette.
Amon sensed me behind him then turned around to intercept my attack, but struck another light blue silhouette. I appeared above him with a double hammer fist to his back, spiking him toward the ground then used his body as an anchor to warp toward him.
Amon struck the ground then groaned heavily as I crashed upon his back with a knee drop, his breath leaving his body for a moment. 'What the—'
I grunted as I soccer kicked his body up from the ground then spun around into a roundhouse kick, sending him flying down the street. "No more games. Shogi, do we have permission?"
"Go ahead. We have permission for a promotion!" Shogi announced, spreading his wings and Promoting into a Knight.
I got down into a running start, my Holy Fire setting ablaze even hotter as white lightning surged around my legs. "Otsuki! Aisha! Let's do this!"
Amon recovered onto his feet and slid backwards with a grunt. He felt a sudden increase in my spirit energy then glanced up, his eyes widening as he noticed Shogi as a Knight. "Wasn't he just a pawn? When did he promote?"
Amon's heart skipped a beat as he sensed my energy approach him, but it was too late for him to react, my speeding body striking his stomach with a knee strike to knock him back. While rolled backwards along the ground, he sprung into the air only to meet Otsuki in front of him.
Otsuki launched a rear roundhouse, but missed as Amon turned his body into a shadow and dropped to the ground. "Aisha! He's going to you!"
Aisha rushed ahead like the wind then performed a roundoff before leaping into the air. A ball of wind formed at her feet to kick toward Amon, the wind ball striking the ground and expanding into a dome of extreme winds.
Amon groaned as he was thrown back by the winds, his body crashing into a restaurant and sliding across the floors. He stood up slowly and grunted, looking around to see the panicked customers looking at him. "The hell are you all looking at?!"
The customers scurried in a panic as Amon began protruding shadow spikes from the ground at everyone who gave him a wrong look, none of them striking a customer by the grace of God. Amon looked ahead and noticed me walking toward the restaurant, my eyes glowing golden with pure focus.
"Heh...so you've decided to actually grow more serious? I haven't seen that look in your eyes in a long time, Izuna," Amon said with a laugh, forming his signature katana with his shadow energy.
I clenched my fist and scoffed at Amon as I stepped through the broken window, my gaze never breaking away from Amon. "It's going to be a look you better get used to... Because now, I'm coming for you too. Koshin left you already...soon the rest of the Bulls will to."
"Soon, you'll have your eyes opened...even if I have to beat your eyes open!" I exclaimed, my voice echoing through the restaurant. "You won't escape reality for too much longer..."
"Oh, how heroic. Thinking you can get me on your side as well? There's no chance of that happening. I'd rather die than to accept pity from an Izuna! The Last One at that!" Amon yelled and cackled, taking on his stance.
I chuckled at Amon, my eyes shining with Insight as I began studying Amon once again. "I'm glad you said that...now I have an excuse to beat common sense into you."
"Come over there then! Come catch another win, big shot!" Amon challenged, dashing toward me as soon as I took a step closer.
I ducked under his first slash then lunged forward with a grapple, tackling him against a table then went for a palm strike toward his face. Amon moved his head to evade my strike then struck my face with a hook, getting me off him.
He rushed in with a low sweeping slice at my foot, but a shuriken flew into the building and blocked his slash for me. Amon grunted then looked up, noticing Otsuki rushing into the building and lunge toward him with a spinning kick.
"You women are getting on my nerves!" Amon protested, dodging Otsuki and delivering a slice upon her back with his katana.
Otsuki groaned as she was cut, but stood strong and countered with an elbow strike to his jaw into my palm strike and set a butterfly mark upon his chest. "Motosaki! Let's use our old combination from our childhood!"
I rose an eyebrow at Otsuki's request then suddenly remembered and chuckled, tapping my forehead then snapping my fingers. "Oh, that old one we used on Silverella. I think I still remember it."
"Don't worry guys! I'm here too!" Aisha called out, leaping into the broken window then charged toward the kitchen area.
Amon looked around himself as he stood in the middle of the dining room, noticing Otsuki and I had moved to both sides of him. "Hmph. What's this..? Planning some worthless team attack?"
I glanced at Otsuki then nodded at her while she nodded back at me. Using the butterfly mark, I warped toward Amon with a disorienting superman punch while Otsuki struck him with a liver shot. We began rushing around him from all directions, laying blows upon his body while he struggled to react.
Amon growled lowly then let out a roar, stabbing his katana into the ground and caused rows of shadow spikes to protrude from the ground. Otsuki and I disengaged then slipped into the kitchen area with Aisha while Amon regrouped.
