3 The End of the Precious Peace

"Is that Shimada-senpai?!" an elated voice screamed from a window high above me. I sighed and sped up my walking speed. "It is!" another voice joined the first and I felt my eyebrows twitch knowing that I was quite a distance away from the school entrance.

5 years. 5 years was how long it took for the Omnic Crisis to begin, and it had been another 5 years since that. So it had been 10 years since my father asked/pleaded for me to pick up the sword or the bow, or both.

I was now 18-years-old and fully physically matured. Thoroughly superhuman as well.

Over the past 10 years, I'd perfected my body - namely my muscles, bones, organs, senses, and nervous system. I'd brought out the perfection of my genes through subtle and simple editing with my Nanomachines. I didn't need to add or create anything, though - I was from a Clan of Ninja-Assassin-Warriors. I had all I needed in my Genome. I just had to use it right. Suppressing more unneeded genes and promoting more useful ones was all I did. I was now, genetically speaking at least, the best thing the Shimada Clan could produce if they took everything good about their past geniuses and talented members.

Those genes, plus my training, and I'd developed my skills and talents even further than I had in my past life. With my ocular upgrades, using guns was even easier than before. With my auditory upgrades, my balance was superb and I could find an equilibrium on just about any surface as long as it wasn't a vertical surface.

...I'm not Spider-Man after all.

With my muscular upgrades I was a beast in human skin, honestly. I was like a real-life Herculean. My muscles were literally nanotubes of graphene combined with special muscles I'd made over the years, fitted with small servos that assisted me in moving and lifting, backed by connective tissue that was harder than steel and more flexible than...well, graphene. Though I guess it was as flexible as graphene. Because it is graphene. Even my nerves are made of graphene as it's much more conductive than normal human nerve tissue.

The special muscles were special because they were denser than human muscles by about 20ish times and were much, much more efficient. They could use a fraction of the energy used by normal human muscles, and contract with dozens, if not hundreds of times more power. The way the muscle cells had been arranged to form muscle fibers was much better as well, allowing me to exert more power even with my relatively small size. What I mean is that compared to a truck a human is small, but with my new muscles and their specific arrangement and composition, my actual strength was that of something dozens of times bigger than me.

Think of it as a literal giant's strength condensed into a human. That human being me.

But the best part about all of it? It's biological. So it can grow. So I can grow with training. It just needs to be very, and I meant very, inhuman training in both intensity and amount.

The idea of using a higher-form of carbon to increase my strength came from an anime I watched when I was younger - Full Metal Alchemist. It had a character in it called Greed. An Homunculus. He had the ability to change his skin into Graphene and was aptly called 'The Ultimate Shield'. I'd decided that this was the best way to change my body for the better - if I made it indestructible, wouldn't I be able to protect what I want without having to worry about myself?

But even then, it wouldn't be right to call my body wasn't completely indestructible. If hit with, say, the force of a nuclear weapon? I'd die. Either the radiation would kill me before my Nanomachines could clear it up, or the unreal force would rattle my brain to death. Then there's the fact I wouldn't be able to breath because of the lack of oxygen in the area.

So, what I'm trying to say, is that all it would take to injure/kill me is that the attacker has to be clever about how they attack me. And if they have the ability to exceed my durability? They just need to hit me enough.

A major thing with my 'build', I guess you could call it, was that I couldn't pile layer after layer of graphene into my skin without it losing it's pliability. So I have about a layer and a half of graphene spread throughout my skin and flesh. It's my muscles that are harder than diamonds, not the fat and skin covering them.

Bullets, however? I could sit still and let the whole Japanese Military fire bullets at me all day and the only reason I'd ask them to stop is so I can sleep without having them tickle me with metal projectiles. Though if hit enough, they could break through the graphene in my muscles and hit my organs. To keep my organs working relatively normally - I say relative because of how many upgrades I've put them through - I couldn't interlace them with graphene - I could only form protective shells around then, and even then, the shells are only a few layers of graphene thick - about 3 or 4 layers - so enough bullets shot at it could break the barrier. Especially higher caliber rounds.

Even with all that said, I was still light-years ahead of a normal human. Even my brothers couldn't hold a candle to my durability and strength. While they could break wood with their fists, I could break and rend metal like it was wet paper with my bare hands.

Coming out of my thoughts, I heard more people speaking as news had traveled fast about my location and I was surrounded by worst enemy...school girls.

"Isn't he too handsome...?" another line from another girl made my eye twitch in embarrassment. I tried to ignore it but this was how it always was. Every day, in and out. You see, bringing out the best of my genetics had very positive effects on everything about me. Possibly too positive, honestly...

