Chapter 180: The Level 5
Clang.
Ruiko raised her Zanpakuto and blocked the strike. Sparks flew from the clash between her blade and the opponent's.
It was only now that she got a clear look at the person attacking her.
The girl looked about the same age as Ruiko, with a delicate face. She wore gloves, a pink nurse uniform, and a skull necklace around her neck that stood out.
Machete Girl: Huh? Isn't she...?
Amegakure Village's Angel: That's Kiyama Harumi.
When she was young, Kiyama was known as Misaka No. 0, and she was a close friend of Touko.
After finding out Touko was a clone, she tried to get the upper ranks of the "Artificial Academy" to stop giving Touko drugs. When that failed, she was locked up by them.
By the time she was finally released, Touko was already dead.
Filled with rage, Kiyama decided to get revenge on the Academy City's Board Chairman, Aleister Crowley. But of course, she failed and was thrown into juvenile detention.
According to the original story, Kihara Gensei likely recruited her because he saw how much hate she had built up.
Doujin Artist: Another poor girl ruined by the dark side of Academy City.
Curly-haired Guy: And something seems off about her right now.
Yeah. Really off.
In the original story, Kiyama was just a Level 4 "Liquid Shadow" esper, who could freely control any liquid with a density over 20 and shape it into human form.
That's a strong ability, but still just within Level 4.
But this version of Kiyama on screen? She's totally insane. She's going toe-to-toe with Ruiko, who's as strong as Accelerator, and she even seems to be using multiple powers at once.
Soul Society's Bad Guy: Is this because of that Fantasy Hand thing?
This is an Actor: Yeah, but an upgraded version.
The Fantasy Hand Kiyama is using has been enhanced by Body Crystals and amplified through AIM diffusion fields. Compared to the one Kiyama Harumi used before, this one's at least a hundred times stronger.
But the side effects are just as intense. It's basically burning through Kiyama's life to keep her in this supercharged combat state.
As time passes, her hair starts turning white before your eyes. Her eyes are bloodshot, her skin cracks open in tiny slits, and blood covers her whole body.
Yet even like that, she feels nothing and keeps attacking Ruiko non-stop.
Machete Girl: That's awful… doesn't it hurt?
Scarlet Lotus Fairy: Probably not. Her pain must be shut off too. That kind of twisted tech is pure evil!
Curly-haired Guy: I know, right? At first I thought a fight between two girls would be kind of hot. But I was way too naive. This isn't what I wanted at all!
Amegakure Village's Angel: Then what did you want?
Curly-haired Guy: Ahem... nothing, forget it.
Doujin Artist: Hmph, typical perv.
Curly-haired Guy: Hey! I didn't say anything, Gintoki! Why are you yelling at me?
Doujin Artist: Even if you didn't say it, do you really think we don't know what you're thinking?
Curly-haired Guy: I wasn't thinking anything! Don't just accuse people out of nowhere, you brat!
Tch.
While the others chatted in the livestream, the blue light sword in Keisaku's hand suddenly grew in size. The blade stretched dozens of meters long and cut through the surrounding walls like tofu, swinging straight toward Ruiko.
"Well, guess I've got no choice," Ruiko sighed, slowly letting go of the sword in her hand. "Shine brightly—Tsukiyo."
Hum…
With a soft hum, her zanpakuto turned into a glowing white light that shot through the air toward the massive blue blade.
Crack!
Keisaku's eyes went wide. The giant blue sword in her hands instantly shattered into sparkling fragments and disappeared. At the same moment, her body seemed to hit its limit and collapsed to the ground with a thud.
Hummmm…
That soft white light floated back to Ruiko and turned into a crescent-shaped blade.
Doujin Artist: Whoa, so this is Ruiko-chan's released zanpakuto?
Amegakure Village's Angel: It's really pretty.
On-screen, the crescent blade was etched with delicate and beautiful carvings. The carvings showed a young girl resting her chin on her hand, sitting on a mountaintop, gazing up at the moon.
Machete Girl: Tsukiyo… even the name sounds nice.
Skirt-Flipping Maniac: Ehehe.
Curly-haired Guy: Tch, good thing it's not Tsukuyo!
Doujin Artist: The hell it would be Tsukuyo! What kind of twisted brain would link Ruiko-chan's zanpakuto to your little crush?
Curly-haired Guy: What crush? Gintoki doesn't know any violent drunk chick named Tsukuyo! Wouldn't even want her for free!
Wig Guy: Gintoki, are you still hung up on what happened the other night? As a man, you should let it go.
Curly-haired Guy: Ha! Let it go? Say that again after you get punched into a pig face by her.
Soul Society's Bad Guy: Wait, you mean Tsukuyo beat Gintoki into a pig face the other night?
Doujin Artist: Hahahaha, I can already picture it! Serves you right, you bastard!
Machete Girl: Wig Guy, you should've taken a photo.
Wig Guy: Sorry, I'll remember next time.
Curly-haired Guy: You bastard, you're planning for a next time?! Gintoki will never drink with that crazy woman again! Never!
Skirt-Flipping Maniac: If Miss Tsukuyo hears you say that, she'll drag you into a room and down two bottles of vodka.
Doujin Artist: Hahaha, vodka sounds perfect!
Curly-haired Guy: Damn it, vodka?! Ruiko-chan, how much do you hate me?!
Just two cups of sake were enough to turn Tsukuyo into a gorilla. Two bottles of vodka? She'll turn into a T-Rex! I swear, she's gonna eat me alive!
Amegakure Village's Angel: All the mobs are cleared. When's Kihara Gensei, the boss, gonna show up?
This is an Actor: Soon.
Doujin Artist: Boss? You're calling that guy a boss?
Amegakure Village's Angel: Of course. Anyone that Anran's willing to wait for can't be weak. Plus, the guy turned himself into a test subject. No way that's just about getting younger, right?
This is an Actor: Ah, what he's chasing is something no normal person could ever reach.
As the message was sent out, Kihara Gensei opened his eyes inside the air chamber. Two silver-white crosses of light shot out from them.
Boom.
The entire chamber suddenly exploded, pieces flying in every direction.
Wearing a surgical gown, Kihara Gensei stepped out of the lab and looked at Anran and Ruiko with a wide grin. "Thanks to your stupidity, I've finally completed the Level 6 Project."
---
Read 30 advanced chapters on my patreon
patreon.com/GustinaKamiya
---