Vengeance Is Mine

by Shiden Kanzaki

  “Hah.” This time, Kazumitsu sneered. “You don’t know anything, Kisara. True villains do not die. They throw money around, and then while ‘Death’ is desperately picking it up, they make their escape.”

  Kisara suddenly closed her eyes and then took her time opening them slowly. “Another reason to let you live is gone now. That is enough. Let us begin. Will the two witnesses please come forward?”

  Kazumitsu pushed Shiina up. Apparently, Kisara’s witness was Rentaro. The two of them went between Kazumitsu and Kisara and stood facing each other. Shiina raised her right hand and swore first. “I, Kazumi Shiina, am a witness to this duel, and even if one side dies, I swear that I will not call the police or any other judicial authorities.”

  After seeing Shiina’s oath, Kazumitsu and Kisara naturally turned their eyes toward Rentaro. Rentaro had a pained expression on his face as he slowly raised his right hand, but then he immediately shook his head.

  “Wait a minute, you two! Let me ask one last thing. Do you really have to fight like this? Even I’m interested in a fight between two master initiates of the Tendo Style. But that should be done with wooden or bamboo swords. Not with real blades!”

  “You’re talking too much, Rentaro!” hissed Kazumitsu. “If I don’t shut this woman’s mouth now, she’ll blab the truth. There’s no way I can allow her to live!”

  “But Brother Kazumitsu—”

  “Don’t call me your brother. If you’re on Kisara’s side, then you’re an enemy of Tendo. Rentaro, open your eyes. She’s tricking you. That woman is a monster!”

  “Let me do it, Satomi,” said Kisara. “I’ve been waiting for ten years. I’ve finally cornered one of the people I need to kill to avenge Father’s and Mother’s deaths. My fight with this man is fated.”

  Rentaro opened his mouth to argue, but in the end he just said, “Damn it,” and gritted his teeth. Finally, he raised his right arm and swore the oath. When he and Shiina finished the vows, they withdrew to the side of the walls, and only Kazumitsu and Kisara were left in the center of the wide dojo.

  Kazumitsu gave directions to his secretary with a jerk of his chin. She pulled out a spear from one of the two spear bags and threw it at him. Kazumitsu caught it with one hand. The spear came up to around his chest. When he held the spear, energy seemed to flow into his body from it and fill him with breath. His former feelings came back—confidence welled up, making him feel like he could take over the world with just one spear.

  Kisara shrugged scornfully. “Don’t tell me you’re really fighting with just a spear, Brother? I was sure that you would at least sneak in a gun…”

  “Don’t be mistaken. I don’t need to rely on projectile weapons just to pierce your heart.”

  Just then, Kazumitsu noticed Kisara’s ample chest shake and looked her up and down as if licking her. “Kisara, one of my bosses said he just slept with a dark-skinned girl kidnapped from one of the countries he passed through, and now he wants a pale girl. If I defeat you without killing you, can I pull off your arms and legs and give you to him?”

  Kisara chuckled. “Sure. In exchange, if I defeat you without killing you, maybe I’ll feed you alive to some pigs.”

  Kisara dropped her hips, narrowed her eyes, and took a stance with an expression of carnage. Tendo Martial Arts Sword Drawing Style, Nirvana Stance—the stance encompassed all the offense and defense of the Tendo Sword Drawing Styles by being in a state of constant change and existing freely in that state. “I’ve been waiting for this day for ten years. Taste the depth of my resentment and despair and die.”

  Kazumitsu also took a stance. Tendo Martial Arts Divine Spear Style, Perfect Serenity Stance—the stance encompassed all the offense and defense of the Tendo Martial Arts Divine Spear Styles by abandoning all the cares in one’s heart and achieving a state of nothingness, leaving the heart clean and serene. “I’m glad, Kisara. Even if we had different mothers, I’m glad I can bond like this with my little sister. I’ll let you practice with me, so come at me.”

  The atmosphere inside the dojo changed in an instant to one of tension.

  “Tendo Martial Arts Sword Drawing Styles Master Initiate, Kisara Tendo.”

  “Tendo Martial Arts Divine Spear Styles Master Initiate, Kazumitsu Tendo.”

