Editing Mushi Uta:Volume 8 Chapter 5 (section)

== 5.02 Marker-user VS Kakkou ==
A Mushitsuki sure to destroy herself.

Muttering this, the woman collapsed.

Daisuke, having come to the substation, hands still inside his hoodie pockets, gazed absently at that Mushitsuki.

"Coatl Head."

The new Fusion Type Mushitsuki, Tanaka Momo, howled. Using her marker she drew a symbol on her head and it shone with the color of healing marigold.

While seeing Momo's wounds being healed, Daisuke started walking to another direction.

"…"

Removing the goggles from the Annihilators member collapsed nearby, he equipped them on himself.

"Coatl Head!"

Once again Momo drew on her head. It was an invigorating dandelion. The pattern on her body glowed brighter.

"…"

Daisuke slowly took the pitch-black coat of another Annihilator and wore it.

Then, the pair faced each other.

The Fusion Type Mushitsuki, Kakkou. —Kusuriya Daisuke.

The Fusion Type Mushitsuki, Marker-User. —Tanaka Momo.

Their expressions as they gazed each other were the exact same.

They were Mushitsuki who were beaten, tired, and sick of fighting.

Although both wished to run away from the battlefield, they had nowhere to go to.

There was no other way than fighting, and they could only keep running ahead.

"So that's what you meant… Haji…"

Daisuke mumbled.

He now realized.

"Kirari was… the same as Touko-san or Wanko and the rest…"

East Central Branch Acting Director, Goroumaru Touko.

Asagi—Shishidou Inuko—and her disciples.

Handyman, Ikarino Kirari.

Perhaps that was why he sent Kasuou, Nene or C back to the Central Headquarters.

All of them—all were people Haji Keigo had prepared for Daisuke's sake.

That man, always wearing a thin smile, had been able to foresee that Daisuke would one day become a runaway. On top of that he managed to put all these people at places so that they could support him—or possibly stop his escape.

How far ahead had Haji Keigo seen?

He was a sly and cruel schemer, about as much as Miguruma Yaeko from the Central Headquarters. Had the man gotten so many plans underway because he'd foreseen that Daisuke would fight until the end? Was he convinced that he would live until the very end?

Daisuke put his hand around the back of his waist, pulling out his concealed handgun.

"…"

Immediately after running away from the East Central Branch interior, he left not only with goggles but a gun as well. Keeping it all this time—was perhaps because he knew that he would fight against someone again.

Even if he tried running, he couldn't run.

Even if he didn't want to fight, he had to fight.

He realized that all long ago.

"Who… are you?"

Momo looked at Daisuke calmly.

The girl's stance seemed calm, but he knew she was already losing her rationality. Her clouded eyes were those of the moment before her Mushi fully devoured her dreams, and the brightly shining pattern on her body was out of her control.

Underneath the unceasing rain, the two Fusion Types quietly gazed at each other.

"Kakkou."

Almost everyone who used his name was his enemy.

At times allies, too.

And only one of them—was the girl he loved.

In order to meet that girl, there was no other way but keep fighting and survive.

"I don't know you."

"I don't know you, either."

"I don't want any more pain…"

"Me neither."

"And I don't want to fight."

"…Me neither."

"But I have to go…"

"Me too."

"There's someone I have to meet up with."

"Me too."

"Move aside."

"No."

[[File:Mushi Uta 8 p359.jpg|thumb]]

If the rampaging Momo stepped into town, he couldn't even imagine how many victims it would cause.

There would probably be many civilian casualties. Even if the SEPB attempted to act, one or two branches would likely be destroyed before everything was over. If they dispatched the normal army it would cause a great disturbance in the country, but even then he didn't think they'd be able to stop Momo as she currently was.

"I see. If so, then—"

Momo's eyes changed. She glared at Daisuke with the merciless eyes of a demon.

A green checkered beetle landed on Daisuke's shoulder.

