Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction / Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction / Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction / Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction / Fan Fiction / Crossover Fan Fiction ❯ Ginga GIRI GIRI! The Universe is in Danger! ❯ Gateway of the Mind ( Chapter 87 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

___________________________________________________________________________ _________________

Ginga GIRI GIRI! The Universe is in Danger!
By SSJ Heero (http://animenext.knorf.net)
________________________________________________________________________ ____________________

- OPENING SONG: LOVE ME, I LOVE YOU - B'Z -

Hito no kokoro wa doushite mo nani ka tari nai keredo
Sokon toko umeru beki na no wa
Koibito jya nai, oyade mo nai... Nee, sou deshou?

Love me, kechitte nai de
Boku wa kitto ai wo motto daseru
I love you, ogoraseteru dake jya
Sono uchi dare mo inaku naru yo

Tsugou ii mono dake hippari dashite jibun no un no warusa wo
Soitsu ni bettori na suru kuse nai kai
(Hey, watch your step, darling?)
Yaritakunai koto bakari ga tsugitsugi to mitsukaru keredo
Shoukyohou de ikeru koto mo arurashii
Sono uchi maa, nan toka naru... Hey, sou darou?

Love me, piripiri suru nara
Sugu ni mutto suru no gutto taete
I love you, ai wo hakidashite
Sore demo katto kita nara Baby, let's dance

---- Recap ----

[Chibi characters of SSJ, Kensou, Amiko, TM, Van, and Davis appear in the foreground as
scenes from the last episode play in the background. Though, you can't see 'cause this is
text. Haha!]

SSJ: Last time on GINGA GIRI GIRI!

Amiko: Things heat up as Frank restarts his battle with Virus!

Kensou: Meanwhile, TM and Suzaku face off!

Davis: Suzaku pulls out moves left and right-

TM: BUT IN THE END, HE TURNS OUT TO BE NO MATCH FOR THE GREAT TM! HAHAHA!

(Everyone looks at TM as he laughs, and they all just sweatdrop.)

Van: Well, anyway... On with the show.

---- Chapter 87: Closing the Gate - Part Five : Gateway of the Mind ----

In the darkness of Terra's hollow core, two bright wings of light shown throughout the
black. Stretching from Amiko's back, wings made from her aura guided her in her descent;
she sped into the darkness towards the ground that seemed far below.

She hoped Cindy would be okay when she reached the bottom. She could only hope that Cindy
was strong enough to defeat whatever came her way. Amiko kept a constant lookout, feeling
the air about her move strangely. She suddenly felt a chill run down her spine.

Amiko froze in midair, wondering where the dark foreboding came from. She looked left and
right, listening for the movements of the air. Everything was still. Not a whisper was
heard. Feeling great anxiety, she landed upon a nearby bridge and crouched low, letting her
wings disappear. She waited for anything to move.

***

'Damn, she sensed me,' thought a cloaked figure to himself. In the darkness, Seiryuu waited
upon a bridge far below, watching and waiting for the girl. He was as silent as possible,
stopping any unnecessary movements of his cloak. He looked up at Amiko.

Seiryuu sighed as his pale red eyes caught sight of Amiko. 'Damn, she's pretty cute for a
fourteen-year-old,' thought Seiryuu. 'I've got the worst of luck.'

Seiryuu raised his arm, letting the skin open and the nanomachines rise out silently. The
colony stretched and bended and formed a giant bow with a fine string of metal. From his
skin, too, came an arrow, which he carefully placed on his bow and aimed for Amiko. 'Sorry,
girl,' thought Seiryuu. 'I have to kill you now.'

He pulled back the arrow and waited, aiming carefully at Amiko's chest.

***

Amiko suddenly sensed the air moving ever so slightly below. She looked down, and very
faintly, she saw a red light. She heard the very slight twang of a bow. As quickly as she
could, she dashed and rolled away as an arrow tore into the celesium wall, embedding into
it.

Amiko glanced at the arrow, and then she turned back to where she had seen the red light.
It was gone. The one who had shot the arrow had moved. Quickly, Amiko readied her bow and
set an arrow. She felt her heart pound suddenly. The tension had risen in an instant.

