September 13th, 2025. A lonely street, SPC Glocken City. 15:30…
Walking through the shady-looking streets of the world known as Gun Gale Online, a very unlikely pair that caused both confusion and fear from everyone that saw them headed towards the Governor's Office, near the city's center.
Sighing again, the caped boy looked apologetically towards the blue-haired girl, awkwardly scratching his head.
"I'm truly sorry. It must not be nice to have people staring at you like this because of me…"
"Eh, leave them be, I learned not to care about what they think a while ago." simply shrugged Sinon, preferring to not mention that lately most other players just ran the fuck away the moment they saw her, as she sent a quick glance towards the girly-looking boy.
So far, he hadn't acted like anyone else she had known. Of course, seeing how she had literally had NO friends since she was very young because of 'The Incident' and that her father had died before she could properly remember him, she didn't really had much of a stretch to compare him with, except for the male population of GGO, which seemed to be formed of a 95% concentration of jerks that underestimated or looked down on the girls that played the game…and her only friend, Kyouji. And as much as she was grateful to the boy for introducing her to this world and for always seeming to be worried about her, she also accepted that he sometimes seemed a bit…TOO insistent, in many things.
Mainly things that had to do with what she did in her free time.
This Kirito, on the other hand, seemed to be a strange mix of polite depression and contradicting weirdness. His bad luck with his converted Avatar's looks aside, he had only questioned her about the game and hadn't tried to do anything stupid or annoying, as she had come to expect from the males in the game. Second, he didn't stop sighing every now and then, a clear sign that whatever he was referring to with the 'Having a bad week' statement was truly bothering him, but he was still here playing for some reason (Maybe to try and find something 'important', like she did?).
And finally, there was his absurd claim of wanting to register into the Bullet of Bullets. And not wanting to buy ANY equipment, declaring that 'I have everything I need with me'.
She just wished he meant that he had some kind of bulletproof vest or combat clothes on his inventory together with his weapon. After all, he did say he came from another game and he was used to fighting already, but he couldn't really be expecting to get into the BoB with a silly Superhero cosplay and barehanded, right?
Shaking her head out of those thoughts, Sinon just decided it would be better if she didn't think about it anymore. After all, she wasn't anyone to stop the boy from getting his virtual ass kicked if he wanted, and she was only helping him out because he had been polite enough. Once the Preliminaries started, he would be just another enemy she had to defeat on her way to become the Strongest…
The black-haired boy, meanwhile, was just feeling grateful for finally heading in the right direction. He reminded himself he should probably thank the girl again after they arrived at this Governor's Office. He would be utterly lost and without any information about the tournament he was supposed to enter if it wasn't for her.
Honestly, his personal problems aside, he SHOULD have prepared himself better for this. This was supposed to be something important. People had DIED, and others were in a coma, for crying out loud! Seriously, this could be called almost as big of a screw-up as when he had tried to do the 'Saitama Workout'
With a somewhat nostalgic smile, the boy remembered that he could proudly state he had followed the insane (For someone of his physical condition) training regimen for 3 months, 2 weeks and 4 days.
Then, the 5th day of that week, Sugu had found him lying on the house's entrance hall face-first after coming back from kendo practice and, after panicking and asking/shouting in worry what was wrong, called for an ambulance.
Thankfully, he didn't have anything worse than a severe extenuation resulting from forcing his teenage body to his limits for far too long. A couple of days resting had been enough to get him back to perfect health. And while he wouldn't be punching down buildings anytime soon, he HAD become a bit 'stronger', so that was good!
…not so much good as with the girls' reactions when he was forced to accept WHAT he had been doing when the doctor asked, though. They were chewing him out for being SO stupid for HOURS. He didn't know even SILICA could be so harsh.
Of course, Sugu had been the one who had been the most annoyed with him, in part because she had been the one who found him and in part because both of them had often joked in the past about him trying the One Punch-Man training in reality. Asuna was also noticeably more annoyed than the rest, but not the same as her ex-vigilante sister, giving that she wasn't so 'understanding' about what it meant to try and do Saitama's training.
Thinking about that just made the boy release another depressed sigh. Too bad his life couldn't seem more like an anime with THOSE problems as well, otherwise either something absurdly complex or silly would be ready to fix it all soon. But really, expecting that to happen was both childish and stupid, so he could only hope to be able to fix what remained of his relationship with his adoptive sister and his best friend soon and…
"…Kirito? Are you hearing me? We are here already." blinking at Sinon's words, the gamer found himself standing at the entrance of the (at least on the inside) more futuristic-looking building, the blue-haired girl standing not too far away from him, just in front of some sort of 'Registering Machines' that she had explained him about before. "…are you SURE you're in any condition to try and participate in THIS tournament? I know it's impolite to try and pry in affairs of the real world, but if whatever happened to you is so bad, then maybe you shouldn't be here. The BoB is a brutal battlefield, and no one will show you mercy even if they see you like that, you know? In fact, everyone will most likely take advantage of it…"
"Uhm, no, it's okay." replied the black-haired boy with a small smile, walking forward and starting his registration. "I have to do this. Don't worry; I know how to take care of myself…but thanks for the advice."
Sending him a surprised look, the sniper quickly shrugged before starting her own registration. She didn't notice how Kirito stopped for a moment, blinking at the part of the process that said you needed to fill out some real world-information if you wished to get some of the tournament's special prizes, before looking around with a thoughtful look. Half a minute later, both teens had finished and once again stared at each other.
"Well then, are you ready for this?" asked the girl with a challenging smile before pointing behind her, the gamer following her as they made their way into the waiting area for the competitors, even as she explained him a bit more of how the preliminaries were going to be.
Upon entering, Kirito was quickly aware of many stares coming from the dark and burly-looking Players, carrying all kinds of firearms, looking their way…before many froze and looked away, as if scared upon seeing his impromptu guide, which made him blink. Though he noticed a couple risked a look just to send disbelieving stares his way…
"Uh…seems like the people here are a bit hostile." idly commented the caped boy, despite the fact that he would have still remained unfazed even if the whole room pointed their weapons at him.
"Leave them be, most of them are losers or idiots. What kind of person lets his future opponents see what weapon they're going to use?" shaking her head as she stopped in front of a door, Sinon pointed towards one not too far. "Okay, here are the changing rooms. You can change into your battle equipment here, but I suggest waiting till the last moment before equipping your actual weapons, okay?"
"Uhm, yeah, I got it…" sweatdropped the boy while remembering the girl's explanation about how they would be teleported straight to their preliminary fights, not willing to tell her he DIDN'T have or need any equipment. "Well then…good luck?"
"I don't need luck. I make my own." answered her with a confident smile before entering the room. The gamer, meanwhile, took his opportunity to look around at the gathered players ignoring the mocking or disbelieving stares most were giving him as he tried to see if anyone around was likely to be 'Death Gun'.
"…knowing my luck so far, this guy is going to end up stumbling directly upon me or something." mentally sighed the boy while looking to the ceiling. "Wonder how much crazier can my life get before the end of the day…?"
"…oh, you're still there? Wait, why haven't you changed?!" turning around, Kirito blinked several times after seeing Sinon's 'battle clothes', the girl raising her visor from her eyes to stare at him in disbelief.
"Oh, no need, these…clothes are all I need. Also, I kind of see now why you didn't laugh openly about them…it would have made you a bit of a hypocrite."
Opening her mouth, the sniper seemed about to reply something before closing it and blinking.
"…okay, forget about that. Also, it seems we're in the same Block of battles, but on opposite sides, so we probably won't be seeing each other again…"
"Wait, doesn't that mean we would get to face each other in the finals?" confusedly muttered the black-haired boy.
"Yeaaah…it certainly means that, but…" looking at the caped boy again, Sinon decided to just shake her head. "Well, good luck in any case, Mr. 'Superhero'. You're going to need it if you want to get into the actual tournament; you NEED to arrive at the final round to do it, after all…"
"…wait. If you already qualify for the tournament just by arriving at the Preliminaries Final, what's the point of the last fight?" confusedly questioned Kirito, even as the blue-haired girl blinked again, truly surprised.
