Chapter 210: 210. Ikehara Hideki!
['Cloaked Shadow' Existance: Arc 10]
[Planet Earth - Umi Island - Umi City - Battlefield - Monday, 8:30 a.m.]
The morning walk is always needed, so this is what Codey and Kanji decided to do. "Wow. Umi is today quite populated, seems people have stopped worrying about their island. Which - of course, is a good thing." Kanji faced at Codey, who stopped walking. "Hey, what're you looking at?" The wind slowly passed by. "That crowd. Is this the reason to why." The crowd was encircling the docks and spectating something, talking to each other.
Codey and Kanji reached the crowd to see for themselves. "Whoa. What's Tim doing? Is he.... going to fight that guy?" "Well, it does seem that crowd is interested into it." Kanji thought. "Whoa! Hey! Not just them, Odina and Thomas are here as well." By caught surprise, Codey called and raised his left. "Odina, Thomas!" "Oh! Codey! Kanji, are you here to spectate the duel between Ikehara and Tim?" Odina asked. "D-duel? Wait, do you think you could explain a little?" "Erm! Right, sorry. Ikehara is my friend I've met in Tokyo one day, we've been given a task to gather team members for 'HSPG'." Above Kanji's and Codey's hands three question marks appeared and said at the exact same moment. "HSPG? Why is there so many abbreviations?" "Oh, sorry, 'HSPG' stands for Human Society Protection Guild! Guess you two are also not familliar with it." Odina explained. "Guild? Are you planning to join a guild?" Kanji added. "No, no, no. We're building the Guild, Yukito came up with it, since one of their clan leaders left and came to Earth!" To that moment, Odina pointed at Yukito, standing by, crossed arms. "Wait! Captain Yukito?!" At that Yukito immediately turned at them. "IT'S CAPTAIN KOBAYASHI!"
Kanji and Codey made squiggly eyes, when leaning back with a straight pose and arms by their hips. ".....sorry...." In that instant Odina covered them by stepping in front of them. "Basically, several of their clan members are bulding a guild for us, simmilar to their clans, that's as much as you'd need to know." Codey then smashed his face past Odina when leaning his shoulder on her and pushing her aside. "Do you mean to tell me, that we're getting our own Guild!?! Oh my god! Let me be the chef!" Odina was quite uncomfortable. "Calm your guts down Codey. We aren't even sure if Tim will invite us, I'm guessing, it's his decision, right?" Questioned Kanji. Yukito agreed. "He better! Or I'll teach him a lesson or two, you just wait!" After Codey's body sparkled, he seemed to be extremely enthusiastic. "You're quite 'pumped up' aren't you....? Ehehe..." Onto Odina's giggles, the referee started the timer, counting down from three to zero.
Tim reached with his right arm on the side to when a sword came spinning from above him, to grab the sword, he swiped his arm backward and caught it, metal sound were heard as the area heated up. "Ah. Pyro. I meet them somewhat oftenly, but they ocasionally lose." By a smile, Ikehara swung his arm backward, when a flow of water, sprinkled forward. "And this is why." ("A Hydro. In honest opinion, we somewhat match each other evenly.... but all I can to do stop it, is to vaporize that water.") Tim made his prior combat stance and the duel began.
To begin with - Tim already proceeded with a dash forward and slid across the floor, the flames rose at pairs on both sides of his feet, allowing him to absorb the flames into the blade and swing it obliequely in a line.
Ikehara leaped backward and spun his dagger which was soon formed with a surrounded water, but on that note, Tim's swing unleashed a roaring sweep, which immediately lit the battlefield in fire.
On the landing, Ikehara made a step with his left leg forward and cut downward, providing the battlefield with a flow of manipulated water, on the note, the water and fire clashed each other and the area was soon wet. Tim who noticed a menacing flow of water ahead of him, crossed his face with his right arm when seeing a flow of twisted water, turning behind his back in midair. Tim quickly dedicated his focus on the movement of the flow, when Ikehara swung. Tim countered back with his swing of the blade, to when both of them exchanged looked. "For starters, you're not half bad." On that moment, Ikehara pressed his foot up against the floor and Tim soon noticed a small whirl beneath him in the wetness, to quickly react, Tim leaped backward and a geyser of water blew the scene, making a rain storm for a while.