  After saying their names, they both jumped back a step and faced off. Seeing Kisara take an offensive position, the Virtuous Heart Stance, without a moment’s delay, Kazumitsu took a defensive position, the Iron Will Stance. When he did, Kisara flowed smoothly into the Nirvana Stance, and seeing that, Kazumitsu skillfully took the offensive position, Mythical Beasts Stance. It was Kisara’s turn to be on the receiving end, and she transitioned into the defensive Moonlit Heart Stance.

  Kazumitsu watched Kisara’s movements in silent admiration. Her transitions from one form to another were seamless and could even be called beautiful. He had been sure the blood would rush to her head and she would rush at him like a wild boar, but he was wrong. She might be a tougher opponent than I thought, he reconsidered.

  Because it was a fight between fellow students of the Tendo Style, they knew each other’s hands completely, so naturally, there was a tendency to decrease the number of pointless moves and read ahead to predict each other’s moves.

  And in Tendo Style, there was a paradigm of strategies where one must break down the other person’s form by repeating moves in defensive position against someone in offensive position, using moves in neutral position against an opponent in defensive position, and using moves in offensive position against someone in neutral position, rules that created a three-way deadlock. It was like how snakes were scared of slugs, slugs scared of frogs, and frogs scared of snakes.

  A fight between two people well-versed in this theory was a dizzying series of changes from form to form. From the sidelines, it almost looked like a martial arts demonstration. However, in these changes of position without an exchange of swords, if one was even a split second late, then it would create an opening and the match would be decided in that moment. That was why they had to change positions with a smooth flow.

  Kisara was doing them with near perfection, to the point that they could be called beautiful. Kazumitsu had to admit it as well—that Kisara Tendo’s abilities were on par with his own. It was as he thought this that he understood: In this fight, the first attack would decide it all.

  Outside, the chorus of cicadas was noisy, but inside was completely the opposite—there was almost no sound inside the room. The two of them changed forms silently, their shifting weight making the rotting tatami creak slightly. That was the only sound that filled their world.

  Kazumitsu wondered how many times they repeated the cycle of offense and defense. Just then, Kisara abruptly broke her form and let the strength leave her, only to lunge and raise her arm, sword and all, taking a stance he had never seen before. It was a form that connected drawing the sword to a downward slashing attack.

  “What is that form…?” The words came out of his mouth involuntarily. Rentaro also looked like he was dumbfounded. He was frozen with his mouth gaping open.

  Kisara spoke with a dignified expression. “I’ll tell you the name of it at least, Brother. This is called the Tendo Martial Arts Sword Drawing Style, Dragon and Tiger Twin Attack Stance. I invented this form to obliterate all the Tendos.”

  “You…created a form…?” Simmering anger welled up in him and before he knew it, Kazumitsu was screaming. “What the hell?! It is inexcusable to add your own arrangement to Master Sukekiyo’s techniques! You should be ashamed, Kisara!”

  Kisara chuckled, looking at him with scorn. “Don’t you think you’re mistaken about something, Brother? Master initiates are allowed to create techniques and teach them. Well, I don’t think someone who only has enough talent to swallow what they’re taught and adhere to them can possibly reach that level of thinking.”

  Kazumitsu’s spear hand shook with anger. As if he would let her say what she wanted… He wouldn’t let this woman say a
ny more.

  “Shiina!” He called his secretary. She guessed what he wanted and pulled out a spear from the other bag. It looked heavy when she threw it to him. Kazumitsu threw away the spear in his hand and switched to the longer, more sinister-looking weapon.

  It was so strangely shaped that one almost hesitated to call it a spear. At its tip was a double-edged spearhead with four notches on it, and a crescent blade that practically surrounded it on all four sides. On top of that, there were four weights attached to the crescent by chains.

  Even if Kisara evaded the tip of the spear, the crescent blade would cut her, and even if she evaded the crescent blade, the weights would crush her bones. The spear looked as if it were a flower with petals blooming around the stamens and pistil in the middle. Yes, this was the Spear Flower—Kontensetsu.

  Stab, cut, strike. It was a special combination weapon that could do all three at once, and like a scimitar or Chinese halberd, it required its wielder to be very skillful and have a strong physique.

