7:30AM
COLONY NO. 5
FEBRUARY 16, 2018
“Hey, you guys heard what happened last night?”
It had been a few hours since the events of the previous night, and word of the incident was getting out. Across all 6 colonies, on every block, people were talking. It was around this same that the news outlets would air their reports as well. Everybody was talking about the annihilation of the Inferno Gang.
“I heard about some commotion, but that’s about it…”
“Yeah, yeah! Some real crazy shit went down!”
“The Hunters went at it with the Inferno Gang! I heard it was bad…”
“I heard a few hunters from The Order got killed…”
“The Order?! Shit, it must’ve been the real deal then?”
“I heard the dragons got fucked up…even Kallavan!”
“It was the entire gang, they’re all dead…”
“I saw a picture of Madoka’s body…”
“Those hunters are going full demon…especially Fudo Sanjuro.”
“I don’t think the government will let this one slide…”
AN HOUR EARLIER
Inside the private board room of a 5–star hotel in the colony, there gathered high–ranking officials of the country’s governing body, including the Prime Minister, to have a seating with the leaders of the two clans, Gado Sanjuro and Tenchi Yamaguchi, in order to conclude a final plan of action following the two consecutive incidents between the past two days. After a few minutes of discussion, one official asked:
“So, with all that being said…what conclusion shall we arrive at, Clan Heads?”
“…it’s understood that the actions of this hunter have been nothing short of reckless, chaotic, destructive, endangering, lacking all care and concern for clan laws and values, for public safety, for the country, and even for human life. This individual poses a serious threat both to the peace of mind of the citizens of this country, as well as his kin, and for that reason…” Gado Sanjuro opened his final statement,
“…Fudo Sanjuro is to be declared a national criminal, who faces life imprisonment, or death.”
FAMILY GROUNDS - LAST NIGHT
It was only about a few minutes following the arrival of the Apocalypse Gang’s leader, Ringo Himura. But, as of current, neither he nor any of the elite hunters were anywhere in sight; after the gangster’s request for a meeting with the Clan Heads themselves. The hunters were ready to drive him away immediately, but Tenchi himself came on the scene, willingly obliging the dragon’s request.
The hunters and guards remained on patrol as per Yuki and Tenchi’s instructions, while the head and his elites escorted Ringo to the main meeting room.
“…just thinking about whatever discussion they’re having, really gives me jitters,” Kento commented. He and his fellow classmates on duty, minus Ilmar, Satoru, and Akiro, had the chance to gather together for the first time since that night.
“The fact that he crept up on us completely solo…and he wasn’t even fazed by our numbers,” Amira recalled. “That guy’s the real deal.*
“Well, whatever they’re talking about, it’s probably related the incident,” Galib stared over at the meeting room…
“Hmm…the formality seems pretty strong in here.”
Inside the room, the dragon sat before Gado and Tenchi, along with the same hunters deployed on the mission, who all surrounded the room’s interior. The atmosphere was intense, to say the least…despite the fact that a total of 5 S–Rank hunters, the Heads included, had Ringo cornered. They were all on their highest guards, much to Ringo’s amusement.
“It’s fine, isn’t it”? Ringo asked with a cocky look. “I already said I only want to talk…let the soldiers take it easy for the night, they probably saw enough shit just an hour ago.”
“Don’t worry yourself about that,” Tenchi responded. “They’re more hardened than you think.”
“I suppose it’s necessary…I wouldn’t mind allowing a few runts to gain some exposure either,” he responded, glancing over at Ilmar, Satoru, and Akiro.
“This is our second time having a visitor such as yourself, but I appreciate you making your presence known beforehand,” Gado informed him, making reference to that fateful night almost 6 years ago.
“Not at all, Gado–sama,” Ringo smirked. “I believe myself to be more of a gentleman…unlike say, Fudo Sanjuro.” Their expressions slightly darkened at the mention of their defunct hunter.
“You guys really got into some shit, y’know?” he continued, “I’ve seen the riots for myself all day, so I can tell you all that the situation isn’t good, to say the least. It’s mind boggling how the will of just one man can completely flip the tides of any situation…now, you’ve got an entire cult protesting against you, media outlets taking advantage, and even the government who’d already been on your case...”
“…and the Inferno Gang’s erasure only worsens all of that.”
!!
As soon as he mentioned that everyone felt a cold shudder. More so from the hunters than Gado and Tenchi, as it had only now occurred to them that they never considered the outcome of Fudo’s standoff.
“…what are you talking about?” Tenchi asked him, slowly.