She intently concentrated, waiting for the wind to move again. In the silence, she thought,
'Arrows... Must be that Seiryuu guy who shot SSJ...' She felt the winds move behind her. In
an instant, she turned and let the arrow fly.

Seiryuu saw the arrow as it sped towards him. He was surprised she had moved that quickly
when he was about to shoot. He quickly ducked and let the arrow fly over him. Seiryuu grit
his teeth and looked up at where Amiko was. He saw that she had moved.

Not only that, she controlled the wind and let it fly everywhere like a storm. His hair
billowed and flew with the moving air. He realized she had used to cover her movements. He
muttered, "She's smart. I'm starting to like this."

As quickly as he could, he created another arrow. He attached a string from his cloak and
docked the arrow. He smiled, looking around for Amiko, his red eye glowing in the darkness.
He then saw her in the corner of his eye. Quickly, he aimed at her and let go.

Amiko saw the arrow, ducked, and dashed away. She dashed along a bridge above Seiryuu, and
was prepared to leap off the bridge onto another.

Suddenly, the arrow tore through her shoulder and ripped out her front. Amiko was taken
aback as the blood came from her wound. She coughed out blood and fell to her knees. She
looked down at the tip of the arrow, seeing it tipped with her blood. She felt a stinging
pain as the arrow was pulled out. She saw the string pulling the arrow as it fell into the
darkness.

'He controlled it with the string?!' she realized, grabbing her shoulder in pain. Quickly,
she let her aura out and lit the area with a yellow aura. She quickly healed her wound.
Suddenly, she heard the distinct sounds of many arrows launching.

She looked about and saw arrows coming from all around. Her aura had given away her
position! Quickly, she let her aura out and created raging winds all around her. The arrows
froze in place, struggling to fly through the barrier. Amiko was taken aback to see them
break through the wind, and dodged them all. Quickly, Amiko moved swiftly and left, raising
the winds all around the area.

Seiryuu smiled as he pulled back all the arrows he made. She was good. She was not only
able to deflect all of the arrows at once, but she was also able to still recover quickly
from being struck. He liked that girl. 'Smart and strong,' he thought to himself. 'She
better survive long enough for me to have fun!'

Amiko was panting when she came to a stop on a bridge far below Seiryuu. She let the winds
calm, looking up at the red eye of the man. 'I need to be more careful,' thought Amiko. She
kneeled down and prepared another arrow. 'This guy is completely different from any
previous battle. Any move means I could die. I need to plan...'

She waited behind a pillar out of the android's sight. As dangerous as it was to lose sight
of him, it was more dangerous to wait within his sight. She concentrated, focusing on the
movements of the air. Nothing stirred, except for a faint movement from his slight jerks.
That was enough. As she sat there, concentrating, she came up with a plan, looking around
the area.

She looked left and right. She needed to close the gap between the two. When that happened,
it would be easier to fight with the dagger she received. She figured the man's vision was
much better than hers, as it was able to catch her in the still darkness. She zipped up her
jacket as silently as possible, each click of the metal like a gunshot in the darkness.

Seiryuu heard the individual clicks of the zipper on Amiko's jacket. He docked five arrows
at once, aiming at a pillar where he had heard the sound. He let the arrows fly, pulling
the strings and guiding them like speeding marionettes.

Amiko felt the sudden shift in the air. She let the winds block the arrows, using the time
to dodge them as they broke through the raging winds. They flew everywhere as Amiko had the
winds fly out of control. She saw the strings encircle the area around her, arrows flying
every which way. Then everything became still.

She suddenly was filled with surprise as she looked everywhere. She looked left and right,
seeing string pulled taut between every bridge and pillar. There was no room for her to
escape. Even with the winds wildly speeding, Seiryuu controlled the arrows with precision.
By now, that guy would have docked an arrow and would be waiting for her to move a string.
Then he would shoot and kill her. She was trapped with no way of escaping.

'That guy would find me if I stay here,' she thought. 'I've got to get out...' She looked
at what she had. The dagger, five arrows, her armor, and a flask of water. She wondered
what she could do with them.