I was handsome beyond belief, with a tall and muscular figure that was neither too bulky, nor too thin and lean - it was just compact muscle which had the best of both worlds. I was broad and my body had a thickness most Japanese people didn't have due to my muscle and bone density making my body a bit wider overall.

You could say--

"He's way better looking than his brothers, isn't he?" another girl said dreamily before carrying on with a flushed excitement, "He's good-looking, kind, and serious - he's not like that Genji goofball and he's not overly serious like that Hanzo!"

--...Sadly such good looks and perfect appearance had gotten me a fan club.

Is this some kind of anime?

Luckily, I saw the school gate within reach and the black limousine waiting for me just past it but even then, that didn't stop the small group of underclassmen from following behind me. Sighing, I could almost feel the grin Genji would have if he saw what was happening to me

...But it seems I couldn't just feel it, but I had to see it.

"Little brother!" a green-haired man waved from the limousine window, half his body hanging out of it. His mouth was split in a wide smile, showcasing his pearly whites and his carefree, devil-may-care attitude. From what I could see, he was wearing a western black suit and white shirt combo which told me one thing - we had a meeting to go to.

Sighing, I picked up my speed, breaking into a jog which soon brought me to the door which opened and showed me Genji and Hanzo sitting on the luxury leather seats.

I got in and sat in between the two of them - their relationship had soured incredibly after dad died. So I'd taken to being their mediator when it came to them being in the same room together. Or same car, if we're gonna be specific about our current scenario.

Dad...he'd died a few years into the Omnic Crisis - Lung cancer. Mother and I always did remind him those cigars were never good for him...

It was heartbreaking. But I got through it. Genji, Hanzo, Mom...they'd all helped me.

Despite being younger than the two of them, I was still taller. Hanzo was around 5'8", while Genji was around 5'7" or barely 5'8"...I, on the other hand, was easily 6'4" and much broader than the two of them. If it wasn't for the clear facial similarities the three of us had, I doubt anyone would be able to tell I was their brother.

Anyway, they knew that I knew we were heading to a meeting, so nothing was said other than Genji teasing me about the girls obviously smitten with me, while Hanzo smirked while looking out the window and listening in - pretty much my older brothers being just like older brothers should be.

We arrived at the Shimada HQ within no time and we entered. Hanzo was dressed how he normally dressed - in traditional Japanese clothes. But instead of his usual blue and black, he was currently wearing black and white. Me, on the other hand? I was just wearing a normal school uniform. But mixed with my handsome face, my imposing figure, my fierce ruby red eyes, and my blood-red hair - courtesy of Genji making me dye it because of a lost bet - I looked pretty intimidating even with a school uniform on.

I'd kept the red hair as I quite liked out it looked. Though there was tuft of hair near the front that was white, and no matter what I did, it wouldn't change color to red. Dye washed off it like the hair was friction-less, and even my Nanomachines couldn't change the color.

My Nanomachines being how I changed my hair color in the first place.

It was a pretty intriguing, albeit annoying, mystery.

But it didn't matter. I purged such useless thoughts as I put on a mask of callous ferocity that would shake the board members I was about to meet with. Why would I do this? Because after my father's death, the board members were like a pack of hungry wolves and they would take apart anyone who showed any kind of weakness.

Key example being my mother. She cried at her husbands funeral. A completely acceptable thing. Yet the clan saw this as weakness and one of the Elder tried to slap her, telling her to keep quiet.

The operative word being 'tried'.

He won't be 'trying' anything anymore. Not after what I did to his spinal cord.

But the point is, that I can't show weakness otherwise I may incite attacks on my family. Mainly my mother. She may be a trained killer, just like most people in the Shimada Clan, but age was starting to take it's affects on her. She was a 40-year-old woman, after all.

When we got to where we needed to be, we each went through our own little good-luck rituals.

Genji plastered a fake, happy-go-lucky smile over his face as he brought out a pair of sunglasses and slipped them on, knowing it would annoy the board members and elders to no end if he did so. Hanzo put his hands behind his back in a sort of scholarly pose, while he closed his eyes and mumbled sentences that sounded similar to prayers but only me and Genji knew that he was actually practicing lines he was gonna say while he was in the meeting. While I, just put my hands in my pockets and grinned, showing a little bit of my teeth - it was a very delinquent-like look, and it was meant to look exactly like that. Why? So I could intimidate the small and chubby or tall and lanky business men I was about to meet.

I was a Dragon, and they were nothing but sheep.

. . .

"The Elders are right, Genji! You need to take a more active role in the clan!" Hanzo yelled as he paced back and forth in the courtyard we were in. Genji, however, was just leaning against a rock and rolled his eyes.