  “I didn’t want to use this, Kisara. I didn’t want to use such a treasured weapon to cut a whore like you.”

  Kisara just silently narrowed her eyes.

  Kazumitsu took a stance—the Mythical Beasts Spear Stance. Kazumitsu daringly chose an offensive form for this deciding round.

  Kisara’s Dragon and Tiger Twin Attack Stance was clearly either offensive or neutral, but Kazumitsu’s instincts judged that this was as offensive form. If that were the case, then attacking in a defensive position would be the standard move.

  However, Kisara said she created the Dragon and Tiger Twin Attack Stance to kill Tendos. In that case, he could probably assume that it was an innovative form that could break through the defensive form.

  Kazumitsu also decided to abandon the standard reply to this situation.

  The onlookers held their breaths and didn’t move an inch. The evening sun slanting in from the window made the dust in the air sparkle. The tense atmosphere filled with a thirst for blood was enough to make a normal person go mad.

  Beads of sweat appeared on Kazumitsu’s forehead, and they dripped down the tip of his nose. He looked back at the image of himself reflected in the glass. A tall and lean man with a slender face. This year, he would turn thirty-nine, but he looked about ten years younger than his real age. His physical age was even younger.

  Kazumitsu asked himself, Am I going to lose?

  He replied immediately: No, that is impossible.

  He was a superelite who was born in the Tendo family and had been promised success. He was made to govern people. There was no way he was going to rot away in this dirty dojo that was less than a pigsty. He was not the kind of person who would fall like this.

  “Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!” With a piercing scream, Kazumitsu launched his attack. With a powerful step, he thrust.

  Tendo Martial Arts Divine Spear Third Style, Number 1: Amako Genmeika.

  With a thrust that could have been called too honest and a Tendo-style step, he brought down the spear with a powerful stroke and incredible speed. With the addition of the compounding effects of his spear, Kontensetsu, there was enough force to kill Kisara ten times over.

  Kisara also drew the murderous blade from its scabbard fractions of a second later, but it was too late.

  Kontensetsu was expecting to bring certain death—but impossibly, there was a screech of steel and it was repelled upward.

  “What?!” Kazumitsu suddenly jumped backward. Both sides were uninjured.

  Kazumitsu was shaken by the fact that his special technique was repelled, but he had gotten an unexpected chance to regroup. Thinking that he would definitely rip her to pieces the next time, he kicked off the ground again.

  Just then, a shocked expression came over Kisara’s face.

  Thinking he could do it, Kazumitsu advanced again to thrust his spear forward.

  But then, he realized that he had misunderstood Kisara’s shocked expression. The next instant, his vision shook violently, and he felt like he had lost control of his legs. He was thrown forward by inertia for some reason and fell, and the tatami rushed toward him, filling his view.

  He couldn’t even take a defensive position as he fell face-first into the rotting tatami mat. The match had been decided before the person fighting in it even realized.

  Kazumitsu had not realized that he had already been defeated.

  The instant the match was decided, Rentaro let out an involuntary groan. The match of Tendo Styles was decided in one attack, just as Rentaro had predicted. And it meant the inescapable defeat of the Tendo Martial Arts Divine Spear Style.

  The fallen Kazumitsu looked up at Kisara with an expression of incomprehension. “Guh, Kisara, why am I… What happened to the match? Did I lose?”

  Kisara looked down at him coolly. “You have not even realized that, have you, Brother? Why don’t you check your legs?”

  “My…legs?” After she said that, Kazumitsu slowly shifted his gaze to his legs.

  Hearing Kazumitsu’s heartrending scream, Rentaro wanted to cover his face. Kazumitsu’s legs from the thigh down had disappeared cleanly. It was as if they had abandoned their master and had been thrown far backward into the wall.

  “Brother, you didn’t even realize your legs had been cut off and tried to step toward me. I was so surprised, I almost laughed.”

  As if they just remembered to bleed, Kazumitsu’s legs started spurting blood, and the surface of the tatami mats turned into a pool of hell.

