Vs Mantis, Kuina, Desperate

Zoro and Sora found themselves face-to-face with the Mantis, its eyes glowing with a blend of caution and malice.

"You strike first, I'll assist," Sora called out as he inched closer, his heart pounding. He felt the trail of blood on his neck; another inch and he might not have been so lucky. The realization hit him like a truck, making him even more cautious.

"Like usual," Zoro agreed, nodding with a semblance of a smile on his face. The young teen's heart raced with excitement and eagerness as he too inched closer to the beast.

The air crackled with anticipation as they prepared to engage the beast.

Seeing the duo close in, the Mantis shrieked and flew straight at Zoro, fearful of Sora's electricity.

"Let's dance" Zoro grinned, dashing at the beast, his swords ready to parry its claws. This time he wasn't in the air. He braced against the ground and resisted the beast's attack.

[Double Shigan]

Sora appeared behind the creature and struck with two of his fingers, creating two bloody holes.

*SSST*

The mantis wailed in pain and flailed its claws, but missed.

"Ball, batter out!" Sora had already repositioned atop a nearby tree.

"I'm here you know?" Zoro grinned as he watched the creature leaving its back free. He seized the moment.

"Ha!" He swung both swords horizontally, aiming to cleave the insect in two.

Suddenly, a tingling sense of danger made him release his swords and leap back with all his strength.

*Boom*

"ZORO!!!!" Sora's shout tore through the air as he darted toward Zoro who was sent flying, his body covered in fire.

"Hot!, hot, hot" Sora hissed, heaving Zoro into the nearby lake. He then immediately sprang to the side to evade a burst of flames.

Using Soru, Sora darted around the tree, evading columns of fire aiming at him. Seeing the mantis' exoskeleton now ablaze, Sora couldn't help but exclaim, "Damn it! Since when can bug-type pokemon use fire moves?"

Moments before, when Zoro was about to strike, Sora had seen the Mantis's eyes go vacant and its exoskeleton ignite, followed by a heat wave that repelled and burned everything around it. Zoro's reflexes had saved him from a deadly fate.

Sora's breaths came in heavy gasps as he dodged one fiery attack after another. He noticed the Mantis's vacant eyes as it launched several fire breath and fire breath from its maw.

He hurriedly ducked under a flame pillar, the electricity around him intensifying "How about this?" He cried out.

[Thundershock]

A blue lightning beam rushed at the Mantis who opened it maw a spat out a column of flame.

*BOOM*

The collision created an explosion, shrouding the battlefield in dust.

You're lucky I can't use Thunder yet' Sora cursed while he nimbly maneuvered through the trees.

His eyes then shifted back to their orange hue. He had to manage his stamina for the long fight ahead.

Meanwhile, Zoro, taking advantage of the brief pause in the battle, hurriedly emerged from the lake, minor burns marking his body.

"Damn it, my swords!" Zoro cursed, seeing his weapons engulfed in flames. He hastily used his foot to douse them in the water.

"So you switched to long-range, huh?" Sora's eyes narrowed seeing the beast still in the same place. The situation was escalating. Zoro needed to close in for melee combat, but the Mantis's flame breaths and heat waves made for a deadly combination to keep them at bay.

"Fuck it" Sora cursed, his eyes, once again flared bright azure, and his body surged with blue electricity, his orange hair floating around him.

"Zoro!" Seeing Zoro ready to fight again, Sora gulped, his heart beating fast. He lunged forward and shouted at the top of his lungs "FOLLOW MEEEEE".

*BANG*

[VOLT TACKLE!]

The ground beneath him cratered as he charged at the Mantis, the lightning aura shredding anything in his path.

The monster hurriedly spat out a flaming breath, hoping to stop him.

"Sora!" Zoro's cried as he saw him charge headlong into the creature's fire. A second later, his eyes opened wide seeing Sora run straight through the fire.

