YuYuYu fanfic - Akihara Sekka no Shou Continuation

Akihara Sekkka no Shou continuation
Chapter 1: Handshake
Source: https://www.pixiv.net/novel/show.php?id=18657953

They got me good.

Heat escaped her left arm, followed by a sharp pain, then the sensation of losing a large quantity of blood. Sekka faltered, her face distorted in pain.
"You won't get away with that!"
She threw her spear in a flash.
The vertex which had suffered the blow came down from the air and crashed onto the ground.
And without a moment's delay, she rushed to it to deliver the finishing blow.
Not leaving her time to breath, the next vertexes came to attack her.
The battle lasted for roughly two hours, and she was physically drained.
"Aah~, it's tough to be so popular~"
Even exhausted, she didn't lose her sarcasm. But if she did, she would be crushed by the isolation, the fear of fighting grotesque monsters would instill.
Her fairy's appearances grew rare recently, Kamuy's power seem to be reached its limit too.

"One more"!

My body's reached its limits a long time ago trying to win this fight. My legs are a mess and I can't move my right arm well. I guess I've got bone fractures. My side has a part missing and blood is trickling down my combat outfit, and the flesh on my left arm has been chewed by a vertex, you can even see the bones.
"I have to go back..."
Clinging onto my spear, I dragged my feet back.

With a feeling of relief, I returned to the cave.
As if feeling my presence, a girl rushed towards me.
She's become attached to me after I saved her grandmother. I felt uneasy at first, but lately, it's become quite comfortable.
When the girl noticed the state I was in, she stopped right in her tracks.

"Sekka onee-chan, you're horribly injured!!"

She then turned around and faced the opposite direction.
(...Aah~, I wanted her to run up to me though.)
Being reminded of her smile, I could feel the corners of my mouth rise.

And I then lost consciousnesses.

When I came to, the girl was staring at me, crying.
(...Don't make that face.)
Even though I tried, my mouth wouldn't move.
"...! Onee-chan woke up!!"
The girl called out to the others in the cave.
They immediately gathered around me.
"Hero-sama..."
"You came back to us alive."
They all took turns grasping my right hand.
I could make a guess as to why no one took my left hand, or perhaps someone was already holding it.
I don't know, and I was too numb to check. My body is terribly cold.
My face probably looks totally pale.
(I would've fought with makeup on if I knew that would happen...)

After everyone had their turn shaking my hand, the girl took my right hand last.
"Sekka onee-chan, thank you for protecting everyone!"
My vision became blurry. I couldn't tell if she was crying or laughing.
I could finally squeeze out words from my throat.
"...Thank...... you too."
I squeezed my right hand tightly.
(Aah, this is so warm...)
My body feels strangely warm.

Sekka closed her eyelids and fell asleep.





Akihara Sekkka no Shou continuation
Chapter 2: Coffee
Source: https://www.pixiv.net/novel/show.php?id=18668661

I heard the sound of a door being unlocked.
"Sekka, are you here~?"
It was Karin.
"Yeah, I am~.
I sluggishly stood up and went greeting her in the entrance.
"Here, souvenirs!"
Karin handed me a bag with a box of sweets and dried sardines inside. Seriously, dried sardines!? I would have retorted like that some time ago, but not anymore, this has become a common occurrence.
And really, I'm grateful for her sardines and souvenirs.

Seven years passed since the disappearance of vertexes.
And I was helping with Hokkaido's reconstruction.
Karin on the other hand was running about throughout the country to help with its reconstruction. It was due to this effort that reconstruction of every region was coming along. That being said, country-wide distribution network was still under construction.
Here in Hokkaido, we could receive food or daily necessities, but it was in no way abundant.

"Thanks Karin. I'm always grateful."
"I-It's okay... You're helping me too so..."
"Oh? Karin, is your face getting red?"
"I-III-...I-It was cold outside!"
Said Karin as her face turned even redder.
"Ahaha, I see. Want some coffee then?"
"I'd like that".



Seven years ago--actually, it was more 308 years ago.
After a vertex attack, I was on the verge of death.
When I finally reached the cave, everyone shook my hand. The old woman I saved, her granddaughter, the town residents...
(So warm-)
My body had lost so much blood it should have frozen then, and yet I felt warm, at that moment I closed my eyes and peacefully fell asleep.
An eternal sleep, one which I would never wake up from--at least that was how it supposed to be.

I woke up.
My body was warm, my right arm, left arm, stomach, right leg, left leg, I could move everything as I wished.
I regained sensation in my left arm that should have been bitten off by a vertex, my stomach was intact. Aside from a slight numbness in my right leg, everything was completely normal.
I sat upright and tried standing up.
"Sekka onee-chan, you're alive!?"
The girl's voice echoed through the cave.
When she looked back in excitement, she lost her balance.
"Watch out!"
I barely caught her.
"Thank you."
"..."
"Could you not look at me like you're seeing a ghost?"

I was alive.
It appeared Kamuy's power increased my recovery and healed my wounds. How convenient is that... I would've liked to protest, but the essence of Kamuy's power I received seemed to affect living beings. In other words, healing was kinda like its field of expertise.
Since then, I haven't seen a single vertex.
I haven't felt Kamuy's power either.
Kamyu's parting gift was the healing of my body.

Us survivors worked rebuilding the town.

