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Chapter Sixty-Nine: S-6 Training

Inside the Asuka District, Xar drove Dachii on the path to his next spot. They headed in the opposite direction of the S-7 Mansion, and as they drove further and further, the buildings appeared to get more and more scattered.

 

"How was the training with General S-7?" Xar asked.

 

"Naito? Oh, she's…the same as when I saw her in Asmana Forest," Dachii replied.

 

Xar remained quiet for a moment. "I see. Unfortunately, General S-6 isn't so quiet and complacent. Be prepared."

 

Dachii looked at him. "What do you mean?"

 

 Xar didn't respond. Instead, he continued driving until he pulled up to a gated mansion, which had various colors: silver, white, and bronze.

 

Dachii heard screams coming from the mansion, and he nervously turned towards Xar.

 

"What goes on in there?" Dachii asked.

 

Xar stepped out of the car. "You'll find out soon."

 

Dachii anxiously crept behind him as he walked up to the front door and knocked on it. Without warning, he immediately turned around.

 

"Well, someone should answer the door. Per orders, I shall be back soon for you."

 

"Wait!" Dachii called out. "Where are you going?"

 

But without another word, Xar drove off.

 

Dachii sighed. "Maybe no one's home. I'll just go and head back to my—-"

 

 

The door slowly opened, and Dachii gulped and turned around. To his surprise, no one was standing there, and Dachii looked around but couldn't see anyone in sight.

 

"Hello?" He peeked his head in, and as soon as he did, he heard something behind him.

 

"Dachii Jones."

 

Before Dachii could look behind him, he was kicked into the middle of the living room.

 

"AHH!"

 

He crashed into the table, and when he got up, he saw what appeared to be a floating wooden lance.

 

"Huh?"

 

As soon as he blinked, he saw the lance being held up by none other than Kaneko Toru himself.

 

"Just what'd I expect from a human. No awareness, no senses, no SKILL."

 

Dachii got up, backing away. "Woah! What's the lance for?"

 

Toru glared at him. "Come with me."

 

In a flash, he disappeared into the backyard, and Dachii followed him outside, where numerous soldiers were ruthlessly sparing with each other. Each of them was on the verge of passing out.

 

"What is this?" Dachii asked, watching as soldiers dropped to their knees and clutched their chests.

 

The backyard had a gated metal platform in the back where the soldiers were training with wooden staffs. In the middle was a fountain, where many soldiers began to jump in and drink from.

 

"Ahhh…so refreshing…"

 

As Toru walked past, everyone began to immediately get back into training positions. One young soldier couldn't make it out of the fountain in time, and Toru got in his face.

 

"Are you SLACKING?"

 

He shook his head. "No, no! I was just…rehydrating!"

 

Toru held out his lance. "Well then, that must mean I can train you even harder, since you're well-hydrated."

 

Before the soldier could react, Toru spun around and whacked him in the chest with the lance, dropping him to the ground.

 

"Ow…"

 

Toru grabbed him by the collar. "On your feet, soldier. The real battles are just beginning."

 

As he spoke, Dachii attempted to back away inside the house, but Toru pointed his lance at him.

 

"Don't even. Come, we're going in the Pit."

 

Toru walked to the gated platform. "Everyone clear out! I have a special guest that needs SPECIAL attention."

 

He dragged Dachii inside, and took a soldier's staff, tossing it to Dachii. "Usually, I would never bother to train a mere human, but in this case, it's different."

 

He pointed his lance at Dachii. "One thing that's been bothering me…you can't fight at all."

 

Dachii summoned one of his gauntlets. "Uh, yes I can?"

 

"Put that thing away. I mean real skill, not Elemental Powers. That must be the reason your latent ability hasn't awoken again, you don't know how to HOLD YOUR OWN."

 

Everyone gathered around the gate as Toru took a step toward Dachii. "Now, today will focus on making you an actual fighter, just like your General and Princess. Pick up your weapon!"

 

Dachii hesitated, but he picked up the staff. "Don't tell me…"

 

Toru's eyes began to glow. "Yes. You're going to fight me."

