#rurouni kenshin fusion

[squirrelwrangler]

Vagabond Gondor

As a birthday gift, I decided to brush off a very old project and write out the opening paragraphs to something I cannot promise I'll ever fully write, but to which I had done so much groundwork that I didn't want it to go to waste. And as it's a LotR fic, making it a gift on my birthday seemed appropriate.

...

Ten years after the Restoration of the Rightful King, that is to say ten years after the Battle of the Crossings of Erui which ended the Kin-strife, a man with a broken sword arrived in Minas Arnor.

 The wandering swordsman crossed the River Anduin in a small boat just as dusk started to settle into the warm summer evening, paying the ferryman with the last of his worn coins. Across the fields, farms, and small towns of the Pelennor Fields the wanderer strode, aiming for the Great Gate of the seven-tiered city. He did not pause, even as the light disappeared from all but some of the windows of the houses and inns or glowed against the approaching twilight from the handheld lanterns of fellow travelers. Even at this late hour other people still crowded the four leagues of roads leading to and from the Great Gate. Most traveled in groups composed of companions, family, or coworkers. Boisterously they laughed and chatted amongst themselves as they returned to their homes or ducked into taverns to wash away the sweat of fieldwork with the soothing coolness of alcohol. Not all were Dúnedain, but few of the Northmen were dressed discernibly differently, and all spoke a blend of Westron and Sindarin. Tradesmen and traders sang cheerfully from the open doors of the taverns and alehouses. Ten years had restored the music of peace to the Pelennor Fields. Roads -and the harvest- were safe once more. Osgiliath had been rebuilt, but as was tradition, the king resided in Minas Arnor during the summer, during which the city and the lands skirting Mount Mindolluin blossomed and the population boomed. Business followed the royal court. Even those of Minas Ithil might have summer lodgings in their sister-city. Single travelers such as the wandering swordsman were rarer. Most who aimed to reach Minas Arnor had passed through its gates long before sunset. The locals of the Pelennor ignored the man with the broken sword, and the man ignored them. Of the few that noticed the scabbard hanging from the shabby-dressed wanderer’s belt, none knew its secret. 

Tradition brought over from Númenor held that after dusk large wagons were allowed to enter the city. Therefore long lines of ox-driven carts laden with produce and goods now dominated the well-paved roads into Minas Arnor, lit by lanterns held by the freight-haulers and the rare bored guard hired by prudent or suspicious merchants. Few people walked the roads on foot as dusk deepened into true night. The clouded sky hid the stars from view, but there was no hint of rain soon forthcoming. Still, the man wore a wide-brimmed hat that shaded his face. Silently he walked besides the freight wagons, head bowed and hands tucked into the wide sleeves of his patched tunic. The guards made note of the wanderer and noticed the sword, but as the man did nothing but walk silently, staring only at the ground, they dismissed him as harmless. He was short and slight, the type of figure that could easily lose a wrestling match to a hobbit, if the men of Gondor knew what a hobbit was.

Pelennor in the summer did not swelter as badly as Pelagir further south, but it was too warm for cloaks, and the drivers wished for a breeze to cool their faces and banish the pungent odor of the draft animals. Street cleaners would remove animal dung from the roads in the pre-dawn, also according to ancient Númenorean tradition. Still the heady stench was undeniable. 

The black expanse of the first wall of Minas Arnor stretched like the outermost void, its shadow cooling the summer night. Ominous it could be to outsiders, but to the men who called this city and its surrounding lands home, the First Wall with its gleaming black stone that reflected the many lanterns of its travelers signified safety and beauty. Towards the east the main road turned, following the curve of the wall to the only gateway through the unbreachable Minas Arnor. It was a relief to pass through the Great Gate and enter the city itself. 

Up the gently sloping streets the wanderer ambled, lacking the steadfast determination of before. His goal had been the city itself, but now he had neither destination in mind nor coin to pay for it.  Past midnight, only the main thoroughfares were not deserted, the music of taverns faded into silence. Streetlamps at the doors of many a great house or inn were kept lit with oil, as it would have been a shameful admission of poverty to do otherwise. Under the reign of Castamir, many houses had gone dark. But now all that the lamps illuminated were the cobblestones of the streets and the facades of the houses across, broken rarely by the shadow of a passing hunting cat. Soon the man was alone, his shadow the only other movement. An innkeeper's watchman on the Lampwright’s Street of the First Level almost called out to him, but changed their mind when they noticed the ragged appearance of his dark blue tunic and lack of travel pack. In the brightness of the city’s lit streets, the color of the man’s hair could be discerned, and it was the same red as the summer pelt of a fox. A memorable trait, nearly as identifiable as the intersecting pair of scars on the man’s lower left cheek - neither of which the wanderer wished to be recognized by. 

But it had been ten years since the Battle of the Crossings of Erui. Ten years since King Eldacar slew Castamir. Ten years since the Blood-haired Berserker, killer of thousands of men, feared warrior of Rhovanion, disappeared. A legendary figure like that belonged in grisly tales and gruesome sorrowful songs, not ambling without purpose down a deserted Third Level street in Minas Arnor looking for a safe doorway in which to rest until the sun rose. The wandering swordsman was too unassuming to be a figure of infamy.

Which is why when a spirited young Dúnedan noblewoman accosted him of being a mad murderous berserker breaking the king’s law and the city’s peace, brandishing a wooden quarterstaff, the wanderer yelped.

“I’ve found you, Outlaw! Blood-haired Berserker, Slayer of Men, face justice for the two months of terror that you have inflicted on our city! Your murders will not go unpunished!”

The maiden punctuated her accusation with a perfect swing of her quarterstaff -which the wanderer dodged- followed by followup swing exactly as prescribed in the arms master's training manuals -which he also dodged- and a jab towards the torso - which the wanderer stumbled backwards from, unscathed but shouting in alarm. “Oro! Wait, Mistress, you have the wrong person!” His words were Sindarin, accented and soft, and he used the polite address for you in the Noldorin fashion. Northmen rarely learned Sindarin, and none had that old-fashioned accent.

“Mountain?” The young woman questioned, confused at his outburst, then shook her head in frustration. Switching from Westron, she repeated her accusation, but the outrage had lessened to uncertainty, for the man had collided with the ground against a grocer’s stall, knocking empty baskets to the cobblestones.

“Noble Lady, I cannot be the one you search for,” the red-haired man said, straightening a fallen basket. Crumbled on the ground, the young woman could see his beardless face and thin frame. His scrawny underfed body reminded her of one of her students, and though she had not confirmed it when she first attacked, he was shorter than her. As a rule, the Northmen of Rhovanion were tall and muscular. She was not, even though she was a full blooded Dúnadan as her coloring suggested. The deferential address and vocabulary sounded comical coming from a shabby-dressed Middle Man. It belonged to a stage play about the First Age, and only Classical Adûnaic would have been more ill-fitting for the occasion. “A masterless vagabond I am, newly arrived to the city this night. How could I have accomplished a murder?”

“You are an unliveried Northman carrying a full-sword, though,” the noblewoman countered. “By King’s Decree, no one may carry a longsword within the walls of the city unless they be a royal soldier or a nobleman’s oath-sworn, their blade peace-tied to the scabbard and in livery to the house of their allegiance.”

The wanderer had noticed that the wagon guards carried only long knives and cudgels. Peacetime could only partially explain the anomaly. Eldacar’s law, enacted after the war’s conclusion, attempted to curtail the worst of the violence endemic during the Kinstrife and to suppress armed uprisings from the few traitorous lords, but the ban on the most dangerous tools of war - the longswords and great war axes- was truly aimed at the tension that remained between Northmen and Dúnedain. A murderer stalking the streets of Minas Anor while the King was in residence was an affront; a mad Northman was a political powder-keg.

Holding the scabbard by the far end, the swordsman pointed the hilt at the young woman, offering it to her. “Humble I beg you see that this sword could have killed no man,” he said, switching now into the Common Tongue, but here his Westron was just as heavily accented and even more deferential, using the politest possible terms.

The young woman pulled out the broken sword, shocked to see that the blade extended only a few finger-widths before terminating. By hilt and size it was closer to a longsword than the more common arming swords, and though it would have been double-edged with a deep fuller, the style of sword left the blade itself unsharpened near the hilt. An uncovered hand could grip a blade there to wield a sword for certain tricks, be it to wield two handed when the hilt was not long enough or to shorten the reach to confuse a foe. Swordsmanship training covered these in detail, to which the young woman was deeply familiar. There were moves to defend oneself with a broken blade, invented by her grandfather, that the young woman knew as well, and the pommel could be an effective bludgeoning tool if wielded against an eye or judiciously striking the head. But close inspection showed that the blade had been snapped off before the shoulder sharpened into the blade proper. Aside from the maker’s mark, no other nicks or cuts marred the steel to signify use, though some of the hilt wrapping was worn. The pommel was plain. 

“It’s not Narsil,” the man joked. “The edges are all dull, Noble Lady. Humbled I beg you return this useless sword to me. No violation of King Eldacar’s law do I commit by carrying it.”

“You could not kill anyone with this,” the young woman admitted. “So why carry it-“ she began to ask, before a watchman’s shout interrupted. “They found him!” she cried, tossing the hilt and dashing back to the intersection. Behind her, unseen, the swordsman caught the broken sword with a deft swing of the scabbard. Hat forgotten and expression darkened to seriousness for the first time since he crossed the River Anduin, the red-haired wanderer ran after the young woman.

[kamidoodles]

15 march 2024 // i've been thinking a lot about this old oc of mine lately, she started out as basically a character fusion between honda tohru from fruits basket + himura kenshin from rurouni kenshin + seta soujirou ... not very creative, i know x) but she's evolved into something else over the years and i wanted to colour this old piece to see if i can get the mojo for this going again.

[quotablefanfiction]

“Simply watch. Your mind will wander, that it will. Guide it back. Be gentle.” Humor glinted in violet as Kenshin patted the archaeologist’s head. “The poor creature is obviously overworked.”

Kenshin goes over meditation techniques with Daniel (chp. 2)

Spin Cycle by Vathara (AO3, FF.net) Stargate: SG-1/Rurouni Kenshin – Teen – Himura Kenshin/Kamiya Kaoru #Alternate Universe #Crossover #Fandom Fusion #Airwolf #Spirits #Magic #Japanese Mythology #Youkai

Late-night laundry leads to a few other people keeping an eye on Cheyenne Mountain…

[gabriel-gabdiel]

Rurouni Yahiko Chapter 56: The Sanada Demons

The Sanada Demons have come to save the day. Can these shinobi take on the likes of the Prodigal Son and the Swordsman Bibile?

The rest of the chapters of my Rurouni Kenshin fan fiction are available here. Enjoy.

First | Previous | Next

Back inside the moneychanger affiliate offices of the Minakatas...

The Faceless fenced and stabbed his way out of the small room where he couldn't kill that one samurai boy and his sword-catching move. Hadome (Sword Halt), was it?

He'd heard of samurai catching blades by their bare hands before, but he thought it was all hype and myth. Until now.

Sure, the kid was on the verge of losing against the masked man anyway and ended up no match against him or the likes of Kinta Minakata. However, his unique sword skill did intrigue The Faceless regardless.

Maybe he could mimic Hadome down the line...? 'However, first thing's first.'

The Faceless's duelist personality or disguise—John Rathbone—had specifically been parrying and thrusting with his trusty rapier against a trio of surprisingly strong ninjas.

Ah yes. Ninjas. Shinobi. The Japanese version of government spies or secret agents.

Even in an era where war was waged with guns, rifles, trenches, and bombs, spies and intelligence gatherers remain the most important warfare weapon.

Especially all these shinobi before him who could fight in the most underhanded of ways.

The ogre, the snake, and the bat.

He couldn't quite explain it but somehow, the bat ninja manhandled him in close quarters with his blades and distracting screams, the snake ninja snake-whipped him with explosive whip cracks from long range, and the ogre stabbed at his blind spots with frightening accuracy using his war fork.

They intended to push him into a corner and triple team him from there.

The Faceless chuckled. As if.

"What sort of gutless kenjutsssu (ssswordsmanship) is thisss? You're doing more running away than ssstriking! Fight like a man, coward!" said the lispy snake ninja of the swordsmanship bible's impenetrable defense and elusive movement.

"This isn't kenjutsu. This is fencing," calmly explained Rathbone to the most violent and rambunctious ninja of the trio. "And this is a rapier. An elegant weapon for a more civilized age. Far better than a brittle katana."

He'd been through tougher battles than this. He survived entire wars and accomplished more dangerous political assassinations that paid even more handsomely than this personal grudge his protégé had over the family that abandoned him.

More than a king's ransom, even (because he'd been paid for a king's head instead).

However, using his Tactical Wheel and his mind games, he pushed the trio away enough to exit the room and pursue the escaping Minakatas.

Maybe even kill that other shadow ninja he faced off in the Minakata's East-West Fusion Mansion. Or finish off the blade catcher samurai boy.

The Faceless proved especially dangerous when he combined forces with either Kai Hidaka or Lucas Grant, which he supposed was what the Minakatas were intending to prevent in the first place.

The unified force of the Brigands Guild.

The pile of rubble and debris where Luke had been buried into then stirred.

The Prodigal Son awoke.

"Dammit. I'll be back," said Ren the snake ninja, who ran back into the room to deal with the strong, tall, and half-blooded swordsman with the bastard sword. "Take care of the other gaijin (outsider) for me!"

"Why is there only two of you now?" The Faceless mocked in fluent Japanese, knowing exactly why one of them had to leave. "I miss the other guy. Bring him back."

Because the Prodigal Son was now on the prowl, the Sanyoukai (Three Demons) of the Sanada Ninja Clan had to split up to prevent the Brigands Guild from joining forces.

With all things considered, Kinta Minakata could probably handle either The Faceless or Grant alone.

However, even he—the Kagemusha (Shadow Warrior) and the Mimawarigumi Battousai—would be pushed into the corner himself when facing off against two or more Brigand Guild members at the same time.

"Are you sure you can take me on with only the two of you? You need all three just to keep up," needled Rathbone further, who could now pick apart the occasional stabs and strikes from long distance that the ogre ninja did now that the snake ninja didn't put the pressure on with his constant whiplashes.

"Do we now?" said Zan the oni (ogre) ninja with the red ogre mask and war fork. "You sound full of yourself for a gaijin piece of shit. If you truly can take us on by yourself, I better see it first with my own eyes. Don't just tell us about it."

Instead of echoing Zan's retort, Baku the bat ninja merely screamed what John could only describe as a banshee's wail at his face, distracting him enough to nearly lose his rapier from the hard parry he had to do against Zan's twin-pronged war fork.

***

Rurouni Yahiko

A Rurouni Kenshin Continuation Fan Fiction Story by Chester Castañeda

The foreign invaders of the Brigands Guild discover that it's not so easy dealing with the persistent warriors of Japan, particularly their noble samurais and their backstabbing ninjas.

