Chapter 83 ~ Ghetto

Shinjuku Ghetto.

A region bordering the Tokyo Concession left untouched by the colonial government. It was a city filled with buildings and skyscrapers that stood high and mighty in the past, now broken beyond repair.

A ruin that symbolized the brutality of Britannian's occupation and the shame of Japan's defeat in the war. The nation previously known as the land of the rising sun, now reduced to simply "Area 11"; one of the many colonies under the Britannian Empire.

And a scar that never healed due to sanctions imposed by their colonial government.

Now, it was a place where "Elevens", who did not, or can not, take the honorary britannia status, the homeless, and the unemployed live under temporary structures on the land they no longer owned.

The disparity was heartbreaking.

To his left was a beautiful city filled with tall skyscrapers, beautiful residences, and the people of Britannia living their life to the fullest.

While to his left was a ruined city filled with broken buildings, shelters and camps, and the "Elevens" who couldn't even feed nor defend themselves.

Yuuji stood on the clouds, invisible to any and all surveillance systems, as he looked down with a pained expression.

"Seeing it in real life really does hit you differently…"

Having lived in a peaceful world where the reality of war was never shown to him directly, Yuuji felt his stomach churn and his heart sink when he looked at the devastation it left behind.

"We need to end this…"

It was no longer only about his mission or Lelouch. Someone needed to end this. He needed to end this, along with others with the power to do so.

To end this cycle of war, hatred, and despair. To bring peace onto the land once more.

He turned his gaze away from the heartbreaking sight and flew deeper into the skies above Shinjuku Ghetto.

Based on the information he got from Tatsuya about the location of "Amaterasu", the mobile fortress and headquarters his "parents" left behind, it was located in a massive, underground, secret facility under the ruins of the Ghetto.

He didn't have the exact location as his "memories'' of it was blurry. After all, "he" had only been to it once when he was a toddler with his "parents".

But with Lelouch using his [Mind of the World], they were fortunately able to find its exact location and spare Yuuji the time and effort to search through the entire area of the Ghetto and check the basement of each broken building in the city.

Soon, Yuuji arrived at the location and flew down towards an unassuming broken building in the middle of the ruined city.

With much of the building destroyed from the battle that had once occurred here during Britannia's occupation, he was able to fly directly into the first floor from above.

Dust, debris, remnants of glass, torn cables where the electricity had stopped flowing through for years, broken lamps, and marks of dried blood were now all around him.

The sense of dread, despair, desperation, and fear that once existed in this place was still apparent to him. Simply by standing there, he could feel it enter his being and clutching onto his heart.

"..."

Yuuji closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and opened his eyes once more after steeling himself.

He walked through the dusty floor, accompanied by the occasional crunching sound of pieces of glass breaking under his feet, towards an elevator at the back of the floor.

The metal doors of the elevator, once shiny and firm, were dusty with several scratch marks, dents, and dried blood all over it.

He looked to the side, and saw the panel on the wall that had one button with an arrow pointing up, was in a similar state.

Yuuji pressed the button, and it lit up.

The elevator doors split open with a crunch and groan of metal, and inside was a person. A lifeless person.

There were several bullet wounds all over his body, but none of which hit him on his vitals. He seemed to have died from excessive blood loss that was caused by his wounds, judging by the huge puddle of the now dried blood on the entire floor of the elevator.

Perhaps due to being in an elevator all this time, his body hasn't decomposed as badly as one would expect from a person who died from such wounds and had been dead for years. At least enough for Yuuji to be able to see that he was a Japanese man, presumably in his middle or late twenties. A typical salaryman, dressed in a suit and pants, and a name tag clipped onto his breast pocket.

"Kitagawa Daichi…"

It must've been an ordinary day for him when he came to work before all hell broke loose.

And because he stayed and died in an elevator, the people, who were gathering the remains of those who had lost their lives here, must've not found him.

He was the only one in this building who had not been put to rest.

