Editing Toaru Majutsu no Index:GT Volume5 Chapter4 (section)

===Part 4===

After a moment of dizziness, Kamijou Touma found himself in an unfamiliar location.

It looked like an ancient colosseum. A large, circular space contained evenly-spaced concrete pillars. A train turntable was located in the center. Much like a clockface, tracks extended from it in 12 directions before being swallowed up by dark tunnels.

This was Academy City’s Greatest Taboo.

This was the very end of Operation Handcuffs.

Shirai Kuroko and Alice Anotherbible were no longer by his side.

The crumpled-up space had been returned to normal, so even though they had appeared to be so close, they may have been sent to some distant place when the wrinkles were straightened out. Wherever they were, they were probably somewhere beneath Academy City.

So.

The small figure in front of him was not either of the girls he had been working with. Someone more dangerous was waiting for him now that he was freed from that distortion.

It was an old man in a lab coat.

He probably shouldn’t have been here.

He held a chainsaw longer than 150cm. Young Risako had been holding that in the image Kamijou had seen while Frillsand #G was guiding them.

He had a bad feeling about this.

“What happened to Risako?” asked Kamijou, his voice low.

“''I ate her up. Leaving nothing but bone''.”

An unpleasant noise came from Kamijou’s back teeth.

Kihara Hasuu’s shoulders shook in laughter, as if this ordinary human anger was the funniest thing he had ever seen.

“I’m only kidding. Seen too many remnants of Handcuffs while you wandered around today? Did you figure one of us ''might just go that far''?”

He doubled over in laughter before straightening up and raising a finger.

No, that wasn’t it.

He was pointing up toward the tall, tall ceiling. Perhaps this would have been more clearly visible for anyone who arrived here along the proper route.

Something dangled from the ceiling like a bagworm. No, that was a tiny silhouette being suspended from the ceiling.

“There’s no real meaning behind it.”

The simplest kind of cruelty suddenly blossomed here.

What greater desecration was there?

Kihara Hasuu made it sound so obvious that Kamijou nearly missed it.

“She is 550m up. The ceiling of this underground space borders the surface, but no direct routes lead here. And at the center of the Taboo I control, not even a ghost can pass through the walls. So just like fooling GPS guidance, Frillsand #G will wander forever in search of the shortest route to save Risako-kun. You see, if it came down to a real clash between us two immortal ghosts, this place would collapse before either of us did. I would still prefer not to push this unstable Taboo to that point.”

“…”

“I am sure she is panicking. The more her efforts fail, the more it will feel like I have taken Risako-kun from her. Unfortunately for me, I could dig through this underground space forever and never reach my objective. I would much prefer to reach out and touch the sky. Heh heh.”

It was impossible to know if he was telling the truth.

But Kamijou doubted Kihara Hasuu would be joking to smooth things over at this point.

In other words…

(There is something here he doesn’t want to tell me right away.)

After reaching that conclusion, Kamijou took a step forward.

What reason did he have to fear?

“This isn’t what I saw on the way here. Why did you change your plan?”

“What a pain. Did Frillsand #G show you that? Or was my subconscious leaking out? This Vanishing Tunnel doesn’t play well with ghosts, so I was originally planning to whisper in Risako-kun’s ear to manipulate her.”

But that hadn’t worked, so his plans had changed.

The rapid expansion of the Taboo may have come from that change of plans.

“I am ashamed to admit I had trouble with her. Such a stubborn girl. She won’t shut up about never doing anything that would make ‘Sodate-chan’ or ‘the ghost lady’ sad, ''so I shut her up myself.''”

That was enough out of him.

Was the splitting sound Kamijou heard his canine tooth breaking through the corner of his lip?

His heart was shouting from within his chest.

It said he no longer needed a reason. It said he needed to fight for someone. It said that was how things ''should be'' in the remade Academy City – in the city he called home.

He clenched his right fist and raced forward without any hesitation.

