73: Battle (2)

"Ok, this is much more interesting..." - Cloud muttered as he noticed the glow on his childhood friend's sword - "I didn't expect to see this ability, much less on Ichika."

"Isn't that Chifuyu-san's ability?" - Houki asked in surprise - "And if it's not, then this ability is slightly similar..."

[Mondo Grosso], that event was the first time she saw Chifuyu Orimura's ability, or rather, of the sword of her [Shirokishi], the first [IS] created by her older sister Tabane.

"However, this is strange" - Houki continued with a serious expression on her face - "How is it that Chifuyu-san and Ichika, have the same [unique ability]? I ask this because it's impossible for two [IS] to have such similar abilities, unless I'm ignoring something..."

Cloud kept silent at the curiosity of the younger sister of the genius Tabane, after all, he knew the secret of [Byakushiki], which had been built using the core of [Shirokishi], as well as the fact that this [IS] had such an advanced [AI] that it basically had a consciousness of its own.

"You know something... Don't you?" - Houki asked as she noticed that the blond's expression seemed to be unchanged.

"Yes, although I recommend you to ask your older sister, I'm sure she'll answer all your doubts" - answered Cloud calmly while giving a short glance to the dark brown haired girl - "Ok, let's better change the subject, after all, I don't think this is the time for this, not to mention that things are about to get more interesting than you think."

"Interesting?" - Houki repeated as she raised an eyebrow, after all, she didn't understand the young blond's words.

Cloud simply smiled, after all, he didn't want to ruin the surprise.

[Raiden] had managed to detect a huge energy flow in Ichika's [IS], which meant one thing, he was slowly reaching his limit, and this also translated to there would be two scenarios. One, [Byakushiki] would not overcome his limit and would not transform, which would cause Ichika to lose the battle, or two, and the more likely one, Ichika was about to unlock his [second shift], which would cause him to have enough power to defeat his opponent, and seeing that the black-haired young man was the [protagonist] of this world, it led Cloud to think that this would clearly be the final outcome.

Houki frowned at the cryptic words of the boy she liked, though she quickly decided to leave it for another time because despite not understanding why, she could feel the change in the flow of the battle.

* * * * *

"Hmm, this is interesting" - Tatenashi mused while watching the battle with narrowed eyes - "The energy flow of that [IS], it's increasing drastically the more the battle progresses..."

"Even though he's fighting like a monkey with a knife, Orimura-kun is constantly evolving" - nodded the vice president, though she too frowned when she saw the real-time report of the battle - "However, this increase in energy is a bit worrisome..."

The other girls simply remained silent as they continued to watch the battle seriously, especially the black-haired young man who was gradually getting closer to his opponent, despite the girl's efforts to move away to maintain a favorable situation for her fighting style.

"That technique..." - muttered the secretary as she noticed the gleam on Ichika's huge katana - "Doesn't it resemble Orimura sensei's unique ability?"

"Perfect, I knew at least one of you would notice it" - smiled Tatenashi as she looked at her subordinates - "Exactly, it is a skill very similar to Chifuyu Orimura's skill."

"But then that means Orimura-kun can ignore the shields of his opponents and directly attack the pilot" - said the vice president with a frown.

"That doesn't make sense, president" - added the secretary with slight annoyance - "It is scientifically impossible for two [IS] to have similar unique abilities, that was what Tabane Shinonono herself said, this because the abilities of the [IS] are unique from the [AIs] of our equipment, which evolves thanks to our experiences."

"True, to say that two [IS] have similar skills, means that two pilots have the same experiences, the same level, and the same training, but that is not the case" - said the vice president with a frown - "Ichika Orimura is a rookie, one who is just starting training, however, Chifuyu Orimura was an experienced warrior when she managed to unlock her skill..."

"A unique ability, as you said, is the proof that demonstrates the connection between the unique [AI] of an [IS], and its pilot" - said Tatenashi with a huge smile as she thought of a hypothesis, which made more sense as she thought of the appearance of Ichika's personal [IS] - "The union between learning, the pilot's sweat and effort, as well as the constant evolution of the [AI] that analyzed the growth of its master to create the best possible ability that suits the pilot's unique style."

"I thought that was just a rumor" - said the vice president with a frown - "The direct implementation of an [AI] to an [IS], was discarded because they are not compatible..."

"Oh, in this you are right, the two are not compatible, however, you are not taking one factor into consideration" - said Tatenashi as her smile grew slightly - "And that is that the [IS] creates its own [AI]."

"Impossible, it's been proven that that can't happen [naturally]!" - exclaimed the secretary - "If so, the candidates for national representative would be more than just a handful per country!"

"When a customized [IS] manages to reach its limit, it is possible for it to evolve into a new form" - replied Tatenashi while her gaze remained on the battle - "This occurrence is referred to as [second shift], and currently, only a few [IS] have managed to achieve this ability, surprisingly, these are also the ones who have succeeded in creating their unique abilities"

The girls were silent because this information was new to them.

"Anyway, although this topic is interesting, I think it's best we leave it until here" - said Tatenashi while shaking her head - "The battle is reaching its climax."

"Eh?" - the girls looked at each other, surprised by such abrupt words from their leader.

"Right, Orimura-kun's shield meters dropped to 30%" - the treasurer muttered as she stared in surprise at the precarious situation the black-haired young man was in - "I guess that's the price to pay for such an offensive skill as ignoring the opponent's shields."

"If I remember correctly, Chifuyu Orimura suffered from the same problem when using her skill, a huge shield consumption" - said Tatenashi while shrugging - "Although she compensated for this [weakness] due to the fact that she defeated her opponents extremely quickly"

"This is Ichika-san's first time using this technique, so I guess it's pretty obvious that he must not know how to use it properly" - added the secretary, though her expression changed when she noticed how the other girls of the student council were looking at her with a small smile - "W-what's wrong?"

"Nothing~" - Tatenashi simply gave her companion an amused look as she turned her attention back to the battle - "Hmm, looks like we're at the culminating moment... Now it's either move forward or crash... let's see how far you're willing to go..."

* * * * *

"You've done an admirable job, Orimura-san" - Cecilia said while checking the status of her [IS] - "Not only did you make me expend 30% of my Shield, but you also managed to destroy all my drones..."

"This is the proof of my efforts, Alcott-san, however..." - Ichika replied while frowning as he noticed how his shield was reaching critical levels - "I'm not done yet!"

"Sorry Orimura-san, but that's as far as the fight goes... It was fun while it lasted..." - Cecilia said as her sniper rifle began to expand- "Meet my upgraded customized weapon, [Blue Blaster], which was not only upgraded to have a longer firing range, but also to have a higher firing rate, reaching the level of an assault rifle with the penetrative power and accuracy of a sniper rifle... This is the most advanced weapon ever created from my country... This is the pride of England!"

"I suppose I have to feel honored" - Ichika said as he stood at attention, however, his expression changed as he felt a bullet fly past him at full speed - ". . ."

"You should, because this weapon I was going to use it in my rematch against Cloud-san" - Cecilia replied firmly - "Which means only one thing, that you earned my respect and approval, now... let's wrap this up..."

The boy, only answered her with silence as he felt the sweat on his hands increase slightly. He could feel his body tense slightly, though something inside him told him that this was not from fear, but from the thrill of a good battle.

Ichika wouldn't lie, he was having fun in this fight, even when he was in such a precarious situation.