She was about to try and give an answer that didn't make it seem as if the people running that game were as retarded as she sometimes thought when her body vanished into a blur of polygons. The gamer blinked once before the same phenomenon happened to him.
The preliminaries for the Bullet of Bullets had officially begun.
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"…okay then, let's do it." muttered Kirito once he had appeared on the open area, some trees on the distance, grass all around and some old-looking ruins. "Now, how to go about this…?"
His face not betraying anything, the gamer quickly jumped to one side as his instincts calmly informed him about something, his cape flaring behind him as a rain of bullets coming from some automatic weapon flew over the space he had occupied a second ago. Once 'safely' hidden behind one of the many broken ruins, the caped boy, closed his eyes to quickly calculate more or less from which point the attack had come.
Well, now he only needed to think of WHAT to do. After all, if he went in there all Superman and let the bullets splash harmlessly off his chest, he would most likely be disqualified and accused of cheating or something even before the actual tournament started, and he couldn't have that. Punching in the guy's direction and having the resulting blast blow him to pieces was, sadly, also out of the question, for the same reasons. Which meant…
"Where the hell did that clown go?" whispered Kirito's current opponent, the unimportant GGO player being almost as confused as the spectators when the kid cosplaying as a superhero had jumped out of the way of his shots as if he had seen them coming, which made no sense because the Prediction Lines hadn't even appeared and…
"I'm right here." quickly commented a voice behind him, the guy barely having enough time to let his eyes widen in shock before someone grabbed his head and slammed his face against the ground.
Then again. And again. And again…
When the player's head finally exploded into polygons, followed by the rest of his body, Kirito stood up with satisfaction and dusted his hands. On the observation area, everyone gaped at the screen in disbelief, many wondering WHEN the boy had moved there.
Hopefully for the gamer, if he kept his 'act' up and his strength limited as he had just done, they would still be wondering about that for his next rounds…
He had just started to entertain those thoughts when he found himself back at the waiting area, having just been announced as the winner of his match and told to be on standby for the next via a message.
Kirito was just about to try and look for a screen that showed how Sinon was doing on her battle…before a sudden VOICE spoke from behind him.
"…is that you?"
Turning around, the caped boy blinked before looking up.
There, staring down at him, was a tall figure, a player…but there was something that was just WRONG about him. Be it his soul-chilling red eyes, his sinister skull-metal face or the life-sucking mantle of absolute darkness that covered him, the hood seeming to cast ethereal shadows meant to announce the end of all things…
"…pardon me?" asked the gamer in extreme confusion.
"…I asked if it's you…the real one. It is YOU, right…Kirito?" asked the tall and dark figure once again, though somewhat less calm. "Yes, it HAS to be you. No one else would wear such stupid…."
"Have we met?" finally asked the caped boy with honest curiosity, staring obliviously at the red-eyed apparition.
The tall and dark being of shadows and darkness did NOT facefault. He was too sinister and evil for such a stupid cliché. Instead, he just cursed and growled before raising one of his sinister and red-bandaged arms from inside his mantle and stopped his hand just an inch away from the still staring Kirito, who just tilted his head to the side.
The gamer took that moment to notice that, just under his wrist, over the bandages, there was a familiar-looking tattoo of a waving coffin with a massive smile…
"…forget it. It must be just some stupid coincidence. After all, there is no way HE would forget about ME…yeah, no way at all." muttered the mysterious player before turning around. "…still, I will just kill you too for wearing THAT stupid costume. Goodbye." and then, he just walked away, melting into the shadows of the room, his mysterious and sinister aura somehow much less effective than when he entered.
"…if that guy ISN'T Death Gun, then I'm a master of the art of getting girls." deadpanned the boy before staring at the ceiling with the same stare. "Okay life, thanks for that, really. Anything else obvious you want to throw at my face? No? Good, then I will stop talking alone and get to the much more important matter of figuring out…WHO the hell is that guy? And WHY do I feel as if I should know him?"
The tattoo, at least, was a dead giveaway that this Death Gun was an ex-member of Laughing Coffin, but that didn't really help. They were a lot of crazy weirdoes in the 'killing guild', and they had caught and imprisoned them all sans PoH, but something told the gamer that HADN'T been the sinisterly charming leader of the guild. Still, that wasn't of much help either. There were many members in the group and he couldn't remember a single one of them for the life of him, but SOMETHING just kept screaming at him that he SHOULD know the guy. If only he could remember what his damn name was…
"…well, I will be dammed, you're still here." commented Sinon while looking at the distracted black-haired boy with surprise, Hecate now hanging from her back and her photon sword from her waist (There was no point in hiding them now that everyone had seen her first match), but she quickly frowned at noticing something seemed 'wrong' with the boy. "Hey…are you okay? What are you mumbling about?"
"Oh hell!" suddenly shouted Kirito while turning towards the sniper with a panicked expression, making her squeak in surprise when he grabbed his shoulders. "I'm having trouble remembering the names of people I don't give a fuck about! I'm becoming too much like Saitama!" blinking, the surprised gamer froze and let silence take away a couple of seconds, even as he slowly let go of the girl (Who was staring at him as if he was mad from behind her visor), and chuckled weakly. "Aha…hah…sorry about that, uhm…yeah. Sorry, Sinon…I…"
Thankfully for him, a blur of teleport took the boy away to his next match, saving him the trouble of keep thinking about an excuse that didn't make him sound like a complete lunatic.
"…okay. That guy REALLY has problems…" muttered the blue-haired girl while staring at the point the gamer had occupied a moment ago.
"Sinon! Hey!" shouted a sudden voice, making the sniper turn around to see a familiar figure waving at her and running to her side.
"Spiegel…hi there. It's good to see you managed to get here in time…" greeted back Sinon at the form of Shinkawa Kyouji's avatar, the boy of silver hair stopping near her and looking around with a conflicted expression. "Uhm…is everything…?"
"Say…wh-who was that…girl holding you a moment ago?" asked the machinegun-user with a somewhat nervous tone.
"That was a boy. Seriously, no girl would ever wear something as silly as that costume." sighed the blue-haired girl, not noticing the sudden dark look crossing through her friend's eye for a moment. "As for who he was, well, just another participant that I met before. He seems lucky, but he's also really odd and doesn't seem to have his head really here, so I don't expect him to get much far…"
"SHIT! That guy did it again!" the sudden shout and general murmurs filling the room made both players blink and turn around to look at one of the many screens, in time to see how Kirito, who 'somehow' had once again slipped past his opponent's guard without being noticed, threw the shocked rifle-user over his head, forcing him to let go of his weapon before starting to slam his face against a wall.
"…how the HELL did he do that?!" demanded Spiegel with absolute shock. "That…he shouldn't have been strong enough to do THAT if he was fast enough to slip past him! You can't balance AGI and STR like that!"
"…well, what do you know?" whispered Sinon while a challenging smile appeared on her face. "This guy may just be more than I had pegged him for…"
Whatever the silver-haired boy had to say about that, Sinon couldn't hear it, because she was teleported to her next fight in that instant.
The moment she appeared on the battlefield, though, any trace of her previous smile vanished, replaced by a cold and calculating look even as she ran for the first cover she could find. Quickly, she entered the nearest building and ran as far as she could to the top, quickly unslinging Hecate from her back as she entered the roof, positioning and aiming the anti-materiel rifle towards the area's main street in one smooth motion, before calmly looking through the scope.
Anyone looking would have thought that her 'visor' would make that difficult and annoying. And if this was the real world, they would have been right, but…
"Activating." whispered the sniper as she was suddenly able to see the world's heat signatures.
…this wasn't the real world. So the modified headgear synched with her rifle's scope and granted her a modified night vision without any problems. A phantom of a smile tugged at the edge of the blue-haired girl's lips when she saw her target heading to a nearby vehicle before she quickly suppressed it.