An engine roared in response. Kihara Hasuu tugged hard on the chainsaw cord and a bicycle-like chain covered in short, thick blades began to rotate violently fast.

(So what?)

Kamijou Touma poured courage into his heart to fight the squeezing it felt.

And he took another powerful step forward.

(I heard you, Risako. Maybe you can’t say a word yourself and maybe it only reached me through someone else’s malicious words, but I still heard your refusal to disappoint the people you care for. So I won’t back down now!!)

Yes, his opponent held a chainsaw about as long as he was tall. An attack from that would mean instant death. And Imagine Breaker probably wouldn’t work on it. But its length and weight would also limit how it could be used. That old man might be a ghost, but he still moved on his two feet.

Would he sweep it horizontally or swing it down diagonally from the shoulder?

Either way, he would have a hard time swinging it around to the left while holding it at his right hip.

Plus, he was a ghost.

If that was true, then Imagine Breaker might just come in handy!!

“Go to hell!!” shouted Kamijou as he got to work.

Once he moved in close, Kihara Hasuu was sure to swing the chainsaw. A horizontal sweep would be his best bet. But if Kamijou knew it was coming, he could prepare for it.

Specifically, he kicked up a plastic bag lying on the ground.

A chainsaw was undeniably a deadly weapon, but it always rotated in the same direction. And as thin as the plastic bag was, it wouldn’t vanish once it was torn through. With something caught in the blade, the chainsaw would stop!!

Or so he thought.

However…

“Nice try.”

(Damn, is there more to this!?)

When he heard the old man’s mocking voice, Kamijou practically doubled over and threw himself backwards to stop in a hurry. His back slammed against the concrete floor like he had failed doing the limbo, but it was well worth it since the chainsaw blade swung by just above him.

No, that wasn’t just the chainsaw.

When the tattered plastic touched the old man’s skin, it was blown away with some unnatural bluish-white sparks.

“By the way.”

“!”

“And this really is just a warning for your benefit – I would recommend against trying to negate me with Imagine Breaker. My basic structure is identical to Frillsand #G. Granted, I did remove a few features to eliminate the compatibility problems with the Vanishing Tunnel, so I had to abandon her level of lethality.”

The old man’s smile spread while a faint electrical sound filled the brief silence.

“That makes me a physical phenomenon that can be electrically explained using High Voltage Cutting. Touch me and your flesh will burst and you will be scorched to the bone. But if you have the courage needed to destroy a running transformer with your bare fist, I won’t stop-”

A dull impact burst out.

Kamijou Touma had ignored the man and thrown his fist. Of course, Imagine Breaker didn’t work on a ghost who could be scientifically explained.

“''So what''?”

“…”

Kamijou held a thick roll of duct tape he had found on the ground. About half of the plastic tape was blown away and melted.

“So my right fist doesn’t work. Did you really think ''that was enough to stop me''? After you’ve done all this? When Risako is right there suffering at the hands of a dead man after she managed to survive the 25th?”

He tossed aside the already unusable duct tape roll and cautiously viewed his surroundings. Duct tape must have been used for train maintenance because there were plenty more usable rolls on the turntable covered in various tools and cleaning supplies.

Today had been a terrifying day.

Enough to make him painfully aware that he had been shielded from the city’s darkness all this time.

Alice’s world had been a mess of truths and fictions, but he had still learned some things from it. Hadn’t Hanatsuyu Youen the Carrier mentioned how useful a ground could be? It was hard to electrocute people if the current didn’t reach their brain or heart.

The reality he had returned to had been even more frightening. But as inappropriate as it might seem, he had been impressed with Tessou Tsuzuri and Rakuoka Nodoka. They had done whatever it took to make up for what they didn’t have. Even if that meant wearing a tool to protect their fist.

Kamijou Touma hadn’t been standing down here the whole time.

Unlike this man, he had been fighting to ensure his enemies and allies could survive.

The journey he had taken to reach Academy City’s Greatest Taboo hadn’t been for nothing.

So it was time to end this.