 

The crowd gasped as Toru lunged at Dachii, turning himself and his weapon invisible. Dachii frantically looked around for any sign of him.

 

"I can't fight against this!" he thought. "What does he think I am, a ghost-hunter?"

 

The lance reappeared and came for the left side of Dachii's head, and Dachii ducked it just in time.

 

"Woah! Watch the hair!"

 

And then Toru hit him seven times in the stomach with the lance, dropping him to the ground.

 

"Ow…ow…ow…"

 

His injuries healed quickly, and he got up to see Toru shaking his head.

 

"That's the issue. Instead of blocking and countering, you chose to duck my attack, and then you hesitated too long to hit me."

 

Dachii stood up, locking eyes with Toru. "Well, what can I say? Stick-fighting isn't my specialty!"

 

 Toru watched him for a long moment. "Is that so?"

 

He dropped the lance, getting into a fighting position. "Then let me help you."

 

The gathered soldiers watched as Dachii and Toru sized each other up.

 

"Is…he actually gonna fight the General? HAND TO HAND?" one soldier asked.

 

"I didn't know humans were so dumb!" another replied.

 

Toru motioned for Dachii to come at him. "Your move."

 

Dachii swung a right haymaker at Toru, but he dodged and countered with a jab to his gut.

 

"OOF!"

 

Dachii tried to swing a left hook at him, but Toru yet again countered and kneed Dachii in the chest before kicking him away.

 

"Terrible fighting form."

 

"Oh, SCREW THIS," Dachii growled. He held out his arms and his gauntlets emerged.

 

Toru tilted his head. "Hmm."

 

The soldiers watched with anticipation as Dachii slammed the ground, looking right at Toru. "Let's make this fair!"

 

Toru cracked a smile. "Naive boy. This…is not fair."

 

And just as Dachii charged at him, a few moments later, he was sent crashing into the fountain, destroying it.

 

"Ugh…"

 

"NO!" the soldiers cried. "OUR WATER!"

 

Toru leaped over the gate, which now had a hole in it. "Training resumes at night! You've all got a few hours of break time."

 

He pointed toward Dachii. "You. Stay here. We need to have a talk."

 

Dachii got up. "Oh, great."

 

Once all the soldiers cleared out, Toru rounded on Dachii. "What makes your special power activate? What were the conditions?"

 

Dachii shrugged. "I guess the 'other me' has more control over that than I do."

 

Toru lifted an eyebrow. "Other you?"

 

Dachii nodded. "Yep. Like a second person, or something. Like back in the Forest, when I destroyed the castle, or when I was fighting Nullus, and even in Umego, when I got these cool gauntlets. Anytime I do something cool, HE'S a part of it. Though to my knowledge, he only emerges when I'm super stressed."

 

Toru took in the information. "So essentially, you are useless in your current form."

 

Dachii nervously laughed. "I wouldn't say useless…"

 

"Get up. It's time for more training."

 

"…Oh no."

 

After hours more of brutal combat training, Dachii was released to take a ten-minute break just before nightfall.

 

He walked into the living room and saw there was no TV. "What the hell?"

 

The soldiers were busy icing their wounds, and a girl with long tan hair and white eyes grabbed Dachii by the shoulders. "Human! You've gotta help me!"

 

"Huh?"

 

She shook him back and forth. "Listen, I can't go back into that backyard! It's horrible, I tell you! HORRIBLE!"

 

"Who are you?" Dachii asked.

 

She seemed almost as if she was insulted. "I'm the Vice-General! I'm Noriko Takahashi! And because of that, he'll make me train twice as hard! Look at me!"

 

She showed him the bruises on her arms and she pointed to her face, which also had bruises on it.

 

"Wow. Didn't know he'd put a girl through such rough training. What a ruthless man," Dachii remarked.

 

"I know, right?" Noriko stated. "Help me! Go out there and keep him occupied, so I can escape!"

 

"Escape to where?" Toru asked, standing behind them. "I hope it's to the backyard."

 

Both Dachii and Noriko shared a look, and Toru watched them intensely, before holding a bag filled with rice balls.

 

"Everyone grab ONE. And once you're done eating, back outside we go."

 

Dachii took one, looking at it. "This is all we get for dinner?"

