Editing Kaze no Stigma:Volume6 Chapter 2 (section)

=== Part 1 ===

Playing with Kokusen with one hand, Kazuma observed the boy struggling under his foot. 

It looked pretty painful. The entire body weight of a grown man concentrated in one point on that delicate body - what's more, the boy was trampled straight above the heart so that was expected. 

He already couldn't resist in a meaningful way. 

The movement of his limbs, rather than those for escape, were closer to death agony convulsions. 

But even so, the boy didn't gave up yet. Seizing with his hand the foot trampling him, he was almost powerless but he still had light in his eyes, looking up at Kazuma. 

''"------How energetic,"'' thought Kazuma indifferently. 

He did not hate kids with vitality. As long as they're not annoying him, that is. 

Adding one thing to another, he believed in being impartial towards all his enemies. 

That is, annihilating men and women of all ages if they oppose him. 

Therefore, he had no reason to let this boy live. 

It would be better to make him spit out why he was aiming at Ayano but that's not something he should pay attention to. 

It happened at the time he was putting strength in his leg to quickly kill him. 

Some ill-breading intruders disturbed Kazuma's purpose. 

"Ayano!"

"-----Eeh?"

Around Ayano's surroundings, blinking at the sudden call, a wind barrier was wrapped up. 

Immediately something flying at a high speed was repelled and smashed against the wind barrier. 

A small sheet of spray glistened in the sunlight. 

"------Water?"

"You two right there, do you have business here?"

Not minding Ayano's confusion, Kazuma asked in a freezing voice. 

A replying voice promptly returned. 

"Did you notice? Besides, I wasn't particularly hiding my Kehai, you know."

A clear, beautiful voice resounded on the desolate construction site. 

Ayano looked around searching for the owner of the voice. As for Kazuma, he didn't even show he was searching and while stepping and jumping on the boy, lazily he puffed his cigarette. 

"I asked about your business."

"How impolite."

A voice containing a smile replied. Together with it, two figures appeared on top of a slightly elevated heap of mud. 

Appropriate for the owner of the beautiful voice, one of them was an extremely beautiful young man. His silver hair was glittering in the sun like a waterfall, flowing straight down his back. His eyes were amber colored.

He had flawless white skin and thin, fine shaped red lips that were vibrantly contrasting. 

He was naturally perfect. 

No matter how much one looked at him, not a flaw could be found. 

That face was so beautiful it made one believe it must be without a doubt the a human face organized after a single rule -  Golden Rule.

But after only glancing at it, Kazuma gazed steadily at the man standing next to him. 

He was very short. He had below a hundred and fifty centimeters at most.

But anyone would hesitate calling that man a small built. Surely his stature was low. But even if he was low the volume of muscle that body was clad in, wasn't common. 

When describing a muscular giant it's said ''"That upper arm is thicker than a woman's ass"'' or ''"Those tights are like a woman's waist"''.

If the man were above two meters it will be finished one would call him ''burly'' - but if he's below a hundred and fifty centimeters -


You can only call it birth defect. Even assuming he dedicated all his life to weight training, it doesn't seem likely the human body can become like this. 

It could be evaluated to a human's parody or rather a distorted figure (prettiness nonexistent).

The balance of length and width, was perfectly deviating from the contour of the human body. Even the skeleton was wrong. 

It could be understood if it were a different species from man. 

After staring at that atypical appearance very long, Kazuma coughed once.

"So it's true there are Dwarfs, huh?"

"Wait a second, youngster," the man retorted to Kazuma almost reluctantly. 

His voice was a deep baritone, which seemed only appropriate. 

"Who is a dwarf, huh?"

"It's obviously you, no? Beside that constitution, you're also carrying an axe."

That's right, the man was shouldering a gigantic battle-axe. 

Just like in a certain world famous fantasy movie, his physique seemed very similar to that race.

Besides he was also growing a beard. 

"If you want to be consistent to that extent, you should wear a helmet with two horns. Can you split into seven and dance around snow white?"

"Wha.....You bastard...."

At Kazuma's abuse, bringing even fairy tales into this, the man glared at him furiously. 

But, his mouth didn't seem very proficient so no comebacks emerged. 

"Y-you youngster....."

Understanding he couldn't match him verbally, the man grasped with both his hands the battle ax and stepped forward with short steps. 

But, his beautiful neighbor restrained him.

"Well, calm down, *imli."

"Who the heck is G*mli?"

Not minding the short one angry and barring his teeth, the beautiful man turned his gaze to Kazuma - no, to the boy trampled on at his feet. 