Contact from Shikoku came half a year after that.
It was at that time I met Karin. I couldn't see her face through radio communications, but weirdly enough, we hit it off immediately.
I talked about everything we went through.
About how I protected Hokkaido by fighting all on my own.
Then she told me how her and the Hero Club borrowed Shinju's power to fight off the heavenly gods.
And about the history of the Divine Era.
"Eh, for real!? ...I slept for around 300 years!?"
"Yeah, you did. Even Sonoko didn't believe it."
For the first time I learned that the "Christian Era" came to an end



Karin boiled water and warmed up the coffee cup while I ground coffee beans and set the filter.
We've both become good at that. We skillfully made coffee.
With the perfect amount of sugar and milk.
I preferred it black before, but-

Two years ago.
This was when Karin first came to Hokkaido.
Karin remembered I said I wanted to drink coffee, and so she brought a coffee set with her.
Due to technology brought by Shinju, it was only possible to grow coffee in Shikoku, and we didn't have it in Hokkaido.
As a black coffee enjoyer, Karin got it for herself too.
"R-Real coffee is black! ...I-It's obvious!"
I never forgot the face Karin made while she was drinking coffee right after she said that.
Since then, I always made sure to put sugar and milk when we drink together.

After making tea for two, I set the table.
I prepared the sweets and sardines Karin brought as snacks to go with tea.
"Haa~~, your coffee really is the best!"
"Thanks, I'm glad you like it."
The coffee tasted very sweet, I never tasted this before meeting Karin.
"How's it going lately?"
Karin asked, munching on dried sardines.
"It's okay. Reconstruction is going well, so much I don't have much to do anymore."
"... I see. That's good."
Karin picked one sardine after the other.
I've got a pretty clear understanding of Karin's tastes, but the coffee dried sardines combo is still a mystery to me.
I guess I could try it out a little today.
But during that train of thought, Karin stopped grabbing more sardines.
"...What're you gonna do when reconstruction is over?"
"When it's over... I never thought about that."
Now that she mentions it, I've been so focused on rebuilding I didn't have time to think about what's next.
"It's just a suggestion..."
Karin looked right into my eyes.
Seeing Karin more serious than usual makes me a little nervous.
(...Jeez. Isn't it unfair to only do it in those times?)
I waited for Karin's words.
"Wanna come with me?"
"Eh?"
"Wanna come with me after Hokkaido's reconstruction is over?"
"W-Well I'd like to see Shikoku at least once."
"Not once, I mean forever."
"Eh?"
"I-I'm bustling around all over the country, so it's not like I can stay in Shikoku, so why not come with me to all kinds of places?"
"..."
"So?"
"..."
"Aah! Answer already! You're making this embarrassing!"
"Sorry, sorry. My mind went blank for a second."
Trying to think, I brought coffee to my mouth. Waking up my mind with a lot of sugar and a sliver of bitterness. I took a breath and spoke.
"Thank you, Karin. ...But sorry. Hokkaido's where I belong."
I stared right back at her.
"I am Akihara Sekka. Hokkaido's Hero. I've fought alone the whole time. Back then, I considered saving only myself. And for that, I dug a cave for myself to take refuge in, if things took a bad turn, I intended to hole myself in. ...But in the end, I couldn't abandon them, and before I knew it, people gathered at my cave. Funny, right?"
"It's not. You're a Hero too."
"...Thank you. Hey, Karin, why did you fight as a Hero?"
"That... At first it was for the world, but at the end, it was for my friends... I guess."
"I see. I fought for myself. I wanted to be the only one to survive. There were a lot of bad adults around me, always using my powers for themselves. I didn't really want to save these people. I hated it. Fighting alone was so cold... And when things got worse, they died. Only the kind people remained, because I couldn't abandon them. Until I couldn't abandon anyone anymore. I still wonder why. I told myself it was because I was a Hero. But then I was severely injured... When I thought I was about to die and everyone took my hand, I noticed. Aah, so warm. I wasn't fighting alone. Everyone was there..."
I put my feelings into words one after the other.
Those feelings I never told anyone before.
"So I want to be here. I want to live with everyone."
These are my roots as a Hero.
"So these are your true feelings... So I've been turned down. Sorry about that awkward stuff."
"That includes you, I want to live with you too."
"Eh? ...Ah, wai-"
"I love the people here, but I love you too."
"L-LLLLLL-Love..."
Karin didn't even know where to look, and looking at her made even me bashful. I could tell my face was turning red.
"What? You asked my come with you! It's too late to be surprised now!"
"I-I know, but I wasn't mentally ready..."
"Then be ready from the start!"
"But that came out of nowhere... So it's kinda... my feelings are all over the place!"
"Aah, Karin... I'm disappointed in the perfect Hero..."
"Gnn..."
"Anyway! I'll be waiting here!"
"Fine! Then I'll come here every day!"
"But that's called living together... Haa... I'm tired."
I rested my head on the table.
At that instant, something crossed my mind.
"Ah... There's something I want to do."
"What?"
"I want to make clothes. Mine, and other people's."
"That's good. I'm sure that'll be a good fit for you."
"Thanks. First I'll make something for you♪ The cute kind!"
"Haa!? Mine!? No way! ...I won't let you measure me!"
"What are you saying? You left a change of clothes here. I already know your sizes."
"Kuu, you got me..."
"Eh eh eh. No one can beat Sekka-san!"


I am Akihara Sekka. Hokkaido's Hero