Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

Having anticipated that various groups would be pursuing them long before his excursion into Megalomesembria, Vahn had already selected a suitable battleground. It was one of the regions that had previously flooded, and, though there was a settlement a few dozen kilometers away, there was a decently sized mountain range separating it from the largely uninhabited valley.

After reaching their destination in just under half an hour, Vahn had Fenrir come to a stop near the very center of the valley. Then, without him needing to advise her, she instantly reverted back to her true form, manifesting her Zanpakuto in the process.

Nodding his head in approval, Vahn caressed the heads of both Fenrir and Asuna as he said, "I'll be watching closely. Remember, if you want to use any big attacks, aim them upwards or towards the South. Even if this region is largely uninhabited due to Megalomesembria's wanton destruction, we should try to avoid exacerbating the situation..."

Though he didn't have much room to speak, the simple truth of the matter was that Vahn's attacks generally had a beneficial effect on the environment. His former battlefields became hotspots for a variety of different lifeforms, and, even if he were to fight in the middle of a desert, the area would quickly turn into an oasis over the course of a few weeks...

Without drawing attention to the fact that Vahn often caused 'extreme' amounts of damage to the environment, Fenrir and Asuna both nodded their heads, the former answering, "Yes, Master!" while the latter followed up with a simple, "Nn."

Satisfied with the duo's response, Vahn lightly pinched Asuna's nose before walking off to the side with Fenrir. Moments later, like a meteor descending from the heavens, a youth veiled in a cloak of vibrant white lightning crashed into the ground a few meters away from the trio's position.

Understanding that the youth was trying to make a cool appearance, Vahn couldn't help but smile in amusement as a red-haired boy emerged from the small crater his landing had formed. His wild hairstyle was influenced by the infusion of lightning elemental energy into his Ki, and, like a Super Saiyan emerging on the scene of a battlefield, a chaotic shroud of crackling energy veiled his body as he leaned forward confidently and asked, "So, you're the Sage Dragon Emperor that's all the rage these days?"

While ruminating over the practicality of having a magical staff spinning behind your body, Vahn shook his head, confusing the youth slightly as he said, "Who I am doesn't really matter right now. If you continue to ignore the enemy in front of you, you're bound to experience some suffering."

Hearing Vahn's words, the youth showed a slightly incredulous look on his face as he briefly turned his attention to Asuna. Based solely on appearance, there wasn't much of a difference in their ages, but, disregarding this entirely, the red-haired youth craned his head and asked, "Huh? Enemy? This chibi? Come on man, you-"

Unable to finish his words, the youth was forced to dodge to the right, his movement so swift that it was impossible for most to trace. Despite this, he was unable to completely dodge Asuna's attack, a rather sizeable chunk of red hairs serving as a testament to that fact.

With widened eyes, the youth turned back to Asuna with an incredulous look on his face, a thin line of blood running down his left cheek as he exclaimed, "Holy shit. This little cutie is a real firecracker, ain't she?"

Unamused by the youth's words, Asuna's eyes sharpened as she leaned forward slightly, her large parka flaring out in a rather cinematic display as she bolted forward with explosive force. She felt a weird disturbance in the surrounding air, so, rather than use shundo, she intended to rely on raw speed, footwork, and technique to punish the foul-mouthed boy.

Getting a dangerous feeling from the small black 'dagger' in the girl's hand, the youth rightly chose not to try and block it. Just staring at it made him feel a little nervous, something he didn't even feel when facing against his teacher, one of the most skilled swordsmen in the entire world.

With his enhanced speed and reflexes, the youth thought he would be able to create some distance between himself and the fiery young girl, but, even after doubling his speed, he was still barely able to dodge her attacks. A few even nicked his body, completely ignoring the multi-layered barrier of Ki and Magical Energy surrounding his body.

Realizing the girl wasn't simple, an excited smile began to spread across the youth's face as he used a short-range teleportation spell to create some distance and say, "My name is Nagi Springfield, the man who will one day stand at the pinnacle of this world. Tell me, what's your name, cutie?"

Emphasizing just how annoyed she was, Asuna's bells released a gentle chime as she took a slow-motion step forward as she muttered, "Vis Maxima..."

With alarm bells screaming in the back of his mind, Nagi exclaimed, "Shit..!" as he extended both hands forward. In response to his gesture, several layers of magical barriers appeared between him and Asuna. Even this didn't silence the alarms, however, so, trusting his instinct, Nagi used another short-range teleportation as Asuna, shattering all of the barriers as if they were thin panes of glass, cut through the area where he had previously been standing.

Shocked by the girl's ability to just crash through magical barriers with her body, Nagi adopted a slightly more serious expression as he muttered, "This little chibi is even stronger than I was at her age..."

Though she hadn't heard the Nagi's mutterings, the edge of Asuna's Zanpakuto glistened with a dangerous light as she cut towards his direction. This caused him to instinctually use another short-range teleportation spell, but, much to his surprise, he still felt 'something' pass through his body as an intense, searing, pain spread from his chest.

