Kapitel 179: The strongest creature in the world
"I am sorry for our negligence."
Captain Kazama and his soldiers bowed their heads and apologized as they had a cold sweat after they watched the beheaded enemy soldiers. The cut was clean, and the blood didn't even dirty the figure who killed those soldiers.
Frankly, their appearance was so late since they only appeared a few minutes after Isao finished taking the enemy's soldiers.
Unlike when he faced the Apollo Familia, this time, he decided to kill. Why? It wasn't because he was cruel but because his opponents were soldiers.
Unlike the adventurers who fought monsters for money and glory, the soldiers fought for their homeland, and even if they used their lives, they would take down the threat that might endanger their country.
Moreover, with how many people were inside this shelter, he was afraid that those enemy soldiers might go crazy after being incapacitated and then shoot their assault rifles into all of the people who retreated inside the shelter.
"Also, thank you."
Nevertheless, Kazama didn't forget to thank Isao, as Isao had protected everyone in the shelter. It was his dereliction of duty, letting many soldiers protect the VIP, leaving those commoners.
"Tell me the situation."
"Yes!"
Leaving the shelter, Isao brought Miya and everyone with him while listening to the situation of the war from Kazama.
Unlike before, there was no trace of disdain or disobedience as Isao stopped being low-key. Moreover, he could kill so many people with ease without using magic, and with only a single saber, he protected everyone.
Even if he just wore an aloha shirt, shorts, and sandals, everyone respected him.
Yet, how?
How could he do all of this without magic?
More importantly, what was with his body?
Even if Tatsuya didn't use his "Elemental Sight" to observe Isao's body, he could see Isao's body was brimming with energy and power. It was as if everyone would be pushed away as they tried to get closer to an aura that exuded from his body.
Or rather, how could a human even create such an aura like those in manga?!
Still, if Isao had to describe why he could exude such an aura, it was because of an intent.
When one got angry, their appearance became scary, and those with a chicken heart would be frightened.
His situation was like that.
When his feats and prowess were shown, it was impossible for one to look down at him, especially when they met his sharp eyes.
In Kazama's eyes, he thought that Isao was a former soldier or a mercenary who happened to take a trip to Okinawa.
As for whether Isao was a magician or not, it didn't matter since the power that was shown wasn't something that Kazama and all the soldiers in this base could handle.
More importantly, if possible, Kazama wanted to get Isao's help to fight the enemies that were about to ravage their homeland.
"The enemy is sending multiple amphibious crafts toward the Onno Village shoreline. The enemy has command of the waters near the Kerama Islands. Thanks to the work of guerillas colluding with the enemy, crew members are being thwarted in transit. About 80% of the guerillas have been wiped out. The Airborne Unit at this base will soon be mobilizing to enemy ground troops."
Inwardly, as Isao listened to Kazama's report, he felt helpless since his holiday had ended up like this after all. While there was no doubt his meeting with Miya and Tatsuya was great, they had parted ways due to the war that was about to befall this country.
In the original, it would be Tatsuya who came out to handle all of this, but—
"Take all of them to the safest place, and then I will go to battle."
"Thank you." Kazama nodded. "We'll take them to the Air Defense Command Room. The armor there is twice as thick as the shelters."
Isao then looked at Tatsuya and Honami. "Tatsuya, Honami, protect them, okay?"
"Yes." Honami nodded.
However, Tatsuya said, "Please take me with you." Yes, Isao was powerful, but he also hoped that he could do something, and he believed that his strength could be a great help to his teacher.
"What are you saying? You are just a kid." Isao rubbed Tatsuya's head helplessly.
"I am not. Also, stop rubbing my head like that."
While Tatsuya's tone was as deadpan as ever, he was clearly irritated by Isao's action, but he couldn't escape from his hand, so he could only let himself be held like this, and at the same time... he thought that it might be his last time to see him.
"Tatsuya, listen to Isao-san," Miya said sternly.
"Yes..." Tatsuya couldn't fight Miya's order.
"Miyuki, don't let your brother go to the battlefield, okay?" Isao looked at Miyuki and said softly.
"Ye-Yes!" Miyuki might be the youngest, but at this moment, her eyes were wet, knowing what Isao would do after this.
Lastly, Isao looked at Miya with his kindest smile and said softly, "Take care."
"..."
Miya looked at his gentle expression, clenched her skirt tightly with her slender hands, and said softly, with an affection that was almost visible, "Be safe..." Her voice was trembling, but she tried to be strong and without looking away from him.
"Let's have sukiyaki tonight."
Waving his hand, Isao left with Kazama. "Lend me armor or something. I don't want to be recognized."
