The Trinity street, littered with debris and overturned vehicles, buzzed with tension as Mash, in his Shuu-kun mask, soothed the Justice Task Force students. Their halos glowed faintly, their tear-streaked faces now calm. But the air shifted, heavy with an approaching storm of chaos.
"GIYAAAH! UGAHAHAA!" a voice screamed, accompanied by gunfire and massive destruction, growing closer.
"Reinforcements?" Mash wondered, turning toward the sound.
"You—What are you doing to my juniors!?" the voice roared.
A figure vaulted over a rubble wall, launching a flying kick at Mash. He blocked it with both hands, but the impact was immense, like a cannonball slamming into him. (Heavy… like getting hit by artillery,) Mash thought, his arms straining.
"HYAHAHAHA!" the figure cackled, kicking Mash's arms away and following with a midair double kick, sending him skidding back.
(And that follow-up was fast. Who is this?) Mash thought, regaining his footing.
"You… You're one of those masked freaks, aren't you? A high-ranking one!" the figure accused, her halo dripping with blood-like streaks.
"Huh?" Mash said, tilting his head.
"With the Eden Treaty looming, you dare cause this chaos!?" she roared, her voice manic.
"Wait, you've got it all wrong! I'm not suspicious!" Mash protested, waving his hands.
"Who wears a mask like that and isn't suspicious?" she shot back, pointing at the Shuu-kun mask.
"Oh… yeah, to a stranger, this might look weird," Mash admitted, scratching his head.
(*He just accepted it!?) she thought, momentarily thrown.
"Tsurugi-senpai! Wait, he's—" a student began.
"Stay back! I'll crush him!" the figure interrupted.
"W-Wait, what!?" the students gasped.
Clad in a red-and-black Justice Task Force uniform, she wore a choker like stitched thorns, her halo radiating menace. Her nails were painted black, her uniform splattered with mysterious red stains, its hem scorched or torn. She was Tsurugi Kenzaki, Trinity's third-year student and Justice Task Force leader, Kivotos's peak combatant—a "walking strategic weapon."
"Talking this out seems… unlikely," Mash said. (She's no ordinary fighter.)
"That's right!" Tsurugi roared, lunging forward.
The clash began, Trinity's titan versus Kivotos's musclehead. Tsurugi struck with her lever-action shotguns, Blood & Gunpowder, closing in with terrifying speed.
BANG! BANG!
"Dangerous," Mash muttered, twisting to dodge the scattershot.
Shotguns, with their wide spread, were Mash's worst matchup, impossible to deflect with punches. Tsurugi gave no openings, reloading with a flick of her levers while chaining kicks into her attacks.
"KYAHA! HYAHAHA!" she laughed maniacally, her halo flaring.
"Hmph!" Mash grunted, blocking her kicks with his arms, weaving through the scattershot by twisting his body.
Tsurugi's unpredictable style forced Mash to adapt quickly, each move a test of his reflexes. "GYAHA… Tch, out of ammo," Tsurugi hissed, pausing to reload.
"Chance," Mash said, sweeping her legs to trip her.
"Too slow!" Tsurugi shouted, gripping the scalding barrel and slamming Gunpowder's stock into Mash's face.
"Ouch… First time someone's hit me with a gun," Mash said, rubbing his cheek.
"Crush! CRUSH!" Tsurugi roared, her blows making Mash wince.
As she aimed to blast him, Mash acted. "Hmph!" He punched Gunpowder's barrel, crushing it into scrap.
"!" (*He destroyed my shotgun… with his bare hands!?) Tsurugi thought, kicking Mash's stomach and leaping back.
"Sorry for breaking your gun. My fists are stronger than steel," Mash said.
"I can see that! But I've still got Blood. At this range, how'll you close the gap?" Tsurugi taunted, finger on the trigger.
"No problem—Spinator Magic—" Mash began, crouching and accelerating like a bullet, dodging the scattershot and diving into her range. He spread his arms and—
"Peacemaker Sonic Wave!" CLAP!
The thunderous clap, like a flashbang, made Tsurugi flinch. (A cat's paw!? That old trick—damn, he's behind me!) she thought.