It was time to defeat the final enemy using everything that had come before.

“If you want me to hit you, I’ll turn you into a goddamn punching bag. I don’t get how any of it works, but you’re supported and stabilized by electricity, aren’t you? I saw you ''blur'' a bit when that plastic exploded and vaporized. How about I try it with steel or aluminum next? What about a liquid or powder? Whatever’s supporting your body has an upper limit! So I’ll keep at it as long as it takes. I don’t even need to wrack my brains over it – it’s like making wrong guesses in a game of concentration. I just have to keep risking my own life until I find the right answer. ''That’s all it takes. So I will rescue Risako from your clutches''!!!!!!”

“Tch. You masochistic martyr!!”

For the first time, Kihara Hasuu moved to dodge an attack.

Kamijou could use insulation, a ground, and even the concept behind birds on the power lines.

Electricity always took the path of least resistance. If there were multiple routes and one was more efficient than the human body, you could just barely avoid death. As long as he could come up with ideas, he could fight.

Kihara Hasuu must have known he couldn’t just rely on the high-voltage current here, so this time he came for Kamijou. He raised the chainsaw to swing it down. Kamijou could do no damage to the old man by clenching his teeth and stubbornly opposing the chainsaw. He would only get his body torn apart. Then he couldn’t save Risako. He clicked his tongue and fell back for the time being.

Kihara Hasuu pursued, even using the bouncing of the rotating blade. The slightest graze and it would tear into Kamijou’s clothing and shred his flesh and bones.

“Tch!!”

“You negated it once with your right hand, but the Taboo is still running wild. And the civilization battery supported by High Voltage Cutting uses the acid rain produced by a metropolis as a power source. I am only hitching a ride for now, but if I use the Taboo tunnel leading out of the city to send out Academy City machinery and materials, I can control the technological level and economic status of the entire world. I will have free control over the operational status of any factory and vehicle.”

“…?”

Kamijou moved away, got up, and gave the old man a puzzled look.

Why didn’t he continue the attack?

What was he so desperate to distract Kamijou from?

“Didn’t I tell you? I accomplish nothing digging through this underground space. My objective can only be found in the sky. One magnet does not pull the other to it – they affect each other. That remains true for the magnetosphere covering the planet and the geomagnetism produced by the magma flowing underground. Precisely controlling the earth’s sky lets you indirectly influence the earth’s core. That is because the magnetism covering the planet comes from the flowing magma and rotating core acting like a giant generator. So what if a ghost like me – a collection of electrical energy – could reach that?”

Kihara Hasuu was an artificial ghost, but he had said several of his details differed from Frillsand #G. For one, Kamijou could directly view him without bleeding and collapsing.

He had also said he initially planned to use Risako.

“I will link myself to the dynamo theory.”

Kamijou had made it this far, but Kihara Hasuu would not stop.

The old man would greedily absorb everything that caught his interest, no matter how much harm it caused others.

“''Then destroying me would require destroying the earth’s core.'' It is currently moving a little too fast for that kind of precision work, but not to worry. With Risako-kun’s assistance, I can buy myself enough time to modify and tame it. Assuming I do not end up stuck in an endless battle with Frillsand #G who also uses High Voltage Cutting.”

(This bastard.)

He sounded so casual about it.

Like he was mentioning how cheap the eggs were at the local supermarket.

This was not the lifelong dream of the researcher named Kihara Hasuu. He had been mentioned in Alice’s world as an expert in android research, so ghosts had to be outside his area of expertise.

So.

This was something he had realized he could piece together with the items lying around, so he might as well do it. He was that casual about trampling on people’s dignity and even extending his influence to the core of the planet. He didn’t feel even a twinge of guilt as he stomped all over an individual and the entire world.

He didn’t need a grand objective to destroy things people cared about and he would simply laugh after seeing someone emotionally devastated.

He was that kind of evil.

