*Groooowwwl*
With a ravenous growl, Tanjo clenched his stomach. The boy sighed. He knew the chocolate bar he ate back on the mountain top would only last him for so long—even back then it didn't sate him all that much.
"Here," Asami abruptly shoved a new wrapped snack toward Tanjo. "I snagged some more at my house. Probably should've lended you some before."
Heaving an exasperated exhale, Tanjo wrapped his fingers around the snack. "Thank you, and yes, it would've been helpful."
"Hey, you didn't inform me of your poor maneuverability before leaving. It practically took up most of our time." Asami shot back, retracting her arm back into her gray cloak.
Tanjo shook his head. "Yeah, yeah. Speaking of that, we should probably start moving faster—it'd be a lot better if we got across Adonai in a day or two."
Asami arched a brow at the teenage boy's words, smirking. Warriors were indeed fast enough to travel across vast nations on foot in a few days, if unrestrained, in a few hours, but Tanjo's confidence in thinking he could do the same was surprising, but beneficial; at least he wasn't put off by the distance.
"Oookay, then—only if you can keep up!" Asami chuckled, picking up the pace.
Lunging from the tree branches, Tanjo followed behind her. At the speed they were currently traveling, they were moving through more than one hundred tree branches every few seconds. Fast for the inexperienced, slow for the seasoned warrior
Tanjo was acutely aware of his inability to experience exhaustion, something he took advantage of—but he had to be mindful of overexerting himself; the searing pain of using too much magic is still a potential risk and could be fatal if pushed too hard. Tanjo had heard of extreme cases where warriors who push themselves too hard during battle have melted their insides completely, their organs and bones turning to slush.
Too brutal for Tanjo to want to feel, and he's the most susceptible to it.
'Perhaps now is not the time to think about that.' Tanjo broke himself out of his daze, focusing his eyes on the numerous tree branches he placed his feet on.
Looking to his right, Tanjo could visibly see Asami craning her head to the side and grinning mischievously. Then, without warning—*BHOOM!*—Asami's speed grew so fast that all the leaves around her flew off the trees, the air becoming visible for a small moment.
Tanjo's eyes widened. 'She broke the sound barrier!'
Despite knowing the fantastic power of a trained warrior, it was still astonishing to witness the power firsthand. However, this left one complication…
…He, too, would need to travel that fast to catch up.
Tanjo was sure he had the power and capabilities—but could he manage it consistently? The boy had no clue, but now was as good a time as any, he supposed.
'Come on… you can do this!' Tanjo motivated himself, charging his body with potent magic, his Aura Sense acting as bodily fuel.
There were a lot of variables to mix into Tanjo going that fast—he was unskilled, he could fail immediately and collapse through the trees, run into several objects, and much more. But Asami was getting farther with every second, and he couldn't be disgraced so easily!
He knew it wasn't all too smart to do it just yet, but—*BHOOM!*—"WOAH!"
In less than mere moments, Tanjo's body flew at the speed of sound, the entire forest moving right past him. Obviously, the boy was far from the mountain ranges now, his previous training sight long gone.
With a smile, Tanjo thought of the time ahead.
"Shanti… here I come—AH!"
*BOOM, BOOM, BOOM!*
In a rapid succession, three beams of red light were discharged at Tanjo, forcing the boy to jump around them, prompting him to crash into the ground violently.
It was all so sudden, and he had no clue that anything was chasing him. A plethora of thoughts flooded Tanjo's mind. Was he caught by warriors from a village, being shot at for going so fast? Was there a fight going on nearby? Where was Asami!?
"Hey, Tanjo! Put your mask on!"
To his surprise, Asami was crouched beside him, her hood concealing her face, similar to the time Tanjo first met her. At least one of his questions was answered—now for the rest.
Quickly, Tanjo grabbed his mask, placing it over his face. This was his first time wearing it, and it had to be during a potential crisis.
Asami was looking around, her eyes tracing the woodland area intensely. "I'm proud of ya for going that fast, but you might've attracted someone—someone bad, at that. I can sense them."