"Yes." Kazama nodded. "Sanada, find him an Armor Suit and gear! Airborne, we move in 10!" Still, he looked at Isao and asked curiously, "By the way, are you a magician?"
"Why do you ask such a stupid question? I am a normal human." Isao looked at Kazama lazily and said, "You should search for my information, right?"
"...."
It was because Kazama had searched for Isao's information and couldn't help but be in doubt, as the strength shown by Isao couldn't be done by a mere human.
Human.
This was a weak creature that needed to be protected by them, the magician.
Yet, this human was able to do a feat that even a magician was impossible to do.
"Anyway, just tell me where the enemy is, and I will slay them."
"Yes." Kazama was helpless, but there was nothing he could do. Yet inwardly, he wondered whether Isao was a superpower user, a rare human capable of performing magic feats without using Activation Sequences or any other ritual, unlike Modern or Ancient Magic.
Yet, no matter what, it didn't matter, as Isao was their ally.
"By the way, after I finish them, pay me."
"Okay." Kazama was decisive, and it was easy to talk with Isao.
Getting the Armor Suit, Isao wore it and took out his two trusted weapons, a saber and a one-handed poleaxe, before entering the battlefield.
As Isao entered the battlefield, Kazama took a deep breath before he followed him.
On the other hand, in Isao's words, Miya, Tatsuya, Miyuki, and Honami were brought to the Command and Control Center after passing through five blast doors.
On a floor the size of four classrooms, with no windows and no walls connected directly to the outside, around 30 operators sat in front of three rows of consoles in one hall. Against the large wall-mounted screen was an entrance leading to eight single mezzanine rooms.
After confirming the safety of the room, they sat as they watched the desktop monitor, watching the feats that were down by Isao with dumbfounded expressions.
What they saw was a total massacre.
With his two weapons, Isao rampaged over the battlefield, either cutting, chopping, or smashing those soldiers and their vehicles into wrecks. Moreover, his speed was like a cheetah, or even more, almost impossible to be followed by the cameras.
Watching this feat, Honami was dumbfounded, wondering how Miya's weak body could handle Isao's strong physical ability.
If Miya knew what Honami thought, she might slap this woman directly, but at this moment, she didn't bother to do all of those things as her eyes never looked away from his figure.
Whether Tatsuya or Miyuki were even more so.
Miyuki might have a hard time watching this, as the bloody scene before her was too much for a girl of her age to see, but Tatsuya didn't have a problem and just watched the feat that was done by his teacher.
Isao's figure was so radiant.
He was like the light during the darkest moment.
The dusk pierced the dark night.
At this moment, Isao was no longer a good guy wannabe, but he could become a good guy if he wished to.
In the end, his bad and good sides were two sides of the same coin.
It was impossible to erase his bad side, but it was impossible for him to sink into evilness once again.
For the enemy soldiers, he was a demon, yet for the allies, he was an angel, a hero, or anything that they worshipped as they were saved by him.
Still, even if Isao was merciless, he let go of those who had raised the white flag and didn't touch them, only moving toward those who still tried to kill.
With his hard work, it didn't take a long time before all the enemies that had entered the shoreline had been defeated by him.
His black armor was still clean, without any blood, yet his two weapons emitted a vile, cursed-like aura that somehow bewitched those who saw them, so he quickly put the two when it was all over.
Standing at the shoreline, Isao stood straight, watching toward the direction that made his thumb throbbing.
"It isn't over yet, right?"
As his voice fell, Kazama, who had been following him, breathed heavily, exhausted, but hearing his question, he removed his helmet and then nodded helplessly. "I have gotten a message from HQ that a detachment of the enemy fleet is approaching from Aguni. Two high-speed cruisers and four destroyers."
"They are at this direction, right?"
"Yes." Kazama was solemn, then said, "Their artillery is estimated to come into range in 20 minutes."
"Have you found a way to intercept them?"
"I apologize. No. There are no torpedo boats, no anti-ship aircraft." Kazama showed a wry smile and said, "As you have said, I am nothing but a useless soldier." While saying so, the others never stopped as the order to retreat was announced.
In 20 minutes, this coast would be destroyed by the enemy with their cruisers and destroyers that were equipped with Fleming Launchers (initially known as railguns, but as their size increased, their names changed).
The rate of fire of these weapons is overwhelmingly superior to that of gunpowder-based weapons, and since there's no need to include propellant or propulsion systems, they have far more destructive capacity than missiles. However, their range was no better than, or in some cases inferior to, traditional naval guns.
Fleming launchers emphasize the rarest of fires, and the recoil from extending their range while attempting to maintain that rate would lead to significant adverse effects on the hull, which cannot be ignored.