Disclaimer: All characters used in this fanfic (save some others) are the rightful property of Nobuhiro Watsuki, Shueisha, Shonen Jump, Viz, Sony Studios, Fuji TV, Studio Gallup, Studio Deen, and ADV. This disclaimer also covers all the other copyrighted materials that are far too many to mention here. Don't sue me please, I'm very poor.

***

Chapter 56: The Sanada Demons

***

At the gates of the Minakata affiliate office...

Yahiko Myojin and Kaita served as Tatsuya Minakata's escorts, only for them to find out that the nearby stables had all their horses released and all the carriage drivers missing.

Maybe even dead.

Dammit. Now what? Were they supposed to escape Chinatown on foot?

Whoever the Brigands Guild were, they really had it in for the Minakatas. Wait, what was Yahiko even thinking?

'Of course they have it in for them. Their leader or whoever is the bastard child they disowned and threw away along with his mother,' thought the Tokyo Samurai Descendant, berating himself.

This Takuto Minakata or Lucas Grant character kind of reminded him of himself.

Yahiko wasn't abandoned by his family or anything, and he was no bastard son either, but it certainly felt like the world abandoned their whole family instead during the Bakumatsu.

Regardless, so many people were dying to save two of the V.I.P.s they were supposed to protect. Was all this effort even worth it?

Kaita reappeared behind them and said, "It might be best for us to stay in the office after all."

"What are you talking about, Shorty?" asked Myojin.

"Yes. Why in Buddha's fat ass should I stay there where the assassins are?" demanded Tatsuya. "Let me out."

Kaita sighed. "There might be more of them outside and you're safer here because we have the Sanada Demons on guard."

"D-Demons? Are you out of your mind, you costumed freak?!" shouted Tatsuya. "This isn't the Edo Period! Spare me this talk of superstition and ninja lore! Get me the police and have those murderers arrested!"

This gave Yahiko pause. Wasn't Kaita one of the Minakatas' trusted ninjas? Why was Tatsuya resistant to the ninja's advice? Why didn't he know about the Sanada Ninja Clan's Sanyoukai?

***

Meanwhile, while Ren kept the Prodigal Son at bay inside that room next to the main office...

Luke's body was already in rough shape before he got whipped and scourged like a criminal or a slave by the boa constrictor taxidermy whips of the creepy snake ninja.

It only got worse from there when he went one-on-one and face-to-face against the snake shinobi.

Grant laughed. This guy again. The costumed freak who blasted him straight into a wall. What an annoying prick.

"For a snake-themed ninja, I'm surprised you don't use poison in your arsenal," Lucas said in remembrance of his fellow Brigands Guild member Cain Merrick and his own poison-based gimmick.

"Are you a child? Just because I'm a sssnake ninja, it doesn't mean I use sssnake venom like some sort of coward!" scoffed Ren, getting angrier by the minute.

The Prodigal Son didn't know how to retort to that, mainly in light of how cowardly he thought Cain was for using poisons, venoms, and toxins as his main means of "fighting". He was every bit as underhanded as any of these ninjas, though.

Regardless, Ren kept whipping Lucas from afar and every time he got near, he used that technique again. A ranged attack that struck the ground that sent earthen debris with knockout force.

Grant managed to stab Ren once with his longsword, only for it to get deflected by the thick snakeskin hide of his leather armor. It was like trying to stab a helix of coiled snakes.

How did the snake man keep doing it? That strange, explosive attack?

Wait.  It was like an extra-large whip crack. A whip produced the cracking noise whenever it traveled faster than the speed of sound.

The snake ninja combined his bullwhips (or snake whips, in his case) together to create twin whip cracks strong and fast enough to break the sound barrier in resonance and create a blast of air powerful enough to tear through the ground.

A resonant sonic boom.

Essentially, Ren whipped his twin weapons together with resonating shockwaves from extra large whip cracks, so their resulting combined air vibrations exploded like twin lightning bolts blasting the ground like roaring thunder.

Moreover, his snake armor probably kept Ren from tearing himself apart with his own whip vibrations. It helped him survive the bone-crushing force of his induced earth-shattering shockwaves.

Impressive. The snake man's fighting technique was more straightforward than most ninjas he'd encountered or heard about, who were infamous for their dirty tactics.

Regardless, Lucas grabbed hold of his bastard (or one-and-half-hand) sword and started parrying the cracking whips away with one-handed swings so that he wouldn't get further ripped apart by them with flesh-cutting slashes.

He then crossed his arms together and braced himself for the reverberation of air that tore through the floorboards and walls like consecutive exploding landmines. Or the dust storm version of a tidal wave. One after another.

'What a tough opponent,' thought Lucas. 'I thought murdering the Minakatas was going to be a cakewalk, but my brother found himself some decent shinobi for me to play around with. Thanks, Aniki.'

Lucas thusly split the shockwave in half by slicing his bastard sword into the floor so fast he also broke the sound barrier himself, thus neutralizing the attack with his own sonic boom.

"What the hell...?" yelped Ren. "SSStupid gaijin. Learn to accept a lossss!"

Lucas attempted to chop instead of stab the thick armor with his bastard sword, only for Ren to wrap himself in his snake whips, thus shielding him from the cutting power of the high-grade steel.

'Dammit,' thought Grant, his sword again bouncing off the snake ninja. 'Stop playing dirty!'

The smirking Ren then jumped, twisting his body to unwind the whips around him. This resulted in a spiral of whip strikes that assaulted Lucas like a razor-sharp cyclone.

Lucas bathed in his own blood from the whiplashes. However, proving himself more cold-blooded than the dead reptiles Ren used for weapons, he managed to wrap one of the snake whips around his arm.

The way Ren fought reminded him of the way Kai Hidaka fought. 'You've seen one ninja, you've seen them all.'

He then pulled hard at Ren's snake whip, intending to catch him flat-footed so that he could chop him in half.

However, Ren stopped resisting and allowed himself to get pulled intentionally. He did a flying headbutt on the gaijin's noggin, who didn't expect the sudden release that snapped the whip back towards him like a rubber band.

"Don't you dare underestimate Japanese ninjutsu, you gaijin piece of shit!" shouted Ren.

He knew he had the upper hand now! He'd become a hero of the clan for taking out this monster!

***

As for the double team of Baku and Zan against The Faceless...

These underhanded Japanese spies were up to something.

A little while ago, John Rathbone still feinted, countered, and landed with regularity against the Sanada Demons while he himself used his footwork to slip, parry, block, and outright evade their own attacks from high and low.

He kept making them second-guess his next move using the Tactical Wheel of Simple Attack, Parry and Riposte, Compound Attack, and Counter Attack.

However, the three also kept intercepting the riposte thrusts and counter slashes of his rapier to save one other. Whenever he zeroed in on one of them, the other two either blocked or countered as well.

Now there were only two of them, which meant he could pressure them further to move back, allowing him enough breathing room to chase after the Minakatas. The lack of a third man cut their offensive power by a third.

However, something strange happened.

His attacks kept missing. Every thrust and slash from various angles somehow missed or wasn't timed to hit its target.

It didn't help that his normally 20/20 vision blurred from time to time, like some sort of haze came over it.

His attacks missed before because of how fast both Zan and Baku reacted to his stabs even though he kept breaking his rhythm to keep them guessing when he was going to attack with his Beat Parry Riposte.

Rathbone also noticed how Zan kept banging his war fork unto the ground to make it vibrate like a tuning fork. Did this help the ninja dodge his fencing attacks better?

Dammit, and he was just getting their timing down pat the longer they fought, thus allowing him to counter them as they charged.

Only for him to start missing during those brief vulnerable moments as well. His timing was off somehow.

His breathing also became more erratic even though he hadn't exactly burned out his stamina yet. He hadn't even broken a sweat yet he had trouble taking breaths now.

He glared at the twin ninja demons. "What did you do to me?!"

"I was worried for a minute there," said Zan to Baku. "The gaijin has no concept of sakki (bloodlust) and how to read it, so I was worried for a minute that his swordsmanship could deal with your high-pitched sound technique."

Baku chuckled. "Even if he can't detect bloodlust, his moves are all rhythm-based. Break his rhythm and his so-called fencing will end up like trash."

What did they mean by that? What was going on? They were doing something to The Faceless, but he didn't quite know what. Did they poison him or something?

No, wait. It was the bat ninja and his screams that were doing this to him! Whatever this was.

Baku kept distracting John with his high-pitched screeching. Or so the duelist thought. 'So it wasn't just a distraction...?'

Something about those sounds Baku produced made Rathbone miss his Simple Attacks or Compound Attacks (attacks with feints or switching a missed attack to a parry or a different attack).

"Just a little more," said Baku to Zan. "He's on his way to self-destruction. Finish him off as soon as he makes a mistake."

Zan harrumphed. 'Easier said than done.'

Despite the fencer's exposure to Baku's screams that messed with his body in various indescribable ways, he kept following up his misses with ripostes in fluid succession, like he meant to miss in order to draw out his opponents' counterattacks.

His misses also became hits, which forced the ninja sharpshooter with the war fork to hesitate and not overextend himself for a possible counterstrike.

'So this is western kenjutsu,' thought the demonic ninja with a long-range weapon quite like Satsuki Sakaguchi. 'Fencing, was it? It's a legitimate bujutsu (martial art) in its own right.'

Rathbone frowned as a missed slash caused even deeper cuts to appear on his body. They weren't yet lacerations, but they sapped him of his strength bit by bit, which also made him more inaccurate with his strikes.

He could not afford having his ripostes or even his parries miss like this.

***

Back to Ren versus Lucas...

Lucas reeled, his head throbbing with a splitting headache. 'Another sneak attack! Curse the Japanese...!'

Another snake whip sonic boom hit Grant like an earth-shattering landslide. Or even an avalanche.  However, he noticed that the repeated vibrations mostly traveled through the ground rather than in the air.

Predictably on the ground. Ren probably aimed his resonating whip vibrations directly back to earth for maximum impact, like the difference between a firework and a shrapnel bomb.

The sonic boom shockwave probably traveled a shorter distance in the air compared to the path of destruction it left on the ground, the concussive force turning everything in its path into a landslide full of sharp rock shards.

Therefore, attacking in the air made more sense than attacking on the ground.

Lucas grabbed his bastard sword with both hands and leaped into the sky, gliding towards Ren while the shockwave harmlessly traveled below him.

The snake ninja ground his teeth enamel to powder and wrapped his snake whips around his body again, intending to protect himself from the sword chop he knew was coming then retaliating with his topsy-turvy whirling typhoon of snake whips afterwards.

However, Ren letting Lucas hit him at all instead of dodging then countering with his whips proved to be a big mistake.

Instead of the bastard sword bouncing harmlessly off of his snake-coiled body, Grant released enough extra torque from his two-handed sword swing to drive the snake ninja straight into the ground.

Although the sword didn't cut through the snake armor, it broke Ren's arm and several of ribs by force of the impact alone. He couldn't uncoil the snake whips in time, which would've torn apart the jumping foreigner in a typhoon of whiplashes.

Ren struggled to get up, tied up by his own snake whips, looking the fool against this half-blooded bastard son with the bastard sword.

Lucas exhaled deeply and grinned at the snake man. "That was a good fight. Because of that, I'll spare you. Get strong and maybe we can fight again!"

"DON'T GIVE ME THAT BULLSHIT!" spat Ren before turning the handle of his snake whips, which retracted a hidden toxin-tipped blade that he stabbed right into the foot of Lucas.

"Ow! What the hell did you do, you cowardly ninja piece of shit!?" Lucas cried out in pain. "Also, what happened to your lisp? It's completely gone now."

"Shut up and die, basssssstard!" said Ren, overcompensating with how long he drew his 'S' sound on that last word. "That hidden blade is tipped with poison. You're as good as dead now."

"Hey, I thought you said you didn't use snake venom!"

"IDIOT! I'm a ninja! Of course I lied!"

Ugh. Ninjas truly were the worst.

***

At the gates of the Minakata subsidiary office building...

A rock and a hard place crushed the Fuuma Ninja Clan's Kai Hidaka between themselves, leaving him stuck there.

Well, no. Not really.

Rather, he got stuck between Lieutenant Satoru Sakaguchi (with his recovering daughter in tow) on one end and Kinta Minakata on another end.

The choice to where he should go couldn't be more obvious, but he also had a mission to fulfill.

Even though Kinta proved the more dangerous and immediate threat, he was also the Brigands Guild's biggest target.

Besides which, while murdering both the weakest Musou Madden Ryu practitioners should help him survive in the short term, Kai didn't want a master swordsman like Kinta hunting him down for revenge like the Kagemusha that he was in the long term.

He believed it was in his best interest to finish off the Minakata heir sooner rather than later.

Judging by how long his half-brother nurtured his grudge against their similarly vengeful family—his whole life—this desire for revenge was probably in their blood.

Perhaps even in-fighting among family members proved hereditary too, seeing how soured the relationship between Kinta and Tatsuya was.

Kinta and "Takuto" felt more like family than nephew and uncle.

Hell, Hidaka merely lurked outside and he could hear how much the two hated each other, judging from their shouting match earlier (or rather, from Tatsuya shouting alone and Kinta curtly shutting him down every time).

In light of his fight-or-flight instinct screaming at him to find an new avenue of escape, he willed himself to fight the Mimawarigumi Battousai instead, hoping against hope that either The Faceless or Lucas Grant would aid him sooner rather than later.

'Kinta-kun,' thought Satoru, holding his gasping daughter's shoulders firmly. 'Please finish that son of a bitch off!'

***

Back to Ren versus Lucas...

In sheer frustration, Ren attempted a whip crack at Lucas's face as he got up, but the blond swordsman caught it by his fist.

Lucas certainly looked like he was about to vomit. Or even shit all over himself.

As expected. Ren had his hidden dagger tipped with the concentrated "poison" (really, snake venom) of various local snakes all over Japan, like the mamushi that belonged to the family of pit vipers.

Stabbing a persistent enemy who survived Ren's whiplashes with the venomous dagger served as the snake man's ace up his sleeve. His trump card.

Typically, the stab site swelled and reddened with a huge blister. The victim then slowed down and fell ill, unable to continue fighting.

From there, Ren would've finished the person off with either grave injuries or lacerations compounded by snake venom coursing through his veins, killing him slowly but surely.

Ren could also bite the bullet and just choked the bitch with his snake whips. His enemies either died by his own hands or by the venom he injected unto them.

Just as Luke looked like he'd empty all the contents of his stomach unto the ground, he then grinned and winked at Ren. "Just kidding."

Luke grabbed the snake whip's tail and wrapped it around his knuckles.

"Jokes on you, asshole. One of the Brigands is an expert in poisons and toxins. He has helped me develop immunity to most deadly organic and inorganic chemicals for years."

From there, Lucas did to Ren was Ren did to Lucas earlier—he pulled the whip then allowed himself to leap along with the recoil or snapback of the taxidermy snake, hammering the injured snake man ninja's head with a devastating headbutt of his own.

