Chapter 33: Kuroka

Chapter 33:

"___" - Speech

(___) - Thoughts

{___} - Internal Voice(s)

Join the discord! - https://discord.gg/gqSKcC43NW

Her tails calmly swayed from side to side as she rested atop a tree branch, the back of her hand supporting her chin as she eagerly awaited her guest.

"I suppose it was a tad bit wishful of me to expect her to come running into my arms." She sighed, closing her eyes as she spread her senses across the foliage. "No matter, I'll free her from that spoonfed brat soon enough." 

The corners of her mouth gradually crept upwards as she felt a presence darting towards her. "I knew it, true family always triumphs over a fabricated one." However, her grin would soon fade as her senses honed. "Tch, of course someone just had to get in the way. But I'm surprised, I wasn't expecting a Fallen Angel of all things. I suppose I could do with some entertainment." 

RUSTLE!

RUSTLE!

The delightful sound of fauna being pushed aside inched nearer as she slowly lifted her head, ecstatic to greet the short figure that had appeared before her. "Ha-llo, Shirone. Long time no see." She greeted. 

"Nee-san." Her sibling replied, visibly agitated by the woman's mere presence. "What are you doing here?" Koneko continued. 

"Oya, we haven't seen each other in years and that's how you greet me? I'm hurt." She remarked playfully. "Oh well, we'll have plenty of time to catch up. Shall we get going?" She held her palm out, ready to cast a portal for the two of them. 

A lone bead of sweat dripped down the side of Koneko's face as she cleared her throat. "I…can't go with you." 

"Hm? Ah, don't worry about that silly artifact. It won't be a problem." In a single swift movement, she leaped down from the tree branch, gracefully landing on her feet in a cat-like fashion. 

"But." She hesitated, her feelings conflicted as she looked at her sister. 

"But nothing." She interjected. "You belong with me, remember? You won't be able to properly control your powers without me anyways." Slowly, she started to approach Koneko, causing the ladder to step backwards in discomfort. 

"You're one to talk about control." 

"Oh?" A faint chuckle escaped the elder of the two's breath. "I see, you're still hung up about that. I did that for you Shirone, don't hold it against me." 

"You don't get to tell me what to think, I don't want anything to do with you!" A frown encroached the black cat's lips as her siblings' defiance rang through her ears. 

"Is that so?" She hummed, dipping her head as she heaved a deep sigh. "Honestly, I had a feeling this would happen." She mused, continuing to inch towards Konenko. "Unfortunately, you don't have the power to say no to me. You're coming home, Shirone, I'm not giving you a choice."

The white cat's fight or flight instinct kicked in almost instantaneously, despite knowing full well that she couldn't outmatch her sister, a part of her was desperate to finally overcome the wall she represented. 

"How silly of me, I almost forgot." To her surprise, the twin-tailed cat came to an abrupt halt as she placed her hand on her waist. "I have to get rid of your little acquaintance first, don't I?" 

"Indeed." Jin replied, slowly stepping into the moonlit clearing. 

"You brought a pet?" His soon-to-be opponent questioned, staring at the curious little creature on his shoulders. 

"Don't worry about him, he's just here to watch." Like a parent would, Jin carefully scooped Raon up and placed him on Koneko's head, startling the [Rook] ever so slightly. 

"Still hungry." The hatchling complained. 

"I know, we'll get you some food after I deal with this? Just sit tight." Raon simply huffed in response as he made himself comfortable in Koneko's hair. 

"What are you doing?" The younger Nekoshou questioned. 

"My job, what else?" He smiled. 

"You seem awfully confident, Crow." The elder woman scowled, struggling to get a read on the newcomer. 

(Ouch, must everyone resort to that word?) 

"Who even are you anyways? I was expecting one of those sorry excuses for family to show up." The venom in her tone couldn't have been more apparent. 

"I'm just security, and I'm afraid you're not authorized to be here. Especially considering your reputation." He replied playfully. 

(Kuroka, SS-Class criminal. Looks like I'm in for quite the ride.) 

"I heard that the three major factions had started to get all buddy-buddy but to think you'd already be bounty hunting for the Devils. I'm guessing you're the lapdog type?" Jin simply shrugged in response. 

"Haha, my boss definitely treats me like one. But to be frank, I don't really care about the warrant the Underworld has on you." 

"Oh? You're letting us go?" She scoffed. 

"Of course not." Jin's expression solidified as his tone experienced a sudden drop. "However, there is one thing about you that's been bothering me quite a bit." 

"Hm?" 

Jin stretched his neck from side to side as he clenched his bandaged hand. "What's your relation to Vali?" 

"Vali? Who's that?" She feigned. 

"Don't bother, his scent's all over you." Fooling a Dragon's sense of smell was practically near impossible, especially if it was someone they were particularly focused on. "You're with Khaos Brigade aren't you?" 

The atmosphere plummeted into a toe-biting chill as his reptilian pupils locked onto Kuroka, tracking her each and every micromovement. 

(I'll probably need you for this.) 

{You always need me.} 

(Touche.) 

"I'll take your silence as a yes." A rapid fluttering sound polluted their surroundings as two dark feathery wings sprung out of Jin's back, their constitution almost blending in with the night sky. "I'm supposed to give you a chance to surrender or something, but I doubt it would amount to much." 

"Good observation." Kuroka smirked, flicking her index finger as she effortlessly conjured a spatial barrier around the three. "We wouldn't anyone interrupting now would we?" 

"I suppose not." Jin called upon his light-spear as he assumed a stance. 