"----This is a somewhat unexpected development, huh?"

Curbing his lips upward, the man addressed the boy. Those red lips were etched with scorn towards a weak person.

But, even that was beautiful. As a god boasting about the superiority of his existence, ridiculing a fallen angel.

"It's not the time to split among friends, right, young prince of the Fuan family - was it? Or rather, you thought that by presenting us with Enraiha, we'll overlook you?"

"Rd....tard......"

With that energy stored somewhere, the boy once again began to act violently underneath Kazuma's foot. 

Literally crushing that resistance under his foot, Kazuma looked up at the youth.

"Who are you?"

The young man bowed elegantly and then declared. 

"I was slow in saying. I am Christian Roengram - your enemy."

Receiving the young man's - Christian's words, Kazuma's words was etched in a belligerent smile. 

"Good vibes, easy to understand. I like that."

"I feel grateful. But - "

Cristian finished his sentence there and looked away. Nearby Kazuma. And then, to where Ayano was standing, in a slightly separated place. 

"If you obediently hand over your sacred treasure, I promise not to harm you."

"- So he said. What will you do? "

"That's rejected!" replied Ayano without hesitating for a second. 

"Besides I don't like your ''I'll overlook you'' attitude! ''I promise not to harm you''? Do you think you can win against us?"

"Of course."

Chris held out his right hand. On the pointed upwards palm as if trying to receive something, a short pole, thirty centimeters long appeared without notice. 

"Why that is, it's because I'm the owner of the Water's sacred treasure, <<Mizuchi>>."

The pole he clasped in his right hand shook. The large amount of water spirits entering through there changed to a whip crossing over ten meters. 

"I'll teach you the discrepancy in our status. --- Aah, Gaia, I'm plenty by myself. Don't interfere."

"......Humph, very well. A powerless Fujutsushi and an Enjutsushi who can't even win against that, there's no worth dealing with them."

The short man - Gaia, instantly made a dissatisfied face but immediately agreed and jerked his chin as if saying ''Go already!''.

Chris bowed to Gaia with a smiling face, and approached Ayano with an air of composure. 







"...................."

"...................."

Kazuma and Ayano, none even throwing a sidelong glance to the approaching Chris, looked at each other. 

Ayano asked frankly.

"Is is real?"

"Who knows. It's the first time I heard of a Water sacred treasure."

While answering, Kazuma incorrigibly gridded down the boy acting violently. 

"You're persistent. ------Ayano, I leave that weird one to you."

"Okay."

Kazuma's gaze, looking at Ayano lightly running, suddenly turned down.

The boy under his foot, was pulling the cuff of his trousers. 

Feeling that was an action meant to attract attention not to escape the trampling, Kazuma loosened the force just a little. 

"What?"

"...St..op....her....."

While bearing the pain of having his chest crushed, the boy boy spoke disconnectedly. 

"That woman.......can't.....match him.........She'll be....killed......."

"That so? "

Kazuma was thoroughly calm. The gaze with which he looked at those two, about to start fighting, didn't had a fragment of nervousness. 

"Well, shut up and look. What you wanted to see, from here on you'll be able to see freely."

Kazuma smiled lightly at the boy who didn't seem to understand. 

"The serious Kannagi Ayano."






Intended to be composed, Chris didn't start but waited for Ayano slashing attack.

Matching the moment Ayano raised Enraiha overhead, at that moment he lightly twisted his wrist. 

The flame sword swung downward from above her head was ambushed from underneath by the water whip. 

The sound of water soaking a heated frying pan reached their ears. Simultaneously, both were covered by white water vapor. 

But, the atmosphere turned clear in a moment. Mizuchi absorbed the surplus water in the atmosphere. 

The water whip completely stopped the flame blade. Only the surface that touched continued to evaporate. That was almost nothing compared to the entire water volume. 

But, successively compensating that loss from the surroundings, the whip couldn't be severed. 

Cool-looking while the burning blade was before his eyes, Chris laughed. 

"An Enjutsushi tackling a Suijutsushi. Water trumps Fire - do you not know the rivalry between the five elements?"

"Ara, I know it. Wasn't it all about the amount of material resources?"

There was no appearance of impatience in Ayano's eyes. Including even more power in the blade, she made the golden flame erupt. 

"Kuh!"

Chris' voice was confused for the first time. The whip was bisected close to the root, and Mizuchi leaped in his hand, nothing more but a stick. 

"So- something like this.........."

From those red lips that looked a little pale, a murmur of astonishment leaked out.

It was the ideology of the cosmic dual forces - Ying and Yang and the five elements. 