She came with a plan, pulling out an arrow and slicing through a few strings. She heard the
arrows fly from a bow. Quickly, she dropped the arrow and opened her flask, pouring the
water over her self. She saw the arrows race dangerously close before she disappeared in
smoke.

Seiryuu was taken aback by her sudden movement, seeing the arrows speed through the string
cage without hitting their target. He saw Amiko appear high above him, arrow ready. She let
it fly at her opponent.

Seiryuu raised his arm and blocked the arrow, letting it tear through the back of his palm.
The arrow came to a stop, but not before cutting Seiryuu's cloak. Seiryuu saw the already
torn cloak fall away into the darkness, surprised at losing the way to guide his arrows.
'She is good,' thought Seiryuu. 'Better than I thought.' He looked up at where Amiko had
been, only to see that she was already gone. 'She even escaped the string trap.
Interesting... Very interesting!'

Seiryuu felt only a few nanomachines in his body. Not enough for a whole arrow. That was
just enough for him. He tapped the throbbing gray ooze on his neck. Letting it seep deep
into him.

From afar, Amiko saw the ooze move and spread throughout Seiryuu's body, turning his skin
black and making his eyes a deeper shade of red. Amiko saw the ooze gathering the most at
where Seiryuu's eyes were, veins suddenly appearing in his skin.

Amiko was taken aback to see him completely blended with the darkness, his red eyes the
only hints of his whereabouts. Amiko felt the slight movement of air, realizing that her
opponent had docked an arrow. Quickly, she teleported to another bridge.

An arrow flew past her face. Amiko turned white with surprise. Even with the instantaneous
movement of teleportation, he was still so fast! She tried again, this time teleporting
right behind the man.

Seiryuu was quick to turn his bow and strike her in the gut. She coughed blood again. "You
underestimate me," said Seiryuu for the first time to her. "You're too slow to close the
gap like that." Seiryuu swung his bow and prepared to strike Amiko again, but once again
she was gone with smoke.

Amiko appeared on a bridge far away and ducked low to it, keeping hidden from the android
down below. She became fearful. 'This is impossible!' thought Amiko. 'Either far or close,
I can't touch him!' Her heart beat like no other time. Each throb was like a single
explosion in the darkness.

Seiryuu looked up at her, seeing the heat flow through the celesium. His eyes had become
even greater by merely letting Virus enter all of his body. What a cheap price for victory!
He looked to the pillar beside him.

There was a large hole in the celesium, and an arrow formed out of it. He pulled it and
docked it, calculating the distance and angle needed to strike the girl. He smiled, aiming
up high. 'High angle bonus!' he thought to himself as he let the arrow fly.

Amiko felt the movements of the arrow, and quickly she crawled towards the nearby pillar.
She felt a twinge of pain when the arrow grazed her skin. She turned and saw the arrow,
shining brightly in the darkness. What caught her attention even more was that it was
embedded deep in the celesium. She thought, 'Huh? It's that powerful?' She then saw that
the arrow was made of metal. 'Celesium arrow?! How is that possible?!'

Another arrow came from the darkness; she rolled and formed another shield of wind. She
barely dodged the arrow as it cut into the bridge. Not only was Seiryuu using celesium
arrows, but he was able to calculate an angle so that it would hit her. Her situation
became more dire, and she had no idea of how to defeat him. He was too fast, too smart, and
too skilled.

She wondered if she would be able to hit him with an arrow at all. Amiko looked up at the
darkness, wondering if dying was as painful as it was for Davis. An arrow appeared out of
the darkness. She sat there, waiting for it to come.

Suddenly, Amiko remembered something she said not a week ago: "However, I can't die here. I
have people waiting for me, here... And at home..."

Amiko suddenly became motivated as she moved out of the way. The arrow struck her hand and
pinned it to the celesium. She screamed in pain. Seiryuu smiled. 'So she hasn't given up at
all,' he thought. 'Very good, I can still enjoy this.'

