Chapter 91: Surrounded
An ere silence descended on the scene before Jada finally relaxed her expression.
"Are you starting to understand?" Arthur asked in a monotone voice. "The more you continue this, the more you're gonna get hurt."
He let the tension drag on. Yet there was this strange resolve in Jada's eyes as she kept staring at him.
'Is she trying to activate the Tsukiyomi?' he thought to himself. 'No, I can't sense the chakra building up in her eyes.'
Whether she was trying to or not wouldn't matter since he was in Sage Mode.
Jada steadied her breath, the exhaustion of the battle pressing against her once more. She felt the Susanoo's weight around her.
"You think this is enough to stop me?" she challenged, summoning every ounce of resolve she had. "I won't back down!"
Undeterred, Arthur could sense her determination. He replied, saying, "How shameful… You should know: I only recently entered my Sage Mode."
What he was saying was that the time limit for his transformation had just begun. Meanwhile, there were cracks visibly showing in her Susanoo. Even if she repaired them, who knew how long she could maintain its shape?
Her world had truly been crumbling!
"Let's keep on pushing your efforts then," he announced, tightening his grip on his weapon.
His presence alone felt more of a challenge than her broken-down Susanoo.
He surged forward, closing the distance between them in an instant. As she staggered back, still recovering from the strain of his earlier attacks, he launched a flurry of punches, each blow charged with Sage Chakra.
The sound of the impact echoed through the air as his chakra-infused blade connected with her defenses.
She tried to fight back, but her valiant efforts were useless. Whenever she tried to hit him, he'd merely change his position faster than her Susanoo could move.
The cracks grew larger as she tried to keep its form up. She could barely think due to the amount of stress on her body.
With a swift motion, she spun with the Totsuka Blade, slashing through the air in an attempt to ward him off. But Arthur was quicker, dodging under the blade with agile finesse.
He used his moment to pivot and drive his elbow into her Susanoo's side.
The blow connected, sending a shockwave through her body. She gasped, the fury of that clash vibrating in her bones. Stumbling backward, she felt the fatigue worming deeper into her muscles, urging her to relent.
"This isn't over yet!" she shouted defiantly. She regained her footing, ready to unleash an attack. "Arthur!"
By no means was he going to give her the chance.
She raised the Totsuka Blade before bringing it back down with a force that threatened to cleave the earth in two. Arthur, unfazed, merely stood there.
'Substitution jutsu…'
Before the weapon could reach him, he substituted himself with a cluster of blades of grass, the ethereal weapon absorbing the harmless vegetation.
The insult was palpable.
Jada was using her ultimate weapon, only to be met with such a mundane counter. It was as if Arthur had spat in the face of her status as a ninja, a mockery of her role and the sacrifices she'd made to get to this point.
Her Mangekyō Sharingan flared, rage and disbelief warring within her eyes. She had underestimated him, miscalculated his steadfastness. He was not merely a skilled fighter, but a tactician, a perfect strategist who played by his own rules.
Arthur emerged from the foliage, his demeanour unchanged. He walked towards her, the sounds of the grass crunching beneath his feet being clearly heard in her ears.
The thought of him coming back sent a chill down her spine. Her breath came in ragged gasps, her body screaming for respite.
The Susanoo gave a loud roar before dissipating, leaving her fully vulnerable.
It was over.
Her chakra reserves were depleted, her physical strength waning. Even her eyes reverted to normal.
Arthur halted a few paces away, his eyes scanning her from head to toe. In a lax tone, he said, "Impressive… You're the first to last this long in a fight with me, and I commend your efforts."
Jada gritted her teeth. She did not want to give up; she did not want this to be the end.
But what was she going to do? Reach for her a kunai and use that as a weapon against his Sage Mode?
The Totsuka Blade failed more than once, and she wouldn't be able to summon her Susanoo again. Not if she wanted to go blind.
What won Arthur this fight was because he knew of her inexperience to truly wield her Susanoo in a real fight. It was her first time using the Uchiha's greatest technique in battle.
From the moment that it was unleashed, it was evident that her control was great, but her physical body wasn't going to maintain it for long.
During their earlier clashes, he had a clear advantage in strength and speed. Arthur, who had honed his body since his arrival in this world, was constantly at his physical pique.
Jada, however, had only been training her chakra-based techniques. They were very strong, no doubt. Otherwise, she wouldn't have been able to translate them so effectively in this fight.
But chakra alone was only part of this world's system. One needed to excel at everything to be considered a real threat to Arthur.
Perhaps if he were facing someone like Itachi's Susanoo or Kakashi's borrowed Susanoo, the results might have been drastically different. But Jada, a player in a twelve-year-old body, wasn't at their level.
"Is that all you have left?" Arthur taunted.
Jada ignored him, knowing that he was trying to get in her head again. She had tried her hardest, using almost everything she had.
That's what led to her loss here. Had she experienced firsthand how dangerous it was to use her Susanoo, she might not have ever unleashed it. Now her chakra was practically at zero, and she seemed to be all out of options.
She got to her knees and lowered her head down, causing a shadow to obscure her features. Then she whispered, "Can I ask you something?"
Arthur considered if she was trying to buy time or pull another trick. Her chakra might have been low, but that didn't mean she didn't have something up her sleeve.
"Unless it has to deal with you begging for mercy," he answered, "I don't want to hear it…"
"The least you can do… is grant me this request," she struggled to say. "Your opponent's low on chakra, and I'm sure you can already tell I don't have anything to help heal my injuries."
If that didn't sound like a woman asking for mercy, Arthur may have already walked away. He decided to hear her out.
"I used to actually think you were cool," she confessed. "Like the poor underdog or someone that got the wrong end of the stick." She was referring to his "Clan-Less" character. "I was wrong about you, Arthur… I was wrong to think you had good intentions."