  Rentaro looked at the scene dumbfounded, shaking. He considered—Who was the strongest member of the Tendo Civil Security Agency? Was it himself, who possessed the abilities of a mechanized solider? Or Enju, who manifested the superhuman physical powers of the Cursed Children? Or Tina, who had the qualities of both?

  “Papa, no! She’s the most dangerous out of everyone here!”

  The night before Operation Rapier Thrust, when Tina and Kohina were about to fight, this is what Kohina shouted about Kisara when Kisara went to intervene.

  Even though Kohina thought that she could win or at least put up a good fight against Tina and tried to continue their match, the moment Kisara intervened, she put her swords away. Even Kohina, an Initiator, understood that she was at too much of a disadvantage if she had to fight Kisara. Against Kisara, an ordinary human.

  Why hadn’t he noticed before? The strongest person currently in the Tendo Civil Security Agency was—

  Kisara brushed back her black hair. “Tendo Martial Arts Sword Drawing Style Zero, Number 3: Azao Soutouken. This is the name of the technique I used on you, Brother.”

  “S-style Zero…?” Kazumitsu whispered.

  “It attacks once and then attacks again. The second attack is faster than the speed of sound. With your kinetic vision, I’m sure you only saw the first attack that repelled Kontensetsu. With the second attack, your legs were already cut off.”

  “N…no way… My spear was… The Tendo Martial Arts Divine Spear Style was……”

  Watching Kazumitsu saying that in a daze, Kisara mercilessly put her hand on the hilt of her sword. “Tendo Martial Arts Sword Drawing Style Zero, Number 1—”

  “Kisara, no!”

  “Kisara!”

  “President Tendo!”

  Rentaro, Enju, and Tina had decided not to interfere with this duel, but they had to yell out, unable to overlook this gruesome execution.

  Kisara gave them one bored look before murmuring the name of the technique, not thinking of the circumstances. “—Rasen Manzanka.”

  There was a swift whistling sound, and then before they knew it, Kisara’s sword had returned to its scabbard as if nothing had happened.

  Everyone present at the scene gulped.

  “Kisara, what…did you do to me?” Kazumitsu asked hesitatingly as he realized that nothing strange had happened to his body.

  “I stopped the bleeding. There are still things I need you to tell me.”

  When he looked, Kazumitsu saw that the blood
spurting from his legs had stopped completely.

  Kisara started to walk happily around Kazumitsu, who had lost both of his legs. “Now, Brother, since I won, I can feed you to the pigs like you promised, right?”

  “N-no, please don’t! Please don’t kill me!”

  Kisara placed her naked blade right at Kazumitsu’s throat. “Then, please talk. Ten years ago, my parents were killed in front of me by Gastrea; Satomi lost an arm, a leg, and an eye; and my kidneys started failing. Officially, it was seen as an incident caused by a wild Gastrea going astray. However, don’t you think it’s unlikely that a Gastrea would suddenly appear in the heart of Tokyo Area? That was premeditated murder by someone in the Tendo family. Someone released the wild Gastrea to kill Father and Mother. I know that you participated. Who else was involved in the crime? Answer me!”

  “I…I don’t know!”

  Kisara gave a thin smile. “Is that right? Then, I have no choice but to toss you into the stomach of a hungry pig while you are still alive.”

  “N-no! Spare me, Kisara!” Kazumitsu seemed to think for a moment and then lifted his face up at Kisara pleadingly. “If I tell you… Will you spare me?”

  “It depends on whether or not the information you have is useful or not.”

  Kazumitsu ground his teeth and groaned. Rentaro thought he would probably talk. It was obvious even to Rentaro watching from the outside which way the profit-and-loss arithmetic inside Kazumitsu was going.

  Above all, right now, Kazumitsu was being pressured by the revenge demon in front of him, and his teeth were chattering. “Th-there were five people involved in the plan. Me, Hyuga Tendo, Gentaku Tendo, Terutoshi Tendo, and Kikunojo Tendo.”

  “Five people, huh? That’s less than I expected.”

  “Now, with that—”

  “Not yet. Brother, why did you kill Father and Mother?”

  Kazumitsu lifted his face and looked at her plaintively. “The old man was going to blow the whistle on the dark dealings of the Tendo.”

  “Dark dealings?”