"Where the fuck are you?! Come out now and die like some heroes you all want to play as—" Amon began then groaned as a pot struck the side of his head.
"Did you really just throw a pot at him?" Otsuki asked, looking over at Aisha with disbelief.
"No way am I going to face that psychotic boy on my own while he's losing his mind! Start throwing stuff!" Aisha said, grabbing the nearest appliances she could and began hurling them at Amon.
Amon groaned as a pan struck his face, focusing him to hide behind a booth while the three of us hurled random items at him. He peeked from above the booth then gasped as an entire wok pan flew toward him, forcing him to duck once again.
"Don't stop! He's still hiding!" Aisha called out, grabbing a spatula and launched it at Amon.
"This...is very childish you know!" I commented, throwing a roll of paper towels at Amon.
"Childish, but mildly fun! At least we ain't gotta worry about him charging us right now!" Otsuki said with a light laugh, throwing another container out the kitchen window.
Aisha glanced over at a butcher knife, her eyes flashing magenta as she and Nanako got an idea. "I've got an idea..~"
I immediately heard Nanako's voice through Aisha then glanced over at her, grunting as she picked up a butcher knife. I began speaking to her through my teeth, "Aisha..! Nanako..! Don't you do that..!"
Amon noticed the commotion had stopped for a bit then peeked over the booth once again, his eyes widening as he noticed a wind boosted knife flying toward him. He let out a fearful sound and ducked once again, looking back and noticed the knife sticking into the brick wall behind him.
"What the hell..? Who threw that shit?!" Amon yelled out, peeking over the booth once again.
I watched as Nanako laughed her butt off at Amon's reaction to the knife being thrown then sighed as I lowered my face into my palm. 'The one time I don't want to kill Amon, Nanako still does...I keep forgetting about the vengeful part of her condition...'
"That was genuinely insane. Not even I would've done that, and my family is a group of ninja or Yakuza..." Otsuki said, peeking over the counter to see the knife sticking into the brick wall.
Amon slowly stood up from his cover, noticing all the equipment upon the ground around him. He looked over at the kitchen then glared, his teeth clenching tightly with disdain toward us. "I will kill you three for making me fear for my life!"
I stood up from the ground and looked at each item upon the ground, realizing each of them produced their own shadow. I looked down at Otsuki and Aisha, gesturing with my hand as to give code and only Aisha understood while Otsuki tilted her head.
Aisha began explaining my plan to Otsuki while I began making my way back to the dining room. Otsuki hummed with intrigue then rose up to look at the items on the ground, tracking each item then nodded to herself.
"You want to kill someone? Well, I'm right here, but you won't be landing a single strike upon me. Drop your weapon, and fight like a real man. Unless your old man didn't really teach you how to be one," I said, taking on a boxing stance while bouncing up and down.
Amon smirked at my trash talk and chuckled, tossing his katana to the side and letting it dissolve in the shadow of a Tupperware container. "You know...I really hate it when you test my manhood as if you are more of a man than me."
"I would argue that I am. You ain't nothing but a little boy, little bro," I taunted, raising my guard while lowering my posture and took on a peekaboo stance.
Amon laughed at me then ran toward me with a hook then a cross, but I swayed under both strikes then countered with a lead right hook. Amon took my strike upon his shoulder and rolled it off before throwing a heavy left straight.
I straighted myself out and leaned backwards, his straight narrowly missing my face. I responded back with a body hook, causing him to lean to the side then followed with a left hook then shifted my stance to Flicker Stance while he was dazed.
"I can't lose to an Izuna! I refuse to!" Amon yelled out, his body becoming a shadow and vanished into a shadow of a container upon the ground.
Otsuki noticed then casted an orb of light above the pan Amon vanished into, eliminating the shadow and forcing Amon back onto the surface. He looked surprised then groaned as I struck him with a powerful gut check then released a pulse of energy around my fist to blow him backwards.
Aisha used a burst of wind to raise a spoon in the air in front Amon, allowing it to be used as one of my anchors. I warped toward the spoon while loading up a superman punch, but Amon blocked it and countered with a shadow boosted uppercut to my chin.
I grunted as I went airborne but recovered in the air and aimed my hand downward toward Amon. "Ray of Light!"
Amon grunted softly as he went into a cross block to brace for my attack, but noticed nothing happening. "What..?"
I smirked at Amon as Otsuki formed a ball of light before my hand seconds later then I palmed the orb of light, releasing a ray of energy toward Amon at high speeds. Amon dove out of the way of the blast, grunting as the radius still blew him away into a wall.
I landed on the ground then pulled the hood of my cloak over my head, my eyes shining within the shadows on my face as I rushed flickered forward with a knee strike to Amon's stomach. Amon coughed heavily as his body grew weaker, but I held him up to deliver a gut blow, causing him to cough hard once again.