Daisuke was also just a step before losing control. If he used his Mushi's power, there would definitely be the signs of Maturation.

It was the same when he'd come to town.

When he'd fought at the riverside against the masked assassin—the boy that was now nothing but a statue in town, Daisuke had lost control. Even so the battle had ended in a tie and he was heavy wounded, so he'd managed to dodge his Maturation.

The time Daisuke would do to Momo what the masked boy had done to him.

Meaning—he would stop her rampage by force.

On top of that Daisuke would have to withstand his own rampage.

If Daisuke lost control, it would be the same; this country would be plunged into chaos.

Furthermore, if two Fusion Type Mushitsuki fought, it was unknown what would happen.

"I won't show you any mercy… yeah."

"Me neither."

The checkered beetle transformed, its tentacles piercing Daisuke's body. As if dyeing his body by permeating it, the tentacles became a green pattern showing on his body.

A battle full of unknown things, where you couldn't tell what would happen.

They didn't even know why they were fighting.

Even so, the two Mushitsuki—knew no other way to live other than clashing like that.

"—"

Immediately after assuming his stance, Daisuke's cheek was struck by Momo's punch.

The overwhelming power pounded him against the ground, and without even being able to land safely, he was then kicked by Momo.

Knocking over a transmission tower, he crashed into a concrete building head-first. The wall was destroyed and almost all the control panels were blown away before his momentum was finally stopped.

Yet Marker-User didn't even give him enough time to stand up.

"UUUuuuUUUh!"

Momo, enveloped in the glow of dandelion, reached above Daisuke in the blink of an eye. Straddling him, she sealed his movements and rained down her fists.

It was a reckless attack but since it was too fast he couldn't dodge. Head, chest, stomach; she pounded Daisuke all over his body.

It was like being hit by a wrecking ball weighing several tons. Unable to even counter, Daisuke's consciousness was rapidly thinning.

"WAAAaaHHH!"

Noticing that Daisuke went silent and taking advantage of that chance, Momo brandished her marker. The tip emitting a blue glow touched his forehead.

Yet Daisuke half-consciously grasped Momo's head.

"Nguh!"

Holding her head tightly, he pounded it directly against the ground. This time he straddled the girl, striking his fist against her brow.

The vibrations caused the electric control room to crumble down.

"Kaha…"

The dandelion mark on Tanaka Momo's forehead was wiped off by Daisuke's fist.

Now that the invigorating ability was gone, she was pounded by Daisuke's fist. Confirming that her pupils were losing their lights, he thrust the gun fused with the checkered beetle at her chest.

Momo's mouth moved.

"Coatl Head…!"

"…!"

Even while being hit, Momo marked the ground. The light of pure white attempted to envelop Daisuke.

Suddenly detaching from Momo, Daisuke flew outside the building.

Momo's counterattack didn't stop.

"Coatl Heeead!"

Pebbles emitting a vivid glow flew one after another from inside the building. She'd probably drawn the symbol on these concrete fragments; the spheres glowing in blue, white and purple assaulted Daisuke.

Daisuke raised his gun.

The bullet spewing hellish fire reduced the distant incoming pebbles to dust.

"Coatl Head!"

The glow of dandelion gushed out inside the building. —The moment after he noticed this, Momo transported herself using amazing speed and flew directly beside Daisuke.

"OOOOH!"

He dodged the unleashed fist that created a fierce gale, pounding his own forehead into Momo's.

"Ngh!"

She grimaced as the dandelion glow was gone from her. The blood spilling from Daisuke's cracked brow painted over her forehead.

"Co…Coatl—"

While turning hazy, Momo's hand dropped the pebble she was holding. The fragment of concrete with a symbol drawn on it fell to the ground.

Daisuke crushed it underfoot with all of his power. The impact and vibration cracked the ground, crushing the pebble to dust.

"Gh—"

Since his attention was grabbed by the fragment there was an opening. Momo's knee kick stabbed into Daisuke's chest.

"Nn! Uugh! Agh!"