“Hmph…I’ll spell it out plainly…after murdering the Religious Group’s elders, Fudo Sanjuro eradicated the Inferno Gang tonight, including Kallavan the Inferno,” Ringo summarized.
“I knew it…” Tenchi thought with a stressed look. There could be no other reason why the dragon personally came to speak with them…this was the beginning of the end.
“It’s…over…” Gado lowered his head into his palms. Everything they’d feared and specifically put careful effort into avoiding, was now coming straight towards them. Whether the end was inevitable or not, hell was about to be unleashed. There was no turning back from this.
Even Ringo himself felt a bit uneasy seeing them all look so shocked. It was a truly frightening thing to imagine the 9 Dragons’ revival.
“So…have you come to let us all know that the world is done for?” Tenchi asked with a sigh.
“Well, on the contrary…I’d like to leave a word of advice, to give you guys some breathing space.”
Their heads all lifted. Did they seriously just hear that from the Apocalypse Gang’s leader?
“Advice?” Gado asked, to which he responded, “Yeah, advice.”
“Some years back, I came to the conclusion that the reason you hunters seemed so respectful of the pact formed at the end of the Dragon War, was because currently, you feared the revival of the 9 Dragons,” he explained.
“That approach does seem viable, but the potential revival would be something completely out of your control…what you can control however, is the public perception of the Two Clans. By not killing dragons simply out of respect, you in turn got the respect of the Religious Group, and the general public.”
“But, here’s what will become the general consensus tomorrow: the Two Clans violated their own ethical practices and used one of their own distinguished hunters as a scapegoat to orchestrate mass murder. That’s…about as bad as it sounds. Whether it’s an accurate statement or not, you can almost never reverse bad publicity once it gets out, so you guys are as good as done,” he elaborated with them.
“So what are you getting at?” Gado asked him.
“Kehe…I’ll make you a proposition,” he chuckled, “I may not be able to hide information from the public, and you’ll still have to deal with the government, but I can shut down an uproar from the remaining two Dragon gangs.”
“…why would you do that?” Yuki asked, stunned. At this point they were all caught off guard by him.
“Who knows?” he responded to her with a grin, “Maybe I have a deeper grasp of the situation than you.”
“What’s the catch?” Tenchi immediately asked. He knew better than to put his trust into the words of a dragon. He’d been listening keenly to his every word.
“Hmph…you have one of three options,” Ringo prepared to respond:
“1 – Disband the Hunter Force.”
“2 – Execute Fudo Sanjuro.”
“3 – Suspend Emir Yamaguchi.”
The Heads immediately understood a piece of his motive. The dragon intended on using the incoming backlash from the public to force the hunters into making highly consequential decisions. Ringo then went on to elaborate,
“The first option is probably the safest, but most unrealistic solution. It would fix all your problems, but it’s unlikely you’d all agree to that. The second option would get you all back on track rather easily, at the expense of losing an S–Rank hunter.”
“…how would the third option solve anything?” Chojo queried.
“As members of my own gang have expressed, and something I myself went on to consider, Emir Yamaguchi was the very same person who was Fudo’s mentor. Naturally, you could interpret that as Emir being the one who instilled such practices into him,” Ringo elaborated.
“Personally, I’d recommend going with the last two options. One could easily imagine hell breaking loose by doing one of those without doing the other...well, you would all know better than I do.”
“Emir Yamaguchi is not like Fudo Sanjuro,” Yuki defended the head captain.
“This isn’t about my concern – it’s the concern of the public,” Ringo affirmed. “Do you expect everyone to sit back and believe in the promises of a now–deemed shady organization? Like I said earlier…bad publicity isn’t so easily reversible.”
They didn’t want to believe it, but there was no flaw in anything Ringo said to them. These actions would have to be put into place, whether they liked it or not, in order to at least regain some credibility from the public, the Religious Group, and the government. At the very least, the riots would likely cease.
“Why are you doing this?” the dragon was asked once again, this time by Tenchi. He knew there was some ulterior motive behind Ringo’s actions, but he couldn’t pinpoint it.
“Hmph…like I said earlier, maybe I have a deeper grasp of the situation than you do,” he smiled as he got up, and walked toward the exit.
“Anyway…I wish you well, Hunters. I hope tomorrow will play out in your favor,” he smirked, walking out the door.
COLONY NO. 4 - A FEW MINUTES EARLIER
“Don’t bother, I’m not here for that.”