The elements the world was composed of - Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water, all phenomena became by the interference of those elements, that's what it meant.

There are two types of interference, one that takes advantage of one other and they can work together and the other, where there is a killing rivalry between them. 

For example, the Earth is raising Wood (vegetation). Therefore the Earth makes Wood alive. On the contrary, Metal (the metal blade) cuts down Tree. Therefore, Metal trumps Tree. 

And then, Water trumps Fire. That is the law derived from Chinese cosmology. 

But think about it. Certainly Water makes Fire disappear. In that case, did the brilliant, primitive fire disappear with just a cup of water?

Water is also stronger than Fire. But that is not something absolute. It was just something relatively favorable. 

In the first place, the basic concept of Spirit Jutsushi is the theory of the four elements: Earth, Water, Fire, Wind. 

"Haaaah!"

While it may be true that Ayano's enemy was a Suijutsushi, she is swinging Enraiha without hesitation.

Ayano's way of thinking is always simple. And so, it suited her and made her stronger. 

Today is a good example of it. 

Water trumps Fire? What about it? 

Regarding the energy it's able to release, there's nothing that equals <<Fire>>. No matter how much predominance <<Water>> has -

"How can I lose? To the likes of you!"

"Meeh, kuuh!"

Chris drew to himself the water that was cut off trying to reconstruct the whip once more but that spanned a few seconds. 

In front of Enraiha at full power, Mizuchi was literally doing nothing more but pouring water on hot stone. 

Torn piece by piece, Mizuchi wasn't even allowed to keep the whip shape. 

Overhead Chris, all his power stolen, the blade clad in flame was approaching. 

''"I got you!"''

But, together with a hard sound, the certain kill blow was obstructed. 

Mizuchi lost the water whip. Pushing out that handle, Chris intercepted he blow. 

As expected of a sacred treasure, even by using the red-hot blade, she couldn't smash that handle. But -

"Kuu....uu....."

Even if he stopped the blow of the blade itself, he couldn't protect himself against that calorific value. 

The golden flame was scorching and both of Chris' hands gripping the handle at both ends gave off a burned smell. 

His flushed face was strained by anguish and closely packed sweat drops were coming loose. 

"Me....Ooohh!"

While stopping Enraiha's blow, Chris fired a kick in desperation. Without going to far, Ayano evaded the kick taking her distance. 

"Wh.....what's going on?"

Underneath Kazuma's foot, the boy opened his eyes wide in shock. 

"Isn't she like a different person from when I faced her?"

"Huh? Yeah."

Kazuma nodded to the boy's shout like it was only natural. 

"Because she's not the kind of person to get serious if the opponent has no thirst for blood."

"Did she realize!?"

"........Hey"

Kazuma overlooked the boy that was plainly amazed. 

"Didn't you say it yourself: ''Show me your power''?"

Which means the boy's purpose wasn't to kill Ayano but to grasp her ability - meaning, trying her ability.

"Well, that Ojou-san may have forgotten about it."

"------?"

"Didn't she notice it with her wildlife sixth sense? Because she's a living thing that moves only on instinct."

The moment he said that, red hot plasma crashed into the wind barrier. Of course, Ayano fired one of Enraiha's blows without even turning around.

"-------Wah?"

Dumbfounded the boy looked at Kazuma, who shrugged his shoulders like nothing happened. 

"Right now.....that was the real deal."

"Hmm, how to say this, she kind of misunderstands it for tsukomi. I'm kind of worried if she'll kill someone before long."

"You there! Don't say whatever you want!"

This time she made a verbal tsukomi. 

Maybe because she was composed enough, while overlooking Chris reconstructing his water whip without interfering, Ayano glared at Kazuma with an angry look.

"There's no need to worry, except you I wouldn't do this to anyone!"

"And I'm Ok? If you hit me I will die, you know?"

"You'll die? I won't stop you."

At Kazuma's unnaturally miserable manner of speaking, Ayano replied eternally indifferent. 

Ant then, she looked at Chris as if remembering him and smiled with composure. 

"You seem to be in a sort of pinch so is it all right not to beg your fellow's help? Your dramatic pose when you appeared and your words were all detestable but I understand - isn't it important to understand one's place?"

"........Tch!"

Those words loaded even with pity, magnificently irritated Chris' pride the wrong way. 

The hand grasping Mizuchi trembled and the water whip undulated in a big way. 

"Girl.......!"

Flinging off his graceful smile and pointlessly polite words, Chris glared at Ayano with the look of a demon. 

"You damaged the sacred treasure because I was going easy on you so don't get carried away!"

