149 From the Shadows 2 in 1

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Unfortunately for Tomoyo, the competition was not yet done when she had to go back to her class. The first day of the competition had already ended before she went to the kendo club so she would only be able to watch the replay when she got home.

"Are you ready to go?" Hikaru saw Tomoyo exiting the club's dojo and asked.

*nod*

"Your grandparents told me that you usually go to the dojo with a friend from Akaryuu School and asked if we can pick her up on the way." Hikaru smiled as they walked towards the neighboring school.

Hikaru didn't mind that Tomoyo didn't respond with her voice all the time. Though she wasn't aware of just how much progress she made by making this girl use her voice, Hikaru wanted to let this innocent student of hers slowly understand and get used to using her voice. This was why she would usually converse with her in a way that would not let her respond with her gestures.

After looking into the pasts of Tomoyo and Kazuya, Hikaru understood that although the two of them may be in an envious position in the eyes of others, most people do not understand what they have gone through.

"?" Tomoyo felt a little restless as she could feel as if there was someone staring at her fervently. She looked around but could only find the admiring gazes of the students which she was already used to and tilted her head in confusion.

"What's wrong Shiroyuki-san?" Hikaru stopped her steps as she noticed Tomoyo glancing around.

*shake shake* the strange feeling seemed to have faded after Hikaru called her out so Tomoyo shook her head and caught up to her teacher.

"Is Akabane Nanami-san a friend of yours as well?" sensing the strange mood Tomoyo was in, Hikaru decided to ask a few questions.

*nod* Tomoyo replied after considering it for a few moments. Nanami was friends with Kazuya and whoever Kazuya was friends with, she remembered.

Despite Tomoyo's carefree thoughts about Nanami, the two of them were considered very close partners in the Shirayuki dojo. After Nanami joined, the usual pair of Kazuya and Tomoyo who none of their age group could contend with had become a trio whose intense sparring sessions the instructors pay close attention to.

"Is she close with Kouzuki-kun as well?" Hikaru was a little curious about it because she heard that Aoki Takaya himself was ignored by Tomoyo before. From the looks of things, one had to be acquainted with Kazuya before even having the chance to get remembered by this robot girl.

*nod*

"Can you tell me more about your friend? How did she end up being friends with you and Kouzuki-kun?" Hikaru was curious. Akaryuu and Sacred Forest students were almost always at odds with each other. This was very rampant amongst those in the same competing activity so the three of them whose main activity was kendo was quite interesting.

"friends… our… grandfathers…" Tomoyo slowly and softly used her voice to tell Hikaru about how the three of them were related. She wasn't as detailed about when they met but she was able to mention that Kazuya helped train Nanami until she was able to beat Kuronume Ayame, the student from their high school department as well as former champion.

The fact that Nanami trained in the Shiroyuki dojo was no secret. She even credited the dojo for her improvements when she was interviewed by many magazines that asked about it. Jirou of course was very happy about the free advertisement but the Sacred Forest Academy had mixed emotions about it because Kuronuma Ayame was one of their own students whilst Ayame was a student from a rival school.

"Akabane clan…" Hikaru didn't think that Nanami was a member of the well-known household. To be more specific, she was surprised at how students like Kazuya, Nanami and Tomoyo were very down to earth. Their statuses were very special yet none of them threw their weight around like most of the students who had the tiniest bit of influence to brag about.

Tomoyo herself was an exception because she had been the way she was because of what happened in her childhood but what about Kazuya and Nanami? The knowledge and experience that Hikaru had with people like them were worlds apart. This was why she never gave Kouzuki Kazuya the benefit of the doubt.

"Tomoyo!" a lively voice called out to the two who approached the gates of Akaryuu's school.

"(This girl…)" Hikaru held her surprise as a surprisingly elegant looking girl who garnered the attention of the male students that exited the school approached them.