"...Let's give you a proper burial."

Yuuji lifted his hand forward, and the lifeless body began to levitate. He then brought it towards an empty area a few distance away from the building, dug up a proper grave for the man with his magic, and buried him there.

Then, he found a slab of cement, carved it into a tombstone, engraved the man's name, and placed it down as a memorial.

"May you find peace in the next life."

Yuuji lowered his head, clapped his hands twice, and prayed for the poor soul, wishing that he could finally move on from the dark, empty, cold elevator he died in.

"..."

He stared at the tombstone for a few moments, and then he returned to the elevator.

He waved his hand, and all the grime, dust, debris, dried blood, and everything else in between suddenly flew towards a point in mid air and formed a clump, leaving the metallic surface of the elevator that had now regained its luster.

He then threw the clump of grime away and entered the elevator.

Inside, he began pressing the buttons to floors 4, 2, 4, 9, and 9 in order.

April 24, 1999. The month and date of his birthday is the same, but the year is different. This must be his date of birth in this world.

Upon entering the passcode Tatsuya's "parents" set, the doors closed shut and the elevator rumbled a bit before he felt it bringing him underground… tens of meters underground.

*Ding*

The elevator door opened into a dark void.

It was pitch black with the only light emanating being the ones within the elevator he was standing in. But Yuuji's eyes widened in awe and his jaw slackened slightly at the sight before him.

With his enhanced senses as well as [Elemental Sight], he could clearly see the massive fortress of a base unlike anything he had ever seen.

It was caked in dust and debris, but its majesty was unmistaken. It was around 210 meters in length, almost half as tall, beautiful, and imposing.

"This is… amazing…"

Yuuji was currently facing its front, and he could see two front "legs" protruding from its main body. And with his [Elemental Sight] still active, he could see that there were two massive Radiant Wave Surging Hadron Blasters which were retractable and mounted inside of its front "legs", right above a knightmare launching system and the hangar.

On top of each of these two front "legs", he could also see two smaller Hadron Blasters that could be aimed from side to side and to the air.

At the back of the fortress, on each side, there were also small, retractable, Radiant Wave Surging Blasters that could be aimed 360 degrees on the vertical axis.

And aside from these Radiant Wave Surging Blasters, there were also plenty of automatic machine guns, slash harkens, and devices that could create Radiant Wave Shields to protect it in its entirety.

This was… beyond his expectations. Perhaps even beyond Tatsuya's as well considering he was only able to recall his "childhood memory" vaguely.

His "parents" seemed to have improved it even further and made… a monster.

If this was real and not simply one of the supporting items they received for their mission, then the Japanese might be able to turn the tides of war with this fortress alone…

He stepped out of the elevator and began looking around the massive military-esque compound that housed the monstrous "Amaterasu" for a few moments.

He could see a ton of machinery, complete and half made Knightmare frames called Burais, large knightmare frame weapons in development, and many more. But he couldn't find the Excalibur.

Yuuji turned towards Amatearsu once more and used his [Elemental Sight] to see into its interior.

There were even more defense systems and weapons within that would appear upfront once activated. But, he soon found the Knightmare frame he was looking for.

Standing tall inside the hangar of the fortress was Excalibur, a beautiful black and red knightmare frame with a slightly similar design as the Lancelot. But there were several clear differences, mainly on its chest, arms, and legs.

There were two Slash Harkens on either side of its hips and another pair on each of its arms.

The center of its chest was also slightly protruded into a diamond shape, and within it, there was a retractable Radiant Wave Surging Hadron Blaster.

On top of each arm was a forearm mounted Blaze Luminous shield, similar to Lancelot's. But unlike Lancelot's human-like hands, the hands of Excalibur were sharp and pointed, as if it was designed to be a weapon in itself in case it had lost its swords and other weapons.

On either side of its cockpit was a sword, a Maser Vibration Sword that could cut through the steel platings of Knightmare frames as if it was butter.

