[Ch. 35] A New Adversary

Panzram continued to train with the help of Ryu.

Days turned to weeks. Weeks turned into months.

Although it had not been long since he started, he was already improving greatly. He was able to spar with the fake Kiyomori without being defeated too quickly.

Ryu nodded in admiration, "I just knew the katana would be perfect for you."

Panzram looked at Ryu then back to the katana, "It's not bad."

Ryu went up and nudged him playfully, "Come on… Admit you like it. I know you do."

Panzram glared at Ryu who smiled at him teasingly. He looked away and grunted in response.

The two returned back to work to start their shift, but the night was uneventful. Panzram and Ryu stood guard, but no one was brave enough to cause trouble. Since Panzram had stayed with Ryu so long, he began to notice that Ryu was getting bolder and bolder.

Although he would not use his chaos energy without first asking Panzram, that did not mean that he was not annoying Panzram. Ryu was now constantly nudging or poking him playfully. When Panzram glanced at him, Ryu would wink back at him.

Panzram would only scowl in response.

Anyone watching the two would think that Ryu was constantly trying to start a fight by annoying Panzram unrelentingly. However, this was not the case. In fact, although Panzram would scowl and look annoyed, he actually did not mind the attention.

Ryu was acting this way not to annoy Panzram, but because he was extremely happy and could not contain it. He was surprised that Panzram had stayed this long with him. Perhaps Panzram was starting to think of him as a friend? However, Ryu did not want to remain too hopeful, so he tried not to think about this.

After Panzram and Ryu finished, they returned back to their room. Just like usual, Ryu fell asleep on the floor while Panzram went to sleep on the futon. However, while he was asleep, Ryu quickly moved around the floor like a caterpillar and clung to Panzram once more.

Panzram was used to this so he did not pay it any attention.

Abruptly, Ryu sat up startling Panzram. "That's not good."

Panzram went to ask what he meant but did not have time.

*BOOOOM*

A loud explosion blared outside in the distance. It was so strong, the entire city shook and the building seemed like it was shaking from an earthquake. The sky was instantly dyed red and black as the smoke rose from the flames from far away.

They ran to look out the window and noticed the fire spreading quickly.

Ryu spoke hurriedly, "We need to change."

Panzram gave a slight nod.

Ryu snapped his fingers and their clothes instantly changed from sleepwear to their usual daily clothes. Panzram looked at Ryu with an eyebrow raised since that was not what he had in mind.

Ryu smiled awkwardly, "Sorry."

Before Panzram could speak, he felt something flying through the air. He quickly pounced on Ryu to avoid the flying dagger. Ryu was completely pinned under the firm and muscular body of Panzram.

Ryu looked up at Panzram, who was still over him, with a flustered expression. Before Panzram could say anything, several mercenaries broke into the room.

Panzram did not waste another second. He picked up Ryu and stood defensively in front of him. He pulled out his katana and fended off the attacks while Ryu stood behind him. As Ryu watched, he felt his heart skip from admiration. However, he snapped out of it when he smelt the smoke.

Ryu shouted, "I am going to help the others! Will you be okay?"

Panzram grunted in agreement as he easily blocked their attacks. He swung his sword and effortlessly took out the mercenary. Ryu blinked in admiration, "Oh. He's definitely fine."

Ryu rushed into the hallway hearing the bell rings. On the street, people were shouting, "FIRE! Everyone grab a bucket! Put out the flames before they spread!"

Ryu noticed the girls shouting and making a dash to grab everything. Ryu spoke quickly, "Don't try to grab anything. Just get out before the place burns down!"

The Madame looked at Ryu with a panicked face, "Ryu! I will be ruined if everything burns!!"

Ryu snapped his fingers. Suddenly, everything disappeared from the house. He spoke quickly, "I put it in a storage house I own outside of town. You know where it is, right?"

The Madame nodded her head graciously, "Thank you Ryu-kun!"

He nodded and pushed her to the door, "Just go! You can stay there for as long as you'd like!"

As they started rushing out of the house and towards the building, Ryu looked and felt his mouth drop.

The entire town was set ablaze.

The horizon was bright red and neither the sun nor the moon could be seen through the dark, blackened sky. If Ryu had not known any better, he would have thought it was the end of the world.

Far away, there were several people who were frantically trying to put out the fire. Even though they were mostly made up of water users, they were useless when trying to battle such a large fire which was engulfing the entire city.

Ryu looked around in surprise. Was this scene in the visions he had seen? Or did he cause it to happen by changing events?

Once everyone was evacuated, he turned back inside to find Panzram. Just before he could go back inside, several mercenaries jumped down from the roof and landed in front of him, blocking his entry to the building.

Ryu smiled at them as if he did not care much about their intentions, "Um… You are in my way."

The one held out a sword, "You will be coming with us if you want to live."

Ryu kept smiling, "No, I do not think so. That sounds a bit too boring for me."

The mercenary shouted, "Nitta!"

Suddenly a surly man approached cracking his fists. His dark brown eyes began to flicker white, "You will regret this."

Ryu grinned once he heard this name, "Ah! My favorite Minamoto, Nitta! It's been such a long time. Such a shame that I could not greet you more formally."