Hikaru may not have been keeping up with the personalities that Sacred Forest Academy was keeping track of because she was still a temporary employee but she was aware that the Akabane clan was known to be a clan of rough yakuzas. She felt a little guilty over expecting someone who was informal and crude because the high school girl that showed up in front of her was someone she did not expect.

"This person is…?" Nanami noticed Hikaru who was staring at her.

"Sensei…" Tomoyo's reply made Nanami stunned. She didn't expect a response and asked so that Hikaru would answer and introduce herself but Tomoyo didn't think much of it and replied. "for… home visit…"

"Hello, I am Shiroyuki-san's homeroom teacher. I was asked to take the two of you together to Shiroyuki-san's place." Hikaru introduced herself properly to Nanami. She had already confirmed that Tomoyo considered Nanami as a friend because of how the usually guarded Tomoyo didn't think much about replying towards Nanami through her voice.

"Oh… My name is Akabane Nanami, I apologize if there was any delay in your schedule in coming here to pick me up." Nanami politely bowed. She had hung around Tomoyo long enough to have her own understanding about the robot girl. This was the reason that she was very polite towards this teacher. Kazuya himself had been trying to let Tomoyo use her vocal chords and she hasn't seen anyone outside their circle making Tomoyo speak.

"It is no problem. I was rather interested in meeting you as well Akabane-san." Hikaru was very impressed with Nanami's manners. If she didn't hear from Tomoyo, she wouldn't have thought that this elegant girl was part of the infamous Akabane clan.

"Me?" Nanami was a surprised. She wondered what a teacher from Sacred Forest Academy would want with her.

"Shiroyuki-san here tells me that you are also friends with Kouzuki Kazuya-kun so I want to talk about a few things." Hikaru honestly declared. "It shouldn't take long so we should have some tea before we head towards the Shiroyuki residence."

"About Kazuya-san?" Nanami brought up her guard a little. She looked at Tomoyo who gave her a nod as if confirming that Hikaru was okay. "I know a quiet place where there aren't many people." She agreed and they went towards a place that Nanami visited frequently.

It was a small café that wasn't that far from Nanami's school. This was where she would usually meet with the students that didn't want to be seen with her in the neighborhood so there was no problem if they wanted to talk about something sensitive.

Hikaru noticed that Nanami had raised her guard so she went straight to the point and explained her circumstances. She explained that she had bad experiences towards the children of well-known families and was treated by them very badly before.

Nanami felt a little relieved that what Hikaru wanted wasn't information about Kazuya but rather how to get him to forgive her. It would have been simple to anyone who knew him, but Nanami understood that this teacher was new to the occupation of being a teacher and doesn't know much about Kazuya.

She understands Hikaru's point of view as Nanami saw Kouzuki Kazuya as a mystery as well. Before she mustered up her courage and got along with him, Nanami was in the same position and considered a lot of things so that her relationship with Kazuya wouldn't go bad.

"Kazuya-san may seem complicated but… that really isn't the case." Nanami smiled as she looked at the worried teacher. "Kazuya-san is very kind and easy to get along with. As long as sensei can apologize sincerely, there won't be any problems."

The two of them exchanged opinions and Hikaru was finally able to hear what she needed. Though Hikaru was a bit skeptical about how Nanami described Kouzuki Kazuya's personality, it more or less fit the description that Tomoyo tried to convey.

Hikaru was sure of one thing though, Akabane Nanami was very fond of Kouzuki Kazuya. She wasn't afraid to show how much she admired the boy and it made Hikaru think if this elegant high school girl was the rumored girl that was supposed to be engaged to him.

"Thank you Akabane-san. I appreciate your time and help about this matter." Hikaru thanked her and settled the bill so they could leave. They agreed that they would take a cab back to Tomoyo's place since she did not have a car.

"Hmm?" This time Nanami was the first to react. She stopped in her tracks focused her sight on the old building that they were about to pass by.

"Akabane-sa—" Hikaru turned towards Nanami and was shocked as she was suddenly pushed to the side.

*THUD* Hikaru hit the wall and couldn't help but cough a few times because she hit concrete wall pretty hard.