"I think excuses are unsightly, I really do."

"Shut up!"

Together with that angry roar, Chris held Mizuchi over his head. The water whip stretched upright, its volume swelling. 

That was like a water chain iron ball. The endless materialization of water spirits, swelled the apex of the whip to a lump of water ball.

It's diameter was a little more than ten meters - forming the huge water ball reaching a volume of a few hundred tones, Chris shouted.

"I'll smash you! There won't remain a trace of you!"

"With only that?"

Without minding that overwhelming mass swung downward at her Ayano resolutely stepped into his territory.

The several hundreds tons water ball approaching from overhead. 

What met it was only a swung brilliant red blade. 

That was without a doubt a real spectacle of a courageous but doomed resistance. A different scale from loss or defeat. 

"Stop-----!"

[[Image:Kaze no Stigma vol 06 065.jpg|thumb|]]

Including the expectation for the result of the crash, the boy screamed from the bottom of his lungs. 

But Ayano, without hesitation, raised the sword overhead with all her power. 

Kazuma too, didn't seem like he was going to stop her, and was just looking at her.

The water ball dropped at high speed. Including its mass to the fall velocity, there wasn't any living thing that could bear that kinetic energy of the crash. 

Whether it was an African elephant or a grisly bear, they would be squashed in an instant unable to withstand the pressure, unable even to preserve their original form.

But, the sword facing it was called Enraiha. 

That mass was equivalent with trash, the quantity of heat it possessed was not something to be outdone by that.

"Yooooooooou! Flyyyyyyyy!"

Together with an outcry not very, or rather excessively - unladylike, as if challenging it, Ayano sliced the sky. 

Th golden flame clad on the blade, fiercely sparkled so beautiful striking their eyes. 

The gushing out white hot plasma. Similar to a small sun, that hit the huge water mass, pierced it and made all that mass evaporate. 

But even so Chris didn't seem disturbed. Rather, he was staring at Ayano holding Enraiha smiling quite sadistically as if he did what he wanted to.

Also, underneath Kazuma's foot, the boy was biting his lips with a regretful expression.

One instant after - a terrific detonation sound roared.

Let's look over the basic science at this point.

When you apply heat to water it undergoes the process of vaporization and becomes steam. 

That volume ratio is 1: 1700 ----the instant it vaporized the volume expanded a thousand and seven hundred times. 

It this was a small quantity, or rather vaporized gradually, it doesn't matter that the thousand fold becomes twice ten thousand. 

But, if a huge volume of water is super heated, it will vaporize in an instant. 

The volcanic eruption is similar to this. The underground water is vaporized by burning magma, it expands, and with that pressure it blows off the rocks on the surface. 

It's a phenomenon called water vapor explosion. 

Yes, an explosion. 

The evaporation of water, only that phenomenon can create so much destructive energy to physically alter the topography. 

Right now, what happened in front of their eyes was exactly that. 






"......Ridiculous.....to go this far........."

Looking at the mist enshrouding the center of explosion, the boy's face was distorted by despair.

With that kind of explosion, there was no way for the humans inside to survive. To say nothing of the fact that this was a water vapour explosion. 

A Suijutsushi can can control the water vapor but an Enjutsushi has no way of interfering with an fire-less explosion.

Which means, she lost. 

The greatest war potential that could fulfill his dearest wish will turn to nothing and achieve nothing. 

The boy turned that unbearable anger against an opponent within reach. Looking up at the man who was yet still trampling him, he shouted full of emotion. 

"Why? Why didn't you stop her? You knew something like this would happen!"

"-------Well, this is the reasonable outcome."

While smoking his cigar so carefree so late in the game, Kazuma replied in a voice without energy. 

Faced with that indifference of not even raising an eyebrow at the death of his friend, the boy glared at him.

"Bas- bastard......bastard!"

"By the way ----- I have a feeling I wanted at least one explanation beforehand, Ojou-san."

"I believe in you, partner♥!"

At that dispirited murmur that didn't seem to appreciate the situation, a bright lively voice replied. 

"-----Eeh?"

With a look of shock the boy stared inside the mist. Inside his blurry field of vision, two shadows were floating. 

Christian Roengram holding Mizuchi who once again became just a handle and a girl setting up a brilliant red blade clad in golden flame. 



It was obvious who that was. 

It wasn't clear how but Ayano came out of the desperate predicament without even a wound and was appearing calm.

"Wh- why....." murmured the boy dumbfounded. 

For Chris too, that seemed unexpected and stared at the girl's silhouette as if doubting his eyes. 