Duo to lackiness of dry floor, Tim slipped backward when catching his balance and soon noticing a figure skimming ahead, Ikehara provided the attack with his dagger and awoke a calm geyser of additional flow, which Tim blocked, by sweeping his blade forward.
On that note, Tim pressed against the floor harder and unleashed the next sweep of burning fire, blasting the rain in it and vaporizing it in a harsh light. Ikehara, caught by surprise jumped and noticed how the flames of the attack, blew, doing that, the flames disappeared and Tim followed up with a sky jump, swinging with his blade forward and pushing Ikehara into blocking his attack, allowing him to push Ikehara back, on the floor. While Tim got rid of Ikehara, he dropped and as early as he could, he vanished from the air in an instant, before striking the floor. Ikehara noticed, trail of fire circulating behind him and then quickly turned backward, when Tim stood behind, menacingly. By sweeping his edgy sword forward upward, the fire spark scorched forward and picked Ikehara from the spot, forcing him to leap.
The instant that happened, Ikehara spun his dagger as it disappeared and a newly shaped weapon appeared, a bow, which stopped Tim from continuing the attack. "A bow?" Ikehara soon aimed his bow forward, quickly and shot a trio of arrows, that spun at Tim in quick moment. On that note, Tim quickly cut ahead of himself, knocking the arrows aside, as they disappeared from the air in sprinkles. Ikehara used that moment to leap forward into action and prepared his dagger as the bow lied on his back. However, duo to the lack of Ikehara knowing, Tim spoke. "Infernal Counter..." Ikehara sliced at Tim.
But in the same time, Tim raised his fingers over his blade's body and then pressed it back, in that moment, he sliced forward and the two weapons came in contact, in that moment, a spark of flame glowed on the plate of the blade and Ikehara knew, what had happened.
A massive explosion, of double the power, combined with Energy blasted, surrounding Ikehara's body and then, preparing an intensified drougth, infernal burst returned the power and three of orange sparks appeared before Tim andd Ikehara, to that moment, when the ground of the battlefield shattered, and the wetness was vaporized, Ikehara on the other hand was sent far over the battlefield and into the water to when Tim's right arm had a bit of burnt skin.
"...W-what was that?" The move that Tim has used, was never yet seen by the rest. "He.... called it.... 'Infernal Counter'. Did he know that before?" Kanji asked.
While the two of them began chatting, Ikehara swam to the surface, wet. "Well.... guess I'm the one wet now, not the floor." Smiled Ikehara. Tim's blade disappeared but he reached with his own hand forward and helped Ikehara to stand up. "Who knows. Maybe you'll actually be somebody fun in the Guild." A new friendship arrived.
The referee ended the duel with a victory for Tim.
"You know. This battlefield, could be used for future invites." Spoke Tim with his arms crossed. "But I'm quite interested. Do you hold a combination of two Ginkens? Or...." "No, the bow is really my Ginken. But the dagger, it's just a side weapon, if things get rough. I usually use it for advantage, but no worries, only my bow can kill those foolish Demons. I call my Ginken - 'Kyūjōshō'." Smiled Ikehara.
"Speaking about the names, what do you call yours?" "Oh? I. Well, I call it 'Nensho'. That's its name, after all." Tim smiled. "Is that the name...? ..... Whoa! Wait! The 'Nensho' the Ginken that so many people are trying to hunt down!?!" At a loud shout, Ikehara faced Tim. In that moment, people became a bit interested. "Whoa! Hey! Keep it down!" To when Ikehara faced the group, he became embarrassed. "Oh! R-Right! Sorry.... Misunderstanding! But seriously. This Ginken is so 'Mythical' to so many people." Spoke Ikehara in surprise. "Yes. It has been wielded by a guy named Giovanni, he was an ancestor, and now I'm the next ancestor..... but, I'm pretty much just a Substitute-Spiritual Duelist, guess my wish to saving Myles was all it took, for it to get it, but then again...." "Who cares! That Ginken is an SSS Tier, mine is merely just an A tier!"
