Underground Elevators

(From Sector Seven, Kokonoe's Private Lab) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~>

Having arrived via the spatial rend, Hakumen was now in the open of the underground, which was fairly deep into the Librarium's Headquarters and he was surprised to find that it was almost completely empty, though the few presences that were around obviously could not escape even his dulled senses. They were distant from his location and thus had no bearing on his ultimate set of actions, being this far in meant that his tracking towards the cauldron was to be a suitable goal. He would end up confronting the very thing that caused the great calamity beforehand, it would end very differently if through his reasoning alone. "It is time to correct the world's path back to justice."

With nothing further to discuss, he went ahead and pressed the elevator's button, once it came then he would further press on. The cauldron was no strange place to him, quite the opposite since it was a location where the boundary lurked. There would be only the path that he cut out, Hakumen would bring direction to a world in chaos.

------------(From the Orient Town Restaurant, Orient Town)------------->

Just in front of the lower exit of the elevators, a spatial rend opened up, as the small vampire lightly walked through it, waiting for a much taller, larger and louder man to follow her.

"Welcome, Mister Shishigami, to the NOL Headquarters' Underground Section. What lies here is for very few people to see, so please remain silent and just wait for a little while. The challenge of your life will come shortly." With her wording, Rachel hoped Bang would sense epicness and truly prepare his mind for it, else he'd be little more than a joke to the Silver Knight...

------------(From the Orient Town Restaurant, Orient Town)------------->

Bang Shishigami stepped through the portal, breathing deeply as he took in his surroundings.

"What manner of sorcery is this?" he thought as his eyes scanned the scenery. This was his first time to enter an NOL base before, so the sight was somewhat unnerving to him. Still, it will do little to deter him, as he was going to courageously face any challenge that comes his way.

"If I may ask, young miss." The Ninja of Love and Justice inquired as he turned to Rachel "What is this challenge of my life you speak of?"

Strangely, Bang had calmed down. Rachel sighed lightly We're ahead..., and then turned to the vigilante to explain the situation... or not: "You will soon realize... even if you don't want to. The following encounter will determine whether or not you are worthy of being called a Hero...

Be patient, and he shall arrive." She knew the ninja was not one patient man, but she couldn't just give away the arrival of one of the strongest men alive.

"Very well." Bang nodded, though he had grown wary of his surroundings. While he was certainly an honorable man, the ninja knew that, in this kind of setting, an assassin's attack would be most likely.

"I only pray that this is not a trap, Miss...?"

"Alucard. Rachel Alucard." Rachel had answered Bang's question, even though she had not even turned back to him, her glance focused towards the elevators to notice Hakumen at the very moment he would appear.

"You may not fear for a trap, Mister Shishigami. Few know of this place, and the one that will come to face you is not one to stab people in their backs... for he also holds justice in quite high regards." There. She dropped a hint. Hopefully it would silence Bang the time for the Silver Knight to make his appearance from behind the curtains.

"Ah, one who desires justice as well, eh?" Bang grinned broadly, thoroughly excited to meet one such as him. Indeed, this served only to make his hot-blood grow even hotter.

"Very well, Miss Rachel. You have piqued my curiosity." The Ikarugan Ninja answered resolutely "I shall wait for this man to appear, fight him in honorable combat, and ask that he may join me in my crusade for JUSTICE!"

The tempered pressure that thundered through the space of the so-called corridor was evenly placed as the faceless mask of the Silver Knight broke into the area. Having sensed the presence of two in the area, he had come to investigate granted he had previously known to be blank. He had come to find the source of the disturbance, only to find the presence of Rachel Alucard before him, alongside another soul he did not know. A strange man clad in green who gave off an aura that spoke of his personality. It was something that he'd considered before addressing the two present neutrally as it were.

"Rachel Alucard, so this doing is your own, however this is not relevant. I am here awaiting the Dark One as it is so fated...why is this man with you? Clearly he is not one I have come for, his sense of justice appears to be respectable; which brings upon us this mystery." while unusual for the Ancient Hero to speak, something about this man's sense of honor and justice had brought him enough sense to comment upon it. So...why had Rachel Alucard brought him this far into the bowels of the Librarium's rot?