"Ugh! Gwah! Uh!"

The pair exchanged fists and kicks from a short distance. Since they were focused on dodging bullets and marker swings, they were unable to stop each other's fists. Every time they pounded each other the patterns glowing on their bodies burst, with the afterimage of the glow released to the air.

A bombardment sound echoed.

The bullet grazed Momo's body as she threw her body down, and opened a large hole in the ground.

The marker glowing in seven colors reached out.

As Daisuke barely avoided it, his nose surged with the light filled with energy.

And as the pair lost their balance, their kicks and punches hit each other.

"Guh!"

"Uuuh!"

This scuffle—not a battle but mere awkward violence—continued.

If he were to take his distance, Momo would have the time needed to draw her invigorating mark. He had to avoid this dandelion that gave birth to an overwhelming gap in their abilities no matter what.

On the other hand, Momo was also scared of getting away and hit by bullets. She needed to win this physical fight and aim to apply the mark directly onto Daisuke.

After continuing the beating for a while, the balance finally crumbled.

"Uh—"

The one hit directly and folding their body—was Tanaka Momo.

Daisuke was merciless.

"Agh—"

After being hit in the temple and sent flying, Momo crashed into the ground. Along with vibrations that seemed to raise the entire electrical substation ruins, she rebounded on the ground many times.

"—"

Receiving another kick to her stomach, Momo widened her eyes.

Daisuke caught the girl's head, swinging her. Thrown away like a doll, Momo's body was rotating as she crashed into a transmission tower.

The poles were knocked down as if by a tsunami wave. Gouging the ground and mowing the lines of cables, Momo rolled on the ground.

"Hah…! Hah…!"

Breathing heavily, Daisuke looked at the steel forest.

And he widened his eyes.

He saw a figure instantly rising as if nothing happened.

''How can I even… defeat someone like that?''

Daisuke now knew the fear of fighting against a Fusion Type.

No—Momo's endurance was above Daisuke's. If he was hit by another attack of the same caliber, he didn't have the confidence he'd be able to stand back up again.

While being hit by the rain, Momo leaked a sob. Directing a gaze full of hatred at Daisuke, her entire body was wrapped by the glow of dandelion.

"Uuh… Coatl Headdd…"

''Shit—''

The moment he thought this, Daisuke's body floated in air.

As she closed the distance between them in the blink of an eye, he couldn't evade. The overwhelming destructive power that didn't even let him feel pain blew Daisuke away.

"UUuuUUUuuUh!"

Howling Momo's kick cut off Daisuke's consciousness.

"AAaaAAh!"

Yet he was soon blown away and forcibly reawakened.

He couldn't even perceive the repeating attacks. He couldn't even tell what hit it, where it hit him and how much damage he received.

"WAAAAH!"

His barely open eyes could only see Momo crying while recklessly continuing the assault.

How many successive attacks had hit him?

When he came to, Daisuke was collapsed in the center of the desolate substation.

The crying Momo straddled him.

And then—

"Coatl Head…"

She drew the mark in the color of vivid baby blue on top of the collapsed Daisuke's chest.

The light of cleansing erased the pattern on Daisuke's body.

''Ooh—''

Daisuke understood the situation.

It was his first time feeling this, so he was slow to notice.

''I've… lost—''

When he understood this, he felt something similar to relief.

His five senses were dulled, and his consciousness was slipping away.

And then—

"GWOOOOOOOOOH!"

The beast howled.

Tanaka Momo wore a frightened expression. She hurriedly stepped back.

Daisuke was watching this scene from afar. As if staring at a movie theater screen, he vaguely stared from somewhere silent.

''So it ended up like that—''

His memory was blurring and his ego was blurring as well. Enveloped in a pleasant sense of floating, his thoughts grew hazy.

Turned into a beast, Daisuke's right arm became the maw of a monster. He ripped the Coatl head mark glowing on his chest along with the coat, biting through the baby blue glow.