Bam. Their heads smashed against each other with a heavy, sickening thud.

Ren felt his brain slosh inside his skull. Grant might've even cracked his noggin altogether, shattering his nose and drawing blood.

How strong was this kid?! He really did seem immune to the snake venom! Or to pain! Or to blunt-force trauma!

As expected of a Minakata spawn. Perhaps his bloodline from his father's side, the Grants, also had monstrous strength in their genetics.

Grant then gave Ren the coup-de-grace blow of driving him right into the nearest wall with a sword stab that finally penetrated through the snake armor, drawing blood.

The whole room soon collapsed all over the snake man, weakened by the numerous sonic booms produced by supersonic snake whips. The Prodigal Son had been baiting the snake ninja to blast him with shockwaves at strategic points of the room's pillars.

The final leap and blow then shook the room enough to make its already weakened and compromised foundations break and collapse directly on top of the ninja.

Before Ren knew it, it was already "checkmate" for him.

***

Back at the three-way impasse deep in the offices of the moneychanger building…

"You two don't fight like gentlemen at all. You're like savages instead," said John Rathbone to the animal-themed masked ninjas from the Sanada Clan with an upturned nose.

These honorless ninjas and their ambush-style attacks reminded John of the time when Britain colonized Africa.

Britain observed the rules of engagement against the African natives, declaring war on them and challenging them to war on the battlefield.

The Africans were supposed to engage them in battle on the trenches until a side won.

However, the tribes of Africa had no concept of how war was waged in the west and thusly ambushed the British camps without warning, like they would when they were fighting amongst themselves in tribal warfare.

These Japanese natives, or at least their ninjas, were the same savages as the African natives. To them, all was fair in war or love or some such nonsense.

Wait a minute. Samurais had bushido (the code of the warrior). Ninjas followed no such code of honor. They were so unlike their honor-bound samurai counterparts.

Both the oni (ogre) ninja Zan and John exchanged thrusts and stabs, probing each other's defenses.

Throughout the exchange, Rathbone noticed how Zan allowed his war fork to get parried by John's rapier, which made the unusual weapon vibrate like a tuning fork instead.

The demonic goblin ninja also only really attacked whenever he made his tuning war fork vibrate.

'Hmmm,' thought John. 'Curiouser and curiouser.'

Rathbone feinted a thrust one… two… three times at Zan and Baku, jabbing his undulating sword arm with motionless jabs of his rapier that went to and fro between the masked ninjas.

Like a pendulum on a Grandfather Clock.

He actually attacked the fourth time with a thrust but stopped himself short, intending to do a recovery afterwards as soon as either shadow warrior reacted and dodged.

They barely even blinked. Their hair-trigger reflexes remembered him doing the same "ultimate" feint earlier to draw out attacks he could counter, so they weren't fooled.

They moved a half-beat earlier than John, intercepting his attack before he could do his recovery and counterstrike.

Thusly, The Faceless had his sword thrust parried by Baku's metal arm bracelets with bladed hooks or claws on the side and countered by Zan's war fork.

However, Rathbone himself sidestepped in time to turn Zan's two-pronged stab into a slash that left a gash over his bodyguard vest.

Zan clicked his tongue on the roof of his mouth. He almost finished off the slippery fencer. John Rathbone appeared every bit as evasive and untouchable as a medieval ninja from Japan!

The two attempted to follow-up their own Parry Riposte with a finishing chain attack but stopped short when they heard the rumblings of the other room, followed by screams.

It wasn't Baku's screeching. Nor was it Lucas.

They recognized the voice. It was instead from their comrade, Ren the Snake Ninja with the taxidermy boa whips.

The bat ninja then told the ogre ninja, "I'm fine, Zan. Go protect the Minakatas or help Ren. The Faceless is mine. I've figured him out."

"Oh, did you now, Baku?" said Zan, the ninja with the red ogre mask and war fork. "All right. Fine. I'll be right back to finish this gaijin off if you haven't killed him by the time I return."

Zan then made his exit, hiding himself in smoke bombs that Rathbone stabbed through regardless, only for his rapier to get blocked by Baku's hooked bracelets.

John harrumphed, stabbing repeatedly at the weaponless ninja to stave him off. "Do you really think you can take me on alone, you cowardly popinjay?"

The grim bat-themed shadow warrior merely shifted into a karate stance and said, "Come hither, gaijin. Get a taste of Yamato Damashi (Japanese Spirit)."

"You're delusional." Smirking, Rathbone murmured to himself, "Once more unto the breech, my fancy clown."

Baku then screeched like the legendary banshees of Irish folklore. A haunting, bloodcurdling cry that reached all the way to the pits of The Faceless' stomach. Or even the insides of his bones, right down to the bone marrow.

'Strange. Is his incessant, irritating screaming part of his trick?' thought Rathbone as he backpedaled from the bat ninja, only to end up back in his en garde position because Baku chased after him immediately.

What was worse was that John felt like vomiting until his stomach turned inside out the more he fought this ninja.

As sickening as these deceitful and sly cowards were when it came to their dirty tactics, it wasn't enough for him to literally feel like puking in disgust.

***

Back at the front portion of the moneychanger affiliate office building…

Kai Hidaka threw himself at Kinta Minakata, hoping against hope that Lucas Grant wasn't too busy to actually handle his business with the goddamn Mimawarigumi Battousai himself.

Sheesh. Kinta was Lucas's half-brother, not Kai's. Let Lucas handle his own sibling. He (Kai) was not his (Lucas's) brother's keeper, after all.

Nevertheless, a strange thing happened.

There was something different about the Kinta that Kai faced today compared to the one he clashed swords with at Kaneda Minakata's Eastern-Western Fusion Mansion.

As usual, like in their first encounter, Kai had to scramble, duck, and sway his body like a lithe dancer to avoid the surgically accurate slashes and attacks of the infamous Kagemusha (Shadow Warrior) of Shogo Amakusa.

Kinta's accuracy hadn't gone down. Not really.

Minakata merely missed Hidaka by hairbreadths or by a razor's edge, the fidgety ninja spurred by adrenalin and twitch reflexes to avoid the iaijutsu (quick-draw) sword strikes with the nimble elusiveness of a fly.

However, Kinta's hack and slash output had gone down drastically.

Even though Kai knew that Kinta favored accuracy over volume, the swordsman had nevertheless become more conservative with his attacks now.

Almost as conservative as The Faceless when he fenced under his John Rathbone persona. John barely ever missed because he never took a stab or thrust unless he was 100 percent sure he'd get the hit.

As though he was conserving his energy.

Wait a minute.

The eyes behind Hidaka's goggled mask narrowed as he let out a long exhale. 'Huh. So fighting Lucas had that effect on him too, huh? That boy is a persistent one, after all.'

Even Lieutenant Satoru Sakaguchi noticed something was amiss. 'Kinta-kun…?'

The lack of sword slashes and pressure allowed the nimble Kai to feint an attack, only for him to shoot his rope spear in between the eyes of Satoru.

To be clear, the rope spear flew at longer distances compared to his rope darts, which he used for closer targets.

The flying acrobatic ninja figured out that Kinta decided to conserve his strength after going through the stamina monster that was Lucas.

When Kai first met the half-breed, he couldn't touch him with a bastard sword, a longsword, or even a shortsword. Hidaka moved too fast and too nimble for the kid to take down.

However, like a hunter-gatherer caveman during the Stone Age, Lucas took down faster prey like gazelle by tiring them out and pursuing them ceaselessly. Over and over. Like an unstoppable force of nature you couldn't outrun.

No wonder Kinta looked like he'd just run a marathon despite having not one mark or cut on him.

While under pressure, Minakata probably worried about the wellbeing of the Sakaguchis at the back of his mind. He would've gotten the adrenalin rush needed to save father and daughter.

However, when Kinta himself was attacked, he let his guard down and became unaware of his surroundings.

Kai noticed as much when he fought the swordsman the first time. This went double now that he'd been tired down by the implacable Lucas Grant.

How ironic for the Sakaguchi Family to end up being liabilities even though they were supposed to be there to protect the Minakata Family.

That split second of distraction and scrambling towards Satoru and Kyoko was the window of opportunity Hidaka needed to finish what Lucas had started.

***

Back at the rear exit of the moneychanger affiliate office building…

John Rathbone switched tactics yet again. He couldn't counter Baku's attacks, who patiently lay in wait and ambushed him in the darkness at every turn.

If one or two probing strikes with his rapier weren't enough, then a complicated series of them—a truly Compound Attack—was in order.

Only problem was that Baku danced around the strikes with the same deft skill that Kai Hidaka, a true-blue ninja in his own right, did.

Even though the bat ninja favored projectiles more when compared to a weapons expert like Zan, he combined the rain of kunai (daggers) and shuriken (ninja stars) at John with karate punches and kicks.

John got nailed with a couple of meaty strikes while dodging the shuriken and kunai. He'd rather get punched or kicked than get slashed.

Muscle memory forced him to do this, remembering how his own estranged son Cain Merrick would use bladed weapons to poison him and others.

The duelist scowled and narrowed his eyes. What was this walking freak show doing to him and his twitch reflexes?

It was the screams, wasn't it? Baku was shrieking like a black cloud of bats all this while. Shrieking like a bat.

In fact, Baku turned the tables on John, with him dictating the pace and forcing him to attack at every turn, only to block with his hooked arm bracelets, blind him with smoke bombs, or injure him with knives and metal shards.

They two chipped away at each other's defenses, but Baku had the upper hand. And the momentum.

Thankfully, Rathbone's uncharacteristic aggression with close-call near-misses (or near-hits, as the case might be) and follow-throughs served as his defense against a significant blow or counter.

"You'll never figure out what I'm doing to you in a million years," boasted Baku after nailing the fencer with an elbow this time, followed by a slash from his arm brace hooks.

Blimey. Screw ninjas and their stupid gimmicks! At least ordinary thieves and ruffians were too unskilled and straightforward to pull the wool over John's world-weary eyes.

Ninjas, on the other hand, thought just like him. Who knew honorless secret agents would have something in common with a gentleman thief like him?

Again, Baku hid in the darkness. He screeched, avoided, or blocked a myriad of ripostes and sword thrusts, and then kicked, punched, or threw Rathbone around like a rag doll to open him up to a fatal stab wound or slash.

Meanwhile, Rathbone could barely hit him back himself. He always somehow missed by a nose hair or cilia.  Like his internal rhythm or reflexes were off.

***

Meanwhile, at the entrance of the moneychanger building, near the stables where the Minakata's carriage was parked…

"I found a horseman!" said Kaita, who popped out of nowhere with a previously escaping driver of the Minakatas whom he held at kunai-point (or ku-knife-point, as Gan would say).

"I found one of your horses!" said Yahiko, who held the reins of the beast of burden, pulling him back to the stables. Thankfully, this stallion wasn't too spooked.

"There's a horse-drawn carriage here that hasn't been sabotaged or had its wheel axels removed!" confirmed Tatsuya Minakata, pale as a bed sheet at this point. "Perfect! Let's go! I don't want to spend another minute at this hellhole!"

"Wait, we're just going to leave? Your nephew is still out there," pointed out Myojin, only for him to get taken aback by Tatsuya's glare. "Okay. You go home to Mommy with your personal ninja. I'll stay here and look out for your nephew."

With a sourpuss look reminiscent of someone biting into a lemon or smelling garbage, Tatsuya looked back and forth between Kaita and Yahiko before relenting, "Ugh. Fine. We'll wait for my stupid nephew to come back."

The Sanada Ninja and the Tokyo Samurai exchanged looks. Should they have escaped with the uncle or were they making a mistake?

Yahiko took a deep breath. He'd deal with the consequences later. The cast was drawn. They'd made their decision, whether it was the right one or not.

They slightly regretted not escaping then and there when the doors, doorway, and walls burst forth rather than swung open before them in splinters like a carriage crash.  

***

The kunai slashes and shuriken cuts were getting closer, sharper, and deeper. Death by a thousand cuts. Or maybe a million.  

While hearing what sounded like a million bats shrieking, clawing, and biting at him in the darkness of the mansion.

Bats, huh? Baku even shot his kunai to snuff out the flames of every last candle and lamp in the vicinity, thus covering them in darkness with the barest sliver of moonlight from the windows.

He really was bat-like. He wasn't blind as a bat but he didn't need his vision as much as a bat would.

A punch from Baku cracked The Faceless' mask.

Aside from distracting him with loud screeches, Baku the Bat-Man might also be using supersonic screams to locate John's position every time.

Rathbone had read about this before. Bats were able to exist nocturnally and move in low light through echolocation.

These animals screamed at high pitches to judge distance or what they were flying through by the amount of time their screams bounced back to them.

In other words, the Baku and Zan tandem read through or perceived Rathbone's change of pace or sudden counters and ripostes from the steady rhythm of his pendulum-swing jabs by their hair-trigger reflexes and superhuman senses.

Come to think of it, didn't Zan have a two-pronged war fork that could've doubled as a tuning fork? He might've used the vibrations from that fork as his means of sonar or echolocation too.

Also, judging by the obliterating vibrations done by the snake ninja known as Ren, that ninja also probably used resonating whip cracks to create a sonic boom as his means of attack.

Ren, Baku, and Zan. They were animal-themed ninjas but they had another thing in common—their supersonic sound and vibration abilities.

They were sound ninjas.

Jesus Christ. These goddamn ninjas fought dirty but their tactics required such a high skill level that you couldn’t help but bitterly laugh at it all.

They were consummate cheaters that would stab your back like the cowards that they were. They did anything to win.

"Kill all invaders! Protect the emperor from the barbarians! All hail to the Empire of Japan! Sonno Joi!" rambled Baku, his terseness disappearing as he smelled blood and went into a feeding frenzy.

Rathbone again did his strongest feint—an actual attack cut short then recovered into a different follow-up counterattack—but this time while armed with the knowledge of how Baku made him miss.

Baku again blocked with his arm bracelets to do an early Parry and Riposte of his own to cut off the follow-up Recovery Attack.

However, Rathbone expected that and countered off of that counter instead, swaying his body at an awkward angle and slipping from the arm bracelet guard to skewer the ninja right in his heart.

He felt vibrations in his body and a second later, he missed Baku's chest and merely left a flesh wound on it instead of a stab before getting kneed in the gut for his trouble.

Bloody hell. John winced and gnashed his teeth.

Why did he miss this time? Baku was wide open! He fell for his bait! His supersonic trip-mine could only tell when he actually attacked instead of what sort of attack he'd do! It was perfect! Why did he fail…?

Wait a minute. Baku wasn't just using echolocation, was he?

'That was close,' Baku the Bat Ninja admitted in spite of himself. 'This man, The Faceless, is too dangerous to be left alive!'

John Rathbone—or rather, The Faceless—chuckled to himself. "I understand your secrets now, you Yellow Peril!"