Jamal and Tarik were still on the roof of the skyscraper, deciding the next move…when Gyuwhan suddenly appeared right behind them, completely startling the two. Within a moment, they had gotten ahold of their bodies and sprang to their guards, but Gyuwhan put them at ease.
“I’d come up to this place pretty often with Daisuke–san to get my thoughts straight…cool spot, huh?” he boasted.
“How the hell did you– ”
“Save it. You’re not that good at erasing your energy traces,” Gyuwhan cut off Tarik.
“But, I have to say I’m impressed. Creating an opening to distract the entire Inferno Gang, allowing the hunters to take advantage and escape with the hostages? And taking out majority of the dragons all by yourselves? And not only that…” Gyuwhan trailed off as he looked directly at the two boys, whose secret powers had inadvertently activated.
“…you’d both managed to keep your awakenings under wraps from me, huh?” he grinned deviously. “Not bad at all…reincarnates.”
“Hey, I don’t know where you’re going with this, but you can forget about trying to take us back! And if you don’t like it, I’ll beat the shit out of you right now,” Tarik threatened as he gripped the hilt of his katana…but, something was still holding him back.
“Even if I push past these damn feelings…could we actually defeat him?” Tarik wondered as a cold sweat descended down his cheek.
“I’m half disappointed that that power didn’t change your stubborn attitude too, Tarik,” he sighed. “But like I said, I’m not here for that.”
“…you’re free.”
They stared at him, speechless and puzzled.
“…what?” Tarik asked.
“I said you’re free,” he responded.
“…seriously?”
“Yes.”
“…don’t mess with me,” Tarik glared at him.
“What, will you miss me?” Gyuwhan taunted him.
“Cut the crap, Gyuwhan!”
Jamal finally snapped, glaring at him angrily.
“Don’t you dare beat around the bush…what are your intentions? What have you done with my brother?!” he demanded directly.
“…hmph,” the boy smirked, giving him a side–eye. “My intentions, you ask?”
“…I’m just having my own fun,” he chuckled.
“Here’s what’ll happen…I do mean it when I say you guys are free. Wherever you want to go, whatever you want to do, feel free…however…I’d be cautious about going back home.”
“What are you talking about?” Jamal asked.
“How about a tiny heads-up? Tell you what…until the next tournament, don’t go back to the Family Grounds,” he instructed.
“Huh? What does that mean?” Tarik asked. “And, what if we do?”
“Don’t think I’m afraid of shortening Fudo Sanjuro’s life expectancy.”
Chills danced down Jamal’s spine when Gyuwhan said that. As he’d feared, his brother ended up in the worst possible situation, and he was unable to rescue him.
“Don’t…don’t you lay a finger on–”
“I won’t, if you follow my instructions,” Gyuwhan cut off Jamal in his silent rage.
“I’ve got some ambitious plans for the near future, and I don’t intend on having anybody spoiling the fun. So, for the next 17 months, you two can do whatever you want outside of going back home…unless you’re looking for early judgement.”
“Gyuwhan…I don’t want to kill you…” Jamal threatened him.
“Pfft…and that’s why you never will,” Gyuwhan ridiculed him with a disgusted look.
“Jamal…it’s depressing that even after all those years on the darker side of the world, you’re still unable to realize that unless you drop the empathetic, softie, all–bark–and–no–bite mentality that you’ve been holding onto all this time, you’ll never have what it takes to be the one who kills me…hell, I’d rather die at the hands of your older brother,” he expressed, referring to Fudo.
“Listen…the both of you need to understand that this life will never be what you want it to be, unless you’re willing to make a sacrifice. In order to gain something, you have to lose something. No matter how strong you are…one part of you has to die to awaken the other. And until you understand that…”
As he spoke he stepped away, opening a portal under his feet which he sunk into, but not before ending his speech:
“…you’ll always be a pitiful pair of failures.”
He was gone…and Jamal’s silent anger formed itself into words,
“…FUCK!!!”
The atmosphere around the chemical plant was like a ghost town. The residual magical energy from the deceased dragons lingered all around the area, creating such an environment that would make anyone with spiritual awareness feel uncomfortable. About a minute after Gyuwhan left Daisuke there, a third individual had arrived – Emir Yamaguchi.
“I was too late…” he muttered to himself as he beheld the sight all around him. The whole area looked like a disaster; dead bodies here and there, and about two actively burning buildings. He walked around for a bit, examining the corpses hoping none of them belonged to Fudo.
It was at that point he was passing one that had piece of its head removed, and recognized it…it was Renji Sanjuro. He died from the initial impact.