With his knowledge of the anime, Yuuji knew that the Maser Vibration Swords were Britannian technology, which fit with Excalibur's origin. It was originally created by his "father", a Britannian knightmare frame development scientist.

But the chest mounted Radiant Wave Surging Blaster was most likely an addition Yuuji's "parents" made upon discovering it with the help of Lakshata, the genius woman scientist who came up and developed the idea for the technology. They also seemed to change its Landspinner propulsion system to be similar to Guren's which is built as part of its legs instead of its alternative like Britannian's Landspinner propulsion system, as well as its color.

They seemed to have painted over Excalibur's original color, the white and gold of Britannia, and turned it black and crimson.

Yuuji stared at the beautiful war machine of destruction in awe. As a young man, even if he knew that this was a weapon meant to defeat his enemies, it was still an object of admiration. It was still… super cool.

"Ah, I was so caught up in admiration that I forgot to report back… They must be waiting…"

Yuuji quickly took out his phone and messaged Tatsuya, Satoru, and Lelouch in the group chat they've made for the mission.

Tsubakihara Yuuji: "Hey, I've found Amaterasu, Excalibur, a bunch of Burais type Knightmare frames, and machines that are still functioning well. It's in a very secure location. I think we can use this as our secret hideout."

Lelouch Lamperouge: "Understood. I'll consider it. How are the Amaterasu and Excalibur?"

Tsubakihara Yuuji: "...Honestly? Excalibur is head and shoulders above Lancelot and Guren. It has Lancelot's Blaze Luminous shield and Maser Vibration Sword, and also Guren's Radiant Wave Surging technology. It's a monster you'd get if you combine Lancelot and Guren's greatest features."

Suzuki Satoru: "It's that powerful…?"

Shiba Tatsuya: "That's beyond our expectation… What about Amaterasu?"

Tsubakihara Yuuji: "...It's even more ridiculous. Lelouch, do you remember Black Knight's Aerial carrier "Ikaruga" and Britannian's Airship "Avalon"?"

Lelouch Lamperouge: "...Yes?"

Tsubakihara Yuuji: "Then let me tell you what Amaterasu has as its armament. Two massive and four smaller Radiant Wave Surging Hadron Blasters that could annihilate anything in its path. Tens of anti-knightmare frames and anti-air turrets. Tens of Slash Harkens. And devices that could create Radiant Wave Shields to protect it in its entirety."

Tsubakihara Yuuji: "Lelouch, if we use this now, the entire world would question how we can get such a technologically advanced weapon. Britannia would increase their pressure on us, and we are not ready for it yet. We can't use this yet."

For a while, no messages appeared in the chatroom until Lelouch finally spoke up.

Lelouch Lamperouge: "I agree… This is beyond my expectations."

Lelouch Lamperouge: "For now, try if you can put it into your inventory. If you can't, then it's fine. Just return here with Excalibur."

Tsubakihara Yuuji: "Alright, I'll try it."

Yuuji navigated to his [Inventory] in his smartphone and walked up towards the epitome of weapon in this world.

He closed his eyes, put his hand on its dusty surface, and willed it to enter his inventory. And suddenly, he felt nothing against his hand.

When he opened his eyes, the entire fortress disappeared, leaving behind all the dust and debris it had on its surface and even within it.

He looked down to his phone and saw a mini "Amaterasu" Icon in one of his inventory slots. And beside it was a mini "Excalibur" icon as well as a mini "Burai" icon with "x10" on its bottom right corner."

"This is amazing…! This opens up so many possibilities!"

He quickly reported back to Lelouch and told him of his success.

Lelouch Lamperouge: "That's great. Bring it back with you along with all the machineries there. Even though it hasn't been found yet, we can't risk it falling to other hands."

Lelouch Lamperouge: "We can return it there once we're ready to move into that compound."

Tsubakihara Yuuji: "Alright. I'll return after finishing up here. See you."

Yuuji then went around the underground base, put every single piece of machinery into his [Inventory], and returned to his home the same way he came here.