Amiko recalled her promise with her bishounen. She couldn't die. She couldn't give up.
Ignoring the pain, she reached for the arrow and drew it out, throwing it away and healing
herself. She got to her feet, thinking to her bishounen, 'Thank you, everyone. You made me
stronger, but no matter how much you want to help, don't. I want to do this myself.'

***

In the bishounen waiting room, all of Amiko's bishounen sat around the giant plasma TV,
eagerly watching the battle. They screamed insults at Seiryuu and cheers for Amiko, moved
by her words. "That's it!" yelled Cloud. "You can't give up now!"

"He's a pushover!" screamed Sora. "Beat him up for me!"

"Finish him!" yelled Kaiba in a very enthusiastic tone. The other bishounen turned to him.
Everything became silent. It was the first thing he said for a week.

Still, everyone turned to the TV and prayed for Amiko's success.

***

Amiko smiled at her bishounen, remembering the promise she made. With that, she pulled a
ribbon from her shoe laces and tied her hair into a ponytail, feeling determined again.
'Yeah! I can't die here!' yelled Amiko in her mind. 'Cindy needs us, and I won't let the
world fall to Virus, nor will I rely on SSJ or anyone! I am strong enough for this. I am
smart enough for this. I can beat him!'

Amiko looked down upon her opponent. The two glared at each other, red eyes against green.
Amiko then yelled, "Before we continue, can I ask you questions?"

Seiryuu looked up at the girl. He smiled and lowered his bow. She was much to entertaining
to just kill like this. "Ask them!"

"You are Seiryuu of the Nishiten, right?" she yelled at her opponent.

Seiryuu nodded. "You are correct. I am the Dragon of the Nishiten."

"Are you the strongest of the Nishiten?"

Seiryuu smiled at the question. "In terms of raw power, no. That's Suzaku. But in terms of
winning battles, yes, I am!"

Amiko thought as much. The intelligence, the battle style, the ruthlessness... It was more
powerful than any sword can face. No one else could beat the guy. TM was much too slow to
dodge the blows, and he didn't have the power to heal himself. SSJ, as fast as he was,
couldn't put much of a dent in Seiryuu, nor would he try to outsmart the man. Davis was,
too, wasn't fast enough to harm Seiryuu before the man dodged. In each case, Seiryuu could
easily find a solution to the problem. The only way to defeat Seiryuu was to destroy his
strengths. She had to outsmart, outshoot, and outlast him.

Amiko then asked another question, "Why are you doing this?"

Seiryuu looked up at the girl. He scratched his head, wondering the reason. He just looked
up at her and said, "My comrades are fighting. That is reason enough for me."

Amiko was surprised by the answer. No hatred, no devilish intent, no amount of evil was
pushing him to fight. The great amount of trust between the Nishiten surprised her. They
weren't just enemies... They were real people who had trust in each other like friends. But
like him, she realized that she, too, was fighting for her friends. Amiko smiled.

Amiko asked one final question, "Where is Cindy?"

Seiryuu was surprised by the directness of the question. He grinned again. "At the core,"
he answered. "Her will is being destroyed by Daedalus, so the faster you get down to stop
him, the better your chance is to save her and stop Virus."

Amiko nodded. "Then, that is all I need to know," she replied.

Seiryuu nodded, as well. "From now on, no more talk," said Seiryuu. "It only inhibits our
lovely chat here. I haven't had a good conversation in a long time."

Amiko looked at Seiryuu, thinking to herself, 'Yeah... You learn the most about a person
through battle than through anything else. That is when his true self is revealed. I
understand him. He definitely has trust in his partners. But I believe in everyone as well!'

Amiko quickly docked an arrow and teleported away. Seiryuu was quick to pull an arrow from
the pillar and launch it at where Amiko appeared. Amiko disappeared again to dodge it. The
winds began to howl and blow Seiryuu's hair all about. He noted her change in strategy.

'She's making a huge gamble, using her energy like that. She isn't just dodging, but she is
being unpredictable. However...'

Seiryuu heard Amiko teleport behind him. He pulled another arrow and shot it within a
second, striking Amiko in the chest. Amiko was hit by the powerful arrow just as the wind
blew in her direction and shoved opposite the force of the arrow.