In a hushed voice, Tanjo responded, "Where are they at, roughly?"
Asami didn't reply, staying silent. Tanjo was about to speak up until—*WOOSH!*—the blue-haired woman created a barrier of water above the two of them, shielding them from a massive incoming explosion, blowing away any trees in the area.
Slowly moving the water away, Asami and Tanjo's eyes instantly found themselves locked on a figure standing above them, hovering on what appeared to be…
…a red pentagram.
"You aren't the rogue I was searching for…" Yuso murmured, narrowing his Shirugeto eyes.
Clearly, Yuso could tell that he was directed to the wrong person, having happened to run into two as well. But, one of these people felt... familiar. The redhead could confidently place this feeling back to when he was in Ryakudatsu, attempting to take the brat for the Kekkan no Sosei.
Yuso breathed in, "However, you might be someone I need."
The redhead basically ignored Asami, his eyes glued to Tanjo's masked face. Yuso wasn't ignorant enough to forget about the second cloaked individual, but they weren't needed currently.
It was a good thing they had caught Yuso's attention before traveling at supersonic speeds throughout Adonai.
"Tanjo," Asami called out to the boy. "You might have to sit this one out—sorry."
Tanjo had no time to respond as Asami strained her palms, thrusting them outward and blasting waves of water at Yuso, making the redhead's eyes broaden slightly.
With the miniscule whirl of his eyes, Yuso conjured a massive pentagram—*KABOOM!*—releasing a red beam double the size of the incoming blasts of water. It took only a few seconds for the water to be pushed back, the red beam flying right at Asami and Tanjo.
The beam then struck the spot the two stood, debris flying everywhere. Suddenly, Yuso sensed a figure behind him—with no time to turn, the redhead felt a knee get lodged in his ribs, launching him through the destroyed forest.
Acting quickly, Yuso formed a pentagram in mid-air for him to fall through, redirecting his course back to Asami, who reformed herself out of water. Tanjo, on the other hand, stood a few meters back, having been transported along with Asami.
'Water… My luck couldn't be any worse.' Yuso thought, landing on the ground. Looking upward, the redhead stared Asami directly in the eyes.
"I didn't think I'd run into another Tansu vessel, especially in such a short amount of time." Yuso said, clenching his fists.
Tanjo grew confused, eyeing Asami after hearing Yuso's words. "Tansu vessel?"
Asami frowned. "Someone knows their history, huh!?"
"It's that history that drives me, Tansu. Hand over the masked rogue before we reach any more complications." Yuso stated, ordering Asami to hand over Tanjo freely.
Asami had no clue as to why the redhead would want Tanjo, but she certainly wouldn't allow the teenage kid to be abducted by some psycho.
Asami smirked. "I don't doubt that you're strong, but you have no chance against me! You're only wasting your time and energy."
Yuso's face contorted slightly, his eyebrows furrowing, a slight scowl etched on his lips. "Eventually, I'll wipe you out. Mark my words. But, I need the rogue beside you—I'm aware of your strength, but I don't intend on fighting you."
Temporarily perplexed, Asami analyzed Yuso intently. His eyes—they were red, abnormally designed. His pupils weren't normal, swirling every time he attacked with his pentagrams.
Underneath Tanjo's shoes, a red pentagram formed, nearly swallowing the boy completely. Fortunately, the jet-black-haired teenager reacted swiftly, hopping away. It was good that he briefly harnessed a faster speed.
"Seems like he can outrun basic portals—how pestilent." Yuso mumbled, bending his knees.
With a flicker, Yuso's body vanished, reappearing behind Tanjo. With one hand, the redhead reached toward Tanjo, the pentagram embedded in his palm shining vibrantly. Tanjo's eyes widened in fear, using what Aura Sense he had stored in his legs from before to lunge to the side, narrowly dodging the impending grab.
"Ignoring me won't clear you of any hindrance, bastard!" Asami hollered, an entire body of water sloshing into Yuso mightily, flooding the land entirely.