Mash circled behind. "Spine Magic," he said, grabbing her.
He leaped skyward, holding Tsurugi. "Guh!?" (What strength!) she gasped.
"Hell Fall!" Mash shouted, slamming her headfirst into the ground in a spiraling descent, cratering the earth.
"I went headfirst!?" a student gasped.
"Are Tsurugi-senpai and that guy okay!?" another cried.
A normal person would've been knocked out, but Tsurugi stood, unscathed. "Still… not enough!" she roared.
"No surprise there," Mash said, landing gracefully.
Her clothes were torn, but her body was unharmed. "I knew you weren't normal from the moment you blocked my first attack and dodged my shots," Tsurugi said. "But this strong?"
"You're calmer than I expected," Mash noted.
"You… What are you? No halo, just a human, yet you've got this strength. It's impossible. What did you do?" she demanded.
"I trained," Mash said simply.
"Pfft… That's a lie—wait, really?" Tsurugi blinked.
"Yup. My turn to ask," Mash said. "I hit you dead-on, didn't I? You didn't take any damage?"
"Oh, I took it. But I'm healed already," Tsurugi said, smirking.
"That's wild," Mash said.
"My head's a bit foggy, though. Gotta end this quick!" she declared.
"Go ahead," Mash said.
The second round erupted, a high-speed slugfest. Mash's fists clashed with Tsurugi's blocking arms, her razor-sharp kicks meeting his defenses, each collision shaking the street. Few in Kivotos could match this combat level.
"They're too fast to see!" a student cried.
"How's a guy without a halo keeping up with Tsurugi-senpai!?" another gasped.
Tsurugi strategized mid-battle. (His stamina's higher. If I keep dodging, I'll tire out. I need to close in.) She planned to aim her shot at the ground to trap Mash.
But Mash acted first. THUD! "He's… grabbing the ground?" Tsurugi muttered.
"Hmph!" CRUNCH!
Mash tore up the pavement, flipping it toward Tsurugi like a tidal wave. (He ripped up the ground to block my escape!) she thought.
Mash smashed through the pavement, closing in. Tsurugi dodged right, expecting him to follow. (He's betting I can't react! Too bad!) But Mash feinted left, catching her off-guard.
RIP! "My… uniform! With just his pinky!?" Tsurugi gasped.
"Hmph!" Mash grunted, slamming her to the ground.
Panting, Mash asked, "Still fighting?"
"…No. My back's too damaged to move," Tsurugi admitted.
"You held back, didn't you?" Mash said.
"…?"
"When you aimed at me, you hesitated. And you targeted my legs, not my body," he pointed out.
"You noticed," Tsurugi said quietly.
"Yup," Mash said, offering his hand. "I'm not your enemy. I'm Mash Burnedead, Schale's Sensei."
"…Schale's Sensei?" Tsurugi echoed.
"Let's talk," Mash suggested.
"…Y-Yeah…" Tsurugi said, reaching for his hand.
But then— "Monster!" a masked student screamed, throwing a grenade.
Mash shielded Tsurugi. "Stay still!" he said.
The grenade exploded, smoke engulfing them. Mash's uniform and Shuu-kun mask burned away, but he stood unscathed, shielding Tsurugi.
"Hot! Grenades are that warm? You guys handle these like it's nothing," Mash said, brushing soot off.
"H-Huh…?" Tsurugi stammered, blushing as sunlight framed Mash like a halo.
"You okay?" Mash asked.
"K-Ki… awawawa…" Tsurugi mumbled, her face crimson.
"?" Mash tilted his head.
"KIEEE!" she shrieked, throwing an uppercut at Mash's jaw.
POW! "Guh!" Mash soared, crashing forehead-first into the ground.
"Justice Task Force! Surrender now!" a voice called.
"Tsurugi-senpai's blushing and freaking out, and the guy who's probably Schale's Sensei is faceplanted…" a student said.
"…Ow," Mash groaned.
As Mash lay faceplanted, his cream puff diplomacy had sparked an unexpected bond with Trinity's fiercest warrior, setting the stage for new adventures in Kivotos.
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