Right now, she was one with her weapons. She wasn't Asada Shino, a girl in her last year of Middle School. She was Sinon, one of the most feared players of GGO. The 'Silent Death' and the 'Merciless Edge'.
Slowly, with methodical precision, she let her hand move to the strange, red and blue attachment that seemed to have 'replaced' the area around her weapon's original barrel. I was a bit bulkier than the original one, and it was clear that it didn't belong to the weapon, but she didn't care about aesthetics, only for its worth. And that 'Alternate Cartridge' had been worth the month she had to spend without playing after having bought it, as she was unable to get enough money after to pay her monthly fee.
She saw how her opponent started the engine of the military vehicle even as she moved the add-on to one side. A small 'pop-up' on the corner of the HUD-view of Hecate's telescopic sight informed her, unnecessarily, that she had just changed to explosive rounds.
When the car of her opponent rounded the corner and seemed ready to sped down the street to try and get past her, she calmly squeezed the trigger while aiming to the vehicle's front, a small explosion being followed by a bigger one when the vehicle exploded, taking her opponent with it.
Sighing, Sinon stood up while deactivating her visor.
"Not a challenge at all…let's see if we can change that before the end of the day…"
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The sun was starting to set when the blue-haired sniper was teleported to her final fight of the day. As always, she didn't waste even a second before turning and starting to run, taking in the area she was in (Some kind of abandoned highway filled with empty and useless vehicles) as she dove inside an old school bus and quickly hid beneath the windshield, only to quickly aim with Hecate through one of the bus' many holes an instant later.
She had been waiting for this moment for a while now. She KNEW who her opponent was right off the bat. That mysterious boy, who showed an unreal ability and skill, having defeated all his enemies BAREHANDED. The mysterious Kirito, dressed like a kid cosplaying superhero and acting like a crazy guy…clearly a clever strategy to fool his enemies and hid his impressive ability. She had to give the boy credit, even SHE had been fooled for a while, but 3 fights after seeing him fighting it had all started to make sense for her. And now, here she was, ready to fight and finish him.
Maybe he would be a bit more of a challenge than the others? Would he be the one that FINALLY helped her to see how strong she had gotten without falling in an absurdly easy way?
"…where the hell is he, anyway?" softly whispered the sniper with a small frown, trying to catch any sight of the caped boy with the girly avatar trough the depressing landscape, wondering if she should change to night vision…when an unexpected shout caught her attention.
"HEY! Uhm…Sinon? Yeah, I know it's you, I saw how you were totally dominating your fights earlier…" came Kirito's voice from somewhere behind the cars. "So, well, I wanted to ask…do you REALLY want to fight? Because, as I told you before, I only wanted to get into the tournament, and I think we both agreed about how pointless and silly this 'last battle' is, as both have already qualified for the real thing, but, from a gamer to another, I just wished to know if you still wanted…"
The black-haired boy was suddenly interrupted when Sinon shot to the fuel tank of the car he was hiding behind. A massive explosion ensued, quickly followed by the people in the waiting room cheering.
"…idiot, shouting away his position for no reason." disappointedly whispered the blue-haired girl before removing her gaze from her rifle's scope. "I guess I got my hopes up for no…"
"Okay then." suddenly came an extremely calm voice from the field's other side, making her freeze and everyone watching the match to gasp. "Have it your way."
Sinon's gaze shot back into her telescopic sight in time to see the gamer jumping out of the curtain of black smoke the explosion had created, jumping from car to car and over the pieces of debris with extreme agility and seemingly no effort. The sniper let herself had a second of utter shock before quickly aiming and shooting again, straight to his head.
The boy moved it slightly to the side before the Prediction Line had even finished forming, the high caliber anti-materiel bullet passing him by and only slightly ruffling his hair.
What baffled Sinon the most, though, was that the gamer hadn't even BLINKED when the bullet shot past him, as if it was just an unimportant afterthought. A hint of 'something' sparkling inside her, she shot again.
And again.
And again.
And every time, she missed the black-haired boy by an inch.
Disbelief and excitement were filling her to such a degree that she almost thought she was dreaming when the gamer crashed through the bus' windshield, glass raining all around her as she looked up, seeing his long hair and cape flapping behind him as he raised his fist, cocking it back like a God of War about to deliver his decisive blow, an incarnation of unmatched power with a face made of darkness and two burning white stars for eyes.
For a moment, instead of him, the girl saw the mighty form of a heroine about to swing her sword to wipe out evil from the world…
Sinon stared in utter wonder…but still with enough self-conscience to remember to whip out her right hand from her waist, the crackling sound of her photon sword coming to life filling her ears as she slashed to cut down her amazing enemy…
The plasma edge was stopped dead on its tracks, just a cm. before touching the boy's face. Blinking in confusion, the sniper looked at her hand in shock, seeing the gloved left one of the black-haired boy over it, having somehow moved in less than a millisecond to stop her…
And then Sinon was flying through the air, having been thrown like a ragdoll through the now destroyed windshield, and crashing face-first against one of the cars, only to roll down into the ground, her HP in the red.
Back on the destroyed bus, Kirito winced as he turned around. That was NO WAY of treating a girl, deadly battle or not.
"Shi-shit, sorry! You okay?!" cried out the gamer as he jumped off the bus, staring at the groaning girl as she stood. "It's just…I was surprised when you whipped out that freaking LIGHTSABER out of nowhere (Which is awesomely cool, by the way), s-so I reacted by instinct and…!"
"…you were holding back." muttered the girl with a bit of awe, confusing the boy as she looked at him and raised her visor, cold and deadly eyes seemingly trying to stare into his soul. "You could have ended many of your other battles faster if you had done something like THAT…why didn't you do it?"
For a moment, Kirito seemed to fall silent…and then he sent a sad smile towards the girl.
"Because I didn't need to. This power of mine…it's not to use it without reason. It's to protect those I care about." as if having been waiting for his words, a rush of virtual air made his cape flap, the setting sun behind him giving his form an impressively cool look.
And in that instant, Sinon stared in shock, the boy's form being replaced by that of a girl with reflective glasses, health mask, and a riding helmet, staring at her from the same position, though it was night and in a dark alley.
"It's not a problem. People like them remind me why I do this…"
"…this is my loss." finally spoke the blue-haired girl, making the gamer blink in surprise to her as she opened her menu and selected the 'Resigning Match' option. "But make no mistake. When we meet again in the BoB…I will beat you. Until then, you better watch your back…Kirito."
And without even giving him time to answer, the sniper accepted the resigning option. The black-haired boy suddenly found himself being teleported even as he was announced as the winner of the preliminaries.
Sinon, for her part, was thinking deeply, extremely focused. She barely gave herself enough time to get out of the building that was the Governor's Office before Logging Out.
Asada Shino took off her AmuSphere, staring silently at the ceiling before a shark-like smile appeared on her face.
FINALLY! The challenge she had been waiting for was here! Some people would have been confused, or even accused the boy of having somehow cheated, giving his unreal ability in the fight, but she knew better. No one that was so much like HER would ever do something like cheating. Even more, he clearly had only been there for a specific reason, something that must have been important to him. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been there, trying to get into the Bullet of Bullets while being clearly depressed about something that had happened to him in real life.
Maybe, if she beat him, she would finally be a step closer to Her…?
Slowly standing up, the girl grabbed her glasses and put them on. Then, she stared at the small drawer across her room. Without hesitation, she headed towards it and opened it in one go.
Inside, the reproduction of a laser pistol from GGO, prize she had obtained from the last BoB, lie innocently. Shino felt her heart accelerating when looking at it. Hesitantly, she reached with her hand and picked it up.
She felt herself go dizzy, a horrible dread starting to spread through her body and mind as everything around her seemed to distort, the only thing consuming her world being that small GUN on her ha…
It stopped. All the dread, all the panic, everything…went away. Blinking, the bespectacled girl looked to the side and realized that, at some point, her body had unconsciously moved and she was now tightly grasping her bokken. Something between a smile and a frown appeared on her face at that.