"You don't understand a thing. Go back to the barbaric west where you belong, waito piggu (white pig)!"

***

In between the realms of the conscious and unconscious lay a subconscious Kyoko.

She'd almost been hung to death by the Brigands Guild ninja, Kai Hidaka of the Fuuma Clan.

A forgotten memory from her childhood surfaced as she swam between the converging seas of wakefulness and slumber.

It was one where she insistently asked his grandfather about how dashing the samurai were when he was a child.

Were they as honorable, loyal, noble, and heroic as the hatamoto-class samurai they worked for, the Minakatas, were?

To be more specific, were they as handsome and dreamy as Kinta Minakata? Or his silent but kind father, Azuma Minakata? Or even his scary grandfather, Toshiro Minakata?

Chuckling, her Grandpa Genzo Sakaguchi told her while she sat on his knee, "Not all samurai  are like Kinta or Azuma. They're more like politicians or policemen. Some good, some bad. Maybe even more bad than good.'

'Huh. So samurais were more like Mr. Toshiro then?' was the question Kyoko had enough sense not to ask her own grandfather.

The old man then turned serious and said, "Samurais aren't what they're all cracked up to be, Kyoko-chan."

Kyoko tilted her head in askance. "What do you mean?"

"For example, there's such a thing as Uchi-sute."

"'Uchi-sute?'" repeated Kyoko. "What is that?"

"It's also known as kiri-sute gomen."

"Kiru… Nani? (What?) Gomen? (Sorry?) Eh?" Kyoko's blew her cheeks up like a chipmunk. "So? What does it all mean, Grandpa?!"

This only made Grandpa Genzo chuckle.

Uchi-sute (To strike and abandon) or burei-sute (To offend and strike) were concepts dating back to the feudal era collectively known later on as kiri-sute gomen (The right to cut and leave).

This concept referred to an old Japanese expression about the right to strike or the right of the samurai to kill commoners for perceived affronts. Samurai had the right to strike with the sword anyone of a lower class who compromised their honor.

"It's the right of a samurai to kill commoners if they were embarrassed by them," was how Genzo phrased it. "We live in a society where a military aristocracy had the license to kill another human being just because he's of a lower class than him."

Naively, Kyoko blinked and said, "But isn't it okay for samurai to do it? Are we not samurai?"

"Listen carefully, child. For my money, no one has the right to kill another, whether they're kings or paupers. The emperor himself or the village idiot. Murder is murder. You have no right to kill someone over a slight as though you're better than them."

Kyoko's eyebrows furrowed cutely. "But higher class samurai like Kinta-chama can kill me because I'm lower class than him, right?"

"The courts would rule it as self-defense, but no. I don't believe he has the right to do it. You can defend yourself as a lower class samurai with a wakizashi, but the whole thing is bogus, if you ask me. If an affront has been committed, let everyone equally have their day in court instead of having samurai get the automatic right to kill anyone who annoys them, I say!"

Nonoko chided in the background, "Father, what are you teaching that poor kid? Sheesh. She's just a child."

Genzo cackled in an "old mannish" sort of way and told Kyoko's mother, "I'm teaching her about real life."

***

Earlier, just as Rathbone almost finished off Baku, he felt the silent vibrations seep deep into his very bones, making his joints ache.

The Faceless realized that aside from shrieks he and Baku could hear, the ninja screeched sounds beyond the human range of hearing.

Humans could only hear sound waves between 20 Hertz (Hz) to 20,000 Hz. However, sound waves below that threshold could affect any person.

Even if you sat in front of something producing a frequency of 19 Hz or infrasound level, even if you couldn't hear anything you could still feel its vibrations. Like how the deaf could feel sound even if they couldn't hear it necessarily.

At 19 Hz, humans could end up with wonky vision because 19 Hz was the resonant frequency of the human eyeball.

When exposed to 177 dB sound waves at 0.5 to 8 Hz, it could start messing with your lungs. Your breathing could end up erratic as your bones start shaking around.

Short-term exposure to such sounds could damage your joints even. Chronic exposure to them could result in visual impairment or outright nausea.

However, these effects to infrasound weren't uniform to all people exposed across the board. It'd take constant resonant exposure to the sound to mess with your internal organs, joints, or vision.

Besides which, it wasn't as if Rathbone was sitting still while getting exposed to the supersonic screeches of Baku. He dodged and moved around a lot, plus they were making a lot of other noises that covered the infrasound as well.

Baku used his shrill shrieks for another purpose, its effects being more immediate than making Rathbone's various organs feel "funny" or "off".

There was also the fact that countering and hitting a target was all about having your body memorize a rhythm and timing to align your attacks to every last opening the opponent had.

Whether you were an expert marksman with a gun, prizefighter with thudding fists, or a swordsman with a sharp blade, hitting the target involved timing your shot, punch, or slash at the right tempo or rhythm.

If you were off by a hair or an inch, you'd miss badly.

And Rathbone missed all thanks to Baku's supersonic or infrasound screeches.

Like a singer who was off-tune, Baku kept hitting the wrong notes even though he was close to the right ones, creating a dissonant if almost accurate tune.

This also created dissonance to Rathbone's own tempo.

Over and over Baku kept getting away with it, so John slowly got used to the rhythm of the bat himself.

However, he couldn't achieve enough resonance in his counters to match Baku's rhythm, so he was the one who kept missing and getting his advance checked.

Baku's supersonic "singing" wasn't only a method of echolocation that acted like a trip-hammer or landmine on whether Rathbone was feinting or attacking for real.

The bat-man ninja also sung a song of the damned that ruined Rathbone's innate abilities to discover and exploit the rhythm of his opponent, solve them like a puzzle, and open them up to counterattacks or ripostes.

Baku mimicked the beat and tempo of Rathbone's own rhythm but was slightly off, creating dissonance in the fencer's movements. Like a terrible singer messing up a proper singer with his off-key singing in a duet.

So on top of having hair-trigger reflexes aided by superhuman senses and echolocation, Baku could also use his supersonic screeching to disrupt Rathbone's counterstriking rhythm.

A two-pronged attack if he'd ever seen one. Like the two-pronged war fork of Zan himself. Or like a classic pincer attack from Ancient Roman military strategy.

'Hmmm. Pincer, eh?' thought Rathbone with a growing smirk on the edges of his unseen mouth.

***

Satoru scrambled for his saber as soon as he saw the rope spear fly from behind the acrobatic ninja of the Brigands Guild.

Shit.

He had set his still out-of-breath daughter down on a nearby statue in a sitting position while looking for an appropriate avenue of escape for the both of them as afforded by the appearance of Kinta.

Only for Kai Hidaka to have other ideas.

The ninja's flight-or-fight instincts went into full gear, attacking Kinta for fear of him countering him if he had attacked the Sakaguchis. Only for him to use that feint as a distraction to attack the Sakaguchis anyway.

'He's slow,' thought Kai after the lieutenant deflected the rope spear with a sheathed saber, unable to draw his sword on time. 'He's easier to take down compared to the likes of the Kagemusha. He hasn't really changed much after all these years, huh? Still the weak link.'

However, as expected, Kinta leaped forward into action to save Satoru from harm even as Kai whipped his missed spear to redirect it towards Satoru's shoulder instead.

"AAUGGH!" Satoru cried out, which stirred the half-unconscious Kyoko awake.

This was what Kai wanted.

When he attacked Kinta in panic, he was the one at risk. This time around, he forced the surgically precise Mimawarigumi Battousai to attack him in panic instead.

Under his terms. In a very predicable manner. Open to counterattacks of his own.

"You're wide open, Kagemusha!" said Kai as he threw multiple rope darts at Kinta, intending to ensnare him into his web.

Meanwhile, waiting on standby from the sidelines was the "fish-hooked" Satoru, whom Hidaka could always tug towards him to use as a meat shield against Kinta's signature Full Moon Slash or Double Full Moon Slash (also known as the Blue Moon Slash).

To Kai's chagrin, the Mimawarigumi Battousai went above and beyond with his sword slashes.  

Like a lightning strike, his sword flashed and streaked across the air as it got drawn out in supersonic speed.

"Tsunami (Tidal Wave)," Kinta murmured his words of malice, the glint of his blade becoming an afterimage of moonlight.

The first slash from the Waxing Stance—a Young Moon Slash—cut apart the first few strands of darts headed towards him before they could hook themselves into the ground or his flesh to form an ensnaring net.

The follow-up combo of the Waxing Crescent Moon to Waxing Half Moon (First Quarter) Slash came twice as fast as the first Young Moon Slash. These slashes ripped apart the flailing ropes into confetti.

However, Kai anticipated as much. As expected of the man who went toe-to-toe against Gensai Kawakami of the Ishin Shishi's Four Butchers and lived to tell the tale.

Hidaka had seen this technique before from Kinta's fellow Musou Madden Ryu practitioner, Sho Kojima. He thusly knew how the Tsunami worked.

The Tsunami was a series of slashes chained together from weakest to strongest that started slowly and went faster and faster in the final few slashes as its momentum increased.

Its timing went 1 (pause) 2, 3, then 4567. Like how the turning tides started as a shallow low tide weak only to end up becoming a deep and strong high tide at their apex.

There were several ways to counter this.

The first was to block, evade, or counter the first few slow slashes to not fall for the rest of the final supersonic slashes. If he confirmed the hit, he'd do the rest of the combo.

Like getting out of the beach during the low tide to get to higher ground or far away from shore to avoid getting swept up by the huge waves come high tide.

However, the Mimawarigumi Battousai solved this by gauging the distance and doing the first few slashes on the rope darts before charging forward exactly to where Kai dodged and executing the supersonic slashes like a building deluge of high-pressure waves.

Had Kinta acted this urgently back when he faced off against his half-brother, he might have even killed Lucas then and there. Maybe.

The second (more difficult) way to counter the Tsunami was this.

Using a "lifesaver" or boat against the upcoming tides to ride the waves.

"GET OVER HERE!" shouted Kai as he pulled and dragged Satoru towards the incoming whirling dervish of steel.

Dragging him deep into the waters of Kinta's unstoppable tidal waves of doom.

***

In response to getting nearly hit to the heart by his rapier, Baku the Bat-Man Ninja sunk into the darkness further, blending into his environment and hiding his presence.

He opted to ambush John Rathbone at blind spots or while unseen, with his cloak helping obscure his figure. Slowly cornering the duelist swordsman until he had nowhere to hide.

Thusly, Rathbone's depth perception got compromised by fighting blind with what little moonlight spilled through the darkness. He couldn't see the walls, floor, or anything, so when Baku backed away from the light, it looked like he merely shrunk.

And whenever he avoided the light altogether, it looked like he got swallowed by the sea of blackness.

So The Faceless decided to adapt a new personality the same way a normal person would discard one set of clothes to another set to fit the occasion. It started by taking off his masquerade ball mask and swapping it for a different face mask.

A plain all-white porcelain face mask with no mouth and eye holes. The mask of another swordsman. A Spaniard swordsman, to be exact.

He unsheathed a hidden dagger in his person, dual-wielding an espada y daga (sword and dagger).

"Hola. (Hello). We haven't met yet, but I'm Fabian La Cerca. You are a dishonorable coward. Tonto de culo (Idiot of the ass). Prepare to die."

Baku harrumphed, unimpressed. "So you 'transformed' yourself from one colonizer to another? You're all the same to me, gaijin," said the bat-man ninja before letting out another one of his dissonant screams.

Its vibrations reached La Cerca to his very core like a loud, deafening rumble of thunder after a lightning strike.

They clashed weapons with each other. It was then that Fabian decided to talk. While Rathbone would rather his actions speak louder than words, Fabian loved the sound of his voice.

"I understand why Japan instituted the Sakoku (Locked Country) policy. You didn't want foreign influence to taint your culture before being colonized. Every neighbor of Japan were colonized by western powers through religion or trade. Invaded and conquered by the superior civilizations."

"…."

As usual, like with Rathbone, La Cerca jabbed his sword and circled around blind spots whenever Baku decided to ambush him with hand-to-hand combat, grappling, throws, or projectile weapons.

Baku's perfect pitch went higher and higher until it seemed like the bat-man had lost his voice. But he actually didn't. The soundless scream vibrated through the air, beyond the scope of human hearing.

"The Tokugawas distanced Japan from the west, thinking them as a destabilizing force. And you know what? They were absolutely right. These colonizers used religious and/or brute force to divide and conquer pieces of the east from themselves."

However, Fabian managed to feel the infrasound resonate—or rather, dissonate—into his internal organs. Like tremors from an earthquake or vibrations within a carriage going through a bumpy road.

Or an extra loud heartbeat that pulsed all over his veins, from the center of his body all the way to the tips of his fingers and toes.

"Spain got Mexico and the Philippines. Britain got Hong Kong and India while also humiliating China for good measure with the Opium Wars. Even a young country like the United  States of America was able to humiliate the Tokugawas, making them lose face and instigating the Bakumatsu (End of the Shogunate)."

Baku intensified his attacks, covering his shuriken or kunai throws with his cape or sleight of hand to make their trajectory less visible or predictable. The ninja also attacked from behind, forcing La Cerca to turn and pivot to delay his reactions.

"…Japan's justified fear of foreigners and all things foreign led to the country going under lock down or Sakoku, limiting contact with other countries. However, this also resulted in your nation becoming weak and backwards while the rest of the world progressed."

Baku couldn't believe it. Even in the cover of darkness, this La Cerca version of The Faceless kept catching his ambushes. Like he could see in the darkness himself.

What changed from before? The effects of his infrasound shouts to Fabian's ears should still leave him disoriented and out-of-sync with his counters. How was he able to do counters now?!

"In the world stage, Japan has been humiliated by the United States of  America and Britain. You've been exposed as a backwards country with primitive technology. Japan could not defeat the U.S.A. Isolationism has left you frozen in time."

The Faceless's joints had started to ache from all his exposure to the bat-man's infrasound screams, but Fabian kept pushing forward regardless. His pseudo-arthritis be damned.

Baku then realized something.

The infrasound screaming disrupted Fabian's rhythm and tempo. However, the dissonance was only slight and he merely missed by mere inches or millimeters. Sometimes by a hairbreadth or fraction of a millisecond.

Also, was La Cerca talking all this propaganda garbage to disrupt Baku's infrasound screams as well? Did the fencer have echolocation abilities himself?

Or maybe Fabian gauged when Baku was nearby through sensing the vibrations of the infrasound screams himself, thus notifying him of when to attack!

How dare the gaijin use his own screams against him! He was a clever bastard, that Faceless person. Just like Zan.

"However, resistance is futile. Thanks to the black ships of Commodore Matthew Perry, your country has opened up to reality. Ninjas and samurais are relics of the past. The bygone age of just 20 years ago now feels like it was 100 years ago, wasn't it?"

Baku's pivoting, camouflage, and ambush tactics paired with his sonar echolocation paid dividends, with him delaying La Cerca's reactions enough to occasionally hit him with punches, kicks, projectiles, or stabs with his hooked gauntlets.  

