Berserk Awakening [2] — Escalation

While Shintaro and the others prepared for the mission, Saku and Takeru continued their battle. Takeru charged his fists with electricity, the crackling both intense and breathtaking.

He threw a fusillade of blows; each one thumped against the barrier as it slowly started to crack. Takeru didn't slow down; instead, he did the exact opposite. The speed of his punches was so profound that his hands were merely a blur.

“It's cracking, this is my chance,” Takeru thought as he threw his final blow. In an instant, he slammed his right palm on the shield while shouting:

“VOLTAGE!!!”

An electric volt surged from his palm and electrocuted the barrier. It shattered completely, disappearing slowly. Saku's blank face didn't shift; he simply stared into his foe’s eyes. 

Takeru pushed off his rear foot, rotating his hips and shoulders as he threw his charged rear hand, aiming for Saku's face.

Saku leaped over Takeru, avoiding the cross altogether. Takeru’s eyes narrowed as Saku stuck the landing behind him. Saku pivoted on the ball of his supporting foot, twisting his hips and torso.

He extended his leg straight back; the heel struck Takeru’s back, sending him crashing into the wall with a thud. The cracks of the wall mirrored his silent pain as he groaned while Saku looked at him emotionlessly.

*****

In a dark, lightless void, Saku stood in front of the berserk version of himself, his face laced with concern, his tone panicked and fearful, his blue eyes wide open.

“STOP!!! You don't have to go this far, he's had enough! You're gonna kill him at this rate!!!”

"I will not forgive anyone who lays a hand on Kanae. The only thing he deserves... IS DEATH BY MY HAND..." A deep-seated, hatred-driven tone came from Berserk's lips, his gaze intensifying as his black and red eyes flickered with fury.

“LISTEN TO ME, IF YOU KILL HIM TODAY WE WOULD REGRET IT TOMORROW, WE WOULDN'T BE ABLE TO TAKE IT BACK, UNDERSTAND?! WE WOULD REGRET THIS FOR AS LONG AS WE LIVE… FOR... as long as… I live… Please just calm down, I'm begging you!!” Saku pleaded as he grabbed Berserk's shoulders firmly.

*****

Just then, a figure leaped off the building behind Saku, aiming an overhead kick towards him. Saku dodged, but before he could assess the situation, he was knocked into the street with a devastating front kick.

As he stood up, a portal immediately opened on his left. Yanami came through, pressing the side of her mask with two fingers. The mask slowly opened to reveal her gentle lips.

“You might want to close your ears,” Yanami warned as she took a balanced stance and aimed her mouth at Saku. “KRRRREEEEEE…”

An extremely powerful, hypersonic, highly enhanced shriek tore through the atmosphere, shattering the sound barrier as a destructive wave emanated from Yanami's open maw.

The attack's intensity was so profound that it blew away everything in its path along with Saku, his face contorting. The road was decimated as a massive continuous crater appeared.

The cherry blossom trees were eviscerated; the glass of the cars that were parked on the sides of the road shattered from the high frequency. 

Saku had taken the attack head-on; even his immense durability wasn't enough to prevent him from getting knocked out.

He lay unconscious on the ravaged street, his ears bleeding along with his nose, eyes, and mouth. The figure, who was none other than Shintaro, strode towards Saku.

“Excellent work, Yanami.”

Yanami nodded once as she looked at Riyoka, who was attending to Takeru and Kanae. She opened another portal, but this time it was much bigger.

The Union’s First Aid team marched through the portal as they took Kanae, Takeru, and Saku for immediate treatment. Shintaro, Yanami, and Riyoka walked into the portal, following the Aid team as the portal vortex spun shut.

*****

A few moments prior to Saku's transformation, Yoroi Tsuchiyama was hiding in an abandoned building. 

He felt it—a powerful ominous energy output that threatened to kill him on sight as he saw an image of Saku's, or rather Berserk's, face. He chuckled in an inhuman manner.

“Well, well, well, I wonder who this might be. With that kind of power there's no mistaking it, he's an anomaly, possibly a paramount. There is no doubt they probably felt it as well. The question is: when will they make their first move? hehehehe…”

Elsewhere, thirty minutes later, people were seated at a table; their arrangement was somewhat ceremonial. 

The one at the head wore a Faceless Chrome Mask that completely altered his voice, making it impossible for anyone to tell who was under the mask.

His voice warped and distorted as the mask showed a mock version of Saku's face. "Our new target..." The voice paused, its tone shifting to malevolence. "Is the youngest son of the Mizuno family... SAKU... MIZUNO.”