 

Toru glared at him. "Unless you would prefer to catch insects and cook them? Would that be better?"

 

Dachii shook his head. "I'll eat the rice ball! Thanks!"

 

After the squad was done eating their food, Toru directed them all back outside.

 

Dachii noticed how dark it was. "Are we really going to train when it's pitch-black?"

 

Toru grabbed a nearby remote and pressed a button, and white lights popped out of the ground all around the backyard. "No excuses."

 

He separated the soldiers into groups of two, and they began practicing against each other. After a while, Dachii and Noriko were the only ones left.

 

"Do I fight…her?" Dachii asked.

 

Toru walked toward the Pit. "No. You'll both fight me. Come in."

 

"No, no! Not again!" Noriko exclaimed.

 

After they got inside the gate, Toru stood in the middle. "Now then. As per Dachii's request, we'll fight unarmed. If either of you can land a strike on me, you can leave."

 

Dachii sighed. "Here we go."

 

Toru's eyes began to glow. "Begin."

 

As soon as Toru said the word, Dachii swung a punch at his head.

 

"Predictable."

 

Toru dodged it and flipped Dachii over on his back. "Switch up your movements, for goodness's sake."

 

Noriko watched for a moment, and Toru turned his attention to her, making her jump. "And you, just watching from afar."

 

Before she could move, he tossed Dachii into her, making them both fall to the ground. "Terrible failure. With that effort, how are you even soldiers?"

 

As Noriko got up, she leaned into Dachii's ear.

 

"Okay, we need a plan, so he doesn't beat all life out of us!" she whispered.

 

Dachii watched as Toru approached. "How about we shift fighters? You go attack him and I'll go surprise him!"

 

"What? But I don't want to attack HIM head-on!"

 

Dachii winked at her. "Exactly!"

 

Without warning, Toru jumped and landed next to them, kicking them both away. "Too much talking!"

 

Noriko got up and unleashed a rapid barrage of punches and kicks but Toru deflected them all. "Too stiff."

 

As he prepared to strike her, Dachii jumped and tried to spin around and kick him in the head from behind.

 

"Switching up your style, good."

 

Toru grabbed his leg and spun him, making him knock Noriko back.

 

"This man…" Dachii murmured.

 

Toru waited for them to get up. "Again. No sleep until you hit me."

 

Minutes of training turned to hours, and even as dawn began to break and all the other soldiers were gone, Dachii and Noriko continued to lose to Toru.

 

"Failure."

 

After afternoon had come, Toru left to eat lunch, leaving Dachii and Noriko to sit down in the Pit.

 

"Why is that man so scary?" Dachii asked.

 

"I don't know, but he said it has to do with his upbringing. Guess whatever happened made him such a strict leader," Noriko replied.

 

"So how do we win?" Dachii questioned. "We've been fighting him for over a day now!"

 

Noriko shrugged. "Guess we wait and see."

 

Soon, Toru came back outside and entered the Pit. "We'll begin again. Attack!"

 

He leaped up and punched the ground where Dachii and Noriko were sitting, and they barely managed to get out of the way.

 

"What do I do?" Dachii wondered. "He's so fast!"

 

As Toru began to engage with Noriko, Dachii analyzed the battle. "Okay, he's prepared for a high kick, punches to the face, and rapid attacks…"

 

As Toru began to pummel Noriko, she called out to Dachii.

 

"Dachii, help!"

 

As Toru elbowed her in the chest and batted her away, he turned his attention to Dachii, who was still watching him.

 

"Now what will you do?"

 

Dachii took off with a burst of speed, preparing to punch Toru in the face. "Take…this!"

 

As soon as Toru prepared to block it, Dachii slid along the ground and attempted to sweep Toru's legs from under him.

 

"A fake move!"

 

Toru managed to flip over it, but as he did, Noriko slapped him on the back. "Got you!"

 

Toru straightened up, looking between the both of them. "Hmph. Not bad. It seems, despite my reservations, you've passed."

As Dachii and Noriko both fell over, relieved, Toru pointed to Dachii. "Now then, it's time for you to be off to your next General: General Shinjii."

 

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