It was a progress that had overjoyed her, at first. So long as she carried the blade, the feeling of security it gave her, of assured Justice that summoned the memory of her Heroine, her fear and terror towards the firearms vanished from the real world as seamlessly as it did when she was in Gun Gale Online. Even so, she knew it wasn't enough.
She couldn't just carry the wooden sword forever (Maybe), and she couldn't carry it EVERYWHERE. Maybe now, that she didn't go anywhere but school and sometimes to a café in the zone, there wasn't any problem, but she couldn't just let it stop there. While it was progress, thanks to the inspiration she had gotten from the Bicycle Girl, it was just a step towards finally overcoming the phantoms of her past.
"Just you wait, Kirito…" muttered the bespectacled girl, fire burning in her gaze. "Next time we met, you will be in for the fight of your life."
Just getting out of the hospital and about to ride his motorcycle back home, Kirigaya Kazuto blinked and looked around.
For some reason, he felt as if someone was laughing at someone else because of him.
…he REALLY needed to go and talk sincerely (As he had never done with the school's counselor) with a psychologist at some point…
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September 14th, 2025. Kirigaya Household, Kitchen. 11:30…
The black-haired boy could still remember the days when he would sit at the table for breakfast and barely talk to his sister or (If they were there) their parents. He hadn't realized how lonely and sad that used to be until Sugu and he reconnected through One Punch-Man, and that's why he had cherished so much the lively meals filled with a conversation or just idly and smiley chatter since he got out of SAO.
That was why the current awkward silence as he and his adoptive sister silently ate their breakfast, trying to not stare at each other, made him feel so depressed, especially because, once again, it was his fault. Only difference was that now it was HER who didn't want to talk to him, and he could only blame himself for it.
He was so busy trying to think of something to try and start fixing what remained of their relationship (And to get out of his self-depression), that he almost jumped out of his chair when the girl suddenly talked.
"…Onii-chan?"
"Ye-yes, Sugu?! Wha-what's up?"
"…what are you doing in that game of guns you moved to?" bluntly asked the young kendoka, staring at him with a stare very different from the neutral one she had been giving him the last days.
It almost seemed concerned…
"U-uh? I-I already told you and the rest, that annoyance of Kikuoka asked me to do some investigation about the game in exchange for stopping bothering us, so I…"
"Then WHY did you need to enter the biggest PvP tournament in the game?" inquired Suguha while raising the tablet she had been hiding on her lap, showing it to the surprised gamer, as it showed the list of participants of the Bullet of Bullets in a site about important gaming events, his own avatar's name staring at him from the screen. "What kind of investigation requires you to do such a thing, when we all know you could win with your eyes closed if you wanted?"
"We-well…" sweating bullets under his sister's scowl, Kazuto cursed he had been so distracted lately that he hadn't even entertained the thought that his participation in the damn BoB would be announced somewhere his friends could see. "I…need to check out the game's different play styles, so there is no better place for it than a PvP tournament, do-don't you think?"
A couple of seconds of silence went by, both siblings staring silently at each other, one with an indecipherable expression and the other praying to the Gamer Gods that she believed it…when Suguha simply looked down, sadly, making his mind stop.
"Onii-chan…you aren't doing something dangerous, right? I…know things aren't…at their best between us right now, but…you wouldn't just go and do something stupid again without telling me, or anyone else, right?"
Biting his lips, Kazuto had to use his whole willpower to not let the guilt crush him, reminding himself that Kikuoka was right about trying to keep all of this a secret as long as they could…and finding that that really didn't help to make him feel any better.
Still, he forced himself to reach over the table and grab his adoptive sister's hands with his, surprising the girl as he gently held her hands.
"Hey, Sugu, it's okay…you remember who I am, right? How did you call me…? 'One Punch-Gamer'?" letting out a chuckle at the memory, the boy put on his best confident smile. "Nothing can stop or hurt me! All enemies fall upon my mighty fists!" standing up dramatically as he raised a closed fist to exemplify his words, Kazuto suddenly realized how silly he looked and scratched the back of his head while blushing. "Eheh…heh…so, yeah, there is nothing you need to worry about, okay?" waving awkwardly to the blinking kendoka, the boy turned around and headed out of the kitchen. "See you later tonight!"
Staring silently on the direction her adopted brother had gone, Suguha frowned a bit.
Certainly, the boy still sucked at keeping secrets under pressure as much as he had when he was a kid. Still, what he had said WAS true, as far as everyone knew and she had seen many times. Nothing could beat him as long as he was the 'virtual Saitama'. No one in that tournament would be even able to come close to him, even if everyone teamed-up and started shooting rocket launchers his way.
Even so…she couldn't help but had that nagging FEELING that something bad was going on…
…she was also blushing and looking down at her hands, remembering the feeling of Kazuto's around them while her heart kept beating like a drum.
Conflicting feelings or not, one thing was certain: She still loved him. And he also felt something for her, which should make her unbelievably happy…if it wasn't because he had openly accepted to feel the same way for someone else (Who just SO happened to also feel that way for him), then left clear that he thought he didn't deserve the affection of any of them.
Dearly wishing that life wasn't as complicated as it was right now, Suguha decided that she should try and talk to Asuna when everyone met up to watch that 'Bullet of Bullets' (Now that she thought about it, maybe she should have told Kazuto they were going to do that, right?). It hadn't been even a week, but it was clear that the current situation was hurting everyone, and that needed to stop…
With a sigh, the young kendoka lamented that, unlike anime, there was no specifically designed character around to help her and the others get out of this mess all happy and smiling.
In the virtual world, Strea and Yui sneezed, before looking at each other in utter confusion.
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Staring at his 'friend' as she talked way more than usual, while she sat on a swing from a local park, Shinkawa Kyouji found himself not as happy as he thought he would be in such a situation.
It may have had something to do with the fact that Shino wasn't talking endlessly about HIM, but about…someone else, though.
"…and then he threw me over his head as if I weighed nothing! While I was STILL holding Hecate! Can you believe he was strong enough to do that?!" excitedly continued the bespectacled girl while grabbing the chain-links of the swing with tight fists. "And then…!"
"Hey, Asada-san…are you okay?" blinking at the sudden interruption and the 'nervous' tone on her only friend's voice, Shino turned to the side to see how the boy was staring at her with a weirdly worried look. "I mean…you have been talking about that guy, non-stop. And praising him. For almost 20 minutes. That's…not like you."
"Uh…really?" muttered the bespectacled girl while looking upwards, frowning slightly as she thought deeply about it. "Yeah…I guess you are right. It's just that, since I got Hecate and started using it with my Photon Sword…I haven't had ANY kind of challenge at all. I was even feeling that I could stand on the same level of guys like Yamikaze or XeXeeD like an equal…and that annoyed me because I KNOW I'm still not as strong as I want to. But that Kirito guy…" looking to the side as she remembered the moment he could see a reflection of her Heroine on the boy's words, Shino missed how a suddenly dark look shot through Kyouji's face, and it was gone the instant she looked back at him. "When I fought him, I felt something I had forgotten…the exhilaration of a real fight. A true challenge." suddenly, a predatory smile appeared on her face. "And when I beat him and win the BoB…I'm sure I will find the answer I have been seeking. I will understand what it truly means to be 'Strong'."
"…then I hope you kick his ass really hard, Asada-san." smiled Kyouji with a cheerful tone, getting closer to the bespectacled girl as he looked at her. "Because…I don't like it when you act all bothered like that…it doesn't suit you…"
"Oh, uhm, thanks for your worries?" ventured Shino while sweatdropping, slightly nervous at the boy's proximity.
Smiling even wider at that, the boy got closer to the bespectacled girl and tried to hug her.
Startled by the sudden action, the fan of the Bicycle Girl squeaked…and hit the boy between the legs with her right knee.
With a different kind of squeak, one of unholy pain, Kyouji fell over, his hands shooting towards his crotch even as his bespectacled friend blinked and stood up, panicking and worried.
