Yukio woke up, back in Haruka's barrier.

Ugh! I feel so exhausted all of a sudden. All those Soul Travels drained all my energy.

"Yukio? Are you ok?" Hibari checked on him.

"I'm fine. What happened?" Yukio asked.

"Y-You were asking me about Haruka, saying that she's as bad as Homura, but then you stopped mid-sentence." Hibari explained.

"Sorry, my Soul Travel ability kicked in, I saw Haruka's past." Yukio apologized.

"You saw her past? Did that make you change your mind, or do you still want to kill her?" Hibari asked.

"Change my mind?" Yukio was confused by Hibari's question. "Hibari, I get that you're a kind and considerate person, but are you fine with letting people like the Hebijo Elites get away with what they do?"

"I-I'm not saying that, it's just that...I feel bad for them." Hibari admitted.

"Feel bad for them?" Yukio asked.

"Yeah, they've gone through terrible things when they were young. Doesn't that make you feel bad for them?" Hibari countered.

Yukio was left speechless. Hibari's words shocked Yukio, bringing him to a realization.

Is that what I'm supposed to learn? That all villains have tragic backstories that will make you pity them? I mean, I never experienced any of what these girls went through, but...

"My, there you are. I suddenly couldn't find you, but now that I'm here, let's get started." Haruka suddenly appeared and announced herself to Yukio and Hibari.

Yukio prepared himself, and saw Haruka aim for Yukio's head. He blocked Haruka's kick, and went to punch Haruka. She dodged the attack, and bashed her hips into Yukio's right side. The impact moved Yukio only a few feet to his left.

"Ugh! Damn you." Yukio cursed Haruka.

"We're only just getting started." Haruka smirked.

Haruka rushed Yukio, and aimed a punch at his face. He blocked the attack again, and landed a kick on Haruka's face. She grunted as the impact made her fall to her knees.

"Haha, take that!" Yukio boasted.

Haruka quickly got back up, and rushed Yukio. She aimed for Yukio's chest this time, so he wasn't able to predict it. Yukio fell back from the attack.

"Damn, that one actually hurt. Aren't you supposed to be a civilian, like me?" Yukio joked.

"I've trained longer and harder than you, so I clearly have the advantage." Haruka mocked Yukio.

Haruka rushed Yukio, and knee'd his head. He rubbed his head, and fell to the ground again. Haruka went to step on Yukio' stomach, but he blocked her foot with his right hand. Yukio moved Haruka's foot to the side, and held it down. He spun and raised himself on his hands. As he spun, he landed a kick on Haruka's side. He pushed off the ground, and landed on his feet.

"Ugh!" Haruka grunted, as she fell to the ground from the attack. "What the hell did you just do?"

"Huh? Oh, that was a little something I learned from my Sensei. I'm not too flexible, but at least I'm strong enough to hold myself up on my hands." Yukio complemented himself.

"Not bad, now it's only fair for me to show you something in return." Haruka stood back up.

"Yukio! Watch out!" Hibari shouted, too terrified to move from her spot.

"Too late, cutie. He's done for. Secret Ninja Art Death Kiss." Haruka said. She blew a kiss, and Yukio was suddenly blown back.

"What the?! Ugh!" Yukio fell to the ground.

"Now, let's finish this." Haruka said, as she rushed towards Yukio once more.

"Ah!" Yukio braced himself.

"Haruka, stop this!" Hibari shouted.

"Ugh." Haruka suddenly froze in place. "My, she knows how to use it."

"H-Hibari, what did you do?" Yukio asked, as he got up, and stepped away from the stock-stilled Haruka.

"I-I don't know. What did I do?" Hibari wondered to herself, somewhat in shock.

"Oh my, you used your family's ability without even knowing it?" Haruka said.

"Hibari's family's ability?" Yukio approached Haruka, but still kept his distance.

"Hibari's family's ability, known as Kagan. It's a mind-controlling ability. Just looking into the user's eyes is enough to make you under their control. The indication of that ability is in her eyes." Haruka said.

