Tenka and the Neighboring World

"Fight me more! I'll just get all the more stronger!" Tsuan yelled.

Tenka easily matched all of Tsuan's strikes. Blocking her seemed Tenka's main objective and she basically ignored the other girl whose powers or Unsigned Angel as she called it was ill suited for Melee fighting.

"I won't forgive you for eliminating Mami like she was a bug!" the other girl who had yet to state her name roared. But she clearly had attachment to the Quasi Spirit who had provided them with her invitation.

Tsumijuichi watched from the crumbling remains of the 'Itsuka' residence. It was too unsafe to stay inside so he waited with the "Empty" girl resting against the fence.

"I know Tenka can probably handle herself but I wish I could help, two against one is kinda unfair." he sighed. Pieces of roofs fell to the ground and Tsumijuichi chose to shield Empty who flinched and hugged him him tightly. Eventually he became aware of a nearby house with a balustrade on the second floor. Carrying Empty bridal style he was more or less able to jump onto the balcony, wincing slightly as he banged his foot on the balustrade itself.

"We should be safe here," he remarked.

"I'm Sorry for not asking you for permission to touch you," he apologized.

"As long as we're safe," she gripped the iron bars.

Empty looked blank like she had no idea what was going on. Which she probably didn't.

Twice she'd shivered like she was cold in the plain white sundress she wore so Tsumijuichi had wrapped his school blazer around her.

The long sleeved white dress shirt he wore underneath was thin and did nothing to protect against the harsh wind that seemed to be caused by the other girl... what was her name again?

"Hey Empty, are you doing ok?" Tsumijuichi asked lazily, sure the fight would be over in a few minutes.

"Empty?" the girl asked. Her red eyes observing him with interest.

"yeah sorry, I'd ask your name but I get this feeling that you don't know it." Tsumijuichi apologized.

"but your type seems common here, it will be difficult to differentiate between you and other Empties.... hmm.." he mused, trailing off in thought.

"my.... type?" She asked.

Tsumijuichi stared at her. 'Did Empty know nothing after being formed? Were they all like this? Something tells me no one here is above using their naivety against them ...'

'Well I'm not really sure myself, Everyone here seems to be a powerful being called a Spirit or a lesser powerful being known as a Quasi-spirit." Tsumijuichi explained.

"Ah and are you a Quasi Spirit or a Spirit?" Empty asked.

Tsumijuichi felt an odd sense of bafflement.

He absorbed that crystal thing that came out of the Quasi Spirit Mami. Did that make him a Quasi-spirit now?

Some distant small part of him wanted to scoff and comment that a 'Quasi-spirit' was a pitiful container not meant for his abilities.

'𝐴𝑏𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑠? 𝑊ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑎𝑏𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑒𝑠?' he wanted to ask himself.

"No," he decided. "I'm just your average human who got dragged into this by being in the wrong place at the wrong time," he smiled weakly. "Really, I'm just as confused as you,"

Empty looked surprised. "Perhaps we can be confused about everything together?"

Tsumijuichi opened his mouth to respond but the moment was immediately ruined by a huge explosion and a nearby house became a myriad of wood splinters.

Tsumijuichi used his arm to shield his face in case any flew in his direction.

"TENKA?! ARE YOU ALRIGHT?" Tsumijuichi yelled.

Empty stood up and clasped the blazer collar around her tighter. "Who's Tenka?"

"She's an acquaintance of mine," he said quickly.

"Nahemah!" Tenka shouted and Tsuan blocked with her Unsigned Angel, as well as using ice to heal a huge gash caused by Tenka.

"She used ice to heal herself? what kind of maniac uses ice to heal wounds?" Tsumijuichi blurted.

"I wonder if I can do something like that," Empty said. Tsumijuichi looked at her curiously, noting the adoration in her eyes.

"All the other contestants have been wiped out!" the other Quasi Spirit shouted making a enormous, blinding beam of light.

Tenka deadpanned. "I'm aware, I eliminated most of them--" she commented using a barrier of her own to fend off Tsuan who was instantly thrown through a brick wall, shattering it.

"ouch..." Tsumijuichi winced.

"I'm Keiko! it's just you, me and Tsuan in this war now!" Keiko yelled summoning another beam not that Tenka looked that put up on. Although the wind was throwing off her attacks.

"oh--" Empty said "is it a war?"

"no shes just over dramatizing things, it's a killing game," he remarked insensitively.