Fabian La Cerca answered by dancing around Baku in circles, chaining his attacks together, and reacting faster and faster, stabbing in the darkness and getting more hits than misses.

A stab to the thigh later and Baku understood what had changed in The Faceless.

Now that Fabian dual-wielded two weapons, he could use the first strike from his lead hand to gauge the distance and the second strike to his rear hand to make up for any misses.

His Fabian personality landed his counters now despite being out-of-rhythm because every time his rapier missed, his dagger on his other hand allowed him to fill in the gaps where he'd otherwise be open.

His rapier indeed served as his range finder to hit his target despite being a second out of beat.

"Don't you get it? The existence of the Meiji Era is proof that the West won. You are now a colony of Western Superpowers," said Fabian. "You played chicken with the West and blinked. Now you're our bitch."

An attempt to pierce a cornered Baku's eye with his rapier that missed ended up becoming a dagger slash to the belly. However, the ninja had one more trick up his sleeve.

Baku the Bat-Man flew. Or rather, he jumped and glided in the air, with his cape serving as both his wings and his parachute. The ninja couldn't get cornered.

"How about that? All your posturing is for nothing, outsider. You can't even hit me now."

This only made La Cerca chuckle.

"You think just because you can tell when I'm attacking, you can counter me? Or fly away? Fine. I'll do you one better. I'll tell you exactly what I'm about to do so you can stop me better. I dare you to stop me."

"Just shut up and fight! You talk too much, you foolish gaijin!" spat Baku, who sunk into the darkness once more to hide his presence and attack at a blind spot.

Fabian then said, "I'm going to corner you, which will make you fly. I'll then stab you while you're in midair, unable to dodge."

And then he did just that.

La Cerca predicted the ninja would feint attacking from behind, only to fly above his head and swoop down as he turned around, stabbing him at the back regardless.

He figured that the ninja would do something as tricky as set up an obvious pattern to counter as bait for him.

Regardless, Fabian pretended to fall for the feint and instead stabbed Baku as he flew. Just like he said.

"Now I'll fight you without the rapier. Just the dagger," boasted La Cerca. "I'm saving the dagger for a worthy challenger. Like that other ninja, Zan."

"DIIIIIIE!" cried the bleeding, desperate flying bat-man ninja, his gauntlets at the ready to block the dagger stabs, only for him to get run through with the rapier.

"Sorry, I lied," said the cheeky Fabian, driving the flabbergasted ninja out of the office entrance and into the exterior compound where Yahiko Myojin, Tatsuya Minakata, and Kaita stood.

"This is Manifest Destiny. Bow down to your superiors, small fry! I am the Western Superpower that Japan should fear!"

***

To Be Continued...

Remember the Sanada Demons? Yeah, me neither. Still, I'm going to attempt to squeeze out the best parts out of these infamous filler episode villains the same way I incorporated Shogo Amakusa as a major character in this fanfic.

That sounds on-brand for Rurouni Yahiko.

The trash talking of La Cerca is done as homage to the trash talking of Larry Bird, particularly when he told his opponents what he was going to do before doing it.

Danke, Abdiel

[gingersnapwolves]

time for a writing meme~

got tagged by @yuzukimist who for some reason it will not allow me to tag back. ah, tumblr.

1. How many works do you have on AO3? 92 ... and they’re all long .... lol

2. What is your total AO3 word count? 5,162,079 .... should I have had a party when I hit five million?

3. How many fandoms have you written for and what are they? Literally so many ... although most of them are from ye olden days. Like right now I only have 5 fandoms on AO3 (Untamed, Shadowhunters, Teen Wolf, Avengers, and one fic for The Sleuth of the Ming Dynasty), but on my old fic page I also had Harry Potter, How to Train Your Dragon, A;tLA, and Firefly, as well as a bunch of anime fandoms: Tokyo Babylon/X99, Yami no Matsuei, Weiss Kreuz, Card Captor Sakura, Fruits Basket, Fushigi Yuugi, Gundam Wing, Durarara!!, One Piece, Bleach, D. Gray-Man, Fullmetal Alchemist, Hikaru no Go, Rurouni Kenshin, Loveless, Naruto, and Saiyuki. A lot of those were just a few drabbles, though. I am probably more surprised than you are to see some of those fandoms on this list. *insert ‘I have no memory of this place’ gif*

4. What are your top five fics by kudos? All Teen Wolf.

Divided We Stand - still unsure of why this got the popularity it did. Sure, it’s good, it’s fun, but I don’t think it’s ... great? But it’s a super popular trope.

With or Without You - uhm, sure?

we can take our time - abo Sterek, yeah, that checks out

Whatever Works - poly ace!Sterek+aro!Steter, yeah, that checks out

What Goes Around - should be number one but understandable, have a nice day

5) Do you respond to comments, why or why not?

If someone has asked a specific question, or made a comment I really feel needs to be addressed, then sure. But usually no - I have trouble keeping up, and I can really only type ‘Thanks!’ so many times before I feel like a tool.

6) What’s the fic you’ve written with the angstiest ending?

I wrote some X/99 fics that were pretty depressing. The only one I specifically remember is And From the Ashes, which I got peer pressured into giving an unhappy ending lmao.

7) Do you ever write crossovers?

I’ve written a few back in the day. These days I tend to write fusions. I did write that pretty epic Teen Wolf/Shadowhunters crossover though.

8) Have you ever received hate on a fic?

LOL, of all varieties and varying levels of competence.

9) Do you write smut? If so, what kind? I have written plenty of smut in the past, and some of it I think was pretty good! These days I don’t. I’m really not sure why? I just don’t feel the need to include it any more. Some mild lime (ogodI’msoold) is the most I bother with.

10) Have you ever had a fic stolen? lmao someone once took Divided We Stand and published it on Amazon without even changing the character names or taking out the AO3 header. I think that takes the fucking cake. But it’s happened a few other times, too.

11) Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Several times! Back in the day with my besties and my sister, and these days sometimes with my wife. I have co-written with online friends a couple times but I find it difficult.

12) What’s your all-time favorite ship?

you’re joking, right? lol

characters/therapy

13) What was the first fandom you wrote for? seaQuest DSV, and I will not apologize for this

14) What’s your favorite fic you’ve written?

as @yuzukimist said, you might as well ask me to choose one of my favorite children! and my faves might not be my best, too. I mean, will I ever top TSOIP? But it barely counted as a fanfic by the end of it haha

I’m too tired to tag people but this was a fun list of questions, so have at it, anybody who’s interested!

[iliveonmylaptop]

WIP ASK GAME

Rules- Post the names of all your WIPs. Feel free to send me asks about them! I’ll talk about them/post a snippet

oh jeez, Rain

tagged by @liveandletrain woohoo

I tag @cruisingheightswithdragons :P

welp let’s try this in no particular order

In His Element(s): bnha/atla crossover, gen and lots of feelings

The Lost and The Found: bnha/rurouni kenshin crossover, immortal tropes and found family galore

Poltergeist: bnha kinda self-insert fic, mostly just chaos and banter

Three’s a Crowd: bnha narrator fusion, Ojiro centric

Yellow Wood: bnha au, focused on an alternative mentor/student dynamic with Izuku and Toshinori

The Time Jump Trials: Star Trek, all series crossover focusing on time travel, with Trip as the central character

We’re All Lost in the End: Avengers/Clone Wars crossover, lots of worldbuilding and thoughts on Jedi

And the Train Came Early: Borderlands 2 au/rewrite with headcanons and worldbuilding focused on the Sirens and with Maya as the sole protagonist

Unnamed Hetalia wip: historically focused with a modern narrator and gratuitous magic

This is not ALL of my wips, but these are the ones I believe I am most likely to continue!

[ultraericthered]

Anime ranked by tiers, based on this post.

S (God-Tier) - Cowboy Bebop, Digimon Adventure, Digimon Tamers, Dragon Ball Z Kai, Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood, Monster, Neon Genesis Evangelion, The Slayers NEXT, and Vinland Saga

A (Exceptionally Good/Great) - Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day, Excel Saga, Fruits Basket (2019), Gintama, When They Cry: Higurashi, March Comes In Like A Lion, Mobile Fighter G Gundam, A Place Further Than The Universe, Pokemon: The Beginning, Puella Magi Madoka Magica, Re:ZERO, Sailor Moon, The Slayers, Revolutionary Girl Utena, and Yu Yu Hakusho

B (Good But Falls Short Of Being Fully Solid) - Ace Attorney: the Animation, Akudama Drive, Angel Beats!, Assassination Classroom, Attack On Titan, Clannad + After Story, Danganronpa: the Animation, Death Note, Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, El Hazard: The Magnificent World, Eureka Seven, Girls Band Cry, Gundam: The Witch From Mercury, Happy Sugar Life, Hellsing Ultimate, Hunter x Hunter (2011), K-On!, Kill La Kill, Little Witch Academia, Love Chunibyo and Other Delusions, Made In Abyss, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, Nadja of Tomorrow, Pokemon: Sun and Moon, Rurouni Kenshin, Sailor Moon R, Sailor Moon Crystal: Infinity, School Live!, Senki Zessho Symphogear, Star Driver, Steins; Gate, Sound! Euphonium, Tenchi Muyo, Tokyo Magnitude 8.0, Toradora, The Wanderers: El Hazard, Wolf’s Rain, Wonder Egg Priorty, Yuki Yuna Is A Hero, and Yu-Gi-Oh (98)

C (Just Good) - Air, The Apothecary DIaries, Baccano, Bakugan Battle Brawlers, Black Cat, Black Lagoon, Black Butler, Blue Exorcist, Chainsaw Man, Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion, Digimon Adventure 02, Digimon Fusion, Digimon Ghost Game, The Demon Girl Next Door, Demon Slayer, Don’t Toy With Me Nagatoro-san, Fate Zero, Fate Stay Night: Unlimited Blade Works, From Me To You, Fruits Basket, Girls Last Tour, Great Pretender, Hunter x Hunter (99), Inuyasha, I’m In Love With The Villainess, KonoSuba, Love Live! School Idol Project, Love Live! Sunshine!!, Magic Knight Rayearth, Magi: The Labyrinth Of Magic, Mobile Suit Gundam (Classic), Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam, Mobile Suit Gundam SEED, Moriarty The Patriot, My Bride Is A Mermaid, My Hero Academia, My Next Life As A Villainess, Pokemon: Best Wishes, Pokemon Journeys, Odd Taxi, Rock Lee And His Ninja Pals, Rozen Maiden, RWBY, Sailor Moon Crystal (C2), Soul Eater, Spy x Family, SSSS Gridman, Teasing Master Takagi-San, Tenchi series, Tiger & Bunny, Trigun, Vision of Escaflowne, WataMote, Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters, and Zatch Bell

D (Above Or Below Average) - Akame Ga Kill, Akiba Maid Wars, Azumanga Daioh, Berserk, Black Butler, Blood Plus, Blood -C, Bungou Stray Dogs, Captain Earth, Carole & Tuesday, Charlotte, A Certain Scientific Railgun, Code Geass: Akito the Exiled, D-Gray Man, Darling in the FranXX, Date A Live, Digimon Savers, Digimon Universe Appli Monsters, Digimon Adventure (2020), Dragon Ball Super, Duel Masters, Durarara, Fate Stay Night, Fullmetal Alchemist, Full Metal Panic, The Future Diary, Gabriel Drop Out, Horimiya, Lord El-Melloi II Case Files, Love Live! Superstar!!, MAR, My-HIME, My-Otome, Medarot, Megaman NT Warrior, Mobile Suit Gundam Wing, Mushrambo, My Dress Up Darling, Nadia: The Secret Of Blue Water, Nanana’s Buried Treasure, Nijiyon Animation, Nisekoi, Noragami, One Piece, One Punch Man, Ouran High School Host Club, Oshi No Ko, Pokemon: Advanced Generation, Powerpuff Girls Z, Ranma 1/2, Rave Master, The Rising of the Shield Hero, Sailor Moon S, Sailor Moon Super S, Sakugan, Shadows House, Shaman King, Shikimori’s Not Just A Cutie, Shuffle!, Slime Taoshin Hette-300, Talentless Nana, Tales Of The Abyss: the Animation, Tengen Tonpa Gurren Lagann, Yohane: Sunshine In The Mirror, Your Lie In April, Yu-Gi-Oh! GX, and Yu-Gi-Oh! Arc-V

E (Mediocre Or Bad) - Beyblade series, Bleach, BNA, Candy Candy, A Certain Magical Index, Code Geass R2, Digimon Frontier, Dragon Ball GT, Elfen Lied, El Hazard: The Magnificent World 2, Fairy Tail, Hellsing, Love Live! Njijgasaki High School Idol Club, Marmalade Boy, Mobile Suit Victory Gundam, Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny, Mobile Suit Gundam 00, Naruto, Overlord, Pokemon XY/XY&Z, Sailor Moon Crystal (C1), When They Cry: Umineko, When They Cry: Higurashi Gou/Sotsu, and Yu-Gi-Oh!: 5Ds

F (Bottom-Of-The-Barrel Abysmal) - All Bakugan Sequels, Boruto, Danganronpa 3: The End Of Hope’s Peak Academy, Digimon Fusion: The Young Hunters Leaping Through Time, Digimon Adventure Tri, DN Angel, El Hazard: The Alternate World, Eureka 7 AO, The Familiar of Zero, Goblin Slayer, Guilty Crown, Hikaru No Go, M3: The Dark Metal, Mobile Suit Gundam AGE, Mushoku Tensei, Naruto Shippuden, Pokemon: Diamond and Pearl, The Prince of Tennis, Sailor Moon Stars, SCryED, Uzaki-Chan Wants To Hang Out, Yu-Gi-Oh! ZeXAl, and Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS

[danwhobrowses]

Valentines 2020: A Celebration of My Ships

So it’s valentine’s day again, and...yeah it’s not too great when you’re single is it? Considering that I’ve already gone through a tub of ice cream...