"Tsk! I should have gone for you first girl!" a creepy voice reached the girls' ears.

Hikaru was feeling a bit dizzy but she could see that the voice came from the shadow that was standing in the spot where she got pushed from.

Tomoyo rushed to Hikaru's side cautiously as Nanami stood in between the two girls and the mysterious person who appeared from the building.

"Who the hell are you!?" Nanami glared and shouted at the unknown person who just jumped from the blind spot of the abandoned looking building. She immediately reached towards her bag to draw the wooden sword as soon as she saw what this stranger was holding.

Nanami couldn't get a clear view of the stranger's face because of the setting sun that was behind the stranger. What she could see however, was that this man had a weapon on his hand. It was a combat knife that would have either been buried in Hikaru's body or would have critically wounded her if Nanami hadn't sensed the incoming danger.

"I didn't think that I would suffer much trouble with today's prey." His creepy voice made the three girls put up their guard more. They might not have been able to completely see his face but the outline of his mouth showed how he was feeling.

The stranger had a grin on his face as he stood confidently in front of Nanami. He looked at the wooden sword in Nanami's hand and could see Tomoyo slowly reaching for hers after she made sure that Hikaru was alright.

"Take sensei back to the café while I hold him off!" Nanami didn't have time to be polite and ordered Tomoyo. She couldn't take her attention away from this stranger because her instincts were warning her that it would be fatal if she was even a little bit careless when facing this person. She wished to buy some time so the two could make it back to the café and call for help.

In terms of dealing with trouble, Nanami was no stranger to it. Being a former delinquent, she prioritized her companions because she knew she was capable. It wasn't that Nanami was underestimating Tomoyo's abilities but never was this robot girl ever exposed to experiences that she and Kazuya had fighting outside an appropriate settings.

Nanami didn't want to risk Tomoyo getting in danger because not only was she indebted to the Shiroyuki dojo, she saw the robot girl as an important friend and comrade. She, who was used to these kinds of things. Nanami was determined to be the one to deal with the current danger so that the other two could escape.

"Impressive show of friendship." the stranger spoke sarcastically. "I'll tell you what… As long as you walk away now, I'll let you go." the stranger's deep voice sounded serious as his body turned to Nanami. "I won't even ask you to forget what you've seen or heard. You'd be totally free to either walk away silently or get help." Two knives were suddenly thrown from the stanger's sleeve.

*CLINK!* Nanami managed to block the knife that was hurled towards her but Tomoyo had to pull Hikaru to avoid the one that was thrown at them. Nanami didn't even consider the stranger's proposal which was both rare and surprising for this person.

"(Let me go? Don't make me laugh.)" Nanami glared. It looks like this person was aiming for either Tomoyo or Hikaru for some reason. Nevertheless, this person seems to be proficient with throwing knives as well, so they all needed to be extra careful.

"Impressive! Much more impressive than those so-called protectors of peace and order! HAHAHAHA! This is interesting!" he laughed out loud while shivering in excitement. He licked his lips like a hunter that had finally found worthy prey.

"!!!" Tomoyo who had her guard up couldn't help but shiver after hearing the crazed laughter coming from the stranger. The setting sun was finally blocked by one of the buildings and they were able to see the face of this mysterious attacker.

*plop* the wooden sword in Tomoyo's hand dropped to the floor as she made out the face of the stranger. Both the crazed laugh and his face was something that she could never forget.

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"Oh?" Kira didn't fail to notice Tomoyo's reaction after seeing the face that he didn't have any intention to hide. "Looks like you remember me well little girl." His nasty grin grew even wider as he felt the fear that came from Tomoyo.

"Just who the hell are you!?" Nanami tried to snap Tomoyo back as she raised her voice towards Kira. She couldn't afford to not pay attention to this person, but she had no idea why Tomoyo, who usually showed no reaction to anyone was suddenly acting like this.

"…" Tomoyo trembled but remained rooted on the ground. Her whole body was shivering as her memories reminded her of why she froze at the sight of blood in the first place.