A blue trail of lightning cleaved through the column of fire red as Sora got closer and closer to the monster.

Just as he was but a few feets away, the Mantis' entire body erupted in flames, unleashing its heat wave attack.

Sora slowed down and grunted, struggling against it. His clothes disintegrated as red flames and azure electricity clashed.

Sora's eyes closed, feeling his body running out of strength

'Why am I even doing this?'

They were just kids; they could have run away easily. The monsters might not even target their village right? Maybe there was someone there who could stop them easily, not like them who have to risk their lives.

*BOOM*

A distant collision was heard as the earth tremored, snapping Sora from his trance. 'Shit!' If he and Zoro were struggling, then what about Kuina?

Gritting his teeth, Sora bellowed at the Mantis, "It's freaking hot enough already!" His electric aura fizzled out, and he was blown back. As he flew through the air, a sword materialized in his hand, wreathed in lightning. He flung it toward the Mantis, which had just halted its heat wave.

"NOW, MUSCLE HEAD!" Sora's voice cracked as he slumped against a tree, catching a glimpse of a green blurring passing by him.

"Hahaha, leave it to me" Zoro who had finally caught up, gripped his swords tighter seeing the mantis jump to dodge the sword.

He crouched low, his two swords held parallel so that the tips are pointing to his right, before suddenly appearing below the airborne beast He turned his swords so that the tips points down and jumped up.

[Tower Climb]

Zoro's swords cleaved through the air, sending two air slashes at the Mantis which sent it higher. He then appeared above it, his swords swinging downward with gravity amplifying the force.

[Tower Climb Return]

The Mantis defensively raised its claws, but couldn't fully block the strikes.

*Boom*

It crashed through the trees, two deep cuts oozing green blood.

Zoro hit the ground and immediately appeared near the exhausted Mantis, his swords ready for another strike from the right.

[Flash]

As the Mantis raised its claws to counter, Zoro's attack sent its defenses off balance. He now stood inches away, his swords poised and a wicked grin on his face.

"Got you."

[Ripple]

Two diagonal slashes flew at point-blank range.

The Mantis desperately flapped its wings, evading the fatal blows. But it wasn't unscathed.

*SSSSSSST*

Sora, seeing a severed claw flying in the air, dug deep and used the last reserves of his strength. He appeared above the monstre, his sword back in his hand, and swung with all his might at the creature's neck, aiming to finish it while it was wounded.

"DIEEEE!"

************

BOOM

BOOM

BOOM

Explosive sounds echoed throughout the forest as Kuina jumped elegantly from tree to tree. A bear, the size of a small house, with elongated arms, was chasing after her, gradually shortening the distance. Any tree in the monster's path was destroyed.

Feeling the tremors behind her getting closer, Kuina jumped in front, bringing her sword down as a white aura surrounded it.

The bear's eyes followed the girl, whose back was facing him in confusion. Who was she aiming for? He was behind her, not in front.

[Crescent Moon]

Kuina swung her sword down, made a front flip, and sent a white slash behind her that tore through the earth, heading straight towards the bear.

The bear swung its arm, blocking the slash with ease.

'How tough,' Kuina thought, frowning while recovering from her jump and continuing forward. She didn't know what to do in this situation. The bear was faster than her only in a straight line. But she knew this part of the forest like the back of her hand, so she could easily move in different directions to make it run in circles while waiting for Zoro and Sora to defeat the other beast and join her. But what if the bear gave up on chasing her and went for the village? Or Zoro and Sora? What if Sora and Zoro can't beat the Mantis and need her help as soon as possible?

Kuina hurriedly turned around and brought her sword down as a boulder flew at her, cleaving it in two, the two sides flying past her.

Boom

She looked at the bear and opened her eyes wide in shock, seeing rocks actually forming on its paw, forming a boulder her size. It tossed it in the air playfully and glanced at her with ferocity.

"Shit!"

ROOOAR

The bear roared, yellow energy covering the boulder, before it hurled it at full strength.