But, it doesn’t mean I’m a cynic, quite the opposite. Most of my fandoms involves a ship in some shape or form, hell I shipped before I even knew what shipping was, so I’m gonna talk about some of them...the ones that still make me happy and didn’t crash and burn in heartbreaking and frankly insulting fashion (looking at you Homestuck ¬_¬), gotta mention that these are not all the ships I ship, they’re just some of the ones I’m quite consistently high on

New Entries So with new fandoms come new ships...as is the usual formula anyway, though my pattern of watching things is usually with some delay, I only watched Rurouni Kenshin and started My Hero Academia in 2019, I still hold off on Attack on Titan and My Hero Season 4 because if I get in, I get IN. So these fandoms may not be new, but they are new to me Steven Universe is very new to me, I’ve been aware of how good it is and their concepts like Fusion. I like it, particularly Lapis Lazuli I really relate to her, but ship wise the two I really like are the obvious ones; Steven x Connie and Ruby x Sapphire (Garnet)

Garnet is badass and chill at the same time, but when she unfuses we see the stuff that makes me smile, the pda between Ruby and Sapphire is adorable, the little pecks and whatnot softens me up like no man’s business. Steven and Connie also have the mushy dynamic with both of them deeply into each other but still being strong individuals. The love for each other is equally platonic as it is romantic as they gel together, both being strong willed in different ways. The laughter probably gets me the most with both of them, the genuine laughter is so sweet and so realistic it’s hard not to love. My Hero Academia seems to be our next wave of shonen anime and for good reason, it does high notes so well and the cast of characters are vibrant and exciting. I haven’t hit Season 4 yet since I’m waiting till it’s all done to binge so I may be a little behind on some stuff (sadly it’s hard to avoid spoilers, I know about Infinity and Unbreakable). While I do like Deku x Uraraka, Tetsutetsu x Kendo and Eraserjoke but the two that I find most enjoyable are Todomomo and Kamijirou

(artist nonoko135 btw, bit tough to find a single image with both ships) Fairly popular ships in their own right, Todomomo doesn’t get many hints but they are sweet, naive rich kids with their own confidence issues, it also feels like they look out for each other especially after the final exam they did together. With Kamijirou though it’s probably one I favour if I had to choose between the two, simply because it’s a dynamic I really like; she busts on him so hard to mask her enjoyment of his company and he takes it because he feels at ease around her, the best part is when Kaminari goes 0 volts, he makes her laugh and that’s kinda big for Jirou given how self-conscious and stoic she can be. Rurouni Kenshin was always on my list, I have often heard about the Swordsman with a blade that cuts no-one. The anime is a bit up and down, after Shishio it’s just filler, but as documented in my Redemption Arc post it is at its core a great story of redemption for the main character, and the driving force for Kenshin’s redemption is his love for Kaoru

While Sano and Megumi have a unique dynamic hinted to be romantic at times, nothing can really beat Kenshin and Kaoru, she literally became Kenshin’s conscience, a representation of his hope to be a good man away from the shadow of Battousai the Manslayer. It may be your traditional romance of the two wanting to be by each other’s side in danger but it works so well given the kind of danger Kenshin is often in. Kaoru still strives to protect herself and aid Kenshin in a way that doesn’t make her continuously wonder about being a burden and Kenshin does everything in his power to keep Kaoru from pain, physical and emotional, even if it meant leaving to keep her safe. The main part of what makes this lovely is the fact that not only did Kaoru’s influence make Kenshin value his own life once more but after continual torment in his past she still saw him as the person he wanted to be, and welcomed in a new home, a new family he was able to live a life he never imagined he could deserve. The Regulars Our Regulars are the ships I still consistently ship, they’re not very old but they’re still pretty great and they still stand the test of time. Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. has quite a few ships over its 6 (coming up 7) season lifespan, being the longest surviving MCU tv series and one of the most consistently great shows MCU offered - especially Season 4, some of the best TV was on Season 4. But while Philinda is close, Mack and Yoyo or even Piper and Davis (don’t, I don’t care if you believe she’s a lesbian with the hots for May these are my ships) there is one one ship in Shield you can all rally behind, Fitzsimmons

Even when canon it is a consistent emotional rollercoaster. One of those ships where the writers know you love it and decide to put you through as much pain and emotional torment as humanely possible. But you endure it, because these two smart kids are worth it. They have sweet moments, badass moments, emotional moments and even though they get brought apart time and time again, they still find each other, the universe cannot stop them - and it better end happily for them come next season. Overwatch was a phenomenon when it came out a few years ago, Blizzard may have caused it to have some heavily bad rep but I still look forward to its sequel coming out. Given its large roster and most of the characters’ sexuality and relationship status up in the air, it leaves a lot of room for shipping. I do still love Anahardt, Mercy76 kinda falling due to 76 being gay but I like Gency too, my rarepairs include McPharah and Symmzo but my favourite is actually Meihem.

Now I know, Mei’s only voice lines towards Junkrat are cold, they have differing views in terms of omnics and...due process of the law. But there’s a lot they do have in common; both are quite intelligent engineers having made their weapons by hand, both endured trauma and both love their puns. But even the stuff that make them different can compliment one another. You don’t have to like it, but I do, I enjoy the dynamic of Jamison being so head over heels that he embarrasses himself to try and get Mei’s attention, while Mei softens to the fact that his very nature is warped by his lawless upbringing and that deep down he is an exciting and in his own way sweet guy.  Back to anime, because what else do I do with my day, getting into One Piece was always going to be a long effort, keeping tabs on the Manga does make it easier and I’ve been able to catch up quickly. Ships are shaky territory with One Piece because Oda does make a point of not having romance happen a lot, not to existing living characters at least. But I still have the ones I like; Shanks x Makino, Sabo x Koala, Franky x Robin, Sanji x Pudding, Rebecca x Koby, the list goes on, but my favourite has to be Zoro x Tashigi

May not be up there with the ‘big ships’ of One Piece but I do enjoy them the most. Individually the two are characters I have deep interest in; Zoro is well Roronoa Fucking Zoro, santoryu swordsman extraordinaire, master of nothing happening and will cut you 8 ways to Sunday, but Tashigi is a character I like because she also tries, unlike Zoro she isn’t blessed with 2 years training with Mihawk and she’s at constant arms with this self doubt that as a Woman she won’t be as strong (and probably whoever of influence to her made her believe such a thing), people may get on her back for never winning a fight but she fights strong people without a second thought. But back to the pairing, they have an interesting dynamic; two very similar people on different sides of the law, I don’t think Tashigi continues to chase him simply because he refused to cut her in their fight and I don’t think it’s just her former resemblance to Kuina that gets Zoro so riled up about her, I mean Zoro is usually so chill to side characters to the point where he’s ready to throw down but with Tashigi, it’s different, they bicker but he also came to her aid. I still continue to hope that Tashigi shows in Wano for more Zoro interaction, and to prove herself to fans and to Zoro that she is strong and capable. One of my favourite anime of all time is Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, a combination of laughter, tears and deep philosophical character journeys in a 20th century world with the alchemy fantasy element drawn from actual legit alchemical sources. It just hits all the right notes for me, and ships hit right too; I love most of the ships from EdWin, AlMay and LingFan, but like Fitzsimmons there is one ship that stands above even the main characters, Royai.

Mustang and Hawkeye right from the bat have that connection that needs no dancing around, they care for each other but they work together. Like the rest of the ships they banter, argue but always have each other’s backs, to the point that they go into an insane rage at even the threat of the other being hurt. I don’t think anyone can not ship these two, that’s how strong their chemistry is, even if they can’t officially label it as a relationship because of their jobs it’s that line in the sand that everyone knows it, because it’s impossible to ignore. The Old Guard So we get to the oldest ships in my catalogue, the fact that they could stand the test of time is for a long time what shaped me as a shipper. I still ship these to this day so I ship them pretty hardcore Comics is probably the hardest place to ship something, because different writers will try different pairings at the drop of a hat. Even consistent pairings like Spiderman and Mary Jane, Batman and Catwoman, Beat Boy and Raven, Superman and Lois and more can end up being split in favour of Cindy Moon (I do love Silk), Wonder Woman and others. But I can’t ignore the fact that I’ve always loved Dick Grayson and Barbara Gordon

I may’ve liked Teen Titans, but I was never on Team Starfire, it’s fine if you are but to me I have always been in with Dick and Babs. Not only do they have excellent banter but they gel well on and off of crime fighting, no matter how many times DC break them apart (like seriously, how many times do you have to try Bruce and Barbara until you realise that it creeps people out?) they always find each other again someway down the line, they are one of DC’s best couples and while they may never get a definitive ending because of the nature of comics, I still love that there’s a relationship of two strong individuals who can stand as equals and continue to keep their charm and wit after years of being together. When I was young, decades ago as it pains me to type, Digimon was the prime competitor against Pokémon’s tidal wave. Its anime had an awesome opening, more characters with some deeper themes and a quicker pacing. While many could quickly connect to Tai or Matt for their leaderlike attitude or Joe and Izzy for their intelligence or Mimi and Sora for their determination, I gravitated towards TK, a child who had room to grow and the greatest of potential, so when the Dark Masters came in we saw one of my oldest ships take form, Takari

TK and Kari’s pairing was popular that it managed to carry on into Adventure 02 and we got plenty of lovely moments in TRI (though they shorthanded both by having Ophanimon quickly fused and Seraphimon - one of the strongest Digimon - digivolve as backup in a Sora episode). 02′s epilogue is of course a sore spot we can hope Kizuna retcons because these two have been through thick and thin and their bond is clear. Even as they reach their late teens and TK has become master of hats and joined Matt’s band, they still hang out, banter and tease but they still are comfortable to hold each other’s hand and be vulnerable with one another too. Digimon may’ve been a contender, but Pokémon was still the clear winner, even to this day it is one of the most popular franchises in the world. The anime may be an up and down slope (current series seems a tad boring, 10 episodes before Ash caught a Pokémon, plus I don’t like that Ash won in Alola and now thinks he doesn’t have to try) but you can never take away the nostalgia, or the ships. I’ve shipped many in Pokémon in various media; Mallow x Lillie and Jessie x James in the anime, Ruby x Sapphire in the Manga, Looker x Anabel in the games (with Emma being their adoptive daughter dammit Looker you could’ve taken her with) among others and from Pokémon comes the oldest ship I’ve ever shipped, Pokéshipping

Before I even knew what Shipping was I shipped this, Misty may also be mostly the reason for my attraction to redheads but that’s neither here nor there. People may not like it, may prefer some of the softer spoken female (or male) companions Ash has had or feel they’ve grown out of it, but not me. I loved Misty’s feistiness and determination but also the fact that she could reign Ash in (sometimes) to make him think things through, as much as Misty was a companion to Ash she was a rival, a teacher and a supporter of his goal, but she also had her own goals which she fought for as well. They may bicker but they have also had tender moments as well and even with Misty’s return in the excellent Sun and Moon episodes they had their chemistry is palpable. To me, Ash and Misty were kindred spirits and the feeling has never changed since. So with another year of Valentine’s Day going the way it usually does, I’d like a moment to thank these ships, and all my other ships I didn’t have the space to mention, for being something that brings out happiness and a soft joy deep within my being, and for all the fanartists and fanfic writers that bring that love to life Happy Valentine’s Day

[ao3feed-ineffablehusbandz]

When Angels Visit Us

by FaramirsBlessing

Aziraphale and Crowley visit Japan during the Meiji Revolution to keep an eye on a young red-headed swordsman.

Words: 4400, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English

Fandoms: Good Omens - Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett, Good Omens (TV), Rurouni Kenshin

Rating: General Audiences

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Categories: Gen, M/M

Characters: Aziraphale (Good Omens), Crowley (Good Omens), Himura Kenshin, Ishin Shishi OCs

Relationships: Aziraphale/Crowley (Good Omens), Aziraphale & Crowley (Good Omens)

Additional Tags: Aziraphale and Crowley in Japan, Wearing Terrible Clothes, Bad at Fitting In, Sad Aziraphale (Good Omens), Sad Crowley (Good Omens), Emotional Aziraphale, Emotional Crowley (Good Omens), Everyone goes through the full range of emotions in this, Crossover, Crossovers & Fandom Fusions, Japanese Culture, Young Kenshin, Kenshin is stupid

source http://archiveofourown.org/works/20110681

[ao3feed-goodomens]

When Angels Visit Us

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/2Tesasx

by FaramirsBlessing

Aziraphale and Crowley visit Japan during the Meiji Revolution to keep an eye on a young red-headed swordsman.

Words: 4400, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English

Fandoms: Good Omens - Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett, Good Omens (TV), Rurouni Kenshin

Rating: General Audiences

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Categories: Gen, M/M

Characters: Aziraphale (Good Omens), Crowley (Good Omens), Himura Kenshin, Ishin Shishi OCs

Relationships: Aziraphale/Crowley (Good Omens), Aziraphale & Crowley (Good Omens)

Additional Tags: Aziraphale and Crowley in Japan, Wearing Terrible Clothes, Bad at Fitting In, Sad Aziraphale (Good Omens), Sad Crowley (Good Omens), Emotional Aziraphale, Emotional Crowley (Good Omens), Everyone goes through the full range of emotions in this, Crossover, Crossovers & Fandom Fusions, Japanese Culture, Young Kenshin, Kenshin is stupid

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/2Tesasx

[squirrelwrangler]

I was tagged by @kazaera to share titles of WIPs and, if sent an ask, a snippet from them, and that sounded like a fun way to start the morning. I’ll include a brief description and note which have no title - not everything does. Some ideas have a sentence at most written

Some are the AO3 familiars:

Of Ingwë Ingweron - Pre-Great Journey elves, focus on Ingwë. Yes I haven’t forgotten this and yes the next chapter is the preparation to send the Three Ambassadors to Valinor

‘Barn-raising’ - Young Bucks of Cuiviénen short story in which Ingwë and Finwë help Elwë’s tribe build a house, excuse for fluff

‘That AU where Ingu and Elwë swap plots and Ravennë leads the Minyar’ - what it says on the tin

‘That AU where Ravennë fucks Ingwë before Alaco dies and the meet-the-parents post-wedding feast is awkward’ - exactly what it says on the tin

‘Hound of Morwë’ - Morwë rebels against Tata because he is a loving young boy who questions authority and when he is executed the Tatyar splinter from the dying Cuiviénen

 - Morgoth’s favorite elven spirit twisted into a loyal lieutenant meets Mornacu on the battlefield of the Nirnaeth. Not a happy reunion

Service to the Dead - Gorlim and Aegnor’s Ghost Buddy Cop Adventure

In Need of a Cold Shower - Two OCs project lust at each other while travelling with Elrond to investigate why the Arda’s Far North is have a biodiversity crisis - the romantic comedy born out of my frustration with the lack of fic for a FFXIV pairing.

‘In Need of a Baby Shower’ - any follow-up to Cold Shower focused on Seregeithon and Helcerían’s married life

 - that ‘Vingilot looks like the ghost of the Swanships’ interlude that I need to post as a ficlet

‘Cherry Blossoms’ - Elrond and Elros escape from their kidnappers and are rescued by Orothaiben

‘Fille du Regiment’ - Bortë of Númenor backstory

Warpath Home - Bân of Band of the Red Hand adjusts to civilian peacetimes in the Second Age by travelling with his lover to Númenor to assist in the colonization. I might roll in the ‘Faron is summoned back to Middle-earth by Gil-galad’ plot hook, Seregeithon would be hanging in the background of that, as part of the overall theme

Bân and Fân’s Excellent Adventure - Band of the Red Hand plus friends have a camping trip, comedy which serves as a primer for

‘The Hangover, staring Faron, Finrod, and friends’ - exactly what it sounds like. And I’m not the first person to have the idea to combine The Hangover and Finrod’s 2nd Age Wedding, so the wedding will not Finrod and Amarië but one of the other couples. 