"Did your friend not tell you?" Kira finally turned his sights towards Nanami. "This girl was one of the reasons why I was supposed to be locked up in a cell anxiously waiting for news if I was to be executed or just locked up for life."

Kira's confirmation made the robot girl lose what strength she had left to keep her standing. Tomoyo almost fell to the ground when she was caught by Hikaru who, had recovered from her dizziness. She heard everything and was able to discern that whoever this man was, he was after her student.

"Sensei! Please take care of Tomoyo!" Nanami lowered her stance and made sure that Kira was aware that she would attack as soon as there was a chance.

"So predictable!" Kira saw Hikaru pulling out a cell phone from her pocket. He knew from their small exchange that Nanami was no pushover so he wasted no time and attacked.

Nanami breathed deeply and tapped into her mana. If there was a time to make use of the abilities she's learned for the past few years, it would be now. Not only did her life depend on it, so did the life of a good friend.

"HAH!" Nanami struck at Kira's vitals without hesitation. This dangerous person needed to be taken down and she couldn't afford to hold back.

*tink!* she strengthened the wooden sword in her hands and struck but was blocked by the combat knife in Kira's hand.

"Areee?" Kira stuck out his tongue and mocked Nanami. Though this girl was indeed more formidable than his other victims, she was still a young girl. He had more experience when it came to dangerous battles such as this so he had no problems with using different kinds of tactics.

"(This strength…)" Nanami was surprised as she was still getting overpowered despite the use of mana to enhance herself. "(He can use internal energy?!)" she immediately deducted. Nanami may not have been adept at detecting mana but her instincts were telling her that this man had the ability to tap into strength he should not have been able to possess.

Her instincts were correct. While Kira himself was not aware of it, his concentration and determination to his dangerous activities were the keys for him to harness such an ability. Having been a natural athlete, he was able to take advantage of his unknown burst in power without even realizing it.

*KICK* Kira used his leg to kick Nanami's abdomen as the girl tried to use both hands to block the strength of the grown man.

Nanami was thrown back as Kira rushed towards Hikaru. Tomoyo was still shivering on the ground so she couldn't help her teacher who was now the target of this dangerous person.

"No!" Nanami recovered before she could hit the wall. She kicked the wall hard and propelled herself towards Hikaru.

*SLASH!* Kira wielded his knife towards Hikaru who dropped her cellphone as she crossed both arms in front of her to try and protect herself. She never thought that such a day would turn out like this. In her mind, if she knew that this was going to happen, she would have never refused the Shirayuki's offer to drive them around. All she wanted to do was to talk about Kazuya with the students that were close to his age after all.

*drip drip* drops of blood fell on the concrete floor. Tomoyo. Who was really sensitive at the moment, backed away as soon as she saw the blood. She crashed into Hikaru who was distracted by what was happening before her. Both girls fell off balance and Tomoyo fell on Hikaru's cell phone.

"A-akabane-san!" Hikaru was too worried about Nanami whose arm was stabbed with the knife.

"Go!" she shouted. Holding onto the knife that was embedded into her shoulder, the blood slowly stained her clothes.

Nanami's vision was starting to get blurry but she concentrated her mana to hold onto the arm that had stabbed the knife onto her shoulder. She was fully aware that this stalemate might not last but the only other option was for her to have let Hikaru get stabbed by the crazed lunatic who was grinning at her.

"Shiroyuki-san…" Hikaru tried to pull her student who was still dazed. She heard that Tomoyo was afraid of seeing blood but she did not expect her reaction to be this severe. What's more was that even though Tomoyo was smaller than her, Hikaru felt like she was pulling something enormous when she tried dragging Tomoyo away from danger.

"I applaud your determination girl." Kira was truly impressed. Not only was Nanami able to hold him down, his attempts to move the blade to cause more damage was prevented by Nanami's strength."I was serious about letting you go. It would be a waste for you to die before you reach your full potential. I'd like to go all out with you once you reach that state." he looked directly into Nanami's eyes and she confirmed with a single look that Kira was not lying.