Seiryuu sighed as he saw Amiko being crushed by the two forces. He sighed. 'So this is her
limit, huh... Defeated by her own strength...'

But suddenly, he heard something hit the celesium. The arrow had dropped and struck the
bridge, not tear through her. He turned to the girl, but before he could move, an arrow was
aimed between his red eyes. He saw Amiko smiling, a giant hole torn in her jacket. Seiryuu
saw the armor underneath, apparently strong enough to defeat celesium.

One large nick had appeared on the armor, but Seiryuu couldn't move to exploit the
weakness. The girl had tricked him!

Amiko smiled, thinking to herself, 'Looks like he didn't see the armor under my jacket.
Lucky!' She then looked at the pillar, seeing the arrow rise out of a hole made in it. She
saw particles moving all throughout the opening in the celesium. She realized the only
thing that could have done it. 'Nanomachines. That's how he got the arrows.'

Seiryuu looked with surprise at Amiko. She had trapped him at such a distance. One move
means he gets it to the brain. He was surprised to see Amiko's yellow aura pour all over
the place, making him feel immense pain at that vicinity. The black in his skin melted
away, Virus dying from the energy of Amiko's aura.

Seiryuu was even more taken aback. 'This girl... She defeated me...?' He saw the arrow
Amiko aimed at him suddenly sparking. Her aura was pouring into the arrow, and a hit by it
would be even worse. But still, he wouldn't give up. Quickly, he screamed, commanding his
nanomachines to move. Amiko saw it, letting the arrow fly at Seiryuu's head.

Seiryuu ducked, and the arrow of lightning launched past, the energy screaming as it grazed
Seiryuu's head. It struck the pillar and burst. Seiryuu saw Amiko leap away. He then
realized his folly. The electricity coursed through the celesium, and through his legs
throughout his body.

Seiryuu screamed in pain as the electricity coursed through his body. He felt pain in every
part of his body. It seemed to last forever before he was able to fall to his knees there
on the celesium bridge. His red eyes dimmed.

Shakily, he turned and looked around for Amiko. Amiko had landed upon a bridge above him,
readying another arrow. Seiryuu smiled, not knowing where she was, for she was as silent as
a lamb. 'Yes, she is good. She put everything she had into that attack. But... It's still
not over.'

Amiko looked down upon Seiryuu. 'I've got two arrows left,' she thought. 'I'll need to use
them wisely.' Amiko thought of how to deal the final blow to Seiryuu. She thought
carefully, wanting to use all her resources. He needed to have a weak point, and she
wondered where that was.

She reached and docked an arrow, preying upon Seiryuu.

Seiryuu suddenly turned and saw her. He pulled one final arrow from the pillar, docking it
and aiming at her. Amiko saw the particles move all over the arrow. Seiryuu let it fly
straight at her. It sped at an amazing speed towards her, and she barely dodged as it
grazed her shoulder.

Her shoulder was suddenly filled with a searing pain, the particles moving about her skin
and cut. Her skin was torn apart and broken down, her cells being converted to another
material. She screamed in pain, realizing that this was his plan. She pulled the arrow from
her blow and stabbed her shoulder, cutting off the piece of skin as she bit her lip to not
scream.

Amiko resisted screaming as the cut off the piece of her body where the nanomachines were
destroying. Blood flew everywhere as the piece of skin hit the bridge. Amiko let her aura
out and healed the large wound, using most of her energy.

She panted, standing weakly there on the bridge. She saw the particles crawling towards her
on the bridge, and she quickly used the last of her energy to teleport to another bridge.
There she stood, blue in the darkness. Seiryuu was lost in the darkness, his red eyes no
longer that much of a clue to his whereabouts.

Amiko docked her last arrow, prepared to strike where Seiryuu was. The threads of her
jacket snapped, and it fell and hung limply from one shoulder.