"Ginkens.... have.... tiers? Since when?" Tim thought. "Since always. I bet your friends must have higher tier Ginkens as well! Ah, well... sorry for my weird reaction. But, I'd love to know what tiers hold your friends, why don't we ask them around. And, if they don't know, we can just use this application on our Zero Watch." Tim was given new information once again. "How do tiers work here?"
"Oh. Sorry, it starts with the lowest tier, which is C, then it moves up from, B, A, S, SS and SSS. Those are the tiers, Cs are the worst, while SSSs are the best." Explained Ikehara. "Huh? Really, that's some fine information, never knew 'Nensho' was truly that valuable." Spoke Tim, smiling. "There is only so many 'SSS' tier Ginkens, about 10, and yours is one of thse 10!" ("This gives me the thought. Could Ayuka's Ginken also be tiered 'SSS'?") Falling in thoughts, Tim soon lost his focus on hearing Ikehara. "Understood?" Questioned Ikehara, soon, Tim spoke back. "Huh. What?" In that par moment, Ikehara became a bit embarrassed. "You didn't listen to a thing I just said, did you? Ehehe." To finish his conversation with Tim, Ikehara scratched the back of his head.
[Planet Earth - Umi Island - Umi City - Food Stall - Monday, 9:10 a.m.]
"Ginken's tiers, I'm more than interested into this." Codey spoke, estaticed, sitting on the outside terrace. "Sure, you can check, using that application on your device.... well, Zero Watch." Of course, duo to Codey's curiousness, he immediately searched for it, and his new information was achieved. "An 'S' tier Ginken? Hah! Better than yours, Ikehara!" Laughed Codey. "Mine's only 'B'." Spoke Kanji, extremely embarrassingly. "Whahahaha! What a loser! a 'B' tier! I may as well make you my slave!" As Codey made fun of Kanji, Kanji just accepted with a smile. "Guess, I'm not that rare!" In that moment. "Oh! I know! Why don't we go ask, Sakami and Kylin as well, after we're done eating?" By informing the rest, Odina smiled. "Good idea, we're well interested." Smiled Ikehara.
[Planet Earth - Umi Island - Umi City - Food Stall - Monday, 9:35 a.m.]
"You wish to know our Ginken tiers? Well.... I suppose..." Kylin spoke. "Of course we would! Come on, hurry up! Let me see!" Called Codey, leaning forward, closing the gap, he could have kissed Sakami at that distance. The Zero Watch called. "It's an 'S' tier'." Spoke Sakami, quite confused on Codey's surprise. "How pitiful! You're at the same tier as I am! How unexpected." Codey stepped and turned, crossing his arms. "What about you, Kylin?" Asked Kanji. "Well.... mine is an 'SS'." Spoke Kylin. In that moment, Codey and Kanji both became unamused. "Unfair! How can you have better tier than me?" By being quite disappointed, Codey pointed his finger at Kylin's forehead, who became somewhat confused. "I'm.... well... sorry?"
"Sorry?! You better explain yourself right away, or we'll talk to my agent!" Shouted Codey, making Kylin leaning back, with a bit of uncomfortable and worried look, a sweat dripped down her left side. ".....Erm...."
"All right. All right. Codey, no time to be yelling at girls, there is an entire day ahead of us!"
To be continued...
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
Obb_Verse
Obb_Verse Arc: 'Cloaked Shadow's' Existance: 10
- Character Biology -
Name: Ikehara Hideki
Age: 17
Height: 175 centimeters
Race: Spiritual Duelist (1)
Ginken stages: 0 (currently known)
Hair color: Brown
Eye color: Beige
Kinetic Type: Hydro (Water)
Spiritual Control: Manipulation
[NEXT: Chapter 211: Kanji Sanda!]