It was dark, no, it was pitch black, no light could be seen, nothing whatsoever, and from that darkness a small purple orb began to form, and from that orb a human figure, it had no details apart from its human shape, but just like how it appeared, a crooked smile grew on its empty face
" Oh how pathetic you are my other self "
The figure said it's voice echoing across the void made out of pure darkness
" Where am I? "
Shu's voice echoed along, clashing with the vibrations of the figure's voice
" You lost yet again, how can you be so weak? You even let your friends get hurt, you are a sorry excuse for a Himura "
The figure said as Shu's body began to form, in a similar way that the figure's did, but with a blue light radiating from every inch of his body, giving the dark place even more light
" Why am I here? "
Shu questioned, as he frowned a little bit, proceeding to glare at the dark and purple figure, causing it to smirk as it flew toward him
" I brought you here, and I'll keep doing it as long as you keep losing, but don't worry, we won't have to see each other anymore, once you give up your body to me "
The figure explained, floating around Shu, menacingly and slowly, gliding its hands all over him
" Oh, so it's you again—listen, I won't give you shit so let me out of here "
Shu replied, aggressively opening his arms to push the figure away, making it frown as its eyes began to take form
" Watch your tone when you speak to me, other half! "
The figure said, flying toward Shu, moving its arm forward as all its body parts began to take shape, his veins, his hair, the color of his eyes, every single detail.
Once it was done transforming, it grabbed Shu by his neck, raising him upwards as the frown on it became more visible.
Shu was no longer staring at a figure of a human being, he was looking at a version of himself, one with dark hair and pitch-black eyes
" You are thousand of times weaker than me! You don't even know how divine your body is so you destroy it because you know not of your power! You are a pathetic excuse for a host!! "
The other Shu yelled as it squeezed the boy's neck harder, opening its eyes wildly, glaring at Shu with pure hate in his eyes
" I am the better half! I'm smarter, I am stronger, I am faster, I am... "
The figure continued, whispering that last word as he leaned in toward Shu's face
" Perfect "
The figure continued, ending his sentence as Shu's eyes opened wide, breathing heavily as he now found himself in a bed, being cared for by someone he knew quite well
" Nightmare? "
Ayami questioned, as she submerged a white towel stained with blood inside of a small bucket of water, tainting the water as well
" Sort of "
He replied as he rubbed his head softly, carefully sitting up
" Na-uh, stop right there "
Ayami said as she placed her hand on top of his bandaged abdomen
" Lay back down, you have severe wounds, even your spine got fractured, you should lay low for a few weeks, If you don't, you might just lose your ability to walk, you don't want that, right? "
Ayami explained as she pushed him down, making him sigh as he placed his left arm on top of his forehead, looking around the place, finding fancy jewelry, closets, tables, and mirrors
" Where are we? "
Shu questioned, as he whined a bit, one of his wounds opened below his chest, which Ayami attended to the moment Shu let out that painful moan
" We are in Fu's castle at the moment, we lost the war "
Ayami replied as she put pressure on the wound with the towel, cleaning away his blood very gently
" I see. Then, what happened to everyone who fought? "
Shu asked, covering his eyes with his arm as he bit down on his lip, feeling the small pieces of his spine stabbing against his muscle
" A lot of soldiers were injured, some even lost a few of their limbs, but, if you're referring to everyone you know then, all your friends are fine, they have a few injuries, they'll be fine though, as for you... "
Ayami whispered, stopping for a bit as she looked up at him
" You have both your hands broken, your entire leg fractured, and your spine almost shattered, it surprises me that you aren't showering yourself in tears, I can't even imagine the pain "
Ayami continued, pointing out every major injury in Shu's body, which was covered with bandages
" Anyway, here, eat this "
Ayami said, grabbing a white pill from one of her small pockets that her current nurse outfit had, proceeding to open Shu's mouth, throwing it inside and closing his lips shut, forcing him to swallow the small piece of medicine
" Ugh!! That tasted horrible!! "
Shu yelled before shaking his head, trying to wash the taste of pill away from his mouth
" Well yeah, it was a pill meant to ease the feeling of pain... "
Ayami explained, pausing as Shu's face became one of curiosity and lack of understanding, making her sigh as she stood up
" It's a drug which makes the pain go away "
Ayami continued, explaining what she meant in an easier way to understand.
" Well I'm leaving, rest well "
Ayami said before patting Shu's forehead, beginning to walk toward the door, but as soon as she was about to exit the room, the door was randomly opened, by none other than Fu
" Shu!! What's up, bro!? How you doing!? "
Fu yelled, moving Ayami aside as she looked up at him with a small frown of annoyance
" Bro!! "
Shu yelled as he raised his arms, while a smile of excitement grew on his face, wanting to hug the man he called his brother
" Looking great man! Come on heal up already so we can train together! "
Fu replied, sitting on the seat that Ayami once sat on
" Hey! Let him sleep! He needs rest! "
Ayami interrupted, slapping the man on the back of his head, making him rub it as both he and Shu turned to look at the girl with a look of annoyance
" Ugh! Fine, do whatever you want, I'm leaving! "
She continued, pouting as she angrily left the room, slamming the door on the two, making them smile the moment she left
" What was all that about? "
Shu questioned as he looked up at Fu, who simply chuckled
" Well, she was really worried about you, actually I was gonna assign a nurse to take care of you, but she voluntarily asked me to let her do it "
Fu explained, making Shu raise an eyebrow, before sighing, proceeding to grin while squinting his eyes
" I mean that's cool and all, but.. "
Shu then began to explain a lot of things, mainly about all the fun he had with his friends as Ayami stood outside of the door, listening to it all while covering her face
" That asshole, why'd he have to tell him... "
Ayami whispered, as she lowered her hands down to her mouth, revealing her flustered face