Keep Fighting

𓊈卍 𝟔𝟕 卍𓊉

"Na... Nakano!! Sto-"

"SHUT UP AND DIE!!" Her grip tightens, and Takemichi is no longer able to breathe. "YOU TREACHEROUS FUCKER WALKED OUT ON TOMAN, AND NOW YOU'VE KILLED MY LEADER!!!"

'What? Is this Nakano's past self!?' Takemichi tries to fight against her as if he even has a chance. His sister is too strong. But her past self seems to be even stronger. 'Shit!! I accidentally sent her back!!'

Takemichi writhes even more in an attempt to escape her grip, when she suddenly flinches. Her grip immediately loosens, and she falls to the side with a thud.

He slips out from under her, and scrambles to her unconscious body. That's when he notices something on the side of her neck. A tranquilizer dart?

He glances to where the dart likely came from, to see Naoto with wide eyes and a gun in his hand. "You just shot her!!"

Instead of coming back with a snide remark of how he just saved Takemichi's dumbass, he holsters the tranquilizer gun with the same shock on his face. "I've never witnessed this level of hostility from Nakano-san before. That was her past self, wasn't it?"

Takemichi trembles to his feet, and sways after coming down from an adrenaline high and a mental and emotional breakdown. "Naoto... I need to find her and bring her back."

The younger male arches a brow. "Bring her back?"

Tears form in Takemichi's eyes once again, as the scene of Nakano holding a gun to her head replays in his mind. "I've never seen her that weakened before. She almost killed herself, damn it. And Mikey-kun tricked her into killing him, and she... She loves him. They love each other, I know they do."

He wipes his eyes to dry his tears, and turns back to face Naoto with a new look of determination. "I'll bring Nakano back to the future, then I'll deal with the rest myself." He holds his hand out for a handshake. "She's protected me ever since she returned to Japan. Now it's my turn to protect her."

━─━─━━─━「卍」━━─━─━─━

Nakano's entire body is freezing cold, but her chest is burning and throbbing like it could explode at any moment. The rain is pouring down on her, but not as fast as her tears flow from her eyes.

Puddles splash beneath her bare feet, and the only thing keeping her warm are her thin pajamas, and the now soaked jacket that Seishu gave her.

She's choking on sobs, and drowning in the rain she's sprinting through, as thunder crashes above her. She doesn't have a damn clue where she is, because she just spawned in an alleyway out of nowhere. Before this, she remembers everything.

Shooting Manjiro. Killing Manjiro. Listening as Manjiro professed his love for the last time. Watching as Manjiro died in her arms. Using the same gun she used on him, on herself.

Though, that didn't work out. Nothing ever works out for her. She's still alive, and once again back in the past. Back to square one. Actually, she's far behind square one.

As she's lost in her hysteria, with her vision blurry because of the tears and rain, she doesn't notice that she's come to a park. Her foot ends up in a mud patch. She slips on it, causing her to slide onto a patch of grass.

"WHY DO I HAVE TO COME BACK IF NOTHING CHANGES!?!"

She cries out into the dark and stormy sky, as she chucks a fistful of mud straight up into the air. Which only comes back down and lands on her shoulder. The rain washes it down her arm.