Not far off, he saw another corpse severely charred from head to toe. It was indistinguishable, but it gave off a very feint, but dissipating energy signature – belonging to Kyoji Yamaguchi.
“You too, huh…”
Just the sight of all this was slowly breaking him.
!?
Suddenly, he caught an energy signature. This person was alive, and a dragon. They were on the opposite end of the complex.
Emir closed in, concealing himself behind the broken buildings, and he managed to catch a glimpse of two individuals, one with a buzz cut holding a body over his shoulder, and a shorter one with long black hair, both possessing high levels of dragon energy. They were Gyuwhan and Daisuke who were about to leave, and they were taking Fudo with them.
Emir didn’t let another second pass – he immediately raised his hand to activate a Soul–Barrier…
…but that seemed impossible, once the two turned to face him and he caught a look at the man’s face.
!!!
“You…!”
Emir was left speechless…he could never mistake that face.
“See you in a year…Emir Yamaguchi.”
With those words, they disappeared into that void…never to be seen again.
PRESENT - PRIME MINISTER’S OFFICE
“Breaking News: a warrant has been issued for the arrest and/or execution of the prominent S–Rank hunter Fudo Sanjuro, after having been identified as a person of interest in the murder of the leaders of the Dragon Religious Group, as well as another very recent incident – the unprecedented, brazen attack of last night which claimed the lives of at least a dozen members of the infamous Inferno Gang, said to have been carried out by a group of hunters under direct command of the very same S–Rank hunter. Additionally, prominent hunter and Head Captain of the hunters, Emir Yamaguchi, currently faces heavy sanctions from the head office of the Hunter Force. It is understood that he was a co–conspirator in both these incidents, and his actions were pivotal in orchestrating the attacks.”
“Hmph…it’s about time we stepped up to remind those damned Clans that they’re not the ones running this country.”
An hour following the meeting’s adjournment, the Prime Minister was in his office along with a few advisors and ministers, some from the same prior meeting, when the local news station aired their report on the ongoing situation, now having updated knowledge of what was released from that meeting. Having heard that highlight, the personnel were actually happy to hear that the Hunters were now being exposed.
“Shusho–sama, I’ve believed for a long time that we should’ve pulled the plug on those clowns…honestly, I’m glad this is happening to them. Acting like the government has no hold on them just because they can fight dragons…it’s time they learn their place,” one minister continued his earlier statement.
“We have to take this opportunity to seize control of their assets,” another chimed in. “They’ve been given way too much leeway over these years. Their legal rights are almost laughable!”
“I don’t care how genuine of an impression that Gado tried to give off…they shouldn’t be trusted anymore,” another gave input.
But, the country’s leader was yet to give his own word,
“…do you seriously hear yourselves?” he asked, to their surprise.
“Sir?” one asked.
“I don’t know about any of you…but if those Clans didn’t exist, or were hindered by any regime of ours…we would be dead men walking.”
“Shusho–sama, with the current state of affairs, with these riots all over the colonies–”
“Let them complain for a few hours longer,” he cut him off. “Today, in the eyes of the public and the Religious Group, they were given exactly what they wanted with the execution order on Fudo Sanjuro…word of Emir’s punishment will be a nice bonus, too. Soon enough, the public will be abased after today, along with potentially minimized Hunter activity.”
“…but, I cannot place any sanctions on the Clans. Despite these drastic actions as of late…I know it’s all in pursuit of wiping out the Dragon–Tails for good,” he informed them.
“Whatever happens…I will believe in the hunters.”
FAMILY GROUNDS - MEETING ROOM
Around the same time, Gado and Tenchi along with the same hunters present in last night’s meeting were gathered, including the 3 youngest A–Ranks, along with Emir. He’d returned last night, and was already caught up to speed on the occurrences. Despite the news report, he wasn’t actually being sanctioned – the Heads instead instructed him to lay low and avoid going on missions.
“Emilio should be here,” Chojo expressed before they started.
“You know him, Chojo,” Emir responded. “Although, he said he had some important visitors…whatever, let’s get to business.”
“Right,” Tenchi started. “So, regarding Ringo’s visit…there were a few things from that discussion that I’d put some serious thought into…I thought I’d discuss a few points with you all, going forward.”
“…it’s tricky, trying to discuss intel concerning dragons. Fact of the matter is, we have no accurate leads for the most part. So I thought of a different approach…why don’t we run through a few hypotheticals, and see if they make sense?”
“…sounds like a hell of a stretch, but why not?” Yuki responded. “Lay it on us.”