"Not even a single 'hello', Mr Hero? I must say, I am disappointed to see you so narrow-minded. I give you Mr Bang Shishigami, a vigilante from Ikaruga. I need you to test his resolve through a fair battle." Rachel quickly brought the words that had to be spoken, not hesitating to titillate the Silver Knight, as she was one of the few persons that could, and it brought mild amusement to her.

The little vampire then turned to Bang: "Whether or not you perform well will determine if you may see me again after this battle. I highly hope you do not disappoint me, Mr Ikaruga."

She would then speak some last words to Hakumen: "You may use any means necessary to win this battle. I advise you do not go easy on him. Only when this is over with and in a manner that satisfies me will you meet Ragna. Until then~" before turning away to take her leave shortly, though she would listen to whatever both men have to say.

"I sense an overwhelming power in this one." Bang thought as he gazed at the enigmatic knight, his pearl white armor and expressionless mask doing well to intimidate even a manly vigilante such as himself.

"Very well." He said as he fixed his eyes on the man known as Hakumen of the Six Heroes "I shall accept your challenge, Miss Rachel."

After he had said those words, he flexed his body and assumed a battle stance, his pectorals rippling in anticipation of engaging this faceless warrior in combat "After this, do not doubt my resolve as I, Bang Shishigami, shall engage in what could possibly be my greatest challenge!"

Hearing the words of the Observing Vampire had not deterred him a single bit, the warrior before him had then become a gate before his path to destiny? Very well then, he would not hesitate to shatter the man before him; as the pressure only seemed to grow, Hakumen drew Ookami from its sheath, speaking no words to theman before him as his right heel sank into the ground and his left foot drew back to widen his stance slightly; with blade pointed at Bang's center over the distance between them, he finally spoke.

"Come and show me your resolve, I, Hakumen, will face you!" the simplistic statement only reflected as the trembling force shuddered around him. A single step taken at a pace a bit surprising for one of his size, the silver knight made the first move and swept the oversized Nodachi with great ease, aiming to strike the man if he did not move quick enough. While he already decided he would not slay this man of justice, he would not hesitate to defeat him with all of his strength: destiny would not be averted by the doings of even she.

"Very well then. I leave you two to your matters, now." While saying her words to the two men, Rachel opened up a portal to her next destination. She was about to go and restrain people from intervening in this fight before she would allow it, just before the elevators.

Before entering her dark gate, the little vampire could mutter to herself some more words while looking at the manliest of the two warriors present: "I wish you good luck, Bang Shishigami. This will not be easy for you, but you will come out of this stronger than you would have ever dreamed of..."

Bang had barely a second to react, shaken by the overwhelming aura of his opponent, before Hakumen swung his giant no-dachi. He ducked the blade, causing it to miss him by an inch.

"He is fast!" he thought in astonishment as a small lock of his brown, scruffy hair was nipped of by Susanooh. Reacting quickly, the mighty ninja of justice charged his palms with a bright red flame in the shape of a tiger's head before thrusting, aiming to hit his opponent's broad chest.

"BANG'S UNSTOPPABLE DOUBLE PALM THRUST!"

Spying Bang's double fisted flame thrust, the tempered stance of the knight allowed him a ready defense. Something rather simple in motion of drawing Ookami back in front of him with his immense strength was child's play, he'd clutched the hilt of the blade tighter as his second hand gripped it. Deciding this round should end even faster, he'd swept the blade in an upward motion, forcing a slash to wound the man harshly. The slice would not kill and in fact, the experience ridden hero was sure to have noted the man's adept agility; the Silver knight planned to bait him with some obvious actions before putting this fight to an end. All of the dependent upon the brave man's actions.

Bang was astonished to see that not only had his opponent withstood his attack, he had blocked it rather flawlessly.

"This man is indeed skilled." He thought as he leaned back, angling his body just enough to avoid getting cleaved in half by his opponent's mighty blade. "I shall have to work harder!"

With that in mind, the ninja leaped back with a somersault and, just as he landed, withdrew nails that acted as kunai. With all the dexterously skill gained from training, he hurled them at Hakumen, hoping to at least whittle his defenses somehow.