‘Findis and Heledir write Voltron’ - Findis and Heledir brainstorm their next joint project. Where I might also include details about the Batman comics as in-universe Númenorean stories

‘Princess Tutu fusion’ - Little Duck is a Maia of Ossë in Alqualondë who wants to dance and heal the hearts of the returning elves

The Great Fever of Dorthonion - Baragund and Belegund spend the summer with Great-Aunt Andreth

Boromir in the Swamps - continuing the settlement of Dorthonion

Vagabond Gondor - Rurouni Kenshin reimagined during the Kin-strife of Gondor

[jessicamdawn]

Question Time

I was tagged by @dojazine​ with these questions. Basically, answer the question and tag people. Don’t feel like you have to do it if you don’t want to

ABOUT YOU

Hair Color?

Brown

Is your hair long or short?

Long. Mid-back

Eye Color?

Brown

Blood Type?

O

Nickname(s)?

Jessie, Jess

Relationship Status?

“single pringle” - stole from dojazine

Pronouns?

she/her

Tattoos?

My sister and I have matching tattoos on our...shin...calf...area?

Piercings?

Ears

Do you want (more) piercings or tattoos?

When any of my cats die, I will get a tattoo in remembrance of them. Even though I’m one of those people where tattoos hurt.

Right or Left handed?

Right

Zodiac?

Aquarius

RIGHT NOW, WHAT ARE YOU….

Eating?

SUSHI

Drinking?

Water

Listening to?

The air conditioner

About to watch?

Nothing

Waiting for?

My mother to arrive for Thanksgiving.

THE LAST…

Phone Call?

My roommate, to ask what kind of sushi she wanted.

Text Message?

My roommate, trying to figure out where she disappeared to this morning, and she DIDN’T ANSWER. (spoiler: it was the store)

Song you listened to?

Africa by Wheezer

Time you cried?

Uh. Probably....uh...something in a kdrama probably made me cry, but I haven’t watched anything since November started cause of NaNoWriMo.

HAVE YOU EVER…

Dated someone twice?

Yes, within 3 days of breaking up we were back together.

Kissed someone and regretted it?

No

Kissed a stranger?

No? I mean, I was kissed by a guy on our first date and I hardly knew him, so maybe that counts.

Been cheated on?

Yes

Had sex on a first date?

No

Lost someone special?

Yes

Been depressed?

When I became suddenly unemployed.

Drank hard liquor?

Yes. Most of it tastes like shit unless you add stuff to it.

Gotten drunk and thrown up?

Absolutely wasted. Never again.

Talked to a person named Tom?

Um. Probably?

Had surgery?

Wisdom tooth removal. Otherwise they have always just glued me back together.

Lost your glasses?

For longer than 2 minutes? Maybe once.

Turned someone down?

Like, to date? Yes.

Broken someone’s heart?

Yes. But they are much happier in their new relationships than they would’ve been with me.

Had your heart broken?

Not broken, just bruised.

Been arrested?

Not...technically. >.>

Cried when someone died?

Fictional characters. Otherwise, I was too young to really get why the whole family was together.

Fallen for a friend?

No

IN THE LAST YEAR, HAVE YOU…

Made new friends?

Yes

Fallen out of love?

No

Laughed until you cried?

Yep. Most times I hang out with friends and/or my mother and/or sister.

Found out someone was talking about you?

Only good things.

Met someone who changed you?

Yes.

Found out who your friends are?

Nothing major enough for that kind of ‘revelation’ has happened in the past year, so no. But I image the same people who have been there for me in the past would still be there for me today if I needed it.

Kissed someone on your Facebook friends list?

No

FAVORITE…

Drink?

Sangue di Giuda. Best wine I have ever tasted.

But on a normal day, V8 Fusion Pomegranate Blueberry Juice.

Color(s)?  

Blue - and red and green.

TV Show(s)?

Healer, early Teen Wolf, Merlin, Coffee Prince, Are You Human Too, early Criminal Minds, Primeval, Yu Yu Hakusho, Gundam SEED (wow, really reaching back now, huh, Jess?)

Sport(s)?

Figure Skating

Movie(s)?

Looking at my movies at this exact moment...Brother Bear, Free Willy 2, How to Train Your Dragon, Mulan, The Last Samurai, The Pianist, the live action Rurouni Kenshin, Rise of the Guardians, Barbie in the Princess and the Pauper, Bunraku...

Actor(s)?  

Ji Chang Wook, Dylan O’Brien, Kate Beckinsale, Seo Ye Ji

DO YOU BELIEVE IN…

Miracles?

Yes

Love at first sight?

Kind of

Santa Claus?

No

Kissing on a first date?

No

Angels?

Yes

Yourself?

Most usually

RANDOM

What’s your best friend’s name?

Rebecca

What is something you can’t wait for?

Winter Break

What time did you wake up today?

10:00 am

Do you want to change your name?

No.

What did you do for your last birthday?

Went with my mom and sister to see Wicked, watched the PyeongChang Olympic figure skating competitions, and ate lots of good food.

What were you doing at midnight last night?

Uhhhh reading a fanfic? Or scrolling tumblr. I went to bed shortly after that.

What is something that gets on your nerves?

When the instructions for an assignment are on the board / on the worksheet and I’ve gone over the instructions and then students ask me what the instructions are.

Do you have a crush on someone?

No

What’s your most visited website?

Tumblr

Where do you want to go on vacation?

I’m always up to go back to Italy, but for somewhere new: Korea or Japan.

How many Facebook friends do you know IRL?

Uh, I think I’ve at least met everyone on my facebook once...Oh, wait, there is one (maybe a few?) that is from a really old forum I was part of, but we never talk.

Do you have pets?

3 black cats: Sheena, Kali, and Isis. My roommate has two more cats, one black and one tabby. And my mom has a very large dog that will soon live here. ...this house is gonna be crowded.

Do you want to get married?

Yes

What career do you want to have?

Teacher at an international school and well-known author

What do you like about yourself?

Not to brag, but I have excellent hair, and I’m a pretty great writer too. ;P

-

Tagging @sherokutakari, @kaylizle, @alessariel, @cafeeumpasteldenata, @dlanadhz, @jakfrost, @kashidoodles, @parkdonghoons, @raekenhales, @schnickledooger, @seekingidlewild, @unproductivepeanut, and anyone else who wants to do it.

[quotablefanfiction]

“If you were fighting when the Empire took power - just how old are you?" He can’t be forty! He barely looks older than I am! Though her mother had said that masters strong in the Force could live a long, long time… “How old, indeed.” Thoughtfully, Kenshin started counting on his fingers. “You don’t even know your own age?!?”

Kaoru and Kenshin, a sort of canon conversation (chp. 1)

Shadows in Starlight by Vathara (AO3, FF.net) Star Wars/Rurouni Kenshin – Teen #Alternate Universe #Crossover #Fandom Fusion #Adventure #Family #Extended Universe #Shadow Jedi

What if Obi-Wan found more than the tractor beam’s location in the Death Star files?

[tigerlover16-uk]

Anime I need to watch (April 2018 update)

Series

Mobile Suit Gundam

Digimon Frontier

Digimon Data Squad

Digimon Fusion

Yu-Gi-Oh 5D’s

Yu-Gi-Oh Zexal

Yu-Gi-Oh Arc-V

Sailor Moon (Watched up to the first 10 episodes of season 3)

Sailor Moon Crystal (Up to episode 9)

Yu Yu Hakusho (Up to episode 94)

Ranma 1½

Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure: Stardust Crusaders

Jojo’s bizarre Adventure: Diamond is Unbreakable

Hunter x Hunter (2011)

Fullmetal Alchemist

One Piece (Up to episode 130)

Bleach (Up to episode 20)

Astro Boy (Any series. I just want to be able to say I’ve watched something from this franchise).

Gurren Lagann

Fairy Tail (Up to episode 203)

Little Witch Academia

Death Note

Yuri On Ice

Fist of the North Star

Code Geass

Food Wars: Shokugeki No Soma (Finished first season at episode 24)

Your Lie in April

Puella Magi Madoka Magica

Mob Psycho 100

Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex

Phoenix Wright anime

Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid

Natsume’s Book of Friends

Revolutionary Girl Utena

Eureka 7

Black Cat

Black Shooter Rock

Gunbuster

Afro Samurai

Space Dandy

Vision of Escaflowne

magical girl lyrical nanoha

Shin Sekai Yori

Baccano

Cyborg 009

Gaogaigar

Danganronpa

Pretty Cure

Future Boy Conan

Yona of the Dawn

WataMote

Space Patrol Luluco

Rurouni Kenshin

Steam Detectives

Death Parade

Movies:

Garden of Words

Paprika

Tokyo Godfathers

Millenium Actress

Lupin III: The Castle of Cagliostro

The Digimon Adventure Tri Movies (Watched the first one)

Ghost In The Shell

Memories

Perfect Blue

Naruto Shuppuden: Bonds

Naruto Shippuden: The Lost Tower

Naruto Shippuden: Blood Prison

Naruto: Road to Ninja

Fairy Tail the movie: Dragon Cry

Mary and the Witch’s Flower

Princess Arete

Tekkonkinkreet

One Piece The Movie

One Piece: Clockwork Island Adventure

One Piece: Chopper’s Kingdom on the island of Strange Animals

One Piece The movie: Dead End Adventure

One Piece: The Cursed Holy Sword

One Piece: Baron Omatsuri and the Secret Island

One Piece: Giant Mecha Soldier of Karakuri Castle

One Piece: The Desert Princess and the Pirates: Adventures in Alabasta

One Piece: Strong World

One Piece: Straw Hat Chase

One Piece Film: Z

One Piece Film: Gold

Welcome to the Space Show

[tokupedia]

Kamen Rider 45th Anniversary File: Wizard

2012:

The Metal Heroes Series celebrates its 30th anniversary with a mini-revival in the form of a film crossover with Gokaiger and a Gavan movie! Kenji Ohba returns as the legendary Retsu Ichijouji and a new Gavan appears: Gavan Type-G! Gavan also gets a crossover tie-in with Go-Busters to promote the Gavan movie! The Metal Heroes Space Sherrifs also crossover with the Kamen Riders and Super Sentai in Super Hero Taisen Z in 2013.

IT’S MORPHIN TIME! Power Rangers terms seep into Super Sentai with Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters, a series that tried to do some new things including a two front battle with the villains both on the ground and in a separate MegaZord.

The Symphogear Series debuts with its first season, showcasing superhero Magical Girls of a musical nature. Aoi Yuki (aka MADOKA!) , who would later be in Kamen Rider, is the main hero Hibiki Tachibana! (Ha! Tachibana!)

The Zetman anime debuts, featuring a hero called Alphas who is inspired by an tokusatsu-styled anime show.

Smile Smile Smile~ Smile PreCure! debuts and airs on the Sunday kids block with Go-Busters and Wizard. It features everybody’s favorite tokusatsu fangirl and the fandom’s unofficial mascot Cure Peace! Cure Peace’s voice actress would later go on to voice Sailor Mercury in Sailor Moon Crystal!

Ultraman Saga debuts in theaters featuring some members of AKB48 and a new fusion Ultra: Saga. A fusion of Zero, Cosmos and Dyna.

The first Super Hero Taisen film is released, in celebration of 10 years of Super Hero Time.

Takeru Satoh, aka Ryotaro Nogami from Kamen Rider Den-O steps into an awesome role as Kenshin Himura in the live-action Rurouni Kenshin movie! This is a great film, that it is- gozaru!

Cyborg 009 is revived in the film continuation 009: Re Cyborg. One perk of this film was minor changes to the 00 Cyborgs such as 003 seemingly gaining technopathic abilities and 005 trading in his stereotypical tribal marks and mohawk for a full head of hair and his markings being red “veins” that glow when he turns on his super strength. Both of these aspects would carry over to yet another incarnation.

During the time of Wizard, Japan was in pretty bad shape. It had been hit by a nasty earthquake and tsunami and Fukushima was now the location of the worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl and became a ghost town. 

So after the tragedy, when it came time to choose the theme of the next series, Tsuyoshi Kida decided on one: Hope and overcoming despair. And given how the previous Rider was a mechanical marvel of science, the staff decided to go full opposite and have a Rider who was pure fantasy based by having a wizard as the hero. 

Kamen Rider Wizard saw a few changes, the transition from the use of Panasonic Varicams to Arri Alexa HD cameras for the cinematography, more CGI use including a few of Wizard’s forms that were fully CG. This series is also the last fall series to be premiered in September, as the staff decided to push for an October scheduling to extend the show and plug more merchandise. (In this case, the Legend Rider Wizard Rings) It also continued a trend from OOO that fans either love or hate: a “singing” Rider belt that plays a catchy tune with each form change.

But the biggest one that resonated with fans was a positive and progressive milestone, for the first time in the franchise’s history, an openly gay actor would be working on the series. Kaba-chan is also now retroactively the first transgender actor in Kamen Rider, as she transitioned from being a man to a woman after the series ended. Its certainly more progressive than western superhero movies were on that front until recently. (Ex.”Have you ever tried..not being a Mutant?”) .

Naturally, the LGBTQ community of the fandom were happy about the hiring as were activists who knew of Kamen Rider and this bit of news was featured in various articles on the web and drew praise on some forums. *Kuuga thumbs up*

We also see a more western inspired series in terms of mythology. Wizard’s dragon is European style in motif rather than Asian, the monsters are named after beings from myths and stories and have traits of those creatures in some cases. The myth of the Philosopher’s Stone is also referenced, which has an FMA bent to how it is made.

This also marked the first televised debut of a (sorta) original Female Heisei Kamen Rider...that actually lives! Granted, she does get taken out of play sometimes, but at least she survived! Though future installments of the franchise unfortunately would not be as kind (*fingers crossed for Poppy to live*).

We see how skillfully detailed some of the costumes Blend Master and PLEX would make, as the designs of the Wizard suits are fantastic. Wizard himself is very photogenic for a Kamen Rider, with a gemstone/wizard motif mixing primary colors with black and silver and a flashy leather duster coat. The gem on his face combined with the silver trim make out the “face” of the Rider and the wrists and ankles break up the black on the arms with gemstone wrist cuffs and anklets.

Sejii Takaiwa really gets a workout this season, as the Wizard costume is light enough for him to do flips, twirls and acrobatics and pull off some impressive moves and he even dual wields swords and does double gun kata this season. (He even shoots the guns Gangsta style again like he did in Den-O)

Having a magic motif, Wizard gained powers that no other Kamen Rider had ever used before as spells. Also, there are donuts, lots and lots of donuts. This is very important to know.

This series is brought to you by the magic of Plain Sugar.

There seems to be some love outside Japan for Kamen Rider Wizard in media, as a member of the Marvel Comics art team drew one of Wizard’s magic circles in a comic!

But now let’s show the Ringed Mage of Hope. Its Showtime Da!

WIZARD! PLEASE!

RIDER RIDER RIDER!