"I don't know who put you up to this, but you do not know what you're getting yourself into." Nanami wasn't sure if she was going to get out of this safely. She kept thinking about what would Kazuya do in this situation and thought about if he would be sad if she had died to save Tomoyo and Hikaru.

"Are you talking about the police?" Kira scoffed at her. "I've already eliminated those detectives who worked together to hunt me down. The only one left is that little girl who survived because her parents sacrificed themselves to protect her."

"!" Tomoyo shuddered as she was being slowly dragged away.

"Are you going to let more people die for your sake?" Nanami was still on guard so he kept the pressure on her while turning to glance over at Tomoyo. "Your parents were like this girl here. They both have the ability to fight against me, but because of you, like your parents, this girl will die too! Not only will you be the reason that your parents gave their life to protect, this friend of yours will die trying to protect the you as you cower and shiver back when we first met! Kahaha!!"

Kira's words were like an invisible blade that made Tomoyo's chest tighten. The robot girl who wasn't supposed to be fazed by anything couldn't deny any words that this person spouted.

"I…" Tomoyo could only turn her head to look at Nanami. The sight of blood staining on her clothes and dripping towards the floor made her face grew pale.

"(This isn't good!)" Nanami thought. Tomoyo was definitely wavering. Nanami knew exactly what Tomoyo was thinking about.It was a terrible idea that Nanami wasn't willing to accept even if it was Kazuya's decision. Her brain went into overdrive as she tried to think of a way to prevent the worst outcome.

"I know! If you dare run from me now, I'll hunt that other boy you come and go to school with! I'll make sure to send you the leftover parts of him slowly so you can only wait anxiously while being protected to confirm if its him or not!" Kira threatened with a maniacal laugh.

"!!!" After his words reached her ears, Tomoyo stopped as her feet were rooted to the ground. Hikaru struggled to pull her away but the girl wouldn't budge.

"Why don't you make it easier for everyone and just come to me! It will save ev—" Kira suddenly felt the pressure on his arm suddenly increase. He was waiting for the slightest indication of the bleeding Nanami's strength to fade due to blood loss before he made his move but the sudden increase in her strength made him sense that that there was something wrong.

""Unforgivable…"" Kira released the knife from his grip. He shook off Nanami's grip and jumped backwards as soon as he felt strong killing intent directed towards him. The two girls surprisingly said the same thing in unison and directed a sharp glare at him which made this experienced killer feel a sense of danger.

"Oh? Did I happen to strike a nerve?" though it caught him off guard, Kira was no stranger to this dangerous feeling. Rather he was happy to have felt it. "Looks like both of you are very fond of that scrawny kid with the girly face! HAHAHA!!!" he looked at the two of them as if nothing had just happened.

"(This person is definitely crazy!)" Hikaru who was nervously watching nervously felt a sense of dread. This man did not hesitate to say whatever he wanted and did not care what they found out. Was he really that confident that he would be able to silence the three of them or was he after something else?

"Are you two idiots? If one of you is gone, won't the other have no competition over that girly boy's affection?" Kira grinned. It seemed like these two

*CLANG* the sound of the metallic knife hitting the ground echoed through the alleyway. Nanami pulled it out without hesitation and threw it away from the reach of their adversary. She quickly applied pressure on her wound and used the first aid method that she was taught by the person whose safety was just threatened by this deranged maniac.

Hikaru didn't know what to do. She couldn't leave these two girls alone. While she knew that these girls were champion athletes in their own rights, her pride as a teacher, as well as someone older than the two wouldn't let her leave. She knew that she probably wasn't enough to face this strange person but, while her prowess may have been inferior to these two geniuses, she had taken up self defense classes. One more able bodied person may just increase their chances of fending off this lunatic.

"(Good!)" Kira was relieved when he saw Hikaru's choice. He wasn't sure he could stop Hikaru from escaping because he had no idea what would happen just by feeling the tense atmosphere. With no one deciding to escape, none of them would be able to call for help.