"Her eyes?" Yukio looked towards Hibari, and stared into her eyes.

"It's the pink symbol in her eyes, that's her family's special ability." Haruka explained.

"Hibari, is this true?" Yukio asked.

Hibari didn't say anything, she simply nodded.

"Alright, can you undo it?" Yukio asked.

"It's already too late for me, I've failed my mission. He has already activated the technique. Erg..." Haruka responded instead. Her breathing grew weary.

Haruka started screaming, as steam came off her body. She screamed louder and louder, and the steam turned into smoke. Until the screaming eventually stopped, and she dropped to the floor.

"Hibari? What was that?" Yukio looked towards Hibari, but she was as shocked as he was.

"I-I don't know...but my family's ability would never physically harm the target!" Hibari fell to her knees, she was petrified. She crawled up to Haruka's corpse, and turned Haruka's body onto her back.

There's nothing. No blood, no scars, nothing. What even killed her?

"Damn it! Why do I hate this outcome?" Yukio cursed.

The barrier disappeared, and they found themselves back in the cellar.

"We made it." Yukio said, but he wasn't cheerful about it at all.

Haruka died, after seeing her backstory and learning about her, she gets killed off?  

"Hibari, get out of the building, I'm going to check on everyone else." Yukio said, and he rushed out of the cellar without hearing a response.

Yukio ran into Yagyu in the hallway, kneeling down to a body.

"What are you doing Yagyu-"Yukio looked at the body that Yagyu was kneeling to, and it was Mirai's corpse. "What...how?"

"It's some kind of forbidden technique. It's a special way to kill someone without any traces." Yagyu explained.

"Technique?" Yukio started to remember something during his previous lives.

During my last life. The boss guy said to the Hebijo Elites that he would activate something called the Yoke technique if they were defeated. Is this the power of that technique?

"Was she in pain?" Yukio asked, saddened.

"She was screaming very loudly for a few seconds." Yagyu explained.

"Erg..." Yukio bit his lip.

She's just a kid, both Haruka and Mirai were just girls. Don't tell me that all of the Elites have suffered this fate? Damn it, seeing their pasts and then seeing them die. Is that what the brat in my head wanted to prove?!

"I'm going up ahead." Yukio said, and rushed further into the building.

Yukio saw Ikaruga and Katsuragi along the way, kneeling at the corpses of Hikage and Yomi. Yukio didn't stop, and continued up the stairs. Eventually, he made it to the top floor, and approached the boss's room.

"Hey! Boss guy! Are you in there?" Yukio banged on the door to the room, but didn't get a response. "You bastard, are you too much of a coward to-" Yukio was interrupted with a kunai in his stomach.

"You're saying I'm a coward? Well then, let's see if you're one to talk." The boss guy said.

Yukio fell to his knees, but he stayed conscious.

It hurts, it hurts. No, this isn't enough to kill me...why? What does this guy want from me?

"Come in here, boy. I'm going to show you something." The boss said, and Yukio suddenly moved into the room.

Ugh! W-What is happening?

The boss grabbed Yukio by his hair, and lifted him up to his desk. Yukio saw two glowing scrolls, the Hanzo scroll on the left, and the Hebijo scroll on the right. The Hanzo scroll emitted a white and green light, while the Hebijo scroll emitted a black and red light. In the center of them was a single crystal ball.

"Look boy, the two scrolls have found their users." The boss said.

The scrolls...their users...what does that even mean?

"This is what I've been waiting for, you're about to see the power of Orochi! I, Dogen, will take over Japan...no, the whole world with this Yoma!" The boss, Dogen, laughed maliciously. "And sacrificing those girls went just as planned."

'Those' girls? Is he...talking about the Elites? He sacrificed them...this bastard!

"Now boy, look. The chosen ones are going to release Orochi any second now." Dogen said, waiting in anticipation.

"You...bastard!" Yukio cursed him.

Suddenly, both Dogen and Yukio were blown back. When Yukio came to, he saw exactly what he feared.

He saw the Yoma monster towering over, and completely destroying the Hebijo building.

