Editing City Series:Volume4b Chapter 9 (section)

===Part 2===

'''6:30 PM

The chill of the night was beginning to descend from the sky.

Shoui was lying down, but he had already woken up.

–''Shoui – Sight Tech – Take – Confirm Situation – Hit.

His upward-facing vision saw the ceiling of Nandaimon’s detached room.

This had been his room 2 years before.

The room was bright.

The ceiling’s fluorescent light was on.

“…”

His eyes could see the scene around him, but his head was far from clear.

It felt like waking from a long sleep.

–''Shoui – Mind Tech – Take – Awaken Mind – Hit.

After a single powerful heartbeat, the blood slowly rose through his neck and to his head.

He trembled.

He felt the cold.

He sat up.

–''Shoui – Sight Tech – Take – Confirm Situation – Hit.

He found himself in a nostalgic place.

He removed the blanket covering him and revealed his body.

The chilly air hit his skin and he realized he was not wearing his inner suit.

He crossed his arms to keep out the cold, but his skin still felt the cold quite sensitively.

The cold brought back his body’s senses.

Similarly, all of his memories returned.

And he realized why he was here.

In his battle with Souichirou…

…''My right arm.

He had lost a part of his body.

However, he was currently crossing his arms.

That meant he had the right arm that Souichirou had chopped off.

He looked to that arm.

From the shoulder to the fingertips, it was entirely contained in bandages.

He had his arm.

It was wrapped in bandages, but when he tried to open the hand, he had no trouble moving it. He had feeling in the fingers as well.

…''Was I healed?

Just as he wondered that…

“Shoui! Shoui! Have you woken up!?”

He heard a voice from outside and the large window was shoved open.

He saw the darkness of the night.

He felt the chill of the night.

That chilly expanse opened up before his eyes.

And Senga stood in the center of it.

Their eyes immediately met.

Shoui was unsure what to say.

“Umm, long time no see?”

“What are you talking about, moron? We saw each other just two days ago.”

“I’m pretty sure we only passed by each other on the beach…”

After saying that, Shoui was relieved to find he actually could speak.

And then he realized what she had actually said.

“…Two days ago? I was out for that long?”

“You weren’t just out. I’ll explain everything, so come on out of there.”

“Oh, right, right, right.”

He nodded, got out of the bed, and tried to stand up.

“?”

He felt something at his feet.

There was a small paper bag by the pillow.

“What is this…?” he muttered while picking it up.

There was something light and soft inside.

…''Who left this?

No one answered his question.

He heard something else instead.

“Hurry it up, Shoui! Get a move on!”

Senga yelled at him from outside.

He sighed, lightly folded the bag, and stuck it in the hidden pocket of his pants.

And he walked.

He was a little unsteady on his feet, but he regained his balance after a few steps.

He closed the large window Senga had opened and circled around to the front door.

He put on his shoes which were lying there and opened the door.

“Shoui! Hurry up and put this on.”

He found Senga’s rushed voice as well as an inner suit and coat dumped over his head.

The clothes were obscuring his vision, so he set them on the ground and looked to Senga.

“Old Lady Senga.”

“What is it?”

“Before I put on the inner suit.” He pointed to his right shoulder. “Can I remove the bandages on my right arm?”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m skeptical that it was completely healed in only 2 days after being so cleanly lopped off.”

The anti-shock reflective material inner suit both reduced any impacts and strengthened his body’s movements. If he was still injured, any vigorous activity could instantly reopen the wound.

So he asked.

“Was it fully healed?”

“Of course it was. That’s why you were asleep for so long.” Senga smiled bitterly. “On the Emperor’s own orders, you were given the best Tune healing Japan has to offer and a group from Detroit was called in for some Live modifications. Two days was enough, so remove the bandages.”

He did as he was told.

–''Shoui – Surgical Tech – Take – Remove Bandage – Miss.

“Huhh?”

“What are you even doing…?”

–''Senga – Surgical Tech – Take – Remove Bandage – Hit.

Senga slowly removed the bandages and they fell to the hard ground in front of the detached room.

Shoui watched the bandages fall away and scratched his head with his left hand.

“I always had Yuuki do this, so I’m no good at it.”

His voice faded away toward the end.

He had seen his right arm exposed in the air.

–''Shoui – Sight Tech – Take – Confirm Situation – Miss.

His right arm was now a red biological prosthetic.

–''Shoui – Mind Tech – Take – Accept – Hit.

“Is this…?”

He looked to his right arm with no shock or confusion.

It looked like a human arm, but it was not.

When he held it up toward the moon, he could tell exactly what it was.

It was vermilion.

The arm was made from a glossy vermilion that looked a lot like blood and stood out even in the dark night.