Even though Seiryuu heard the giant sound, he didn't move from his spot. The last of his
arrows were gone, and it was too dangerous to retrieve his nanomachines. He had already
moved out of range to command them. All that was left was a melee attack. Still, he smiled.
'This girl is definitely the strongest opponent I had. Even the nanomachines didn't stop
her. I can see why that Cindy girl is so headstrong... She has friends like these...'
Seiryuu smiled, looking at the darkness. 'I'm glad I was able to fight like this for
once... It was about time...'

Seiryuu shakily got to his feet. Amiko heard the noise and aimed at the area, another
pillar. She let the arrow fly at the pillar.

Seiryuu heard it, wondering what that girl's plan was. The arrow couldn't possibly tear
through the celesium pillar. He suddenly felt a chill. The wind was moving ever so
slightly. 'She still has enough power to influence the winds?!' Seiryuu stood with surprise
as he saw the arrow curve around the side of the pillar. He was taken by surprise as it
tore through his chest.

Seiryuu stood there, frozen in place. His eyes were wide with disbelief. Even after all
that energy wasted, she pulled out just a little bit more to hit him. Seiryuu smiled still.
She truly was the most powerful opponent he faced.

Amiko panted where she was, falling to her knees and looked at where Seiryuu was. She saw
Seiryuu appear from the side of the pillar, smiling at her. She smiled, too. He, too, was
the strongest opponent she faced. She felt relieved that she had hit him.

But she saw that he wasn't down. She saw Seiryuu leap across the chasm, not bothering to
pull the arrow from his chest. He landed just above her, bow in hand. Seiryuu looked down
at Amiko's weapon. 'That bow,' he thought as he noticed it. 'Powerful...'

Seiryuu raised his bow, placing the tip on Amiko's forehead. He saw that she could hardly
move or use energy. One push would send her falling to her death. Oh well, she had reached
her limit. He then put pressure on the bow, pushing Amiko over the edge.

But suddenly, he was off balance. Amiko had quickly moved and the bow moved past her side.
Seiryuu was taken aback as Amiko drew a dagger and stabbed him right through his left eye.
It sparked and turned black, the light no longer on. Amiko smiled at Seiryuu, glad to have
faced him.

Seiryuu, though surprised, smiled, too. She had outsmarted him again. The basic strategy of
Go [1] to use the first hand as a feint, and using the second to attack. She had drawn
enough energy to deal that final blow. Truly, she... Was the strongest... Opponent he...
Had... Met...

The red light in Seiryuu's other eye faded and disappeared, and it was all dark again.
Amiko panted, pulling the dagger from Seiryuu's head, blood dripping down the blade. The
only organic part in his body was in the head. Amiko saw that when Virus melted through
every body part, sans the head.

She panted, sheathing the dagger and falling to her knees. It was finally done. She laid
Seiryuu down respectfully. Smiling she took off her jacket and the rest of her left sleeve.
She blanketed Seiryuu, closed the man's working eye, and prayed for him. Smiling still, she
got to her feet and stepped away to a pillar. With that, she began the long climb to the
Core...

---- To Be Continued ----

- ENDING SONG: SUTEKI DA NE - KIRORO -

teri kagayaku taiyou to
yaketa hada ga mabushii ne
nagakatta ano toki ga ima yomigaeru
nagakatta you de mijikai
suteki na omoide no tsukihi
makkuro na kao ga mongatatteiru yo

kaeri giwa BASU no mado kara mieru koutei
suteki da ne isshoukenmei na sugata ga
me ni yakitsuiteru

---- Preview ----

[The instrumental version of "Eternal Blue" from the Lunar 2: Eternal Blue soundtrack plays
in background. The Crew appears solo in chibi style, and random scenes from the next
episode play, though you can't see because this is text. Haha!]

SSJ: Next time on GINGA GIRI GIRI!

Amiko: Virus' plan moves forward once more as Davis meets with his opponent.

Kensou: Byakko faces Davis in order to protect his master's pride.

TM: How can Davis fight and defeat a man he can hardly even touch?

Davis: Oh, I'll think of something, of course.

Van: NEXT! On GINGA GIRI GIRI! "Closing the Gate - Part Six : The Gate of Ether"

----

Author's Note:

[1] Go - You disappoint me if you don't know what Go is. Get out of my sight. And then read
Hikaru no Go.