"U…Uah…"

A red spray of blood rose from Momo's shouldered as she grimaced in fear.

The beast's right arm launched a cannonball along with fire. The shell, after blasting Momo away, landed in a faraway river. Causing a tremor, it created a water spout as tall as a building.

As Momo thought of rising up and escaping, the monster beat the back of her head.

He hit the girl so hard she was pounded into the asphalt.

And hit.

And hit.

"UH—WAH—"

Even Momo, covered in the glow of dandelion, couldn't compare to the beast's power.

The movements of the girl distorted by fear grew softer.

The Mushi had already swallowed not just the beast's right hand but up to its torso. The pattern permeated its entire skin and several parts of its body were swelling unnaturally.

"GAAaaaHHHaaaAAAA!"

Clenching its now blood-covered fist, the beast roared in victory.

"AH—AH—"

Momo crawled, trying to escape the beast even a little. Rising to her legs unsteadily, she started running shakily.

The dandelion glow was already gone from the girl and she became covered in wounds all over. The strongest Marker-User had been overturned, crawling pathetically on the ground and running.

"Uh—Uh—"

The beast noticed the running girl. It raised the monster jaw of its right hand with a gesture as if flicking off a fly in front of it.

Momo, about to run into the desolate forest of steel, turned back.

"Auuu—Uh—"

Marker-User was shedding tears of fear.

''This'll end it all—''

Daisuke muttered inside his heart as if it had nothing to do with him. He didn't even understand what was going to end, but he still felt as if everything was ending.

He didn't even feel like resisting. The beast had already swallowed his mind and body like never before, making him much stronger. Even if the all the strongest people from the SEPB banded together, they wouldn't be able to land a single hit on this beast.

The next attack would end it all.

He would blow Momo away, destroy the city behind him, and—decimate anything he laid his eyes on.

"WAAaaaaAAAH!"

Momo rose up. Picking up a destroyed transmission tower, she used all her power to throw it at the cannon.

Daisuke unconsciously smiled.

Even her final resistance was a too frail of an attack. Did she really think a mere steel pole would defend against the beast's assault?

The monster jaw launched a large bullet.

This was—the end.

This was the answer to everything Daisuke went through until this far.

Thinking this, Daisuke started closing his eyes.

Yet Momo's scream prevented his sleep.

"Coatl Heaaaaad!"

The moment before it clashed with the cannon, the steel pole was enveloped in crimson light.

The color of the mark that appeared on its surface for a moment—was signal red carmine.

A scorching Coatl Head.

The bright red explosive flames filled his sight. The entire substation was engulfed by explosive wind.

And—

"Coatl Head…!"

Appearing after the wind was gone was Momo with the dandelion mark on her forehead.

Daisuke widened his eyes.

Marker-User's attack killed the beast's bombardment.

Next Momo spat some unexpected words.

"—Come at me, you monster."

Even while trembling, the girl gazed at the beast. Raising a large pole several times her height, she held it on her shoulder.

"…!"

The pole smashed the beast's shoulder. The impact caused its legs to sink underground.

The beast hadn't received any noticeable damage. However—

"Coatl Head!"

Scorching signal red carmine.

The flames of destruction surging through the steel pole glowing in red blew the beast back.

"Coatl Head! Coatl Head! Coatl Heaaad!"

Picking up the poles from several meters around her, she flung them at the beast one after another. With blood flowing out of her body and forgetting to even use the marigold of healing, she single-mindedly kept throwing the poles marked with signal red carmine like a spear-thrower athlete.

Just a little bit.

''Why—''

Daisuke's self-will returned ever so slightly.

''She'd been living a normal life until yesterday… and she has such bad wounds, so how can she move—''

Rather than restoring his memories, or restoring his reason, he felt this doubt.

''She's a mere civilian, not even a combatant—''

How come she was able to face against the monster that not even the SEPB could stand up to? On top of bearing grievous wounds, she was supposed to have been assaulted by mind-numbing fear.