I held Amon up against the wall by his collar. "It's over, Amon. Now, you will answer my questions..."
Amon panted softly then chuckled as he winced lightly in pain. "Tch...Like hell I will..."
I scoffed at Amon's rebellion, staring him in his eyes with a serious expression. "You will, if you value your freedom. Lest, you wish to stay a puppet to your father."
Amon stared back into my eyes, his gaze sharpening from my comment. "Puppet..? The only puppet here is you. You're following your parent's failed fate, walking down the same road that led them to death."
"Yeah? Says the guy who wanted to kill Rebecca because she fell in love with me. You're just another Jeht. Just another cautionary tale," I said, shoving Amon back as I let go of him then slipped my hands into my pockets. "I may be similar to my parents, but that's because of the imprint I received."
"However, you've only been raised in darkness. There is no valuable light in you, and you will understand what I mean in due time when you're alone at the bottom," I continued, my gaze never breaking from Amon.
Amon smirked at me then laughed, his laughter reaching even to the kitchen. "Me at the bottom? Look around you, Izuna. Look at what you have to do to just stop my father. Kabetori, old documents, reopening the MHI-30! It is you who's still at the bottom! And in due time, you will fall just like the others."
I chuckled coldly at his response, tilting my head then shrugged my shoulders. "Do you really think that? Do you truly think I don't have resources. Since we're boasting about our feats..."
Amon watched as I began walking off then stopped and turned around to face him again. He got off the wall then walked forward, watching me take Aurum's coin out of my pocket. "Hm? The Shikoku Clown's coin?"
"This is my key victory for Kabetori. NekoP1 has already been claimed. Tactile Dreams has been claimed. Even the Chi-Teck-ii has been claimed...if Aurum falters, Averice will fall as well," I said, my Holy Fire pulsing against my chest.
"You're just bluffing. Kabetori is owned by the Womato-gumi and—" Amon began then grunted as I bursted out laughing.
"That's the key! That's why this coin is my win-con. There's only one thing that runs Kabetori. Money...I don't have to enter Kabetori anymore. The White Wolves can, and knowing you've become desperate..." I said, lowering my head and exhaled softly with a hint of pity.
"Wait... Is he going to have my Nagai Clan raid Kabetori and take it over..?" Otsuki asked curiously, eavesdropping on my conversation with Amon.
"It sounds like it... After all, from what we know, Taka was willing to work with Jeht. Maybe this is our key," Aisha said, peeking through the kitchen doors as she listened as well.
"You think the White Wolves can beat the entirety of Kabetori? Averice and Marlucia? You are way in over your head, Izuna. Not even your father would try something so—"
"I am not my father. I am not my father, Erik Izuna, and that's why I dig so low! I understand he did things the right way, the professional way. If anything...I resemble my mother. I am willing to crawl through the depths of this Earth for Justice!" I exclaimed, my voice echoing through the building.
Amon grunted softly and braced himself as he felt an increase of my spirit energy, noticing my cloak beginning to release faint light energy around the fabrics. 'Is that a battlesuit..?'
I tapped my forehead gently then hummed softly. "I know you aren't my real threat, you're just a follower and I may know who you all actually follow. Your father might be a higher rank than Tenshi, but you might want to recheck that hierarchy. After all...she does have Truth Manipulation."
"You say a lot of smart things, but you're really pushing your luck here. You obviously have no idea what you're talking about!" Amon scoffed, pointing at me.
I began studying Amon's body language and hummed softly. Nachah stared at Amon as well, his scarlet eyes shimmering lightly as he glanced into his nervous system and heart rate. We could both tell the same thing, there was denial in his voice.
"What? No witty comeback about how I'm just as analytical as my father? Have I truly struck a nerve? Something still strikes me as odd..." I said, adjusting my cloak around my neck. "The Illusory..."
Amon froze as he heard the name, his body stopping as the name rang in his ears. 'How..? How does he know of her? That is one my dad's angels...'
"Who is The Illusory..?" Aisha asked, glancing over at Otsuki.
Otsuki shrugged her shoulders as she looked at Aisha. "I have no idea. I've never heard of that entity before."
Amon cleared his throat then scoffed at me, crossing his arms. "So, you know of NekoP1 VR's final boss? So what you made it—"
"She was not like the others. She knew my parents, she knows information no AI or CPU should know. And after I beat her with the help of Lotus and Dior, a dark energy was released...if she knows my parents, she definitely knows of Nanako," I said, my gaze glancing over to the kitchen area.