(There's no way I'll be able to outclass her magic-wise, but it's not as if I'm very proficient in that field to begin with. As long as I can keep her within arms reach, I should have the upper hand.) 

His eyes gleamed as he shifted his weight forwards, ready to lunge at his opponent with all his might. 

"You're an open book." In the blink of an eye, Kuroka sent twelve bullets filled to the brim with Senjutsu hurling towards Jin. Each capable of smashing the terrain to smithereens. 

With the aid of his decisiveness, Jin tossed his light-spear into his left hand as he used his bandaged arm to block the aura spheres head on. 

CRASH!

He grit his teeth as each impact felt as if someone had used a hydraulic press on his arm. Inch by inch, his feet continued to drag through the mud as the distance between them furthered. 

(Not yet.) 

CRASH!

CRASH!

The pain neared mind-numbing levels as the glint in his pupils grew more determined, there was no room for mistakes, no Azazel or Oron to clean up for him if he failed. 

After all, he'd already be dead by then.

(Now!) 

Once the eight sphere neared, he swiftly ducked below the attack, throwing his spear with olympic-like intensity towards Kuroka's chest. 

"Not bad." She leisurely commented, despite the spear blitzing towards her at speeds Jin couldn't imagine her invading. "But I'm not as frail as you seem to think." 

His eyelids widened as she covered herself in an all too familiar white light, promptly flickering out of harms way. 

(Touki? I certainly wasn't accounting for that. But it's not even half as potent as his, so it shouldn't be too hard to keep up.)

Jin spared little effort dodging the last four Senjutsu bullets as he positioned himself. 

(What's with that look on her face?) 

Without his input, his body suddenly dashed to the left as roots shot up from the soil below where he once stood. 

(Thanks for the save.) 

"Strange, you shouldn't have been able to sense that." She hummed to herself as she continued to observe him. "Colour me impressed, as a reward I'll up the heat a little." 

His instincts cautioned as Kuroka weaved an array of peculiar symbols, followed by multiple magic circles appearing both around and above him. 

(That hardly even took a second, magic-types really are a pain in the ass.) 

"Good luck." Unlike the last barrage, the bullets jetting towards Jin had become significantly more refined, packed with nothing but killing intent. 

(No point in holding back if it'll get me killed.) 

Without hesitation, a chrome gauntlet manifested on his bandaged hand as his power increased twofold. His wings enclosed him in a tight defensive cocoon, each charged with Holy Power. 

"Planning to take it head on? How foolhardy, but if you want to make killing you easier for me then I won't complain." 

Though it wasn't visible, Jin's smile couldn't get any wider. 

BOOM! 

BOOM! 

BOOM! 

BOOM! 

One after the other, a seemingly endless onslaught of Senjutsu-composed attacks had begun, all of them colliding with the impact of a full-speed bullet train. 

The sound of their impact produced a deafening cry in the atmosphere causing Koneko to shield her ears out of fear of having her eardrums ruptured. 

"Relax." Raon reassured, causing her to look up as Jin's surroundings erupted in a cloud of dust. 

"What?" 

"Halfling not die that easy, annoyingly tough." He continued, yawning as he seemed completely unaffected by his handlers' supposed peril. "Stay still, I sleep." 

"...Impossible." Kuroka murmured, unwilling to accept what she was seeing, or more accurately — sensing. As the dust cleared, Jin's figure was revealed to be still standing, in fact it almost looked as if he were unharmed. Save for the few stray feathers that had fallen off his wings. 

"A Sacred Gear? Now I see where you get your confidence." Her aura flared to life as she too had come to the realization that there remained little meaning in holding back against her opponent. "I guess playtime is over." 

"I guess it is." He affirmed, twirling a light-spear in his hand as the two paced around each other momentarily. Jin's focus had reached a point where he had failed to even notice the fact that the maskings around his right-arm had now come undone. Revealing a limb covered in bright silvery scales, alongside a claw-like hand that looked capable of tearing through even the toughest of metals. 

"Kasha." She whispered, conjuring five big wheels covered in a mix of obsidian and violet flames. 

Jin whistled as a sense of respect stirred within him upon looking at the spectacle. 

(Impressive, I can feel the air simmering from here. What a shame, I was hoping to wear her out for as long as I could.) 

"Your name?" She questioned, causing his expression to alight with mild surprise. 

"Jin."

"Kuroka." Her arms cocked backwards as the wheels continued to endlessly spin, building up an intense level of momentum. 

"I know." 

WHOOSH!

All five of them came hurling towards him at once, each tracking his position like a guided missile. Jin called upon each and every morsel of Oron's spear training as he prepared to keep the miniature infernos away from his skin. 

BANG!

(One.) 

BANG!

(Two.) 

Right before the third was about to collide with the tip of his spear, Kuroka waved her hand forcing it to alter its course despite its immense speed. 

(She's going for my back?) 

Naturally, the assault showed no signs of slowing down. The last two wheels aimed for both his chest and head respectively. 

(Not good, I won't be able to use my wings to block them this time. Should I — no, I need to save that until she's out of gas.) 

Three magic circles quickly formed around Jin, each facing the direction of the three incoming wheels. 

(I can't block the attacks head on, but if I weaken them first my body should be able to tank them again.) 

Like a choir of a thousand chirping birds, hundreds of miniature daggers of Holy Power surged forth from the circles, with just about enough power to slow down the spinning flames of death, but not enough to stop them entirely. 

(Here goes nothing.) 

BOOM!