Watching the nails as they were launched by the shinobi, Hakumen's mere gesture of passing the end of Ookami up partway had easily destroyed the nails, leaving in their wake a swirl of darkened energy. It was a Fuamjin vacuum that would prove its own purpose by providing a temporary wall of defense against a follow up maneuver should there have been one to come. The silver knight waited, almost unmoving for him to make his next attack. For the thickening pressure spoke of one thing, Hakumen's next action would possess greater strength than his previous moves.

While Bang was certainly a buffoon in some matters, he was combat savvy enough to know that his opponent was baiting him into a trap. Still...it was not a challenge he could easily ignore.

"HERE I COME!" roared the manly vigilante as he went into a run, charging his legs with the same fiery energy he used for his palms earlier and executed a leaping kick with enough power to break a normal man's bones.

"Feel the power of JUSTICE!" he shouted to the heavens as he aimed that mighty kick at Hakumen's chest, intending to power his way through the shield his opponent had set up.

Having found the man's bravery a thing to respect, Hakumen would follow through with his choice of action; his choice was planning to become something smooth in response. Turning direction all at the moment, his forearm raised as he waited until the right moment, as he bore witness to the man striking through (or above) the Fumajin, his path may have been undisturbed but upon his nearing the silver knight; he would find something awaiting his close proximity.

The silver knight's skill of a defensive glyph had arisen before his right forearm, clear to capture the man's feet, this very thing allowing him to counter the man's attack. Hakumen had grabbed the man's right ankle and with his inhuman strength, quickly yanked the man through the air as if he were a rag doll and aimed to slam him face first into the ground behind him.

Bang grunted as he braced himself for the inevitable impact, quite surprised and impressed that his opponent caught such a powerful blow like that. He gasped in pain as he met the ground with a resounding thud.

But that would not be the end for Bang Shishigami, for the impact of the smash caused his body to bounce, giving him a small window of opportunity to recover, which he took.

"This is an ukemi!" he shouted vigilantly as he shifted his body wait so that he could land on his feet. As soon as he did, he backflipped away from Hakumen, giving him both of them breathing room.

"I fear I have underestimated you, sir!" he declared as boisterously as usual, panting heavily to catch his breath "You are indeed a worthy adversary!"

"You are still standing, I must say your spirit is impressive." this man was not going down just yet? He would have to be done here soon, he could not allow him to carry this battle on for too long. As the Silver Knight flicked his blade downward and widened his stance, a field built around his feet and surged once again, as he chose to build his power and prepare to assail the man again. The next blow, if he had his way, would end it.

"I return your kind sentiment, sir. This time, I will hold back no longer!" Bang grinned as he crouched and assumed another stance. The difference this time, however, was he began to emit a golden glow from his person. If Hakumen would looked closer, he would see a raging fire in the scruffy shinobi's eyes.

"It is time..." he roared with a mighty voice that could be heard from even the heavens "To unleash my full power! Shishigami Style Forbidden Technique: FU-RIN-KA-ZAN!"

The power that came from the man was immense and to that same point he was just able to feel all that he offered. It seemed that this would not go as quickly as he intended to, while gathering the energy before the Ookami, Hakumen's pressure only built as he prepared to face this man of justice with all of the energy that he would face off with. "Alright then, show me this power of your resolve!" he intended to face all that he would offer, the ancient hero would not at all back down.

"HERE I COME!"

Bang immediately began his assault, darting forward with the speed of a bullet. The shinobi roared as he reared his fist to strike Hakumen as he closed the distance, then swung for his head, the golden glow emanating from his body shining ever brightly.

Whether it had hit it's mark or not, Bang dashed past him, then reappear to deal a powerful kick aimed for the Silver Knight's chest.

The speed of the ninja was not what the ancient hero had expected, as the blow sent him staggering backwards, his back striking the corridor's right wall while the stone wall cracked from the impact; he was off of it very suddenly, already on the recovery and aiming the sword for Bang's shoulder. The flat of the blade was aimed to thrust into his joint, Hakumen was still intending to end it in a series of moves. Should the blade connect that was going to be the start of his actions against the swift ninja. "You'll need more than this, Bang Shishigami!"