“So, one of the first things I questioned was the fact that a Gang leader came to us, completely open. Nothing like that infiltration six years ago. Why would he do that?... considering the dragons are more in–the–know on most things than us…could it be that he wanted something from us, or that they’ve obtained such a crucial piece that they had to tell us about it?” he expounded.
Most of the hunters went speechless at this idea…until Emir shared something with them,
“…when I got to the scene last night, I saw two dragons right when they were leaving. One of them, from the height, could’ve matched the kid from six years ago,” he shared. “For the record…I couldn’t find Fudo anywhere.”
By the time he mentioned that, the hunters were able to put two and two together…not that they wanted to, for the sake of Gado and Ilmar…but, Tenchi had to clear the air,
“…it’s highly likely that Fudo’s been taken hostage by the enemy,” he spoke, to the discomfort of the two in question…mostly Ilmar.
“But, why exactly?” Akiro asked. “Wouldn’t they instead want to take revenge on him?”
“Well, that is plausible…but our main enemy is that Ryūjin kid. It’s safe to assume his intentions don’t completely align with Kallavan and the Inferno Gang. It would also be strategically unwise to dispose of someone like Fudo,” Tenchi theorized. “I think the very fact that Ringo came to us last night, is proof that they have him hostage.”
“So, they came to us to request Fudo’s disposal…even though they’re holding him captive?” Miwa wondered.
“It isn’t unheard of,” Tenchi replied, “There’s also the fact that we shouldn’t know they’re holding him. They have the strategic advantage at hand…by announcing Fudo’s execution order, we’ve bought them time to do whatever they want with him.”
“You don’t mean…” Chojo wondered.
“With Kallavan’s death, as well as the other three…they’ll need new hosts for the Dragons’ powers,” Emir speculated.
“…precisely,” Tenchi confirmed. “In conclusion…they wanted us to take some pressure off them. After the loss of 4 vessels, on top of losing an entire gang…what better gain than to have Emir Yamaguchi off your back? I have a feeling that when we start laying low after today, they’ll follow suit.”
“…these dragons are a pain in the ass,” Steffan groaned. “And of course, none of this necessarily tells us how to prepare or position ourselves.”
Gado couldn’t help but notice his son’s anger seething as he sat there.
“Don’t even think about worrying, kid,” he spoke to him. “Your brother won’t get himself killed, regardless of any circumstances he’s put under.”
“I know, dad…but it’s not that. The fact that they’re…those two are…”
Of course…there was no way they could have skipped that part of the discussion…
“So, you were saying that according to Noritoshi and Kobayashi…or rather, Tsukumo…they spent their time after being kidnapped, interacting with Jamal and Tarik?” Tenchi asked.
“Yes…that’s exactly what Noritoshi told us last night,” Satoru confirmed. “Ilmar and Gina said they asked Tsukumo when she woke up later on, and she confirmed. We asked them again this morning…and they both confirmed.”
The heads almost didn’t know what to say…after all those years of silence, finally something came. Gado was relieved, and Tenchi tried his best to hide a grin.
“Hmph…not only surviving around dragons for years, but pulling a few strings to create an opening for two hostages to escape? If it’s really them…” Gado commented with an irresistible grin.
“Still, they’ve been close to the enemy for these past six years,” Yuki chimed in. “Whenever they decide to come back…we’ll have to be cautious. Even if they are your sons, we need to be prepared for the worst…”
“Yeah, I agree,” Emir replied. “But, at least for now…”
Around the same time, Nayumi had been sitting on the balcony of the Sanjuro Mansion, along with Fumi. She was allowed to reside in the mansion at Ilmar’s request, while Fumi would be staying with her mother Hinata over in the eastern residential area. They were mostly taking in the scenery and reflecting on the happenings of the past few days.
“That reminds me…we’ll be going back to school soon, huh?” Fumi brought up. “Feels like I haven’t been there in ages…Aino and Utahime are probably worried sick of us.”
“…well, you guys won’t have to worry about me transferring,” Nayumi responded with a small smile. “With Ilmar–kun and the others watching over us now…I feel safe…finally…”
They had another moment of silence, until Fumi spoke again, staring into the distance,
“He’d better keep that promise…I’ll be waiting, every day, for the moment this power resonates,” she said as she held up the hand that received Tarik’s energy.
“Not just for us…but for Ilmar–kun, Gina–chan, and Satoru–kun…they’d better come back to their family, or I won’t forgive them, even if they saved me.”
“…I don’t have the power to see the future yet, but they’ll come back. I’m sure they will…” Nayumi replied.
“…no. I know they will.”
End of Act 2, Part 1