Her words began falling on deaf ears.
Insulting him was serving no purpose. He knew who he was and what his goals were—goals that were never going to change.
If he wanted, he could snap her neck or cleanly chop her head off before she could even blink. But doing that would make him a hypocrite.
Arthur was and still is a Christian, a follower of Christ.
He could slay as many NPC's in this world and feel nothing, for it was not a sin and they were not real. But if he purposefully harmed a player—a living person with a soul—then it wouldn't make him any better than the people who trapped him here.
He was by no means going to play by their rules. He knew what was right and what was wrong, and murdering a life was undoubtedly wrong.
'If they're watching, do they honestly think I'm going to kill this girl…?'
He stared her down and said, "Answer me this: how did you learn the flying raijin, and who gave you Itachi's weapon?"
She was quiet for a second, head still facing the ground. In a soft, quiet tone, she confessed, "What good will knowing that serve you…? I'm already beaten. My time here's done. So if you're gonna finish me, make it quick."
"No…"
"What?" she asked in surprise, raising her head.
"You heard me… I said no. Not because I can't, but because I choose not to. I play by my own kind of game, and killing you isn't part of that."
"I see," she acknowledged, slowly returning her gaze to the floor. "Arthur… I thought I could handle you alone. I was wrong. You're strong. Too strong for your own good, even."
Now she finally understood. He was indeed strong, a deadly adversary worthy of being considered this world's villain.
Her coming to that conclusion didn't at all satisfy him. More so, he wasn't looking for anyone's validation.
Then she whispered a question: "The other players, what exactly do you think about all of them?"
"Hmph," he scoffed. "Alexander, William, Jasper, Margaret, Alice—they're all like you: lost players in a world you might have watched but still know nothing about."
Suddenly, he narrowed his eyes and leapt back a few paces. A slight tremor of chakra pulse through her right eye had been felt.
'What was that?' he asked himself.
Jada slowly lifted her head to reveal the swirling patterns of her Mangekyō Sharingan in her right eye.
"Arthur," she said in a lax tone, "there's something you didn't know… I deeply care for those around me and only wish for their best…" The air slightly quaked. "That's why I was given this specific ability in my right eye."
Arthur could sense the new arrivals' chakras before they even appeared.
Energy erupted from the ground, pillaring to the sky. When it ceased, four figures had materialized in the clearing—William, Jasper, Margaret, and Alice stood before them!
"What in the world happened here?" Margaret commented with an awed expression.
They all looked around and saw the destruction. Only a great battle would have caused this since the clearing was turned into somewhat of a wasteland.
This made her whistle while the rest surveyed the scene.
Arthur paused, his eyes scanning the newcomers. He had not expected reinforcements, let alone player reinforcements.
How did they come here? Not once were his senses dulled that he wouldn't have known someone was coming.
He knew one thing: Jada had not used the flying raijin nor had she used the summoning technique. She couldn't have. Her chakra was too low to be able to summon so many people at once, and she didn't use any hand signs.
Before he could consider things, Jada was relieved to be around her friends. She panted, "Glad to see you guys…"
"Jada!" Alice said, taking a knee next to her side. "The heck happened to you?"
While the two were talking things over, Margaret whistled in Arthur's direction once more and said, "Is that Arthur in Sage Mode?! Wow, that's so cool! I wonder if it's Snake Sage Mode like Kabuto's!"
Arhur could tell that her comment was more akin to sarcasm than praise. She, unlike Jada, did not seem remotely fearful when the latter first saw it.
Jasper grinned and said in a lighthearted tone, "Don't go comparing this wannabe to Kabuto. Sigh… Looks like we missed the fun, too. Jada, ya should have called us here sooner."
"Where are we anyway?" William asked, unsure of himself.
"We're… in the Tea Country," Jada struggled to answer.
This revelation shocked William. He quickly asked the status of Team 7, knowing that they were sent here for the escort mission.
Jada gestured forward and answered, "They'd be better off if it wasn't for him."
"What the heck, Arthur!" William screamed. He was clearly enraged. "If I found out you hurt my cousin, you're gonna get it!"
Arthur ignored them. He didn't want to think about William's disturbing comment—calling a fictional character, an NPC, their "cousin."
He had to absolutely remain calm. The arrival of her friends would make the situation more difficult.
"Did Alex really not make it?" Jada asked.
"Na," Margaret answered. "He's out doing something important. Besides, ya should be happy we answered the call. Almost chose not to come."
They were discussing things completely irrelevant. This was Arthur's moment to escape. But the moment he dared to take a step, he found himself completely frozen!
"Don't even think about," Alice said, staring him down.
The chakra was emanating from her, so it had to be one of the Yamanaka clan's binding techniques. But why was it so strong?
Then Margaret added, "None us thought you'd actually best Jada in a fight. Still, that's not amazing. She's kinda weak. Ugh. No offense, girl."
What did that mean? The player with a Susanoo, an advanced Sharingan, the Totsuka Blade, and the flying raijin wasn't even the strongest among them?!
More importantly, why wasn't Arthur able to lift a finger? He was in Sage Mode, for goodness sake!
"Haha. The little prick got caught by that?" Jasper laughed. He then shrugged his shoulders. "I thought you had some talent when I saw the damage you guys dealt here. Guess I was wrong."
"Jada," Margaret said with a quirky smile, "if ya'd just listen to me and train like I said, ya wouldn't be in this mess."
"I'm sorry... He just caught me off guard, is all."
This was beyond horrible. Five players against one was unprecedented. Arthur was outnumbered, with little options in front of him.
This was the reason he never wanted to face a player in the first place: they were heavily buffed.
How could things have possibly ended up this way?
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