Danso paused for a second.
He took a few steps behind.
"Who…? It can't be," thought Danso as he stood on the rubble of the broken houses and destruction caused by the explosions.
Xeno ran to Danso's side and looked over at him. The anxiety and fear on his face were as visible as a thirsty man denying that he was thirsty. Multiple more ninjas came back, and the hoarder rushed them. The man still stood at the top of the massive pile of rubble, watching over the fight.
Danso ignited his blade once again, and the horde jumped at him. To create space, he used Sword Art of the Dragon: Dragon's Breath to create an easy view of the horde before using his normal blade strikes to clear out a pathway to the man. Xeno dealt with the hordes by blowing up their arms and legs with a single look with his arms while creating clones of himself to make the fight fairer.
Eventually, as the path became clearer, Danso stopped fighting and went straight towards the man.
"Where are you going? Help me fight!" screamed Xeno from across the battlefield.
"You can fight them yourself, you're strong, remember no killing," said Danso as he leaped from rock to rock, reaching the top of the rubble.
"I can't fight this many," growled Xeno before setting his eyes on his targets.
Danso sprinted and sprinted even though his legs felt like crumbling due to the amount of fatigue he had from fighting the ninja. Once at the top of the mountain of rubble, he saw the same eyes. Now it was official. Danso smiled, a faint one that could easily not be seen, and took a step back before stumbling on some rocks.
The man walked a few steps forward.
"Hello Danso," said Hiroshi Yamamoto.
"You…Who are you?" asked Danso.
"You don't remember me?" asked Hiroshi.
Danso swung his sword towards Hiroshi and sliced him in half. The body evaporated, and Hiroshi suddenly teleported back to Danso and tried stabbing Danso with a kunai, but the samurai suit blocked some damage. Then, Danso ignited his blade and swung his sword as a fake before dodging a kunai that Hiroshi threw, bending down and extending a leg and kicking Hiroshi on the ankle, forcing his balance to fail him.
Hiroshi instantly made a hand sign and teleported back near Danso.
"You're still the same, aren't you?" asked Hiroshi.
"You're not him, everything about you…It screams your name, but I refuse to believe you'd attack the city you worked so hard to protect," said Danso.
"I couldn't care less, the city is a joke," said Hiroshi.
"Then I guess we both are the clowns," said Danso.
"Now let me do my job, or else I have to fight you," said Hiroshi.
"I can't. Hiroshi, you're just like the rest of the people we despise," said Danso.
Hiroshi's anger rose at Danso's statement, and he started to get ready for a fight.
"I don't want to do this," said Hiroshi.
"Well, I guess we are on opposite pages. I am going to knock some sense into you," said Danso.
Danso stalled and used this conversation to restore his soul energy to its fullest. He started to walk towards Hiroshi, and Hiroshi also started to walk towards Danso. Neither of them was stopping. The clouds split open, and the rain that had ceased started to fall again. The sun was still there, clearly stating the contrast of weather and emotions.
Hiroshi ran and punched first. Danso hadn't dodged even though he had anticipated it. Hiroshi threw a few kunai that got deflected due to the armor blocking them, and Hiroshi used his remaining hand to land another hit. Danso blocked the fist and used his sword, slicing the chain chestplate, and used his left leg to land a clean hit on Hiroshi's neck. Then, Danso started to unleash a barrage of attacks that Hiroshi just timed and teleported away from.
Danso ignited his sword.
"Sword Art of the Dragon:- Dragon's Claw," said Danso.
He wanted to end it with this attack, but Hiroshi was also thinking the same thing.
"Elemental Magic:- Lightning Dragon," said Hiroshi.
Hiroshi's two kunai merged to create a spear with two ends like a weapon from the olden days. Then the blade started to get covered by lightning as Hiroshi rushed forward. The blade tip's lightning resembled a dragon as both their blades collided in a battle of blue and red.
They both fell due to the recoil and went far back. They stumbled down opposite ends of the rumble.
Xeno, witnessing the battle, also tried to create a pathway to Hiroshi. He looked into multiple people's eyes and managed to make their hands and limbs explode.
Unfortunately for Hiroshi he had tumbled down the rubble towards Xeno, so catching him was an easy task for Xeno. Hiroshi got up and as he stood up quickly, he saw Xeno standing in front of him.
"I've heard of you," said Hiroshi.
"I don't believe we met," said Xeno.
"You don't have to meet someone to know them," replied Hiroshi.
"Of course, now I recommend you pack your bags and leave Akuza," said Xeno.
"And if I don't?" asked Hiroshi.
Xeno looked straight at Hiroshi's arm and blew it up. Blood started to spew out from the shoulder as Xeno looked at Hiroshi with eyes that said, 'I warned you. ' Hiroshi screamed in pain and healed himself using regeneration magic. He previously hadn't learnt it before leaving Akuza, but he learnt it when he was in Ninjaro.
Danso, hearing Hiroshi's screams, rushed towards him. He saw Hiroshi on the floor while Xeno stared at him. Danso ran towards Xeno and grabbed his suit.
"What did you do to him?" asked Danso.
Blood started to flow from Danso's stomach. There was a very clear hole in his upper body as he coughed up blood.
He looked around. And there Hiroshi was. His lightning spear stabbed Danso.
"What in the world," said Danso.
It was far too sudden, and Xeno attacked Hiroshi again, but he instantly teleported away. Hiroshi threw multiple kunai towards Xeno, and Xeno destroyed them with his signature glare. Danso was on the ground, bleeding to death. To sustain Danso's blood flow, Xeno used his clone ability to heal Danso's stomach, filling the gap.
"You let your guard down and you're on the floor nearly dead, this is what you deserve," scolded Xeno.
Hiroshi was nowhere to be seen until Xeno looked up, and there he was. He fell like a meteor falling towards Earth and used his primary spear to attack. Xeno looked at him again, and Hiroshi exploded.
It was a fake. Hiroshi had successfully distracted Xeno.
Xeno's eyes started to bleed. The kunai were stabbed in Xeno's eyes.
"Can't see now, can you?" asked Hiroshi
Xeno kept on wandering as he was touching his eyes. He screamed in pain. Then he split himself once again and used the same tactic he used against Chiro. But there was one catch. He spawned on the opposite side of the city near the slums.
"Oh no," said Xeno, scratching his head.
Danso got up again, the hole in his stomach healed due to Xeno's clone's stomach and organs fitting in Danso.
He stared at Hiroshi as the rain started to cease. They both stood on the bodies of ninjas. The ninja looked like zombies as the raindrops started to cease to fall.
Danso ran towards Hiroshi.
Hiroshi ran towards Danso.
Why had Hiroshi become like this? This was what Danso was thinking.
Why can't Danso understand? This was what Hiroshi was thinking.
The fight that determines the First Ninjaro's Raid's result.