"O-oh shit, Shinkawa-kun, I'm sorry! It's just that, you know I'm not very good with physical contact of any kind, so I…!"
"It's okay…Asada-san…I can wait…besides, this isn't…the most painfully traumatic thing I have gone through in these last months…"
"…wait, what?" confusedly asked the girl while looking at him.
"…nothing. Now, co-could you please he-help me stand…? I need to…call my brother for…reasons…"
And as she did just that, Shino couldn't help but feel that there was something that wasn't quite right going on…
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It was half evening when Kirito arrived at the governor's office, most of Glocken City seeming already to be sunk in nighttime because of the tall and absurdly close buildings. Idly, he noticed several people were looking his way as he walked through the room…though he wasn't sure if that was a good or a bad thing.
"Well, here I am. About to enter a deadly battle royal in a world of guns, on some kind of island with several absurdly hard to navigate landscapes, with a serial killer that the government is freaked about enough to even consider the possibility that he can harm/kill people on reality from the virtual world on the loose…"
Silently, the gamer wondered WHEN had his life started to be so messed up that his teenage-romantic-problems seemed bigger of an issue for him than something like THAT.
Sighing, he decided to head inside the main area where people would be waiting as they got ready for the tournament…and found with surprise a familiar face staring silently out of one of the massive windows of the building.
Apparently noticing him too, Sinon turned around, her visor up on her forehead as her indigo eyes settled over his form.
For a moment, Kirito could have sworn he saw a shark-like smile appearing on the sniper's face, before the 'illusion' was gone and she was just walking towards him with her usual (That he knew) calm demeanor.
"Ah, there you are. I hope you are ready for this, 'Hero'. Unlike the preliminaries, the BoB itself is a true survival-test where only the strongest can get." pointing her powered-down lightsaber at the gamer, Sinon suddenly seemed extremely serious. "Show me that what happened yesterday wasn't a lucky fluke. I will be sure to match and defeat you this time, so don't you dare to lose to anyone else."
And with that said, the sniper turned around, walking away as her scarf flapped behind her.
Standing there in silence for several seconds, Kirito suddenly stared at the ceiling with a deadpanning face.
"What's with me always getting into some kind of problems with an absurdly strong girl when I try to 'be a Hero'?"
As expected, the virtual ceiling offered no answers.
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ISL Ragnarok. Also known as Ragnarok Island.
This desolated and hostile place, somewhere in the dead sea of Gun Gale Online's post-apocalyptic world, consists of various geographical elements: it had forests, hills, deserts, rural and city areas, rivers, prairies and bridges…all of it abandoned and destroyed, of course. With also the standard ruins of a once-grand city on its center, of course.
It was also the stage of the 3rd Bullet of Bullets. And, curiously, it was roughly circular and had some 10 Km. in diameter.
Some kind of superior force must have a very odd sense of humor.
It was through one of the many rocky hills of the area where Sinon ran; quickly stopping after arriving at the vantage point she had been looking for, which allowed her a perfect view over a bridge that was the only way of crossing that area's river for almost a Km. in each direction.
As she took position with her trusted sniper rifle, she couldn't help but feel a small bit of annoyance at still not having found her 'rival'. For all she knew, Kirito could have been teleported to the other side of the island as his starting point, as he was none of the few players near her when she looked the brief radar-locator every participant of the tournament had been given. Even so, she just hoped to get a chance of actually facing off against the caped boy again. He would certainly be more of a challenge than the two nameless idiots she had sniped so far.
Taking all those thoughts out of her mind, the blue-haired girl adjusted her sight with a small smirk as she saw the one known as Dyne, that idiot with the obsession to look like a cowboy, come running down the bridge, before turning around and aiming his rare assault rifle forward.
"C'mon, try and get me…" grinned the man while steadying himself, clearly sure that his current position and weapon would allow him to end anyone that tried to come his way through the bridge.
Sinon was musing if she should just blow his head up already when a gloved hand suddenly touched her shoulder from behind, making her freeze.
"Hey, Si…"
"KYA-!" the girl didn't manage to complete her surprised scream, or even to try and reach for her Photon Sword, because Kirito's hands shot both to her right one and her mouth, silencing her while looking at her with an apologetic and pleading look.
Incidentally, thanks to their position, his face was so close that the blue-haired girl could almost see her own face reflected on his eyes.
"Wait, please, don't shout! Hear me out…I'm going to let go of you, okay? I'm not going to try and defeat you right now, I just want to…no, scratch that, I NEED TO check out something about the player that's coming, Pale Rider, and I won't be able to do that if you blow up that guy with the cowboy hat before he shows up…okay?"
Unable to reach for her weapons, Sinon was forced to slowly nod while cursing herself endless times. How was it possible that the boy sneaked up on her so easily?! She had prided herself in her instinct to always detect anyone who tried to come too close, but the gamer had literally been like a ghost to her senses until he touching her shoulder!
"…what the hell are you talking about, anyway?" harshly whispered her once she was able to talk once again, mentally debating the pros and cons of just aiming and shooting him point-blank on the chest before Kirito could react. "We're in the middle of a tournament! Why would you want to check over other players instead of beating them?!"
"…because it's very important that I see if this Pale Rider is who I think he is or not." answered the black-haired boy while turning his sight away from Sinon and towards the bridge, surprising her with both his tone and face, she also turning to look back at the confident Dyne.
Was whatever the mysterious boy wanted to see the 'true reason' for which had entered the Bullet of Bullets out of the blue despite seeming clearly bothered for something important?
She was brought out of her thoughts when a figure that could only be Pale Rider stepped forward. It was a tall and lanky male, dressed in white-gray camouflage clothes and wearing a futuristic-looking helmet. He was also carrying a shotgun as he advanced towards Dyne without fear, as if he was the main character of some movie.
At her side, Sinon could hear Kirito sigh and curse at the same time.
"Okay, so it's not him. Dammit, will I need to run through the entire island to find him?"
"What?" questioned the blue-haired sniper while looking back at the gamer, as if thinking he was spouting nonsense…
When an unnatural WRONGNESS filled the air.
Both teens froze, their gazes shooting once again towards the bridge. They had been missing some of the impressive and unreal movements Pale Rider had been doing to evade Dyne's bullets (Though Kirito knew that Silica could do better with her own 'ninja moves'), so they were a bit surprised to see the shotgun-user crossing over the steel-beams of the structure…
But theirs, and the two fighters', attention was totally drawn when, from nowhere, a small cloud of Darkness materialized in the middle of the bridge.
The black shadows solidified, taking a humanoid hooded shape in an instant, crimson-blood eyes somehow STARING at Dyne and Pale Rider at the same time, despite not having even glanced in their direction, still looking straight down at the flowing river.
Unnaturally, the Dark One turned his head completely to the side and upwards, staring at the frozen shotgun-user.
"Pale Rider. Your sins have been judged. DEATH is your punishment." announced him with a dark and eerie voice…
And then Dyne screamed and unleashed the full might of his assault rifle against him.
Death Gun MOVED.
As if he was an unnatural entity just mimicking a human shape, the hooded 'player' bent to the side, turning around and jumping over the rain of bullets before materializing a black gun on his hand as he brought it out of his dark mantle, shooting only once.
The bullet hit the cowboy straight on the head, making him fall backward with shock, letting go of his weapon…and unholy, spider-web-shaped Darkness started to spread through his face, even as he started to shake and make pained grunts.
Still staring at him, Death Gun seemed totally unaware of how pale Rider jumped, did a backflip on mid-air and headed straight for him, his shotgun in front of him like a lance of divine punishment as he fell down the hooded man's head…
And with a sickly sound, SOMETHING shot from Death Gun's dark mantle, long and needle-like, impaling him from side to side when there were still two meters of free-fall between them, making the Acrobatics-master let go of his shotgun from the sudden pull, the weapon falling down and vanishing INSIDE the hooded 'player'.