Nanako gasped as I looked at her then pointed to herself. Amon glanced over at where I was looking then noticed a sky blue figure lingering in front of the kitchen window, wondering if that was Nanako.
"You see her. Don't act like you don't. You're spiritual enough to see a spirit, I know you are. Based on your reaction, you know who the Illusory is...I am even sure Jeht told you, but omitted crucial information that will be uncovered," I said, my gaze looking back over at Amon.
A low grumble sounded in Amon's throat as he looked back at me, noticing I had disengaged completely. "What are you getting at?"
"Let me ask you something. Who do you think killed Nanako in the Bunny Garden 30 years ago?" I asked.
Amon rose an eyebrow at me, his mind filled with questions on where I was taking this conversation. "N—"
"Nousagi, I already know what you're gonna say because that's what your father told you," I said, taking out my second phone and tossed it over to Amon.
Otsuki and Aisha gasped in horror as I tossed my phone over to Amon. "Motosaki!!"
Amon caught my phone then looked at it, raising an eyebrow and hummed as he looked back at me. "Why are you giving your literal enemy something so personal?"
"You're not my enemy, just another obstacle I have to passthrough to get to my actual target. You're the same age as me, we're both way in over our heads but too deep to stop. The difference between us is simple. I seek Wisdom, Justice, even if it leads me to wanting to save you..." I said, turning around and walking off.
Amon watched as Otsuki and Aisha rushed after me in a panic then looked back down at my phone and turned it on. He swiped up on the screen and noticed it had no passwords, just immediately upon the home screen.
The home screen only contained a messaging app, the notes app, a music app, and the contacts. He opened each one, seeing every contact, note, and the current evidence we had about the MHI-30 and knew he had a lot to get through.
"Is he that confident about this...or is he just stupid?" Amon asked, staring at the phone screen for a moment.
[September 14, 2418 - Friday, 10:30 AM]
Noda sat upon his zabuton with one knee up and his hand firmly placed upon his knee, his eyes closed as he sipped upon his herbal tea. "Hmm, so...you want to have some of my men raid Kabetori and take it over? For what cause, musuko?"
Kyoto stood against the wall of Noda's office with her arms crossed as she rose an eyebrow at me. "You're changing your plan? Why?"
"Well, let's just say that Motosaki did probably the dumbest move anyone could have done! He gave Amon the evidence of the MHI-30!" Aisha exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air.
"What?!" Kyoto gasped, looking at me as if I lost my mind. "You gave a Mato the evidence?!"
Heido glanced over at me with slight intrigue. "Whoa. What are you thinking, Oto?"
I stood before Noda with my eyes closed and my hands in my pockets, humming softly and exhaling softly. "Do you think the Devil can twist scripture he does not know? Do you think we only keep one copy of evidence? I don't care if he factory resets the phone, I still have it all on my primary."
"Amon has to physically read it first before anything else. This is just going to confirm my suspicions to know his real character. However, Amon has already distracted. My goal is Rosa und Grün," I said, opening my eyes and staring at Noda.
Noda looked into my eyes as well, seeing the same fierce conviction of my mother in my eyes. "Rosa und Grün huh? The place where they grow all of Womato-gumi and Daimo-kai's mirage white devil trumpets, Satura."
"You know of them?" I asked with genuine curiosity.
"Your folks mentioned them to me a while ago when they were investigating. I know of their entire operation. Get everyone hooked on satura, rewire their brains, take control. It's a distraction for what they are really going for and it's what killed my father," Noda said, sighing softly then stood up.
"You want me to risk my men for the mission your parents started..? Prove it that you want my help badly enough. I will not risk my life...if I don't know you're willing to risk yours for a mission this dangerous," Noda said, pointing at the wooden katana at the side of his room.
"You're gonna fight Motosaki, Ojisan?! This really isn't needed," Otsuki said, stepping forward with high concern.
"Yeah, this does seem a tad bit excessive. You could just say no," Heido added, glancing over at me.
"That's the thing. He didn't say no. I'm sure this is also why my mother avoided asking you for help, even though she knew...you were the only one who could help. I'm different... I will walk through the valley of the shadow of death and I will fear no evil!" I declared, pointing at Noda with a challenging look.
"My God is with me through every step, and if I have to fall a thousand times, I will rise again until you see my real conviction!" I finished, my Holy Fire surging upon my chest.
Noda noticed my Holy Fire and Nachah's determined expression on my shoulder then looked into my eyes. His smirk grew with a hint of excitement then he broke into laughter while clapping his hands.
"You truly are Mikoto's son! The fact you're determined enough to even face me is enough to want me to help...but though I am generous financially, I am not as generous when it comes to my men. Let us see how serious you really are," Noda said, looking at me with a grin.