Kuina's eyes couldn't follow the speed of the ball, but her body moved on its own.

Repeating the same move she practiced thousands of times every day, she brought her sword down in a clean movement, a white gleam covering her blade, slicing the boulder as easily as tofu.

"Shiiiiiiit!" Kuina came back to her senses, seeing a boulder form on each of the beast's paws.

[Soru]

She hurriedly jumped aside, using the trees as cover to try and escape, but unbeknownst to her, faint yellow ripples of energy spread out from the bear, covering the entire region they were in. The bear would throw the boulders with such precision that Kuina realized it precisely followed her every move somehow.

The two continued running around the forest, engaging in a deadly match of catch ball: one beast chasing and throwing boulders, the young girl moving at fast speed and dodging every hit.

The bear's eyes turned red, seeing the girl still dodging its every throw. Although it could pinpoint the human's location, the latter would use bursts of speed to dodge. She wasn't even slowing down to turn and look at the shots. No, she was using the trees as warnings. The moment a tree behind her was crashed by a boulder, she would jump to the side, effectively dodging every shot without slowing down one bit.

ROOOAR

Two boulders formed on its paws, and the monster roared before hurling them.

Kuina focused on her hearing behind her when she heard the roar, ready to dodge the moment a tree behind her crashed. But she didn't hear the usual sound.

*Sh* *Sh* *Sh* *Sh*

She hurriedly jumped as far as she could to the right.

BOOOM

But she suddenly felt pain all over her body, making her grit her teeth. She looked back, just in time to see the bear hurl two boulders as it did before, but this time, the boulders broke into dozens of small rocks that covered a wider range and were harder to dodge.

The bear smirked, seeing the second wave of rocks about to land on the bloodied girl.

"KAMI E!"

Its eyes opened wide, seeing the girl become thin like paper, avoiding all the rocks.

'I need to do something,' Kuina gritted her teeth as she avoided wave after wave of rocks. Just like Sora, she had mastered two of the Rokushiki powers: Soru and Kami-e - the technique she was the most proficient in. She was confident she could hold on for another few minutes using Kami-e to dodge this style of attack and Soru for the boulders. But she was starting to get worried about the other two. Plus, she didn't know how much longer the bear could use this magical move.

She needed to kill it!

Kuina closely looked at the bear while dodging, her eyes searching for a weak point she could focus on. Its fur was too thick to reach the skin. She tried using her aura earlier with her Crescent Moon, but even that proved to be ineffective.

She suddenly stopped dodging from side to side and started slowly going forward, her gaze locked on the only unprotected part of the beast: the eyes.

*Crack* *Crack* *Crack*

Kuina kept her eyes focused on her target, even as one of two rocks hit her. She heard and felt her bones breaking bit by bit as she got closer. It was the first time the young girl felt this kind of pain, but she knew that she had to do it. Even as tears started pouring down her eyes, she kept moving forward.

'The future best swordswoman can't lose here!'

But as she got closer to the beast, she didn't notice all of the stones she dodged hovering behind her.

A dozen, two dozens, a hundred. A small cloud of rocks hovered behind the young girl, unbeknownst to her.

'NOW!'

[Soru]

The moment she was close enough, Kuina canceled her Kami-e, used Soru to appear in front of the bear, and jumped, aiming straight for the eyes.

As her blade was inches from the eyes, Kuina suddenly felt a chill run down her spine. The bear suddenly smiled wide, revealing its sharp teeth.

'What?' That was her last thought as her body was assaulted by dozens of rocks.

All the rocks rained down on her. She was hit and hit and hit. Kuina gritted her teeth, showcasing an impressive will as the bombardment continued, not even letting her katana fall down. Even as a wave of rocks sent her forward, another would attack her from the right straight after, followed by the left.

She finally fell face first. Her entire body covered in injuries, she couldn't feel anything, her eyes filled with red blood that had flowed down from her injuries on her head.