Dumbfounded behind his helmet, Pale Rider stared down at the tentacle-like limb that was impaling his body, the tip seeming very much like an unnatural needle…or an estoc.
His mind was still trying to process what the hell was happening when Death Gun's head turned around180º, his crimson eyes STARING into his very soul as his arm bent the wrong way just to aim straight to his face.
Another gunshot echoed and the crystal of the shotgun-user's helmet shattered, his body falling downwards like a broken ragdoll as the needle-limb of Darkness returned to the shadow-like mantle of the hooded 'player'.
The darkness was barely spreading through his head and his convulsions starting when he suddenly went limp and his body 'vanished', a signal of 'Disconnection' appearing where he had been.
Dyne's body, who was still convulsing and, for some reason, trying to claw at his eyes, exploded into polygons and showed a similar message an instant later.
His WRONG and unnatural body returning to a more 'normal human'-like look, Death Gun started to talk again, seemingly to no one.
"I'm the Judge of the Unworthy. I'm the Fear of the Weak Souls. I'm Death Gun." his face turning to the side, the unholy crimson gaze suddenly fixed on what seemed like a holographic disc floating in the air a bit under him, apparently having been observing the whole scene. "And as an old friend of mine would say…It's Showtime."
Sinon remembered she was able to breathe and move the moment the English words were spoken and she saw the THING pretending to be a player raising his gun towards the holo-camera.
Then, she felt a rush of movement at her side and her world was shaken for the second time in the last minute when Kirito JUMPED through the air like a living meteor, clearing more than 20 meters without effort and crashing at the end of the bridge with a mighty crash, the virtual ground cracking around him.
"Wha…?" muttered the frozen sniper while trying to make sense of what was happening.
Death Gun, for his part, had stopped his motion to destroy the holographic camera in favor to turn and STARE at the caped boy, a hint of something resembling 'surprise' flashing for a moment in his inhuman eyes.
It was gone as fast it came, amusement and dark glee replacing it as he looked at the gamer's enraged face as he stood up.
"Heh…I KNEW it was you, Ki…"
Kirito didn't even gave him the chance to speak, crossing the distance separating them in less than a second and PUNCHING through the hooded player's body, his mantle seeming to rip from the pressure as he was sent flying back through the air several meters, heading straight towards the metal beams at the side of the bridge…
And he STOPPED, darkness shooting from him as his mantle 'regenerated' and it anchored him back to the ground, the shock on the black-haired boy's face only growing as the 'hole' he had made with his fist 'closed', tendrils of black mass filling it without effort.
There was an eternal pause as Death Gun's head, which had bent backward from the punch, slowly righted itself, his crimson gaze fixing over the frozen Kirito.
He started to LAUGH.
Then, he threw himself off the bridge, tendrils of darkness shooting out of his body and towards the gamer as he started to fell to the water…before his whole body 'disappeared'.
Too late, the shocked boy realized he had somehow turned invisible when he felt countless and needle-tipped limbs he couldn't see ensnare his body, dragging him into the water as the massive splash in the river indicated Death Gun had just fallen into it.
He managed to hear Sinon screaming his name before he sank face-first into the water, still too shocked at the impossibility to react.
His enemy made himself visible again them, both his hands out of his mantle as he aimed his way with his black gun and what Kirito recognized as an all-black shotgun…identical to Pale Rider's shotgun.
"Goodbye, Hero."
Both weapons fired.
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Sitting on the rented home that the United Heroes Association had in Yggdrasil City, Asuna looked silently at Fafnir's Fang and Elucidator as they waited for the rest to arrive, to sit and watch the 'Bullet of Bullets' together.
She could vaguely feel Argo and the other's worried eyes over her, and a part of the girl wished she could still attribute such a thing to their confusion as to how her old blades had remained when everything else from everyone's inventories had been 'wiped out', due to being incompatible with ALO, the moment they transferred their accounts. Back then, she had managed to brush it off by the 'usual weirdness that happens around Kirito' when they had revealed the events of what happened inside the World Tree the day they faced off against Oberon.
The only thing she hadn't told anyone about, not even Kirito, was her encounter with that…THING. The 'Entity'. The real reason she had, somehow, gotten back her swords when she needed then and…'transformed' in that way that, as she had later learned, was a clear parallel to the character called 'Genos'.
It wasn't because she didn't trust her friends, but because she wanted to forget about IT, even more after having seen how her blades were still there when she got her new Undine avatar.
Even the memory of that…creature made her shiver in a way that Sugou never had been able to.
…thinking back on the bastard, the Undine felt a phantom of a smile tug on her lips at remembering when they were told that he would probably spend the rest of his life (Whatever remained when he got out of prison) in a wheelchair, the damage to his nerves that her Sensei had unknowingly inflicted having been too great after the drugs he had used on himself wore off, having only worsened things for him in the end. Ironic and pathetic, just the way she expected him to end.
Wincing softly at the memory of when she kissed the black-haired boy, before knowing about the whole 'thing' with his adoptive sister/cousin, Asuna finally decided to sheathe her blades and put them away on her inventory. She shouldn't have slapped him. Yeah, it had shocked her, even hurt her a bit, when he had accepted to have feelings not only for her but for Suguha too. But he hadn't lied to her, nor done anything remotely similar to 'cheating' on her. After all, despite her and his 'little sister' having openly stated their feelings for him, they were still 'just friends'. Hell, he had even been ready and willing to let her punish him for having essentially done NOTHING but tell the truth, because he felt he didn't deserve that they were fighting over him…or had kissed him!
Slowly nodding to herself, Asuna decided that it had to end. Yeah, maybe she would have to resign herself to only ever be friends with the boy she loved (Despite ironically knowing he also felt something for her), but, if it was the best for everyone, she could deal with it. The moment she saw Suguha-chan, Leafa in there, she would talk to her, and when they sorted things out they would also speak with her Sensei to get him out of his own depression.
The other girls, for their part, exchanged a confused look at seeing the Undine's demeanor suddenly changed for no apparent reason. Truth to be told, they had been really worried and conflicted by what had been happening with Asuna, Kirito and Suguha the last days, after Argo told them what she 'knew', some hours past the guild leader's 'revelation' about going to another game.
A selfish person would have thought this was the perfect opportunity for any of them to try to get a chance to push forward their own feelings for the boy, now that the two 'main rivals' were 'out of the way', but they would have NEVER even entertained the idea. Yes, they all loved Kirito, each one in their own and no less valid way, but they also were almost like family to each other, and to Asuna too. They had gone through things that almost no person alive could even dream about, together facing death every day. They were sisters in all but blood. And even if they had such a deep connection with Leafa/Suguha, they still had become very good friends of the upbeat cousin/adoptive sister of their shared crush.
To try and take advantage of their current suffering would have made them feel like scum.
Of course, that didn't mean that they knew quite well how to actually HELP them. They had tried it all in their own ways, from Silica offering cheerful talks about the difficulties of the Ninja Way to Philia challenging them to duels. Sachi had tried to give them moral support and Lisbeth even designed new armor just to see if she could make them give out a reaction from the gift.
As Argo had suspected, none of it had gotten the two girls out of their funk. In fact, the only thing that truly confused the Caith Sith was why SHE hadn't apparently tried anything to help…
"We're here!" turning around at the voice, the group saw Leafa's (To their surprise) smiling form entering the room. It was not a forced thing, though clearly it wasn't on the same level of the usual bright smiles the Sylph used to give, but it was still a massive improvement from her emotionless mask of the last days. "Sorry we're late; we got into some trouble getting some of the snacks…"
"You say troubles, I say 'There is no way that those guys were THAT stupid.'" complained Sasamaru while the boys from the guild, sans their absent leader, entered, carrying in their hands diverse Alfheim-native sweets, salad cookies and other similar things one usually ate while watching a movie or something similar. "Seriously, WHO starts a fight over a piece of cake?"
"Those Pookas, apparently." added Keita while letting the snacks on the table and shaking his head. "But seriously, let's forget about that and prepare to…uh? Where are Strea and Yui-chan? Also, weren't you going to invite Klein and his mates over here too?"