"Oh what a horrible thing!" Empty gasped.

"you know, you just made me reevaluate my life decisions at this moment," Tsumijuichi smiled weakly at the girl covering her face, no doubt so she wouldn't see anyone die.

'I guess I got dehumanized to it all, a week ago I would have definitely reacted the way she did. But I can't live in that bliss now. However... someone like Empty, needs to be protected, so I better do something if it becomes necessary.'

Empty peeked at him curiously.

He steeled his resolve, and braced himself unaware of the reiryouku building up, a physical manifestation from forming a strong goal he unintentionally set for himself.

I Keiko will be victorious

"And then Tsuan will kill you for taking out her opponent," Tsumijuichi muttered.

Empty looked worried but she wasn't sure who for.

When it looked almost as though Keiko had a upper hand Tsumijuichi decided to interfere. "Hey that's --" in his hand was the mallet Mami had carried. It was surprisingly light. "Can I really use this..?"

Oh a weapon! You can help your acquaintance now!" Tsumijuichi looked at Empty's gaze of admiration.

'Time to find out,' he thought jumping downward onto a set of stairs he was sure weren't under the second floor window's balcony. But maybe he hadn't seen them. They were already crumbling to the battle. He used them to support his leap in the air and a thought occurred to him that he had no clue what this weapon did.

"TENKA!!"

Tenka looked up and grasped what he wanted to say before Tsumijuichi said it. Sh jumped into the air, grabbing Empty by the arm in the process.

Empty yelped.

"--Mjolnir!!"

Keiko shrieked "No Way!!!"

"Somehow-- I get the impression-- that it sounds cooler when a girl says it," Tsumijuichi remarked panting heavily. The oversized mallet flickered like it wanted to vanish.

"no I was to be the one to avenge Mami.... I was to be the one to kill her in this game or she was the one to kill me ..." Keiko vanished without a trace, her orange and Sephira fragment following soon after.

"Huh looks like that Tsuan girl will recover" he remarked absently.

"Hey that's the same doll as before!" pointed Tsumijuichi.

"Doll?" Empty asked confused.

Tenka flew after it, her companions running close behind. They chased the doll circling various buildings to a clearing with dozens of bodies and dolls. "What the hell--?!" Tsumijuichi asked.

"Oh are all of you victors then?" The girl Panie Ibusuki asked innocently. As if she was taking a stroll.

"Didn't I kill you?" Tenka raised a eyebrow.

"Oh that was a disposable body. We'll just keep coming, there's never any shortage of dolls," Doll Master remarked.

Tenka had a brief what the absolute fuck expression before morphing it to boredom.

"So you're weak. A bore. You harp on others powers and strengths mocking their deaths."

Tsumijuichi had a sudden vision a memory of when he first saw Tenka and witnessed that enormous sword of mass destruction.

Empty stay here! He jumped up to a house with a balustrade, notably behind Tenka and this out of her estimated range.

"I don't understand," Empty blinked.

"Tenka is going to destroy everything, stay here,"

"Nahmehah Paverschlev!!"

'Her throne?' Now much closer, Tsumijuichi understood that Tenka was summoning her throne and knocking it downwards shattering it to pieces. Pieces which flew to her sword making it much larger at the same time he could feel a hum of power. She was charging it.

I'll spare us the trouble and just wipe them all out.'

"No need to waste the time," with utter efficency she swung the sword and following a huge explosion a giant scar on the ground reminiscent of a crater was all that remained of the army of supposedly infinite dolls.

"No! My- my precious dolls!" Doll Master shrieked.

She fell to her knees a few dolls next to her reaching out to comfort her.

"If we let you go, would you respect that all life is sacred and find a place to reside peacefully? Basically be imprisoned but still free to go places?" Tsumijuichi asked after looking at Empty's despondent expression.

"Not at all! I would not change a single one of my actions." Doll Master stated, not doing herself any favors.

"okay bet," Tsumijuichi remarked monotonously and swung his mallet hearing the unpleasant sound of wood splintering indicating he crushed the girl. When he lifted the hammer he found her remains had disappeared. Even her Sephira fragment.

"that's.... this ending doesn't make me happy although the battle is mostly over," He commented looking remorseful. Tenka tilted her head.

She looked bored. As if the ending was anticlimactic in comparison to the movie itself.

Empty just looked sad. Her red eyes carrying a forlorn expression in them. "Sorry about killing --" he stopped and realized he killed how many girls...?