And black stripes of lightning patterns were visible on the developed muscles.

–''Shoui – Military Tech – Take – Identify Weapon – Hit.

:–''Shoui – Commercial Tech – Take – Identify Product – Hit.

He used two different Techs, but he could find no knowledge on this false arm.

He had never seen anything like it.

Senga identified it for him.

“That’s the ogre’s arm.”

He looked back in surprise and she nodded.

“It was made using the Lives of the ogre arm severed by Nanba Souichirou. But the base of the actual biological matter came from your severed arm and…” She hesitated a moment. “The arm of Yamashita Gihei who you killed.”

“…”

Shoui said nothing about the origin of his new arm.

With a serious expression, he simply raised his right arm, thrust it forward, and clenched the fist.

“It’s a great false arm.”

“It’s an honor, isn’t it?”

“What’s it called?”

“There is no literature about a false arm made from an ogre, so you could even call it the Ogre God if you wanted.”

“I see. Would this make me a Steel Forcer instead of a Critical Forcer?”

“No, I think you could call yourself whichever you wanted. It was made to be no different from a normal arm, so ability-wise, you’re still a Critical Forcer.”

Shoui smiled bitterly at that.

“For being made from an ogre’s arm, it’s a pretty boring prosthetic.”

“Yes, save for one power.”

“Power?”

“It can ignore the Flame High. Thanks to the ogre’s Lives,” explained Senga. “Since you still can’t use your power as a Loudist very well, that should help you out.”

“…Huh?”

“What do you mean ‘huh’?”

“Well, uh…you said ignoring the Flame High should help me out.” He tilted his head. “But why would that help me?”

“You moron. Kantou and Kansai are about to clash at Osaka Castle!”

“Ho ho. Well, isn’t that something?”

“And you’re going too.”

“Eh?”

He froze just as he was staring to put on the inner suit.

“Why am I going?”

Senga sighed and brought an exasperated hand to her forehead.

“Do you not remember the Rhythm you used to defeat Nanba Souichirou?”

“…”

“Do you not remember the power that negated his Kusanagi?”

He did remember.

His right arm had negated Kusanagi’s sword pressure the instant he touched it.

But even after Kusanagi vanished, the blade itself remained and chopped off his right arm.

“What was-…?”

Before he could finish his question, Senga slapped his right arm.

“It was your will. It’s a Rhythm meant to protect instead of fight. It’s the Heavy Rhythm that stands opposite of the Flame High and is easiest to use for a Loudist.”

“And I used it?”

“Yes, only a Loudist familiar with all Rhythms and Techs can understand that soundless Rhythm. That blocking Rhythm negates any other Rhythm it touches.” She sighed. “It was once used by Kuki Udai alongside Nakamura Midori who used the Flame High. …And because it is soundless, it is a Rhythm that can be used without using a Rhythm.”

Shoui looked to his left hand.

…''Can I really use something like that?

He had used it.

He did not know how.

While fighting Souichirou, he had seen Yuuki standing on the beach embankment.

It had happened the instant he had wanted to protect her instead of escape the Flame High or win.

He remembered a certain will within him.

So he spoke.

“That power is needed, isn’t it?”

“Hurry to Osaka Castle.”

“Are the Flame High…and Yuuki there?”

“Yes, they are. …But your power is probably still unstable, so use that Ogre God well as you fight. Your enemy has the Harmonist’s power. Don’t let your guard down and screw up like you always do.”

“It’s not that I let my guard down. I screw up all the time because I’m weak.”

He smiled bitterly and put on his inner suit.

He fastened it to the suit on his lower body to cover his entire body in a single suit.

And then he put on the coat.

“Does my Rhythm have a name?”

“The Storm High.”

“The Storm High?”

“And as a Heavy Rhythm, it’s also known as Totsuka.” She took a breath. “It’s the Totsuka-no-Tsurugi from when Susanoo chopped off Yamata-no-Orochi’s heads.”

“I see,” said Shoui with a nod.

The coat had the right sleeve removed to accommodate the false arm.

He lightly swung the ogre’s right arm to double-check how it felt.

“Okay, I’ll be going.”

“You forgot this.”

Senga held out his bandanna.

He smiled a little and took it.

He wrapped it around his forehead.

When his hand touched it, he felt the chill of the split forehead protector.

It had been split by Yamashita Gihei’s attack 2 years before.

…''It all started here.

With that thought, he bowed toward Senga.

And he started walking.

The walk quickly grew to a jog and then a run.

The gravel crunched below his feet as he raced through the winter darkness.

He ran.

–''Shoui – Savate Tech – Take – Sprint – Hit!

He ran down the path leading to the shrine.

The wind was blowing.

It was a powerful north wind.