Even so, Tanaka Momo did not run away. —It was already obvious that even her act of running into the forest of steel was only meant to prepare for a counterattack.

"GWAAaaaAAAaaAHHH!"

The confident smile vanished from the beast. Blowing away the poles, it readied its right arm.

Causing the air to tremble, a large sound of bombardment echoed around.

"Coatl Heaaad!"

She wasn't simply breaking the mold; Momo's actions were unbelievable.

She raised the large steel pole glowing in the color of signal red carmine with both arms—and used it to strike the cannonball like a baseball player.

The two attacks canceled each other, creating a large explosion.

Even while being blown backward, Momo grabbed a pole midair and stood up.

Even while she was getting covered in wounds.

Even when she couldn't control her Mushi's power and went wild.

Momo shouted on top of the steel pole about her one and only hope.

"I'm… going to Daisuke, yeaaaah!"

Daisuke widened his eyes.

She was going to the person she loved.

For that reason alone.

Aiming for such a meager hope, Tanaka Momo was fighting—

"Going to…"

Along with Momo's shout, a wind blew through the substation.

No—it wasn't wind.

A faint glow was flowing through it.

The thing glowing was the ground the beast was standing on.

Mixed with the flow of rain, it was something crimson.

It was—blood.

Momo's blood became the stream, moved on its own, and spread to the whole premises.

"I'm goinggg!"

Instantly.

The substation was wrapped in crimson light.

Noticing what was evident on the entire vast premises, Daisuke was speechless.

Coatl Head.

A mark of an absolutely colossal size was drawn on the entire substation.

The color of the glow was—the crimson of scorching, signal red carmine.

"Cooo!"

The surge of light flowing at her feet pushed back the rain from the sky.

"Aahhh!"

While Momo was shouting, the beast moved.

"GWAHHHHaaaAAaaAAHHH!"

Howling, it raised its right arm. Aiming for Marker-User who was standing on top of the pole, it readied the monster jaw and gathered energy.

"Teee!"

A single mark produced enough power to equal the beast's cannon.

He couldn't even imagine the explosion produced by this signal red carmine mark a hundred, no, thousand times larger than a normal one. He doubted that boundless energy would include only the substation. There was no doubt it would blow the neighboring down.

"Luuu!"

Self-destruction—

That term rose to Daisuke's mind.

At the end of her rampage, Tanaka Momo would destroy herself using her power.

"GWAAAaaAAAaaAH!"

On the other hand, the beast's attack would definitely kill Momo.

But he wouldn't be able to defend until Momo's ability activated.

The battle caused by the two Fusion Type Mushitsuki was obviously about to end in a tie.

And there would be many victims.

Thinking of that result, Daisuke screamed.

"GWOAAA—WAaaAAAaaaaAAAAH!"

Widening his eyes, he called back his ego.

He grasped the sleeping memory.

The distance between him and the beast was closed—grabbing it with his spread arm, he pulled it forcibly toward him.

"WOooAAAaaAAaaaAHH!"

What Daisuke grabbed was his own right arm.

The arm fused with the beetle's jaw. His left arm grabbed the other one extended toward Momo.

"He—"

Momo shouted.

"WOOAAAAAaaaaaHHH!"

Daisuke shouted as well.

They were the same Fusion Type. Marker-User taught him.

He didn't care if he was used by anyone.

No matter how wounded he was, he wouldn't stop.

He couldn't run away from the dreams, grudge and hope he'd been given by other people.

He stopped complaining in his mind.

Daisuke would fight from now on—for a single, exceedingly simple reason.

"Dooooo!"

"WOOOOAAAAAHHH!"

The two Fusion Type Mushitsuki screamed with the same emotions.

The cannon sound breaking through the rainclouds and the signal red carmine glow enveloped the substation at the same time.

''—Shiika…''

An impact and a wave of scorching.

Thrown into a space enough to blow away all five senses, Daisuke closed his eyes.