Three? Tsumijuichi looked unwell as the realization began to sink in.

"Ho ho ho! Beelzebub was right! This is where the amusing fight is happening," a woman's voice laughed from her perch on a non lit street light that miraculously wasn't broken.

"huh? whoa! Who are you?" Tsumijuichi seemed to recover quickly.

"Ah Since everyone has a habit of formerly introducing oneself, I shall follow suit: My name is Honjou Nia. I too am a full Spirit. I'm classified here as a second type, primarily for finding information but that is a pitiful understatement of my abilities ," she giggled a little at the end.

Tenka scowled "do you think she's also part of the Killing game?" she raised her sword prepared to summon the throne Nahmehah.

"I Doubt it, from her earlier statement she seems to only be a spectator." Tsumijuichi remarked.

"How about I help you out, since you amused me, -not an easy feat I assure you- I'll let you ask anything and provide answers." Nia remarked her red eyes shining with curiosity at what they would ask.

A pause.

'There must be a limit so I'll only try to ask the right questions,' Tsumijuichi thought.

"First things first, Where are we?" he asked.

"The place you are in now is known as the Neighboring World to Quasi-spirits. Perhaps we called it that first and the others picked up from us or perhaps that is the name best suited to this realm." Nia smiled. The pages in her book hastily flipped to a random point that was now filled with writing.

"Neighboring... World...?" Tenka asked softly.

'This place, has a name...' Tsumijuichi thought.

"The Neighboring World has ten regions one that corresponds to one of us, a true Spirit," Nia held her book in one hand and spread her arms wide. A pen materialized and scribbled on the book in front of her it displayed the layout of the Neighboring World.

Ten rough octagonal polygons connected by several lines, some lines linking to the center some linking to other polygons.

"Our current location as of now is the Tenth Region, Malkuth. Represented by the tenth spirit, You Tenka,"

Tenka blinked owlishly.

"What the hell kind of sick joke is that?" Tsumijuichi yelled.

"Who's in charge of this place?" Tenka asked as she stared at Nia who either didn't notice or didn't care.

"You defeated the Dominion Doll Master. there is no one in charge," she stated happily.

"We'll need to place someone in charge. Someone not psychotic," Tsumijuichi decided. Empty nodded from her place at the top of some crumbling stairs, likely just to be agreeing with her senpai.

'I can't just drop that responsibility on Empty even if it keeps her from vanishing,' he glanced at the girl. "it turns out that may be an interesting search." Tsumijuichi muttered quietly.

"Anyway back on topic," Tsumijuichi remarked and thought for a moment.

"Could you use that book of yours to find someone by the name of 'Itsuka?'" Tsumijuichi asked.

"itsu... pardon?" Nia blinked.

"Maybe we should try something simple like the last known location" Tsumijuichi suggested politely. Then he blinked, "you knew him too, right?"

"Not at all," Nia caught herself swiftly.

Tsumijuichi narrowed his eyes. He was about to ask something but Empty interrupted him.

"heeeeeyyy!!.... S-senpai how do I get down?" Empty called from her spot on the balustrade.

"...I'll go help her, I forgot she is literally defenseless," he remarked.

"I leave the questioning to you, Tenka," Tsumijuichi smiled as he walked away.

Tenka thought about what question she should ask. She felt only had one question left.

One that mattered at least.

"What does this boy-- Itsuka look like?"

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"Alright there we go," Tsumijuichi said as he jumped down from the balustrade right as the remaining stairs crumbled to dust, the reiryouku used to create and sustain them having been spent.

"Did you make that stairway? it's a pity you couldn't use it for yourself," he remarked. Empty shook her head.

'Tenka likely didn't make it she was too busy fighting... then did Nia..?' Tsumijuichi wondered.

"oh Tenka - sama you're back," Empty said.

'That drawing she showed me. It looked like a blue haired and brown eyed version of Tsumijuichi.' Tenka mulled over the details.

'And also his sisters... Kotori Itsuka and a girl named Mana Takamiya.'

"So you know what He looks like now," Tsumijuichi turned and smiled and for a fraction of a second she thought the boy -Itsuka was standing there. An almost identical carbon copy of Tsumijuichi, barring the color difference in hair and eyes he was also slightly shorter than Tsumijuichi.

Tenka blinked and the vision vanished. She looked away so they didn't see the tear that threatened to fall.

"Wait!" A voice called, it wasn't Nia's.