"But why? I don't need to. You're the clan head now, Hanzo - I don't need to do your duties," Genji's voice was soft, careless even, but his words were sharp and filled with defiance. Hanzo turned to our brother, his blue eyes narrowing as he menacingly looked at Genji. He walked to Genji and got right in front of him, leaning over his younger brother who was leaning/sitting on a small boulder-like rock.

"Are you defying the orders of the Clan Head, Genji Shimada?!" Hanzo roared, his Spirit Dragons bursting to life and coming up from behind him and looming over his shoulders and over Genji.

But all Genji did was look up and give Hanzo a sidelong glance before scoffing, "And what if I am?" his eyes were filled with mocking as he slowly got up and his own Dragon Spirit roared to life, bringing a green color to the courtyard that was already filled with blue light.

"Both of you, stop," I calmly said as I walked toward them and separated the idiots. Yet I didn't bring my Dragon Spirits out as they'd no doubt take that as a show of aggression, "You need to think this through Hanzo - if Genji doesn't want to do the duties, you know he won't bend no matter how much pressure you put on him. He's an idiot, but he's a stubborn idiot - and most of all, he's our brother, so just calm down!" I shouted, my fists clenching and relaxing purely on instinct as I could feel the battle intent directed at me when Hanzo heard my words.

My body was getting ready for a fight I didn't want to fight.

I then turned to Genji, "And you, Genji, you need to show a bit of respect to our brother - he is the Clan Head now! Treat him how you would father! Please!" I asked--no, I didn't ask, I begged for them to see reason because I knew what would happen if they did what they were about to do.

But despite my words, their Dragons grew even bigger, going from around 4 meters each, to well over 10 meters as they glared at one another.

"Stay out of this, Akahiko! This is between me and Hanzo!" Genji gave a shout, pushing against my hand which was placed firmly against his chest. But my hand didn't move even an inch from it's place.

"He needs to be taught a lesson, little brother! Now move out of my way, that is an order!" Hanzo shouted, also pushing against my hand, yet also leaning over it and glaring at Genji who began to do the same. They both began to push against my hands and despite it not stressing me even a little, physically speaking, it was definitely draining me emotionally.

It seems that despite my efforts, they will come to blows no matter what I do. Hanzo is too dictated by honor and Genji has neither the humility nor the ability to follow another person's orders.

While I was in this distracted state, the two of them seemed to have agreed on something as I felt a foot from each of them kick my chest and send me flying backward. Even if I had strength well above either of them, I still weighed the same as a normal human and given enough force, I could be hit off my feet and sent back.

Given their trained bodies and the technique they employed, I was sent flying back through the air and by the time I'd landed...

The peace had ended.

Fights between people like Genji and Hanzo...they started and ended in seconds. By the time I'd found my footing and stabilized myself...it was raining heavily but that didn't stop me from seeing it; Hanzo had already sliced up Genji's body. One of his hands was gone, his legs were bleeding so profusely it was like a red waterfall, and his neck had been slashed badly on one side.

Hanzo, however, was untouched.

Genji had never focused or been diligent in his training, thus he was far behind someone like Hanzo who'd trained day-in and day-out, everyday, since he could walk.

But I didn't care about that. What I cared about was the fact that Hanzo was going to strike for Genji's heart. "NO!" I roared, instantly enhancing my legs with Nanomachines and exploding off of the ground I was standing on. My destination: inbetween Genji and that blade.

I made it. Easily. I grabbed the blade with my bare hand which surprised Hanzo, especially when he didn't see any blood pouring from the hand grabbing a blade forged by the Shimada Clan.

Because of the rain, I couldn't get a proper grip on the blade, so it was still inching forward and each movement forward felt like a saw cutting and rending my heart apart. My own brother was still trying to push the blade forward despite knowing that it was me he could be killing. There was nothing more harrowing than knowing a family member would be able to kill you.

"Please, Hanzo!" I yelled, the rain getting heavier and heavier, and making my grip on the knife looser and looser and letting it inch closer and closer, "You don't need to do this!" I begged. The knife was already pressed against my chest and the tip of the blade, being made of quality materials and being used with Hanzo's Spirit Dragons, had cut through the first layer of defense - my skin - and was digging into the muscles.

I knew he wouldn't be able to cut through them, but it still hurt to know that he'd try. But what hurt even more was the fact that I had failed. I'd failed my brothers, and most of all, I'd failed my mother.

The words she'd said all those years ago - the glue that stops them from fighting. I hadn't lived up to those words. I'd tried to change Hanzo but it didn't work, and I'd tried to make Genji more diligent but that had worked even less successfully.

I'd failed.

"If you're with him, you're against me and the Clan, little brother," Hanzo said, his voice faint, nearly drowned out by the rain slamming against the ground all around us. Yet I heard it like ringing church bells right next to my ears.

The peace...it had truly ended.