InaDan: Flower of Courage

The Lake Beyond Space-Time

And so, the van chased after the large craft.

~~~~~

"They've run off." Asta muttered.

"Has anything changed with the current situation?" San asked. "What should we do?"

"We must make them perish." The mint haired girl sat on top of the strange orb. "For the sake of humanity's future..."

"What's wrong with that kid?"

"She can make objects move using some mysterious power. Someday, she'll hurt us..."

"Don't say that."

"There's no need to worry. In recent years, a number of children have awakened their abilities. Your daughter is just one of them."

"What?!"

"We're experienced in handling these children. After teaching then control of their power, we'll send them home."

~~~~~

They landed in a somewhat mountainous area. The children from the larger craft were taking out what appears to be camping facilities. Noticing their gazes, they went to confront each other.

With both sides being tense, the other brunette took the charge. "Thank you for back then."

"Can you tell us," Shindou immediately cuts off.

"Just what is going on?" Tenma asked.

They turned to each other before facing them seriously. "The enemy is trying to end this world."

"Huh?!"

"Enemy?!"

The brunette smiled a little, perhaps hoping to clear the air. "Let me introduce myself first. I'm Yamano Ban."

"I'm Oozora Hiro." The blue haired boy beside him chimed in.

A redhead winked. "Hanasaki Ran."

This caught him off guard. How could he have been so rude? "I'm Matsukaze Tenma. And we are-"

"Shinsei Inazuma Japan, right?" Ran cut in snarkily.

"You know about us?"

Ban's face turned serious. "Yes. We learned about you while predicting where the enemy would attack next."

"T-Then, you know what's happening, right?"

Hiro's face fell. "No, we don't quite understand it either."

"At first, we were shocked about what's happening as well." Ban continued. Their faces began to grimace.

"But we do know that the world is in chaos. Pieces from every world are linking to each other like a puzzle."

"W-Wait a minute! I don't understand what you mean." Tenma stuttered.

"Don't panic." An old man along with three other adults came out of the larger ship. "Look." The old man waved his walking stick in the air and suddenly, a hologram appeared.

"Whoa!"

"Amazing!" Shinsuke praised.

"Just like magic!" Akane smiled.

"That's just a small trick." The old man said, suddenly bashful.

Ban took the initiative to explain. "Normally, it's impossible for Tenma's world and our world to meet." Yellow lines progressed in parallel across the screen before passing through a red line and suddenly intersecting one another. "But because of the chaos in space-time right now, we've ended up linked."

"Due to the chaos of space?"

"The forest we're in may connect with other worlds as well." Fei stated.

"So, this is that striker's work, who attacked the stadium?" Shindou asked.

"Yes." Ban's face fell. "They already eliminated parts of our world and connected it with fragments from somewhere else."

"They're an incredible enemy." Hiro stated grimly.

"The world will disappear, but why?" Shindou lifted his head again to ask. "Do you know their true identity?"

A laughter came from the distance. "In other words, the enemy has the formidable power to reshape the world."

One of the adults with black hair and large sunglasses seemed to glare. "Who are you?"

"I'm Professor Crossword Aruno. An expert in the field of space-time."

"Professor Aruno, please tell us!" Tenma called. "Where have Endou-san and the others gone?"

"I'm afraid they're trapped in some separate piece of space-time."

"Can we save them?"

"To do that, you need to learn the enemy's identity and defeat them."

"Really?" Tenma smiled at that glimmer of hope. "Thank goodness!"

"That means this is the only way." Shindou smiled.

"Yes! Let's fight, and rescue everyone who disappeared!"

Ban smiled at this. "We're ready to fight too."

"Naturally!" Hiro grinned. The rest nodded.

"Great! Let's do it together!"

"Alright!"

A brown haired man in a lab coat nodded at the other adults. "We'll continue the investigation."

Ban looked back at his group. "And we'll-"

"Get a good spot to sleep!" Nishiki and Shinsuke ran past them, carrying some of their belongings out to the open.

"Yes, and this fight is exactly why I brought in some reinforcements." Professor Aruno laughed, earning their attention again.

"Reinforcements?"

The space professor snapped his fingers and a black box appeared above the lake. The bottom opened and two figures fell out, screaming in surprise before hitting the water.