(Now I get it, Drencher Kihara Repatri. I’ve never met you, but I still understand you! I see why you wanted to create a place for the children who had fallen to the dark side, even if it meant throwing away your one and only life in a world where the dead can never be brought back!! That’s right. We can’t just let this happen. This is the worst kind of evil and it easily surpasses the greatest tragedy I could imagine!!)

“Once I do that, I should be strong enough to leave the Taboo without bursting and frying the entire city. It would be a real tragedy if I became immortal yet couldn’t touch my lab equipment without destroying it. This immortality was an unexpected prize, so now I need to figure out how to use all this extra time. Once no one on the planet can punish me, I suppose I should start by continuing my research until I grow weary of it.”

That was sure to lead to more tragedy and cruelty.

This sticky darkness would remain as long as he was still around.

Operation Handcuffs would continue forever and ever.

Kamijou had only one thing to say to that.

Risako wasn’t dead yet while she swayed from the tall, tall ceiling. Hope remained for her. That girl had accepted the pain because she didn’t want to hurt anyone else. If she could do that, then Kamijou knew what he had to say.

“No, I’ll end this before that happens. The people of this city will stop you here and now!!”

“Everyone says that after seeing a Kihara in action. The thing is, I’ve never seen any of them succeed.”

The deafening engine roar grew louder.

The raised right fist was so pitiful the old man actually laughed.

But so what?

Kamijou Touma would not be shaken no matter how tough that man tried to make himself look. Young Risako had been fighting all alone here not long before. Frillsand #G’s voice couldn’t reach her and Kihara Hasuu had cut her off from all else, but she had still rejected this Kihara’s words with only her own strength. She had told him to his face that she could never hurt others or disappoint those she cared about. The morality Drencher and Frillsand #G had tried to instill in her had reached her and it had not broken. Kamijou wouldn’t let anyone deny that achievement. And no one could save the young girl dangling from the ceiling unless he defeated this evil ghost.

That win condition was all he needed to know.

He had to save Risako.

As soon as possible.

This wasn’t like Alice’s world. The dead could not be brought back no matter what you tried. But he had caught a glimpse of those people while following in their footsteps today. They had reached out a hand to pull the children from Academy City’s darkness or to help a girl they had happened across. Maybe that was the wrong choice according to the cold rules of this world. Maybe that was why rejecting the most logical and safe option had removed them from the path of survival and ultimately taken their lives.

But.

Vivana and Drencher had made those selfless acts despite being scorned as villains and Kamijou Touma would remember them, even if he didn’t know the full story of what they had done.

They would have been enemies of each other during Handcuffs, but those villains had unwittingly passed the baton between them to save Risako. Kamijou was confident they wouldn’t have wanted the girl to now lose her life for the amusement of some ghost.

He couldn’t let the 29th end that way.

This wasn’t just about saving Risako. He was also fighting to reward the kindness of all of those who had helped the young girl and dragged her out of the darkness.

So…

(Who cares if he has a chainsaw?)

Kamijou instantly focused in on that point.

He would start with the most frightening aspect. He was through averting his gaze from the darkness.

(I know what I have to do. If he’s going to get in the way of that, I just have to steal her from him. I still don’t know how to defeat a ghost, but if I couldn’t interact with him at all, he wouldn’t be able to swing that chainsaw around. That means there has to be a way. This turntable has to have some method of defeating that electrical ghost!!)

That was simple enough to say, but he was risking his life here.

The lab coat man’s chainsaw was just that deadly. Its weight and vibrations tugged his matchstick-thin body around, but that made his movements harder to predict. The slightest contact meant death, yet his footing was unsteady. This was a different kind of terror from facing a master of kendo or fencing.

This time, the old man came at him.

Kihara Hasuu awkwardly swung the chainsaw around a few times, so Kamijou fell back while kicking up and catching a mop.

(The chainsaw is powerful, but it runs on a gasoline engine. If I hit its fuel tank and shake the fuel, it should form air bubbles and stall the engine. Really, it should be unstable already from him swinging it around every which way!!)

