Chapter 45

The titan then clenched his fist as hard as he could, killing Reid…or so he thought.

Instead of blood and bones that he expected to pop out as he squished the boy, he felt his world explode as his body flared up in pain.

Reid exploded in a powerful surge of lightning, flowing through the titan stunning him greatly. Burns and patches formed on his body from the effects of the shock.

Fortunately for him, due to his size and aura protecting him, he survived the shock. Though the price was that he couldn't move for a while as his nerves and nervous system had been shocked.

Haze who laid on his other palm was woken up by the shock. The titan had taken the brunt of the attack while only a bit had gotten to him.

"What happened!? That bastard!" Haze screamed in indignation.

He looked like he would pop a blood vessel with just a slight push.

"I can't move. What do we do now?" The titan asked bitterly. Haze let out a low growl before taking deep breaths to calm himself.

"For now, we wait until you can move again. After that, we'll go and find my mother. He's trickier than we thought, we have to change the plan accordingly if we want to deal with this." Haze said after a moment of thought to which the titan stayed silent.

"You seem confused. You may speak." The boy said arrogantly, ignoring the mildly irritated look the giant gave him as he opened his mouth to speak.

"Is it really necessary to go back to Miss Vivian for something such as this. Surely there has to be another approach to this." The giant said to which Haze's eyes narrowed.

"Go on." He said simply.

"We could gather a few men to surround him this time. Now that we know he's not what he appears, we'll be on guar-" He was interrupted as Haze cut in.

"You fool! That'll take too much time. Not to mention the fact that it's less efficient. The best way to do this would be to regroup with mother to hash out a new plan." Haze said firmly but the titan wasn't done.

"The boy was your responsibility to handle. Miss Vivian won't be pleased with you not being able to do it." The large man said, letting his annoyance bleed into his voice.

"Are you insinuating that that bastard is too much for me to handle?" Haze questioned as his irritation resurfaced.

"He's no match for me. He's a pest that uses cheap tricks to fool himself into feeling some semblance of superiority. Meaning he is beneath my time and energy." Haze said as a cruel smirk came upon his face, not noticing the doubtfully look on the giant's face.

It was a few more minutes until the large man was able to move, though he was still slow due to his entire body being sensitive.

Slowly they made their way around the destroyed village in search of Vivian. They didn't run into any of the warriors of the village so they assumed that most of them were dead.

They didn't even want to think about how many civilians were still alive. As if any normal person could survive this.

"Do you think it's going to work?" The man asked out of nowhere as they trudged around the rubble.

"What are you yapping about now?" Haze asked, not really interested in what he had to say.

"Don't tell me you've forgotten already?" The titan asked in confusion as Haze who was on his shoulder raised a brow.

The titan let out a sigh of annoyance at Haze's nonchalant attitude.

"You actually forgot." He said under his breath.

"If you have something to say then say it. Don't talk in riddles." Haze said finally having enough with his puzzling statements.

"Miss Vivian said that she had someone on standby whose semblance could heighten negative emotions. Part of the plan was to wreak havoc while they increase the fear and anger that these people feel."

"The strength of their combined anguish should be enough to drag an entire horde of grim towards here to destroy whatever remained while we make our escape." The titan explained as Haze's eyes widened a bit as he seemed to come to a realization.

"Oh right! I remember it. I would have understood what you meant if you went straight to the point." Haze said as he managed to turn the blame to the big man.

The giant just let out a sigh as they continued their search. It wasn't long after that they found who they were looking for.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Vivian stood inside the green dome, panting in exhaustion as she breathed heavily. Cuts and bruises littered her body as she heaved.

"You really are something, aren't you?" She breathed out at Miko who stood in front of her with her sword still out and a track of dried blood on her face.

"I told you, you're not getting away with this. You're on your last leg with nowhere to go. How long before this barrier collapses?" Miko retorted with confidence.

Despite the confidence she showed, she was also exhausted but she did a better job at hiding it. No matter how many times she cut Vivian down, the woman always healed herself.

Though, she became weaker and more tired with every time she healed herself, it didn't change the fact that it kept her alive. It frustrated the uchiha matriarch how despite her best efforts, this woman was still alive.

Before either of them could exchange more words, they felt the ground shake as the titan that started it all made it's way towards them.

"It seems your son didn't last very long after all." Vivian said mockingly but Miko stayed silent.

The giant and the boy on his shoulder stopped in front of the green dome. It stretched out a hand to its shoulder to which Haze hopped on as he brought him to ground level.

"Is it done?" The woman asked her son with a smile as she made the dome around them disappear with a thought.

"There were complications. He escaped." Haze said bitterly as Vivian's smile twisted into rage immediately. The smirk on Miko's tired face aggravated her further.

"What!? If he's not dead then what are you doing here you fool!? Go back and find him!" She screamed at him only for him to turn to face the cautious Miko.

"Are you sure it's wise to let down the dome? She could escape." Haze pointed out, subtly changing the subject.

"Unlike you, I know how to deal with my opponents." She said, pointing out his attempt to change the subject but answered.

"She knows that if she goes to look for him, we'd follow her and kill them both. However if she stays here to fight all of us, she could buy enough time for him to escape or recover, though it would be at the cost of her own life."

"Either way, she's going to lose. She's ready to sacrifice herself for her son, how noble." Vivian said mockingly.

Miko didn't speak a word as she held her blade towards them, her silence confirming Vivian's words.

"There's just one hole in your plan?" Haze said as his mother turned to him with an annoyed gaze.

"And what is that?" She asked only to freeze as he no longer stood there.

*Chirp!* *Chirp!* *Chirp!* *Chirp!*

The sound of chirping lightning rang out around them.

"You overestimated yourself." Haze said as he appeared behind her with his hand coated in lightning as he thrusted it through her chest.