'Dad…' Kuina whimpered as her vision started to darken.

The bear grinned in satisfaction, seeing the girl fall to the ground, her entire body covered in blood. It looked at the sword on the ground and flicked it away before grabbing the girl, making her cry in pain.

Kuina looked at the monster's face in despair. Was that it? Is this how she was going to die? Before even winning a proper swordsman fight?

'At least I bought them enough time.' She thought, bloodied tears flowing out of her eyes, clearing the blood only for them to be refilled with blood the next moment.

The bear brought the human close to its face and smiled sinisterly, not that she could see its expression. It pondered for a moment on what to do and decided to play with its prey before eating it.

The monster squeezed lightly.

*************

"DIIIIIIIE"

Sora swung his sword, clad in lightning, at the neck of the monster.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHH!"

A sudden, heart-wrenching cry filled with pain and despair came from afar, making both him and Zoro freeze; their blood turned cold.

This momentary lapse in attention allowed the Mantis to react. Seeing the sword about to strike it, sensing death approaching, its eyes flashed with madness and ferocity as it glared at the two humans.

Suddenly, its entire body swelled, flames leaking out of different places.

*BOOOOOOOM*

A gigantic explosion of flames erupted, its sound reaching even the distant village.

Zoro, who was closest to the explosion, felt death approach, but before the wave of fire could reach him, a flag suddenly appeared in front of him.

Sora was sent flying, his entire body covered in severe burns. His ears were buzzing due to the explosion, but the scream still echoed in his head. The pain, burns, and exhaustion would have brought him to tears in normal circumstances, but they remained wide open, staring in the direction of the scream, even as he crashed through multiple trees.

Images of Kuina, injured, bloodied, or worse, flooded his mind.

He gritted his teeth as he fell and rolled on the ground. He didn't stop; using the momentum to try to stand, but the force was too strong, causing him to roll again, carried by the blast.

"FUUUUCK!" he screamed, veins popping on his face as he adjusted himself to run on all fours before transitioning to two legs. But as soon as he took a step forward, he faltered; his body not cooperating.

"D-d-dam-m-mn ittttttt" Sora stuttered, shocking himself with electricity, making his body spasm before he regained control.

"VOLT TACKLE!"

Electricity enveloped his entire body as he made a beeline in the direction of the scream.

Tree trunks and boulders in his path were obliterated. Fear gnawed at him that he might be too late; his eyes narrowed with determination as he prepared to combine two moves he had sworn never to combine.

"Soru!"

A crater, large enough to engulf a house, formed as Sora shot off at such a speed that he couldn't even see his surroundings. From a bird's eyes, one could see a blue light go through the forest, followed by waves of fire.

Tears streamed down his face due to the wind. He tried to stomp to shot off not caring about the excruciating pain in his legs.

But Sora couldn't feel his legs moving. He looked down and saw them dangling freely in the air.

"NOOOO!" Sora cried in horror, not feeling his legs anymore. Desperately, he tried to think of any way he could reach that place as his body started to fall down slowly.

If only he had trained a bit more, just a tiny bit more, just one more step, that was all he needed to get there. Sora's mind went haywire in this dire situation, the exhaustion, the stress and the gravity of the situation turning his thoughts chaotic. Endless regret and anger at himself flooded him, feeling his speed slow down bit by bit.

Why had he been lazy when both Kuina and Zoro trained every day? Why had he avoided training when his sister had sent him here reluctantly? Why had he not trained when it was the only way to accomplish his dream?

Sora's consciousness began to fade; his world turning darker. But then, a shout full of passion reached his ear.

"Don't you dare give up!"

Sora's eyes snapped open, feeling strength return. He saw a gigantic silhouette ahead with the young girl, he's been worried sick about, screaming in pain in its paw, the sight boosting his strength to its peak.

"Go!" the voice urged.

Sora gritted his teeth.