(Mr. Soma, ringed mage extraordinaire circa 2012)

Real Name: Haruto Soma

Haruto was traumatized as a young boy when his parents got in a car accident and he was the sole survivor. Before his parents died in the hospital, he was told by his mom and dad to never give up hope and be strong. 

He tired his best to live up to that and got a shot at being a pro-soccer player, but left the profession when his friend Kazuya got hurt because of him and because what happened next the following day.

Later the next day on March of 2012, he was an unwilling participant in a mystic sacrificial ritual called the Sabbath during a solar eclipse. In a moment reminiscent of Go Nagai’s Devilman, Haruto feels a demonic force emerging and nearly destroys him but his hope and determination to live drive the creature, known as a Phantom, back into his body. Most of the people around him though were not so lucky as they died immediately from their despair overwhelming them and spawned Phantoms of their own. 

This re-ignited Haruto’s survivor’s guilt and out of nowhere comes a white wizard who congratulates him on surviving after saving him from a Phantom, carrying a girl named Koyomi.  The white wizard offers him a contra-er, I mean belt and the power to save people from the Phantoms and asks to care for the girl in his stead.

Six months later, the Tokyo Police are investigating a crime and happen upon monsters in a warehouse. One of the officers, Rinko Daimon is saved by Haruto who transforms and drives them off. (Daimon...DIAMOND! I just got that. Oh, the terrible puns.)  The Phantoms were targeting Rinko as she is a Gate, a human with latent magic potential that can create another Phantom if they fall into despair. Haruto defends her again from the Phantoms and destroys Rinko’s Phantom by going into her Underworld to keep it from getting out. But as a side effect, she cannot utilize magic and is now an ordinary human.

Later, Haruto saves another Gate called Shunpei who is overeager to become Haruto’s apprentice as he has wanted to learn magic ever since he was a child. He ends up joining the group and Rinko takes an interest in Haruto’s activities using her connections with the police and communications with Section Zero of Japan’s National Security Agency.

Haruto goes around helping Gates find their hope again and in one holiday episode we learn how Santa Claus operates in the Kamen Rider Universe. (It is implied by the fact he can enter Underworlds that Santa is a wizard!)

Haruto faces some hardships as he further battles the Phantoms, but presses onward as the Final Hope of Magic and humanity, Kamen Rider Wizard!

Powers:

Agility, skill in kicking style combat and acrobatics (The kicking fighting style due to strong leg muscles from his soccer training).

Quite a lot of them actually via spells cast from the Wizard Rings:

Super Strength (Varies: Capable of becoming a buff Hulk-sized Wizard with the Excite Ring to holding a HUGE MEGAZORD SIZED AXE in Infinity form).

Skilled Marksmanship and Swordsmanship including dual wielding. Gun armed with silver bullets that can bend their trajectory to hit the target. Given the bullets are silver, yes, he can potentially kill werewolves as a bonus. Weapon can gain elemental augmentation to enhance attacks.

Strom creation: capable of creating gusts, hurricanes, thunder storms and blizzards. Capable of using wind energy to hover or propel himself in the air. Can generate massive bolts of lightning to shock his targets extra crispy. Freezing ability.

Creating localized seismic events and mystical terrakinesis (able to hurl boulders at targets, create sand or stone traps to hold enemies in), gravity distortions. Subterranean drilling.

Disguise generation or wardrobe changing.

Shield generation, varies in strength depending on what elemental form Wizard is in and how much mana he has left.

Size manipulation: Able to shrink in size to about half an inch or smaller. (A first in Kamen Rider, as J just shrunk back to normal size.) Capable of enlarging his arms to knock back waves of enemies or make his blade Zanbato sized.

Knockout spell

Light generation to blind foes or use as a way to navigate dark areas.

Create chains to bind enemies or use as a safety net.

Temporary cloning of both himself and his gear.

Elastic limbs

Creates holes for enemies to fall into/alter the environment (Ex. have water from a tank pour onto a monster) or for a quick getaway.

Noxious stink fumes.

Enter mirrors like Ryuki does

Time travel, maximum effect seen is 5 years into the past. Exact limit unknown. 

Teleportation

Summoning familiars to aid him.

Astral projection of his Rider form to defend his own Underworld

Portal creation, mostly utilized to grab things Haruto has left behind (like his donuts) or for handy storage of his gear in a pocket dimension to call upon when needed.

Rider Finisher spells

Flame and Water Generation

Water gel form like Black RX Biorider form.

Wings, Claws, Tail and fire breathing dragon head via merging with WizarDragon.

Can create Christmas joy by restoring gifts (temporary power given by Santa)

Summon other Kamen Riders to his location immediately in an emergency.

Weaknesses:

Despite the awesome power he wields, Haruto’s spells are governed by mana. Based on early episodes, the mana of this series operates under a kind of Equivalent Exchange methodology. Use a spell, it drains the body’s energy to create the mana to cast it. The stronger the spell or the more spells are used, the more energy the caster burns unless they “level up” thier magic by training their bodies and gaining more power from the Phantom inside them or external mystical devices enhancing the magic. 

As such, Haruto needs to eat high calorie foods or high sugar foods such as donuts to keep his metabolic rate stable enough to avoid going into shock or simply passing out. Resting does help too, so Haruto is a heavy sleeper when his mana runs dry. Mana can also be siphoned away from Haruto if a spell is used or some apparatus capable of such is present. If his mana gets low, his spells are not as effective and weaken and eventually the Wizard Driver will stop working

If Haruto’s spirit is broken and he falls into despair, he risks his Phantom getting out and that would result in him dying and the WizarDragon wearing his flesh as a suit to blend in until his next meal. (Though that danger is no longer 100% present as the two have made a mutual agreement and respect one another after the birth of Infinity form).

If his Underworld is entered by a Phantom or other mystical being, his powers could be destroyed if Dragon dies. This would render him Muggle and thus able to be killed as he would have no magic to defend himself.

The Wizard Driver can be jammed by sticky substances or prevented from being used by binding Wizard’s hands away from the Hand Author buckle of the belt.

The Wizard Rings are sometimes fickle, as some of them have spells that can be only cast when the target of the spell is wearing them (ex. Sleep Ring). The Rings are also somewhat fragile, as a Rider Punch can break them if Wizard isn’t careful. This puts a disadvantage to Wizard as he can only use grappling, spells and palm strikes in close combat and must compensate by using his weapons and legs. (Though the Dragon forms make up for that as Land Dragon and Infinity Dragon use claw attacks.)

Haruto was shown in the Wizard finale special as unable to defend himself against the super speed of the Worms, meaning speedier enemies or Riders such as Kabuto can possibly outmatch him.

Last is a more psychological one, Haruto has an acute case of survivor’s guilt that does affect him, but in a mostly positive constructive way. However, he does have weaker moments where his failure to help someone can weigh heavily on him (Ex. Koyomi), even distancing himself from his old life before becoming a Kamen Rider.

Gear:

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/WizarDriver

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Wizard_Rings

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Wizard_Ring_Holder

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/PlaMonsters

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/WizarSwordGun

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Machinewinger

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Wizard_Ring_Box

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Drago_Timer

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Magic_Stones - Not really part of the gear, but an essential for crafting new Rings to cast new spells.

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/WizarDragon

Signature Finishers:

Kick Strike: Wizard’s Rider Kick, comes in various elemental forms but mostly the same as wizard does some flashy acrobatics or jumps to execute the kick after charging power from the magic circle under his feet. A variation called the Strike End utilizes WizarDragon transforming into a giant flaming clawed boot and Wizard kicking it to smash his foes with the force of a meteor.

Slash Strike: Standard Rider Slash. Variants involve using elemental power, enlarging the blade with the Big Ring or cloning the WizarSwordGun for a double slash. The Dragon forms enhance the power of these attacks.

Shooting Strike: Standard Rider Shooting attack. Can be augmented with elemental power and can be used in a double shooting attack if Wizard could pull off scanning both WizarSwordGuns. The Dragon forms enhance the power of these attacks.

Dragon Breath: Flame Dragon’s finisher, a Rider Shooting attack. Wizard Flame Dragon scans the Special Ring and WizarDragon’s head on his chest comes alive and the Rider flies up and rains a massive burst of flaming dragon breath upon his foes.

Dragon Sonic: My personal favorite of the Dragon finishers. Wizard uses his wings and super speed as Hurricane Dragon to creates a powerful gust of hurricane wind around the enemy, lifting them into the air, he then scans the Thunder Ring and repeatedly zaps lightning bolts at the target then fries the Phantom with one huge skyscraper sized lightning bolt.

Dragon Smash: Wizard Water Dragon freezes his target with the Blizzard Ring, then skates to it with an ice magic charged Dragon Tail and uses the tail as a sword to slice the enemy in half.

Dragon Ripper: Using gravity manipulation via the Gravity Ring, Wizard Land Dragon pins down his foe and then slashes them with the Dragon claws.

Dragon Claw: Double Rider Slash with the Dragon Claws.

Strike Dragon: Wizard combines the elemental powers of his Dragon Forms into one shot as the magic of fire, water, earth and wind hit the target and then Wizard flies at super speed and kicks the enemy so hard they go FLYING INTO THE SUN. The downside is using it and All Dragon form depletes Haruto’s power really fast so the attack must connect or else he will be defenseless.

Dragon Shining: Wizard Infinity Form charges a massive amount of mana into the AxCalibur, which makes the axe grow to gigantic size. Wizard then goes into a leaping swing to cleave the target.

Shining Plasma Strike: Wizard Infinity Form hits the Hand Author repeatedly and then throws the AxCalibur and uses his magic to manipulate its movement to repeatedly strike the target. Its movements in this attack are almost similar to Den-O’s Extreme Slash.

Infinity End: Wizard’s ultimate Rider Kick. Using the power of Infinity Dragon form’s wings to propel the kick, the skull of WizarDragon appears on Wizard’s right foot and “bites” the target before it hits. There is also a spinning kick variation and an enhanced version when he goes to Infinity Gold Dragon form.

Finale DA!

Enemies:

Sou Fueki

http://kamenrider.wikia.com/wiki/Sou_Fueki

Aka The White Wizard aka Wiseman aka Kamen Rider Wiseman 

A former physics professor who was desperate to save his little girl after she got sick, but his daughter died and he refused to accept it. He then turned away from his scientific profession and became obsessed with the occult and experimenting with it. He seems like a benevolent benefactor to Haruto as the anonymous white wizard, but he has much more sinister motives in mind for Japan and their magic users. He also pulls the strings of the Phantoms posing as their leader, all the while he does not care about them and simply wishes to restart his own plans.

As seen in his re-apperance in a Kamen Rider Ghost spin-off, he is a father who loved his kid a little too much and refuses to let her go and move on, as he proclaimed the whole world could be sacrificed of human life just so he can have her alive again. Ghost, being a hero who values life, was disgusted by Fueki and gave him a proper beatdown with the help of Wizard’s power in the form of an Eyecon.

Phantoms:

Phantoms are demonic beings that reside inside humans called Gates, individuals who possess the potential to use magic. The Phantoms goal is to try to create more of their race by repeating the process that created them; putting a Gate at thier absolute lowest by taking away thier hope and leaving them in soul-crushing despair and depression. 

This will cause the unborn Phantom to emerge from the Gate’s Underworld and kill them, with the Phantom then replacing their host’s control over their bodies, wearing them as flesh suits to hide among people until they need to change into monster form. However, if a Gate overcomes their despair and gains hope, the Phantom will be sealed back in and the Gate will have the power to use magic as a mage or wizard. Otherwise destroying it and the Gate’s magic potential is the only way to keep it from coming out. Some like Wizard’s WizarDragon are more benign after they are sealed again, though in Haruto’s case it was because he proved to his Phantom that Hope is more powerful than Despair.

While Phantoms have a clear goal, some have personality quirks that make them either uninterested in the mission or do things in a manner that go against what they were assigned to do. (Including the really dangerous ones like Legion)

Aside from Wiseman, there are three generals:

Medusa

Phoenix

Gremlin

To ensure they stay on task, the Phantoms are given Ghoul grunts to dispose of interference or aid in the endeavor. (Fear and intimidation also help as motivators for them to work) 

Phantoms are mostly extinct thanks to Wizard, but he remains vigilant as Gates are still out there. In times like these where it seems Hope is in short supply, he must prepare for any Phantom that comes. (or an evil Pac-Man)

[ldragonslayer]

This is a masterpiece! Author: FarmXD Music: Circle of Dust - Deviate (Blue Stahli Remix) Anime: 0:00-0:27 - NGE: EoE 0:28-0:35 - Mobile Suit Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz 0:36-0:44 - Spriggan, Akira, NGE, Ashita no Joe, DBZ, NGE, DBZ 0:45-0:47 - Gunbuster, Akira, Escaflowne (movie), Gunbuster 0:48-0:51 - GITS 2.0, Rurouni Kenshin (1999 OVA), Gundam 79, Spriggan, DragonBall 0:52-0:57 - Street Fighter II, NGE, Akira, Ashita no Joe, Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz, 0:58-1:00 - Akira, Gasaraki, Ghost Sweeper GS Mikami, Kidou Senkan Nadesico, Kenshin OVA 1:01-1:07 - Spriggan, Gundam, DBZ, Ashita no Joe, Gundam: The 08th MS Team, Saint Seiya 1:07-1:12 - Akira, Escaflowne, Yuu☆Yuu☆Hakusho, Spriggan, (?), DBZ 1:13-1:18 - Nadesico, NGE, Spriggan, Yuu☆Yuu☆Hakusho, Ghost Sweeper GS Mikami, Escaflowne 1:19-1:28 - Akira, Street Fighter, Seihou Bukyou Outlaw Star, Casshern: Robot Hunter, Seihou Bukyou Outlaw Star, Gatchaman 1:28-1:32 - Escaflowne, Cowboy Bebop, (?), Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz, Kidou Senkan Nadesico 1:33-1:38 - Gundam, Spriggan, Dragon Ball Z Fusion Reborn, Casshern, Gasaraki, dbz, Nadesico 1:39-1:42 - Gundam, Yuu☆Yuu☆Hakusho, Cowboy Bebop, Street Fighter 1:43-1:48 - Akira, Street Fighter, Gundam, Dragon Ball, Rurouni Kenshin 1:49-1:54 - NGE EoE, Gatchaman, Cowboy Bebop, Casshern, DBZ 1:55-2:03 - Gunbuster, Slayers, Spriggan, Gasaraki, Gundam, Gunbuster 2:04-2:12 - DBZ, Spriggan, Gundam, Saint Seiya, Ashita no Joe, DB 2:12-1:18 - Street Figter, Spriggan, Escaflowne, (?), Kenshin 2x, 2:19-2:28 - Spriggan, Gundam: The 08th MS Team, Dragon Ball Z Fusion Reborn, nge, Casshern, DBZ, Yuu☆Yuu☆Hakusho, Spriggan, Saint Seiya, GUNBASTAAAAA.