--------------------------------X--------------------------------

"Oi, Ohgi! Are you listening to me?!"

"Yes yes, I am…"

"Honestly, how could you all still be this relaxed after hearing that?! This is a big deal!"

Shinichiro Tamaki being upset was an understatement.

The brown haired man with red headband was stomping on the ground as he yelled each and every word to his comrade and friends.

The news they got this morning about the four three new members who'll be joining the black knights and be heavily involved in their operations in Narita in the near future irked him to no end.

How could Zero just bring in three new bloods who they don't know about and don't know if they could trust into such an extremely important and dangerous operation?! Was he an idiot?!

"Like I said, he must have some sort of reason… Zero isn't the kind of man who'd jeopardize the Black Knights and himself."

Yoshitaka Minami assured, adjusting his glasses as he sat on a wooden box a few distance away from the shouting man.

"That's right… He must have a reason."

Kaname Ohgi, the former de-facto leader of their little rebellion group and now the second-in-command of the Black Knights, agreed with Minami's words. Or at least, that's how he assured himself.

In truth, Ohgi was similarly worried about the potential danger three new bloods would bring to their group.

Although their "Order" have grown, they're still, essentially, a rebel group. And having lived as a member of a rebel group for years, he knew how volatile and dangerous it was. Every member needed to trust each other and have the same goal. Else, they might find themselves in serious danger, or at worst, dead.

The members of the Black Knights have come to trust Zero, at least trust him enough to make him their leader for now, after seeing the many miracles he had performed. From rescuing the "honorary Britannian" from his execution, to rescuing the Britannian civilians from the radical Japanese Liberation Force group with very little expense.

It was honestly incredible and something they could never do without him. They've reached this far because of Zero.

But the decision of bringing in not one, but three new people to this rebel group was something that made even Ohgi nervous…

"Reason?! What kind of reason?! He's making one of them a knightmare pilot right from the get go! I haven't even gotten the chance to pilot a knightmare! And this guy gets it from the start?! That's ridiculous!"

"...Maybe that guy's just really good. And the other two will be staff too right? I think I heard him say one will be in charge of R&D and the other some kind of HR officer."

Minami grabbed his chin and thought back to Zero's words when he made the announcement. Honestly, he couldn't remember much about the other two because he was still shocked when Zero told them that one will be a knightmare pilot.

"How could some nobody be good with a knightmare?! It's not like he'll be another Karen or something, right?!"

Tamaki stomped his feet once more and pointed at the beautiful girl with short red-haired and a red headband around her head; a memento of her late brother. She was sitting on one of the wooden crates they had around, listening to their conversation.

And as she listened to the three guys' conversation, she couldn't help but wonder the reason why Zero brought in three new people into the Black Knights this close to the operation.

Are they that good that he needed them to join before the operation? She couldn't help but doubt it.

Every helping hand they could get would be helpful, for sure. But this close to the operation? Just a few days? They wouldn't even be able to get to know the new people before the start of the operation. How could they entrust their lives to them?

"Ohgi-san… Have you seen the new guys yet?"

Kallen turned towards Ohgi, who was standing to her left. .

"No… I've only heard of their names. But I think they're code names…"

"Code names…"

"Yeah. It's Mordred, Silver, and Ainz."

"What? Those are strange names… even as a nickname."

"They don't even tell us their real names! How can we trust them!!! They could be Britannian spies for all we know!!!"

Tamaki, who overheard their conversation, yelled once again in rage at Zero's decision. He knew it was a bad idea to have him as their leader!

"That's enough, Tamaki. There's no way he'd let britannian spies into our ranks. That's just ridiculous."

"But-"

"Hey, everyone! Zero's calling us!"

Just then, a female voice came calling out for them as a woman with indigo colored hair peeked out into the storage warehouse they've modified into a hangar for their knightmares frames.

"What? Why so suddenly?"

"The new guys are here!"