Thus, the ground attacks the power of state-of-the-art modern warships, which are said to be over ten times more effective than those of ships a century ago. Within the range of Fleming launchers, even a single ship can turn entire districts into a sea of flames.
The launchers are effective not only against the urban areas but also against fortifications. If two cruisers began raining fire, the average magician wouldn't stand a chance.
In other words, as long as those cruisers and destroyers came within the range of their attack, then this war was as good as over. Everyone would die, and their fate was in the hands of the enemy.
Still, Isao wasn't the only one who knew all of this since soon, Tatsuya came along with Honami.
"Sensei!"
Isao looked at Tatsuya, who came on the motorcycle with Honami helplessly. "Why did you come here?"
"I will help. I will destroy those fleets."
With his magic, Tatsuya knew that he could do it.
Yes, his teacher was amazing, but could Isao face those fleets?
Isao was helpless, realizing that they were worried about him, but while he was happy, this wasn't the time for Tatsuya to become a weapon.
"By the way, you haven't seen my serious, right?"
"...what?"
Tatsuya was dumbfounded by Isao's words since it meant... Isao hadn't gotten serious at all?
If so, then how strong was Isao?
"Those fleets might be a little troublesome, but they are not my opponents."
Isao then turned and jumped into the ocean. "Wait here, I will end them."
As he jumped into the water, he moved like a sailfish, piercing through the waves.
Tatsuya, Honami, Kazama, and Sanada Shigeru, one of the soldiers who came with Kazama, watched Isao, who disappeared within the ocean, yet soon, their eyes were attracted to the two cruisers and four destroyers in the distance as the complete fleets of the enemies, being destroyed by something.
From one to two, from two to four, then all of them were destroyed, leaving only a burning sea in the distance.
No one could talk, and all of them only stared at this scene in disbelief.
Soon after, they saw him return, seemingly lazy, yet unlike before; his armor was completely destroyed, his hair was wet, blood streamed from his forehead, turning half of his face bloody red, and there were burnt scars on half of his chest and many bullet wounds on his body.
Yet even with all of that, his steps were firm and never wavered.
Still, the one that attracted their attention the most was the mark of the spider lily and centipede on his neck, which appeared so evil yet beautiful.
"Sensei!"
Tatsuya quickly approached Isao, ready to help him heal, but his head was once again being rubbed by Isao with his special magic, "Regrowth," which made him able to restore Isao to the previous state.
However, before Tatsuya was able to do anything, Isao stopped him by rubbing his head again.
"Don't. I can heal by myself, and you are not strong enough to heal me."
"..." Tatsuya.
"Listen to me. You are still young. There is no need for you to force yourselves to become a weapon. You are free to choose your own future. You have me on your back."
If there was something that made him helpless about Tatsuya, it was how Tatsuya would accept all the fate that came toward him, forcing him into a weapon that should destroy everything.
What was the age of Tatsuya?
Yet, everyone told him to become a weapon obediently.
Still, as someone who was biologically modified, leaving only his emotion toward his little sister, Tatsuya could handle all of this by himself.
At the same time, Isao knew that if there was a reason why Miya was so cold toward her son, it was because she knew that Tatsuya's future would be horrible, filled with blood, and being used as a weapon.
However, as a mother, Miya could do nothing, especially when she was about to die, so before she passed away, she hardened herself, forcing her son to grow up faster, faster, so Tatsuya wouldn't be swallowed by everything.
While it was awkward, it was how Miya showed her love and care for her son.
However, Isao had come, and he changed Tatsuya's fate.
Well, Tatsuya would become his stepson anyway, so naturally, he would protect Tatsuya, and he also owed him, especially when he got Tatsuya's DNA so easily.
No matter what, Isao, who had become a good guy, didn't think it was right to force Tatsuya, who was a child, to become a soldier, a weapon, or even a tool for the war, even though as a magician, it was Tatsuya's fate to become the tool of the war.
"...yes."
Tatsuya's emotion might be erased, yet he wondered why tears streamed from his eyes.
"Let's go back. I am hungry."
"...I think you should go to the hospital first," Honami, who had been silent, said speechlessly.
"Can you make sukiyaki at the hospital?"
"...I don't know, but we need to stop your bleeding first!"
Honami tried to tend to Isao's wounds, but when they were about to leave, Isao said, "Oh, Kazama, don't forget my money."
"...." Honami and Tatsuya.
"Yes!"
Kazama answered as he made a military salute toward Isao and his subordinates.
As Isao left, no one stopped him.
Yet, from this Okinawa Defense Naval Battle, his figure would definitely become infamous.
The strongest creature in the world.
The Beast.
Iinuma Isao.
Wöchentlicher Energiestatus
-- Power-
Rangliste 
-- Power-
Stein