His theory might be accurate, but that was a real chainsaw. Even a kitchen knife was dangerous, so he had no idea if he could really suppress that mass of destructive force.

His thoughts were interrupted by the lowered chainsaw blade contacting the concrete ground. It wasn’t clear if the old man with the shadowy eyes had meant to do it. It was such a careless action it could have bounced the blade into his own body.

But a moment later, something exploded.

Sparks flew while the concrete shattered like stained glass and flew out like a scattershot.

“Gah!!”

Kamijou couldn’t do anything beyond cross his arms in front of his face.

Chunks the size of small rocks stabbed into him and his feet were lifted from the ground. The next thing he knew, he was flying backwards.

He rolled along the ground while clenching his teeth tight.

(What was that? Is it not just a normal chainsaw!?)

“Hee hee.”

The boy glared at the source of the violent scraping noise.

“Gee hee hee, ee hee ee hee hee hee hee!! Did you think a Kihara like me would ever use a ‘normal’ anything?”

That old man was doing something else. The chainsaw’s edge wasn’t enough to explain this, so was it an Academy City esper power? It took him a moment to realize what he was considering.

Could an old man – that is, a grown adult – really use an esper power? Could ghosts ignore all the rules and break all the limits like that!?

(Don’t panic.)

Kamijou let out a short breath and forced his mind to keep moving.

He readied his right fist again and quickly confirmed what he knew.

(Don’t stop thinking!! A wrong answer isn’t a bad thing. Risako defeated him all on her own. She made this Kihara decide she was too much trouble and change his plan!! So I can’t let him beat me. When such a young kid worked so hard to stay strong, I’ve got to show her that there is still hope in this city!!)

He didn’t have time to give much thought to Kihara Hasuu’s ''power''. He only had to keep in mind that the short old man had something he couldn’t underestimate. Even now, the man was approaching while swinging the running chainsaw side to side. Every time it carelessly contacted a concrete pillar, a coil of plastic rope, or something else, orange sparks would fly and pieces of the object were launched toward Kamijou.

It was like a small bomb.

“Dammit!!”

That made it nigh impossible to reach the chainsaw engine with his bare hand and switch it off. Even if he was fully covered by a steel suit of armor, he would end up bisected. Trying to stall the engine was a better plan, but he couldn’t calculate how many times he had to hit the fuel tank with the mop to produce the air bubbles. He couldn’t rely on that.

If he lost here, he couldn’t save Risako.

He had to be thankful she was dangling from the ceiling and thus wouldn’t be hit by the concrete scattershot or orange sparks.

Kamijou unwrapped the plastic sheet from his arm and threw it away before grabbing a bottle of detergent. If he opened the cap and squeezed the plastic bottle tight, the contents would shoot out like a water gun.

He still knew exactly what he needed to do.

(A gasoline engine has to take in air to burn the fuel. If I can block the air intake with mud, rain, detergent, or whatever else, the engine will stop! I can figure out how to deal with the electric ghost after that!!)

“Take this!!”

Just as he held his arm out to take aim, he froze in place. He found his foot buried up to the ankle in the concrete ground. It was like he had stepped through a dark, discolored floorboard.

Then realization hit him.

(No. He isn’t increasing the chainsaw’s power. That would work with the metal or concrete, but it wouldn’t let him produce sparks from and cut through soft synthetic fibers!)

The roaring weapon was raised high. The engine kept the chainsaw’s blade rotating.

But that wasn’t the real threat.

(''He never had any kind of esper power.'' This isn’t a normal space – it’s a strange place called Academy City’s Greatest Taboo. Is this one of the malfunctions he mentioned? It doesn’t just affect the ghosts – it effects this place itself. And Kihara Hasuu has stolen it from Frillsand #G, so can he alter and control the terrain and its materials!?)

He yanked his foot out of the dark and dry floor, but the time loss proved devastating.

If he died here, he could not save Risako.

He tired to roll behind a nearby concrete pillar and the chainsaw swung diagonally down to slice right through that thick pillar.

The color red flew.