"Soru!"

*************

Kuina could only stand there, crying her heart out in pain.

"Dad!" She whimpered feeling hers bones crack, the creepy laughter of the bear only increasing her despair.

*BOOOOM*

Both girl and beast stilled as they heard an enormous explosion. Both looked in the distance.

Kuina's eyes were covered in blood so she couldn't see what was going on, but her red view changed to an orange one, indicating the presence of a gigantic fire.

Was that the place Sora and Zoro were fighting? She hoped not! She hoped the two retreated safely. She hoped her father came back and saved them. She hoped that he was on his way to save her now.

Suddenly, a bright azure flash pierced her clouded sight for a fraction of a second, so fast that she though she was delusional

'Sora?'

But suddenly, a rush of wind hit her, followed by intense heat, the shockwave from the explosion finally reached them. She suddenly felt herself going down.

The bear looked at its own arm falling off, confused.

*Bam*

As its arm hit the ground, clarity returned to the monster. It cried out as blood gushed from its shoulder, the pain finally registering. It then looked to the side and saw a long trail of devastation, with electricity flickering on the ground.

*ROOOOOOOAR*

"Sora?" Kuina called out weakly after freeing herself. She watched the monster run through the devastated path, trying to make sense of what happened.

Dazed, she watched the beast disappear from her view when a voice shook her.

"What are you doing?!"

The pain from her broken bones suddenly disappeared, bringing clarity back to the young girl. She frantically looked around for her sword, but hearing the tremors of the retreating monster, she gritted her teeth.

[Soru]

She chased the monster, anxiety quickening her heartbeat. How could she help Sora without her sword?

'Should I try…' Hesitation flickered in her eyes, but she suddenly saw Sora laying on the ground, his legs bent in the wrong direction, his body covered in red marks and unconscious. Seeing the bear reaching for him, she made up her mind.

'Please work' She pulled her arms back, palms open.

[Soru]

'Please work!' She appeared behind the monster, which didn't react to her presence, blinded by rage.

'Please work!!' Her hands descended.

'Please work!!!'

"You can do it!" She felt strength flow through her as the earlier voice encouraged her.

'WOOOORK!!!!!!!'

"Drill Tiger…" A green aura surrounded her palms as the air buzzed around them. "Hammer!"

Her palms struck the back of the monster, halting it in its tracks, its paw mere inches from Sora.

*Roar*

The beast raised its head to the sky and roared in pain as an invisible force rattled its insides. Its whole body vibrated, matching the frequency of the mysterious force, before it slumped down, lifeless.

"Sora!" Kuina rushed toward him, but her vision began to blur.

"So…ra" she whispered as darkness claimed her.

A pair of arms suddenly supported her gently and carefully, accompanying her fall, until she slowly touched the ground.

"Betty-sama, her condition is critical. Most of her bones are likely shattered," a man said sombrely, looking at Kuina.

"And the other one's legs are in a terrible state, not to mention the burns," a woman walking out of the wood with a flag in her hand said gravely.

"At least we got here in time for this one," she said, nodding toward a green-haired boy being carried by another person.

Looking at the destruction around her, the woman sighed. She had been sent to cover for Koushiro, who was attending an important gathering, but a storm had delayed her, which led to his daughter and two students being gravely injured. Fortunately she could send her voice from afar so she managed to boost them at the end. 'Talk about close timing'

"Bring the medics. We can't move them in this condition" she ordered.

"Yes," her subordinate replied before dashing off.

"Koushiro won't be happy," she murmured, looking at the drones overhead that have been occupying the sky ever since Koushiro left, probably transmitting everything that has happened here to the master of the 3 kids.

"Lindbergh, I hate you." Then again, it was thanks to that she managed to send her voice through the drones.

"Ivan won't be pleased to come all this way, either" she continued, feeling irritated at having to use her only favor from that man, but this mess was her responsibility so she could only bite the bullet.