"Yeah, but for some reason, they declined the moment we told them if they wanted to come to see Kirito-san participating in this tournament with us." informed Silica while frowning slightly. "Klein-san said something about having to run to make some bets or something…"
"Isn't betting in these events kind of illegal?" asked a familiar young voice, everyone turning around in time to see the virtual sisters entering the room, Yui sitting on her little sister's shoulder as always. "Oh, sorry for the delay, by the way, we were…uhm…busy."
"Yep, we totally were!" cheerfully confirmed Strea while taking Gram off her back and giving it a last look before putting away the Demonic Sword in her Inventory. "So, did we miss Kirito kicking everyone's ass?!"
"Uhm, no, this thing just began, in fact…" muttered Sachi while staring at the Gnome, seemingly wanting to say something but unable to gather to courage to do so. "Say, Strea-san, uhm…"
"Yes, Sachi?"
"You see…I…well…"
"She wants to know WHY you still have that sword when Kirito stated repeatedly it was just 'being kept safe' until you could return it to its true owner." bluntly stated Philia with a calm look, the Salamander at her side suddenly squeaking and sending her a panicked look. "What? It's not my fault you are so badass when fighting but are still so meek when it comes to asking awkward questions to others!"
"Bu-but you could at least be more…!"
"Oh, don't worry, that's just because we tried and we couldn't!" dismissed it the red-eyed girl with a bright smile, making most of the people in the room blink. "Kirito tried to find that Eugene guy for months after ALO was opened again, with no luck! Not even Alicia-chan or Sakuya-chan were able to tell him where he was. And that time he tried to go to the Salamanders' Capital to ask directly for him, every Salamander screamed and Logged Out as fast as they could the moment they saw him!"
"…somehow, that doesn't really surprise me." muttered Liz with a faint smile after several seconds of dumbfounded silence.
After that, the group took seats either by the couch near the massive holo-screen showing the BoB's footage or the seats a bit further back, at the side of what looked suspiciously like a barman's bar.
Incidentally, everyone was keenly aware that Asuna and Leafa had deliberately sat on a couple of these last seats, at each other's side but away from everyone else, though they wisely decided not to comment on it and just watch how the players tried to slaughter each other with their firearms on-screen, wondering when they would see their intrepid leader punching something.
"…say, Leafa-chan?"
"…yes, Asuna-san?"
"I…I think we should…talk." muttered the Undine while trying to keep their conversation out of everyone else's ears. "About…you know. Sensei. Your brother."
"Yes…to tell you the truth, I wanted to talk to you about that too." replied the blonde girl while looking away from the screen and staring at Asuna with a very serious face.
The older girl allowed herself a momentary shock at that. Sometimes, she had a hard time remembering she was talking with a girl 2 years younger than her (And not only in that way). Suguha, when needed, could be so serious and mature that she seemed her same age or older.
Then again, maybe it had something to do with being a national-level kendoka and also the time her adopted brother had spent trapped in SAO…
"I see…so, I think I will be clear and direct with this…" continued Asuna while ignoring a random explosion echoing from the screen, Ducker vaguely commenting something about how that must have hurt. "…you really love him, right?"
"Yes, I do. With all my heart." whispered Leafa while a blush appeared on her cheeks, but never losing her serious look, even when the sounds of machinegun fire filled the background. "…and you too, right?"
"Yeah…he's the one who showed me how small my view of life was. How to be someone I never dreamed about…a better me. I owe him more than my life, in a way…" looking a moment to the side at the memories, the Undine also sported a small blush as she muttered those words, even as Pina squeaked from Silica's head when someone suddenly had their head's blown up on the screen, probably from a sniper. "…and I'm sure I love him more than anything."
"Neither of us wants to see him sad, uh?" smiling sadly, the blonde Sylph chuckled bitterly before staring straight at the other girl once again. "Say…what do you say if we stop this? I…promised myself I wouldn't give up on Onii-chan, but…I don't want to see him sad like this, to see how everyone else also suffers for it…"
"Me…me neither." accepted Asuna with a defeated sigh, staring back at the other girl before raising a hand towards her. "So…we talk to him, tell him he's forgiven, then stay just as…friends?"
Leafa didn't need any magic to tell how much effort it took for the Undine to say those last words. Even so, the Sylph did her best to put on a similar smile.
"Yes, I think that would be for the…"
"Or, you could always go with Option 3!" cheerfully whispered a voice from behind Asuna, making both girls freeze and slowly turn their heads to see Strea happily looking at them, Yui sitting on her head and staring at the television, but clearly fully aware of the ongoing conversation. "The one where everyone is happy!"
"S-Strea-san?!" almost shouted Asuna before remembering they were supposed to not raise their voice. "Si-since when have you been eavesdropping?!"
"And…what do you mean with option three…?" questioned the blonde Sylph with a mix of dread and…something else.
"Well, isn't it obvious?" asked the AI while tilting her head to the side, as if she thought both girls were being silly. "Both of you love Kirito. And Kirito loves both of you, right?" taking the girls' sudden blush and exchange of uneasy stares as an answer, Strea's grin just widened. "Then I don't see what the problem is!"
"You…don't see…?" started muttering the Undine before the Gnome cut her off.
"Yep! You can just be both with Kirito, and like that he and you will be happy!"
Despite how clear and simple they had been, Strea's words may have very well have been spoken in an unknown an ancient language that men were never meant to know, given the sudden 'crash' that both the girls' minds seemed to suffer after hearing them.
They spent several seconds of frozen silence, implications and…'images' shooting through their minds that made Strea extremely curious, wondering if they were testing the limits about how many times could the color of your face change from different edges of the spectrum inside the virtual world.
Finally, Asuna seemed to recover first before looking at the AI with a slightly twitching eye and a very awkward smile.
"Strea-san…I think you're mistaken…again. You see, that…kind of things can't just really happen in the real world. I mean, I know you may have a hard time understanding it because…"
"…because I am not human?" finished the Gnome with a suddenly serious face, making the Undine freeze on her tracks and look down ashamed, surprised when she heard a soft chuckle coming from her friend. "It's okay, Asuna. I know I'm not. Yui-nee isn't either…but none of you have ever judged or looked down on us because of that, right?"
"No, they haven't." finally spoke the younger-looking of the ex-MHCPs, still staring at the screen, but with a soft smile on her face. "Papa has been kind to us since the beginning and Philia-san, despite thinking we were crazy at the start, never changed her attitude even after fully accepting what we were. Everyone else too, they were surprised and incredulous at first, but they still welcomed us…like another member of the family. Like just two more persons." crossing her hands over her chest, the pixie seemed suddenly lost in thought. "We know we're not human, perhaps even more than any of you is willing to think about…but we're still happy to be with everyone here."
"There you have it, Asuna. Is as Yui-chan says. I'm fully aware of what I am and what I am saying, and I also know that, by 'normal human standards', it may sound, uhm, how is the word…strange? Scandalous? Weird?" shrugging with a laugh, Strea seemed to momentarily forget they were supposed to be talking 'in secret'. "What isn't weird in your lives? You have two super-advanced AI's as friends, most of you have defied the very laws of the virtual world at least once, Leafa-chan's sword has some sort of weird sentience …" the Sylph seemed to squeak in surprise at that, even if Asuna just seemed more confused. "…and we're in love with a guy who can split the skies and reality with his fists if he wants, but still acts as a humble and somewhat idiot boy when he's with us. Why would this have to be different? Why can't we all be happy and forget about the worries of the world?"
"Be…because…ahm…I…" panicking at suddenly finding herself at a loss of words (For Asuna was scared that meant a part of her was thinking the AI girl was RIGHT), the Dual Wielder turned towards the silent Sylph at her side, searching for her. "Suguha-chan, yo-you tell her why this is so crazy!"
"…it is?"
"…what?" flatly muttered Asuna, feeling as if someone had suddenly cast a 'Stop' spell over her.