*pat* Tomoyo hesitantly put her hand on Nanami's shoulder. Though this action may have let Hikaru and Kira assume that Tomoyo was worried about her friend, the mana that assisted in Nanami's recovery made the bleeding slowly stop.

"I'm… sorry…" Tomoyo apologized. Though she was still feeling uneasy at the sight of blood, she did her best and held it in.

*SWISH!*

Tomoyo and Nanami both reacted instantly as a throwing knife was suddenly hurled towards them. They jumped together and avoided the sneak attack but their enemy wasted no time and attacked them without hesitation.

Kira dashed towards the girls and drew two new knives from his coat. Though these girls may have abilities and reflexes that put to shame those that call themselves protectors of the people, Kira still had the edge over them when it came to experiences that involved life and death. Prison wasn't exactly a peaceful place because it was filled with guards.

Though Kira's abilities weren't as sharp as they were before he got caught, being in prison honed his instincts and senses when it came to dangerous situations. He had stalked and researched about Tomoyo before making his move today so he was more or less prepared to finish off one of the last pieces of his past.

"HAAAH!!!!" Nanami kicked the wooden sword by her feet towards Tomoyo before using a pen in her pocket to hurl towards Kira.

Nanami used her opponent's annoying trick against him as the pen that was enhanced with mana was blocked by the approaching Kira. The unexpected power of the common looking projectile made him lose a bit of momentum.

This gave both of them more room to maneuver. Nanami lowered herself and planned to attack Kira's legs while Tomoyo prepared her tsuki stance. The robot girl pointed the tip of her wooden sword towards the throat of this person who dared threaten Kazuya's life in front of her.

"!!" Kira was shocked. Both girls who were supposed to have been too confused to work together were moving in sync. They showed no verbal nor did they signal each other but their attack was well coordinated.

"HAHAHA!! COME!!!" Kira felt exhilarated at his situation. He avoided Nanami's tackle by leaping straight towards Tomoyo's strike. It would leave him no maneuver to dodge the dangerous wooden sword that was directed towards his vitals but he didn't care. Tomoyo was his target and nothing else mattered as long as he was able to reach her.

Tomoyo's gaze sharpened and time felt like it was moving slowly. She breathed in deeply before mustering up all the strength she could to strike at this person who was responsible for her parents death.

"You will not… take anyone away from me again!" Tomoyo shouted.

Hikaru gasped as the seconds felt like minutes as she watched from the side. She was unable to do anything but watch and wish that these two would succeed.

"GUHHHAA…" Kira who was knocked backwards, crashed into the concrete wall. He coughed and vomited blood. His knees shook as he struggled to stand up.

*THUD* Nanami fell to her knees and grabbed the wound on her shoulder that started to bleed once more. Both her and Tomoyo weren't as adept as Kazuya with healing magic as their understanding about it was still severely limited.

"You're… not… getting away…" Nanami struggled to get back on her feet. She wanted to stop Kira who was trying to get away with his legs shaking. Hikaru couldn't care less about Kira getting away now because the three of them already knew and will not forget what this person looked like so she rushed to stop the strong willed Nanami before her injuries got any worse.

"Stay still!" she grabbed her purse and poured out its contents to see if anything was of use to help Nanami with her injury. Do you have your phone? Quickly call for help while I tend to your shoulder!"

Kira already turned around the corner so he was no longer in sight. Nanami was still on guard as she used her phone to call the authorities. It was only then that she felt something was amiss.

She turned towards Tomoyo who was still holding the wooden sword in her hands. Nanami didn't think anything was wrong because she could still sense the powerful mana emanating from her but the girl had not moved an inch ever since the battle ended.

*drip*

Nanami froze as she saw crimson droplets fall in the ground right below Tomoyo. Only after she took a good look at her friend that she was able to see a small blade that was buried in Tomoyo's chest.

"TOMOYO!"

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