"Absurd.......why, are you alive.......?"

Ayano showed a fearless smile to Chris who murmured so, his certain victory undermined. 

At that time, the boy noticed. 

That without the enshrouding mist flowing, without the atmosphere moving, the clothes and hair of the girl standing rock still were gently fluttering. 

As it was to be expected, in an instant the boy saw through its meaning - and who was behind it.

One moment later, Chris reached the same answer. 

The gazes of the two, dyed in shock and shudders turned to Kazuma's disinterested face.

"You son of a bitch.......a wind barrier, in that moment you........" squeezed Chris with eyes covered in hatred. 

The Enjutsushi Ayano had no way of escaping from that explosion. Then, there is only one answer. 

"You have no time to look away, lady-killer."

"-------Tch!"

Calming down with Kazuma's words, Chris turned to the front. 

Making Enraiha shine brilliantly, Ayano was drawing near in front of him. 

At once ordering the water spirits, Chris reconstructed Mizuchi's water whip. Luckily, there was a vast amount of water drifting in the atmosphere in the form of water vapors and he could summon them - he was supposed to.

"Wha------?"

The drifting about mist, for some reason didn't listed to Chris's command. 

The water whip didn't materialize at all but, Enraiha was already swung downward. He had no Jutsu to escape from that blow.

"Kuu....uuu....!"

With Mizuchi's handle, Chris stopped Enraiha once more. 

While moaning with the agony of having his fingers burned, he forced it back with all his strength, and took his distance tumbling in a big way.

While his shoulders trembled with intense pain and his breathing was heavy, Chris glared at Kazuma with a bloody mouth.

He did not know what he did. He didn't know it but he instinctively knew. That what hindered his ability was nothing else but that man's action. 

Replying with sneer at the gaze full of hatred, Kazuma declared carelessly.

"Since it's different from the water itself, water vapor is within a Fujutsushi's range. That's because it's vapor. You'd better not think you can manipulate it that easily."

"You bastard......."

"That's why I told you you have no time to look away."

Although Chris was exasperated by Kazuma's boasting composed facial expression, it certainly wasn't the time to do that. 

Using that chance that opened for a moment, Ayano drew near once more. 

Enraiha was held aloft. The blade wearing the golden flame increased its brilliance much more, shedding so much light it couldn't be looked at directly. 

If he were to block it the same way, even though Mizuchi would be safe, his fingers would probability evaporate.

However, he had no time to summon more water spirits and he already lost the chance to evade. 

"Hii......."

Chris' refined good looks became stiff with fear. 

He couldn't run, an absolute death was drawing near, and then - 

"Fall back!"

"-------Tch!"

Reflexively responding to Kazuma's voice, Ayano leapt in a big way. Immediately following, before Chris' eyes, the ground raised and an earth fang with a sharp tip slanted forward - if Ayano were to go right ahead, it was pushed out in a direction she would have intersected. 

"Kuh!"

"Gaia!?"

"----------"

Everyone's gaze headed for the man - Gaia, who was supposed to have sightseeing the fight from a separate place. 

While striking his shoulder with the axe as if taking its rhythm, Gaia's lips warped and he showed a bitter smile. 

"It's very boorish interfering in a honor duel but I cannot abandon my colleague. Don't think bad of me."

"It's obvious I'll think bad of you, idiot. You said you won't interfere. If you're a warrior even as a joke don't behave so disgraceful as to violate your oath before the fight!"

The moment he understood that his opponent valued things like honor or pride, something that had no importance to Kazuma, he took advantage of that. 

"You came out when that man was about to die. So, as a penalty for violating your oath, at least cut one of your arms!"

"..........Don't get excited, youngster," replied Gaia in a crushed to death voice.

"Besides, you were to one to excessively meddle in those two's fight."

"What the fuck are you saying? That man of gentle manners and delicate features, didn't he said he'll take all of us by himself? I participated in the battle since the beginning. Don't put me together with your underhanded, cowardly sneak attack!"

"Guu.....meee....."

As expected, if they quarreled, it was Kazuma's complete victory. 

Sealing more of the enemy's interfering shielding himself behind the pride of a warrior together with justifying himself and the negation of the opponent's modus operandi, that cajolery could be called brilliant. 

""Since it's like that, ignore us and let us continue."

"I won't!"

In accordance with Kazuma's words, the moment Ayano tried to start moving, Gaia swung his battle axe a second time. 

That blow literally tore the earth and the pebbles raised from that high speed blow obstructed her path, changing into a wall.

"This time, you'll play with me, Miss."