"It's just that…well, all that she said…from what Onii-chan told me, it is true, right? And…don't take this the wrong way, Asuna-san, but, back then during the ALO incident, there were moments when I…hated you. A lot." fiddling her fingers with a blushing face, Leafa seemed to force herself to continue talking. "With how much Kazuto talked about you…with all the times that he went to the hospital to 'see all his friends', but always seemed worried about you first…I was sure he loved you, at least in some way, even if he didn't realize. And I…I felt that I didn't stand a chance. Yeah, we're technically cousins, but we have been as 'siblings' for most of our lives. Despite promising myself I wouldn't give up on my feelings without trying, a small part of me was sure that…he wouldn't see me as a girl, ever. So when I managed to…tell him the truth and I saw that not only he didn't hate me, but that…he may also feel 'something' for me…I felt like the happiest girl in the world. That's why I tried so hard to make him 'see me' more than you these last months, but…I guess I knew deep enough that he wouldn't just forget about you." sighing deeply, the Sylph remembered that evening some days ago, when she first felt extremely miserable at hearing the boy saying that…and then utterly shocked and emotionally confused after hearing him finish his 'revelation'. "What I didn't expect was that he wouldn't forget about ME on the same level…so, well, that's why…i-if we can stop this situation a-and try to get, uhm, a bit of happiness, even if we know it's probably not going to last…why don't we try it?" Leafa seemed to let a second of silence sink into the depths of the world as she said them. "I mean…we're still teenagers, right? Sho-shouldn't we try to, uhm…enjoy life while we can?"
"YES! That's the spirit, Leafa-chan!" cheered Strea before fixing her gaze on the gaping Asuna, like a hungry animal searching for wounded prey. "Now then, Asunaaaa…what do you say?!"
To say the AI was ecstatic would have been putting it lightly. This was going WAY better than she had expected! Originally, she had just meant to make sure that, after they fixed their current 'problem', none of the two girls forgot or tried to suppress their feelings for Kirito, hence her 'teasing', but Asuna's sudden words had let her speak aloud what she truly thought without fear. Now, Suguha-chan was at least willing to try it! It was a great start!
…yeah, perhaps none of them knew she was being quite literal when she said she wanted to see EVERYONE happy, but she had enough contingency plans to deal with that when the time came. Right now, Suguha and Asuna were both the biggest obstacles and the biggest 'hope' for her and her sister's plan to work, and she had already 'half-succeeded'. Convincing Kirito himself would obviously be difficult too, but seeing how the boy was unable to deny the girls on his life when they all ganged up on him (And he had no way of 'running'), THIS was the only real challenge!
Now, if only the Undine could stop looking so indecisive…!
"I…well…uhm…!"
Whatever Asuna's answer was going to be, it was interrupted when she froze, eyes widening. Strea and Leafa suffered the same fate, all the awkward/excited/hopeful mood around them being crushed by the sudden feeling of WRONGNESS.
Their heads snapped towards the screen at the same time Yui gasped and everyone else in the room cringed in shock at seeing the scene, the mysteriously hooded avatar bending unnaturally to evade the bullets coming to him after having finished saying something they hadn't quite caught.
The loud gunshot and Dyne's falling body starting to be swallowed by darkness shook everyone to the core…but it was the sudden 'impalement' of Pale Rider that made them stand up, their gazes fixed on the unnatural phenomenon and the terrifying scene.
"What in the world…?!" shouted Keita while they saw how the shotgun-user was 'defeated'.
And then, he 'vanished', the Disconnection message sending an ominous feeling into everyone's souls.
Leafa became aware that Strea and Yui were shaking for some reason, even as their eyes were unable to leave the strange 'player' as his body returned to a more 'normal' state.
He turned around, staring straight into the camera that had let them see the 'battle'.
A spark of recognition shot through the original members' of the United Heroes Association's minds, but it was still clouded by the unnatural wrongness they were feeling as the 'player' started speaking.
["I'm the Judge of the Unworthy. I'm the Fear of the Weak Souls. I'm Death Gun."]
Something else was going through Asuna's mind, though. Something more…sinister. It was…
Heterochromatic eyes staring right into her soul, a feeling of wrongness filling her, but also of strength, unparalleled strength. Her body was suddenly made of metal, unfeeling but stronger, unstoppable, and rage and hate unlike any other burned through her virtual veins (Circuits) as she wanted nothing more but to destroy the bastard in front of her…
Releasing a quiet gasp, the startled Dual Wielder realized that not even as second had passed and that, thankfully, no one seemed to have noticed her 'episode'…
Except for Leafa, who was staring at her with wide eyes.
["And as an old friend of mine would say…It's Showtime."]
"No way…no fucking way." muttered Argo as she STARED at the screen, her fists clenching and unclenching.
"That…that thing…" gulping down, Sachi seemed to unconsciously grasp for her currently unequipped spear. "Is…?"
"Red-Eyed Xaxa…" whispered Asuna while everyone flinched at the sight of the black gun being aimed at the screen, as if Death Gun was pointing it to every single person watching the scene. "What…what in the world happened to him…?"
Anything the gathered friends could have thought about that, however, was interrupted when the scene shook and the hooded 'thing' turned around, the camera following cue in time to see how a black and white figure crashed down with mighty strength…and the mood once again suddenly changed in the rented house as everyone blinked.
"…is that Kirito?" voiced Ducker what everyone was thinking, even as the girlie-looking avatar dressed in the unmistakable jumpsuit and cape stood up.
If it wasn't for how the serious and enraged face their leader, friend and (for the girls) shared crush was sporting, they would have almost felt inclined to make a comment about his appearance.
Death Gun then said something they didn't quite manage to catch, because the sonic boom made by Kirito's punch roaring forward drowned it when he slammed it against the human abomination's chest, sending him backward like a ragdoll…
But the relief in everyone's faces was short-lived when they saw how the figure 'unfolded', as if made of living solid darkness, tendrils of it stopping his body from being flung away even as the damage done by the unbeatable punch 'healed'…no, more like 'closed' itself, for the phenomenon was too wrong to be linked with anything healing-related.
Death Gun's laugh seemed to pierce into the group's very souls, and every lesser person that was watching the scene from another place suddenly felt the terrifying urge to run away.
Then, the thing pretending to be human jumped backward, shot his estoc-tipped tendrils towards Kirito…and vanished.
The realization about the invisibility of the madman became obvious when they saw their friend being dragged through the air, still seeming as shocked as them, and fall down towards the river.
[KIRITO!]
THAT managed to snap almost everyone out of their shock, though. Not only because it was the voice of someone shouting what they all would have in that situation…but because it was a FEMALE voice.
The last thing they saw and heard before the camera was apparently destroyed was the loud sound of a weapon being fired and how everything in the screen suddenly exploded.
Static and a sign of 'Technical Difficulties' appeared on the screen for a couple of seconds before the view of other cameras was shown, different areas and places of Ragnarok Island and the ongoing Bullet of Bullets continuing as if nothing had happened.
Finally recovering his voice, Keita managed to speak.
"…well, at least now we know WHY he suddenly went to that other game, uh?"
The staff-user realized he should have probably kept his mouth shut when he felt the oppressive feeling settling over the room.
And somewhere, staring at several screens that showed all the live-footage of the BoB, a humanoid figure stared in silence with amber-emerald eyes.
It released a lone, quiet chuckle before continuing its watch.
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NEXT EPISODE PREVIEW!
"…oh, uhm…hi? I'm Shinkawa Kyouji, Spiegel in GGO, and I'm here to give you the next chapter's preview this time…Next time on 'One Punch-Gamer': 'True Strength!' A Hero and Warrior. A Demon. All three have a meaning and an idea for 'strength'. Which one's is he real one, though? And who will be standing still when their deadly clash ends?...man, what a shocking development, though. WHO would have thought something like THIS what's going to happen in the middle of the BoB, uh?...why are you all staring at me for? I have nothing to hi-!"
END OF THE PREVIEW!