After reappearing in the air several hundred meters away, Nagi was compelled to cover his mouth as a large volume of blood surged from his throat. To his horror, an unnervingly large wound had appeared across his body. Its length ran from his right shoulder to just under his ribs, and, if it had been even a centimeter or two deeper, most of his vital organs would have been sliced through in an instant.

Despite feeling extremely lightheaded, a smile spread across Nagi's face as the lightning veiling his body began to cauterize his wound. He realized the girl was holding back, as that attack could have easily taken his life, but, rather than show any fear whatsoever, all he felt was excitement as he said, "You're really something..."

As she had been a little worried about the severity of Nagi's injury, Asuna didn't immediately follow up on her attack. This was where her lack of experience came into play, as, following his statement, a truly monumental amount of lightning surged from Nagi's body, tearing through the surrounding landscape as his figure seemed to blink out of existence. The next thing Asuna knew, there was a hand covering her view, and, if not for her defaulting into the State of Nothingness by default, she would have found herself being dragged through the terrain by the lightning-clad youth.

Undaunted by the fact he had somehow passed through his enemy, Nagi grabbed his staff with an even more excited smile on his face as he shouted, "Great! Let's see how long you can keep it up!"

Though he wasn't sure about the mechanic behind his opponent's intangibility, Nagi had learned how to damage incorporeal opponents from his teacher, a Master of the Shinmei-Ryu School. He was still far from the level of being able to cut through concepts, but, with a natural affinity for both lightning elemental energy and sealing, he was confident in being able to injure ghosts, gods, and spirits.

With the head of his staff turning into an extendable blade formed from lightning elemental energy and ki, Nagi began to cut towards Asuna's body with enough speed to create tempestuous winds in the surroundings.

Causing the smile on Nagi's face to become even more prominent, Asuna's figure actually began to flicker in a strange manner, deftly evading or cutting through his strikes. He could tell she was using a variation of shundo, but, before he could see through the technique, he was forced to duck under her blade as it swept through the area where his head had been.

Understanding the danger of 'simply' dodging, Nagi attempted to grab Asuna's wrist while striking toward her abdomen with his left foot. He believed she wouldn't be able to attack in her immaterial state, so, unless it was a 'very' realistic feint, her deduced she had momentarily become vulnerable.

Unfortunately, Nagi's quick-thinking provided little benefit this time around as both his hand and foot slipped through Asuna's body. This put him in an awkward situation that required him to use another short-range teleportation, but, having anticipated this, Asuna managed to place her hand on his back, teleporting with him.

Not expecting a sudden passenger, Nagi was momentarily at a loss as his brain tried to process how Asuna was able to 'ignore' all of his barriers.

Taking advantage of the very momentary gap, Asuna reentered the State of Nothingness in an instant, her hand slipping into Nagi's body. This wouldn't normally cause any damage, but, as a Master in the use of Ki, Asuna was able to release a series of destructive pulses in the interior of Nagi's body, ignoring his defenses entirely. It made her feel a little sick to the stomach, but, as the purpose of this battle was to overcome her aversion to injuring others, she pushed through it...

Feeling as if a localized earthquake had just erupted in his body, Nagi ended up vomiting even more blood than before as most of his organs sustained heavy injuries. He was pretty sure his left lung had completely collapsed as well, but, with a dauntless smile on his face, he managed to look down at Asuna's hand before saying, "You know, I always thought I would be the one penetrating a cute girl. Who would have thought a day would come when the roles were reversed?"

Stupefied by Nagi's remark, Asuna couldn't help but gawk as she stared back at the youth with an incredulous expression. This ended up being another mistake, as, without a clear mind, maintaining the State of Nothingness was very difficult. As a result, her hand 'materialized' inside of Nagi's side, a fact the youth in question was very aware of as he forced his lightning infused ki directly into her body.

Unaccustomed to taking damage, Asuna's first instinct was to try and move away, but, rather than allow his chance to slip away, Nagi grabbed her wrist with enough force to fracture the bones as he mused, "I'm afraid you'll have to take responsibility..."

To punctuate his words, Nagi attempted to release even more lightning-infused ki, but, immediately after his words fell, an irresistible force prevented all of his movements. He could feel his mind race faster than it ever had before, but, no matter how much power he tried to muster, he could do little more than being taken along for the ride as time began to flow in reverse...

---

Unaffected by Vahn's time reversal, Asuna began to tear up slightly as she cradled her broken wrist and attempted to mend the bones. Nagi's grasp was like a death grip so her wrist had turned nearly as black as Ko before swelling up to more than three times the normal size. (A/N: Ko is the name of Asuna's Zanpakuto for those who have forgotten.)

Fortunately, while Nagi was stuck experiencing his battle in reverse, Vahn dutifully appeared next to Asuna, tenderly embracing her trembling body before carefully grasping her wrist. This caused her to release a pained yelp, but, rather than complain, Asuna just bit her bottom lip before burying her face into Vahn's chest and allowing him to mend her wounds...

(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'I would have laughed if Vahn just answered, "No."','Asuna doesn't like being called a chibi (\>,...,\<)...','Death Penalty')

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