Tanjo was lifted into the air by ice, courtesy of Asami. Soon, a red bubble of magic glowed underneath the water, a massive explosion blasting the water away.
Tanjo was stunned, gritting his teeth. He had to fight, even if he didn't want to. In preparation, he fueled himself with his Aura Sense—not minding which of the four—and kept his eyes peeled, looking in every direction.
Without warning, dozens of pentagrams swept over the sky, garnering the majority of Tanjo's attention.
Through each pentagram, Yuso hopped around, too fast for Tanjo to pin-point where he would appear next. In the midst of this, a pentagram formed behind Tanjo, Yuso's body flying out of it, feet first, kicking Tanjo through the air.
'He used the portals to propel himself!' Tanjo thought as he landed in the water, splashing loudly.
Above the water, Asami was confused as to where both Tanjo and Yuso went, seeing nothing but pentagrams floating above.
"Tanjo! Where are you at!?" Asami yelled, looking all over.
XXX
Currently, Tanjo drifted to the bottom of the water, losing his breath expeditiously. His eyes started to drift shut, the water blinding him.
Was he going to lose like this? Without putting up any fight whatsoever?
This time, he had no unconscious power; he didn't have Kronos to save him from this dire moment. Could he get out of this alive? He just needed to get back to Asami.
But how?
Soon he'll be found drowning under the water by the redheaded male, and then he'd be captured.
"Gurgle!" Tanjo's lungs filled with water, his eyes opening widely.
He could get out of this. Thinking back to his time in the academy, and all the times he utilized his Aura Sense, Tanjo flattened his palms and reeled his arms back the farthest they could go.
It was now or never.
With his charged Aura Sense, Tanjo pushed his arms upward through the water, his hands illuminated with different colored magic—his left hand containing blue, his right hand containing red.
*BOOM!*
In an instant, the water around Tanjo was blasted away, a whirlpool spiraling around him. His beam was so tremendous that it parted the clouds above, momentarily shocking Tanjo himself.
"Haa! I feel no pain!" Tanjo yelled, looking at his palms.
"There you are," A voice could then be heard from behind. "You cleared the water up for me, all I could go off of was your sense."
Turning around, the redhead could be seen standing tall, his red hair swaying from the immense winds, which soon died down. Yuso's Shirugeto swirled once again, alerting Tanjo.
'His eyes act as his power—he appears to make portals that allow him to travel wherever. But, from what I've seen, they have several uses.' Tanjo noted, assuming a position.
"Without the Tansu in my way, I could get through to you much easier. Though, I can feel her nearby. That beam of yours certainly decreased my time." Yuso spoke, walking toward Tanjo menacingly.
Tanjo grounded his teeth. "What do you wa—!"
Before Tanjo could finish speaking, a red chain wrapped itself around the boy's leg, restraining him. "Of course he has chains!"
In the distance, Asami's eyes locked onto Tanjo and Yuso. In seconds, the blue-haired woman darted forward, her hand reaching out to Tanjo—if she could just graze him, she could turn him into water like before and free him. Then she could deal with the red-headed freak.
"You're too late." Yuso uttered, clenching his fist.
"Wait!"
Asami was only inches away from grasping Tanjo, only to miss when the boy vanished in a blinding red light, Yuso being encompassed in the same light immediately afterwards.
Asami stood still, her arm still outstretched. With a gaping mouth, the blue-haired woman stomped her foot into the ground, destroying the once grassy land even more. The area didn't even look like a forest with all of the trees destroyed and the ground leveled and wet.
"Damn it!"
XXX
As of right now, I wish to clarify that Earth as a whole is a lot larger in this novel than in real life. I do this because I want to show the extent of some of the character's powers without dealing with severe damage later on. Like immense forest damage—it could be noticeable to nearby villages, but not nearly large enough as to drastically affect the story. What happened to Tanjo? Where did he go? He just figured out how to travel at faster speeds, only to be found and abducted by Yuso! If only Asami could've been faster than his damned Shirugeto. What will happen next? Stay tuned!
Have a Great Day!
Peace - Cr1ticalz_