"No, no, no, no, no." Yukio struggled to get up.

"Hahaha! Look, boy! This is the power of Orochi! It's all mine, all this power is mine!" Dogen shouted from a distance.

Dogen, you psychopathic son of a bitch. I will kill you. I swear, I will kill you!

Yukio looked up, and saw the monster looking down on him. The monster opened its mouth, and it got closer to him. The monster gripped its teeth around Yukio's waistline, and nearly crushed it.

"Ugh!" Yukio grunted, as his consciousness started fading.

"Yukio!" A familiar voice called out to him.

Is that...Asuka's voice?

The monster let go of Yukio, and he saw a blurry figure kneeled down towards his face.

"Yukio! Yukio, are you ok? Say something!" She cried out. He wasn't able to respond back.

"Asuka! What the hell are you doing?!" Another familiar voice called out.

That's Homura's voice...what is she...doing here?

"We can't leave him here!" Asuka argued, her voice was shaky.

"Tch, look at him. He's pretty much dead." Homura countered.

"You want to leave him?! You want more of us to die, Homura!" Asuka shouted at Homura, she was on the verge of tears.

"Erg...fine, hurry." Homura finally agreed.

They carried Yukio away from the Yoma. However, it continued to stomp towards them. They took cover behind some debris, and Yukio's consciousness recovered.

"Asuka...Homura...why?" Yukio said, still in pain.

"Yukio. Oh, thank goodness." Asuka hugged him.

"Why did you...save me?" Yukio asked.

"Because...no one else was left." Asuka said, her tone got more depressed.

No one is left, again. It happened again. Damn it, damn everything that's been trying to kill me!

"Why's...Homura helping?" Yukio asked.

"Hey, I'm not helping you guys. It's just...that son of bitch killed everyone I knew, my friends, all for this abomination. I'm gonna rip him and this monster to shreds." Homura said, she was facing away from Yukio and towards the Yoma monster.

What? She didn't know this was going to happen? She was ready to put her life on
the line for this, and now that she's the only one left, she decides to rebel?

"You expect me...to believe you? After what you've done..." Yukio said, frustrated at Homura.

"I get that. I don't expect you to forgive or forget. I don't care what you think of me. With or without your help, I'm gonna kill that damn thing, then I'm coming for the bastard who sacrificed my friends to unleash this version of hell-on-earth" Homura said, spawning her swords. "Secret Ninja Art, Crimson Lotus."

She grabbed one sword with a crimson red sheathe, and bandages wrapped around the hilt. A red aura appeared around her.

She's...doing the right thing for once. What happened to her? Did Asuka convince her or something?

"We'll be right back, Yukio. Don't go anywhere, ok?" Asuka asked.

"O-Ok." Yukio replied.

But...I refuse to do nothing about this. I refuse...to let both teams suffer.

Yukio's consciousness started fading out again. Asuka laid him on the ground, and rushed towards the monster. Leaving Homura there with him, the red aura continued to surround her.

"Homura...I need a favor...only you can do this." Yukio said, but didn't hear a response. He decided to continue anyway. "Can you please...kill me?"

"Huh? Why the hell would you want me to kill you?" Homura refused.

"I've already gone through enough. This is all too much for me, and I've given up on this life." Yukio said.

"Erg...You don't get to take the easy way out. If you kill yourself now, I'll kick your ass." Homura replied.

Homura's red aura engulfed her, the aura then turned into fire. Once it disappeared, her appearance changed. She then rushed to assist Asuka.

What the? What did Homura just do? When did she get red hair?!

Yukio was exhausted, but he didn't want this to be how the battle ends.

Everyone else should be here. We are not going on like this, I will save both the Hanzo girls, and the Hebijo Elites.

Yukio managed to crawl his way up to some debris. He found a sharp rock, and brought it up to his neck. He started to breathe heavily.

I'm sorry, Homura. This is cowardice in your eyes, but it's courageous in mine.

Yukio took a deep breath, and thrusted the sharp rock into his neck. Cutting his throat open, as he bled out on the ground.

To be continued...